Hold Fast
We are living through strange days: COVID-19; lockdowns; the rule of six; two metres for fifteen minutes, one metre for one minute; hands, face, space; no Christmas to really look forward to.
And of course, the constant worry about loo roll!
Whilst in some ways being a teacher right now is something to be thankful for - we have a regular salary every month - it is also hugely challenging and at times overwhelming: getting children to socially distance, managing bubbles, remote learning, blended learning, working through holidays for vulnerable pupils and key worker children, having to adapt to changing guidelines all the time...
You may even be wondering where God is in all this. Not being able to go to church as normal, you may find yourself drifting. So how, as Christian teachers, can we ‘hold fast’ during this time of need?
There can be no better place to go for the answer than Hebrews 4.14-16.
The book of Hebrews was originally written to people who were also going through a ‘time of need’ (4.16). They were at the point of giving up and giving in. But the writer urges them in 4.14 to ‘hold fast’. Why? Is it because he is trying to gee them up, get them to think positively, pull themselves together, a kind of ‘come on you can do this’, ‘dig in’, ‘be resilient’ type thing? I remember when I was a younger teacher and coached one of the school’s football teams. At half time we were 4 nil down in the quarter final of the cup. The players were dejected so I gave them an inspirational team talk. I told them to play for the shirt; it’s just 11 against 11; if they can score 4 in a half so can we, and so on. We went out in the second half and lost 7-0! It was just talk.
That is not what the writer to the Hebrews is doing here. He tells them to hold fast because they have a sympathetic high priest who knows what they are going through and can help them. Hebrew 4.15 says ‘we do not have a high priest who is unable’. In English if you double a negative you cancel it out. We have some boys in our school who, when they are in trouble, say, ‘I don’t know nothing’. And they are absolutely right. They don’t know nothing. They know something. But in Greek, a double negative strengthens what you are saying. So in Hebrews 4.15, the writer is saying, not that the Lord Jesus can sympathise, but rather it is impossible for Him not to sympathise.
Hebrews 5.8 says Jesus ‘learned obedience’. This means He learned, while on earth for thirty three years, what it was like to be to be human, and even though He is now in heaven, He hasn’t forgotten what it is like to be me and you.. He may be at God’s right hand, in the place of power, but He hasn’t forgotten what it is like to be me and you. He cannot help but sympathise with us.
However, if all He could do was sympathise with us, then it would only go so far. He has a ‘throne’ (4.16). The one who sympathises with us is also all powerful and is in control of everything - you, your school, your pupils, COVID-19, our country, the world. Nothing or nobody is outside of his control!
And He invites us to come ‘boldly’ to this throne. Boldly doesn’t mean overconfident, arrogant and too familiar. We are coming to a holy God, the maker of heaven and earth. Rather it means I can tell him everything; pour out my heart and soul to Him. Moreover, at this throne I will find ‘grace’ and ‘mercy’. Mercy is not getting what I deserve, and when I think of all my sins and mess ups, I need mercy! But I also need grace: kindness I don’t deserve. If I am going to stand as a Christian teacher, especially through these particularly difficult days, I need grace, God’s help.
Robert Murray McCheyne once said that if he knew the Lord Jesus Christ was in the next room praying for him, he would not be frightened of anything. I am sure you think the same. But Jesus Christ is not in the next room. It is even better. He is in Heaven, right next to God the Father, praying for you. So come to Him and keep coming to Him and get grace to ‘hold fast’.
If we have received and keep receiving this grace and mercy, it is important we show this grace and mercy to others. If ever there was a time to be a Christian witness, engage in social enterprise, love our neighbour as ourselves and radiate the Lord Jesus Christ to our pupils, parents and colleagues, it’s now.
If we do, more than just ‘holding fast’, when all this is past, we will be stronger, and who knows, under God, many students, staff and parents will have been added to the kingdom.
Alun Ebenezer, Headmaster of Fulham Boys School.