From Curtain to Cross: Come Near to God

Devotional

Day 1: The Unfathomable Cost of Our Access

The physical suffering Jesus endured was profound and intentional. The scourging with the flagellum was designed to inflict maximum pain and strip away dignity, leaving Him weakened and unrecognizable. This was not a swift or merciful punishment but a prolonged, agonizing process. Every strike was borne out of love, a prelude to the ultimate sacrifice that would forever change our standing before God. [37:47]

But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5, ESV)

Reflection: As you consider the depth of Christ's physical suffering, what specific aspect of His pain—the scourging, the weight of the cross, the crucifixion—most deeply impacts your understanding of the price paid for you?

Day 2: The Barrier That Screamed "Stay Away"

The temple curtain was a formidable, divinely instituted barrier. Its immense size and thickness were a physical declaration of the separation between a holy God and sinful humanity. The strict regulations governing access to the Holy of Holies underscored the impossibility of approaching God on our own terms. This curtain represented a system that reminded people of their distance, not their closeness, to the Divine. [46:13]

The LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron your brother not to come at any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat that is on the ark, so that he may not die. For I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat." (Leviticus 16:2, ESV)

Reflection: Where in your life do you still feel a sense of distance from God, as if an old, heavy curtain still separates you from His presence?

Day 3: Torn by God: The Divine Invitation

At the precise moment Jesus declared His work finished, God Himself acted. The tearing of the curtain from top to bottom was a decisive, supernatural act that could only be performed by divine hands. This was not a minor adjustment but a complete dismantling of the old system of separation. It signified that the way to God was now open, not based on our efforts, but on the finished work of Christ. [45:19]

And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split. (Matthew 27:50-51, ESV)

Reflection: How does the truth that God Himself tore the curtain—that He initiated this reconciliation—change the way you view your ability to approach Him?

Day 4: The Privilege of Confident Access

Because of Christ's sacrifice, our position has been radically changed from outsiders to privileged insiders. We now hold the right to enter God’s presence with confidence and freedom, not because of our own worthiness, but because of the blood of Jesus. This access is a gift to be received and enjoyed, an open invitation to commune with the Father at any time and in any place. [49:21]

Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh… (Hebrews 10:19-20, ESV)

Reflection: In what practical way can you intentionally step into this privilege today, choosing to approach God’s throne with confidence rather than hesitation?

Day 5: The Ongoing Question: Will You Walk Through?

The torn curtain is an eternal reality and a perpetual invitation. The work of access is complete, but it requires a response. God has done everything necessary to remove the barrier; the decision to step into that new reality rests with each individual. This is not a call to earn what is already given, but to receive it and live in the freedom of unhindered relationship with God. [52:45]

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:16, ESV)

Reflection: What is one step, whether large or small, you can take this week to move from acknowledging the open door to actually walking through it into deeper communion with God?

Sermon Summary

Good Friday unfolds as a moment of cosmic and salvific intensity: darkness shrouds the sky, the earth trembles, tombs open, and holy ones rise. Jesus spends the night in agonizing prayer, faces betrayal and an unjust trial, and endures a brutal Roman scourging designed to lacerate flesh and weaken the body. Soldiers force a 75–100 pound crossbeam onto already broken shoulders, and the nails pierce the wrists while the feet secure the body to rough wood. Death arrives through catastrophic blood loss and slow suffocation as every breath demands agony.

At the exact moment of surrender—when Jesus gives up his spirit—God acts with decisive authority and intent. The vast, thick curtain that once barred entry into the holy of holies rips from top to bottom. That curtain, thirty feet wide and sixty feet tall, required many hands to move; no human action could explain the tear from above down. God tears the barrier open, signifying more than an end to a rite: the removal of divinely ordained separation between God and humanity.

Scripture frames that torn veil as initiation of a new, living way. Through the blood and flesh of the crucified high priest, direct access to God becomes a present reality. The ancient restrictions—one priest, one day, strict garments, ritual blood—yield to unmediated approach. Believers gain confidence to enter the presence of God, to speak openly and without fear, and to receive mercy and grace in every need. The invitation to come near carries urgency: the opening waits for response. The torn curtain functions not merely as forensic proof of an act, but as a summons to step into relationship now, not after moral perfection or ritual readiness.

Communal response follows that theological truth. The gathered body calls people to bring their burdens—sickness, sorrow, financial strain—into the throne room with corporate voice, practicing the very boldness the torn veil grants. The cross stands not only as a record of suffering paid in full, but as the entrance through which access to God becomes active, available, and transformative for those willing to walk through it.

Key Takeaways

1. The cost of redemption is brutal The narrative refuses sentimental gloss: redemption required extreme physical torment, strategic humiliation, and the collapse of bodily strength. This violence underscores the depth of solidarity—sin’s penalty lands on an innocent body—so that justice and mercy meet without compromise. Contemplating the cost invites a sober gratitude that reshapes worship and moral seriousness. [35:41]
2. God tore the dividing curtain The curtain’s tear occurs from top to bottom, signaling divine, not human, agency and the intentional removal of separation. That act transforms the temple’s architecture of exclusion into an open threshold of access, declaring a new covenantal reality. The rupture reveals God’s initiative: reconciliation arrives before human approach. [43:24]
3. Open access to God's presence Scripture offers a new and living way through flesh and blood, meaning approach to God no longer depends on intermediaries or ritual calculations. Confidence to enter does not grow out of personal merit but from the finished sacrifice that authorizes audacious prayer. Practicing this access reorients daily life toward direct communion with God. [48:22]
4. Approach God without qualifying first The torn veil invites coming “as is,” confronting the common impulse to postpone intimacy until worthiness appears. The invitation expects honest weakness, not perfected piety, and furnishes mercy and grace at the point of need. Walking through the opening reshapes identity from unworthy outsider to accepted one, sustained by continual access. [52:45]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[33:54] - Good Friday: cosmic signs
[34:30] - Gethsemane to trial
[35:41] - Scourging and brutality
[38:38] - Carrying the cross
[40:28] - Crucifixion: nails and breath
[42:27] - Last words and death
[43:24] - The curtain torn; signs
[48:22] - Access opened through Christ
[54:07] - Invitation and decision
[57:43] - Concert of prayer and praise

Bible Study Guide

Based on the sermon summary and transcript provided, here is a Bible study discussion guide.

Bible Reading
Matthew 27:45-54 (ESV)
> Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” And some of the bystanders, hearing it, said, “This man is calling Elijah.” And one of them at once ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine, and put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink. But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.” And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split. The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many. When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”

Hebrews 10:19-20 (ESV)
> Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh,

Hebrews 4:16 (ESV)
> Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Observation questions

According to Matthew 27:51, what specific event happened at the exact moment Jesus died, and what was unique about how it happened?
What was the purpose of the temple curtain, and who was allowed to go behind it according to the traditions described? [45:41]
What two things does Hebrews 4:16 say we will find when we confidently approach God’s throne?
The sermon described the physical cost Jesus paid. What details were given about the scourging and the crucifixion that emphasize the brutality he endured? [35:57] [40:28]

Interpretation questions

Why is it significant that the curtain was torn from top to bottom rather than from bottom to top? What does this detail reveal about the source and meaning of this action?
The word "confidence" in Hebrews is described as meaning "to say everything." [50:50] How does this definition change or deepen our understanding of what it means to pray with confidence?
The torn curtain replaced a message of "stay away" with one of "come near." [52:27] What kinds of people, feelings, or situations might still cause someone to feel they need to "stay away" from God even after this barrier is removed?
The sermon states that access means nothing unless you walk through it. [53:13] What might prevent a person from walking through the opening that Christ's sacrifice created?

Application questions

The price for our access was extreme physical torment and humiliation. How does reflecting on the specific, brutal cost Jesus paid affect your gratitude and seriousness in your relationship with God?
Direct access to God is available anytime, anywhere. [49:21] What is one practical way you could practice stepping into God’s presence more immediately with your needs this week, rather than waiting or trying to handle things on your own first?
The invitation is to come "as is," not after achieving moral perfection. [52:45] What is one area of weakness or struggle you have been hesitant to bring to God because you feel unworthy, and how can you take a step of faith to bring it to him honestly this week?
We are called to bring our burdens—sickness, sorrow, financial strain—into God’s throne room. [57:06] As a group, how can we better support one another in practicing this bold access, making it a normal part of our shared life rather than a last resort?
The torn curtain is a summons to step into relationship now. Is there a relationship in your life that feels strained or distant from God? How can you accept the invitation to "come near" in that specific area today?

Sermon Clips

What are you gonna do? Because the way to God is open. The barrier is removed. The price has been paid. But access means nothing unless you walk through it. Some of you have been standing a little bit of distance away from god. Maybe it's because of sin. Maybe you felt unworthy. Guess what? You are unworthy. We all are unworthy. That's why Jesus went to the cross. [00:52:58] (31 seconds) #StepIntoGrace

We can approach god in prayer without hesitation or the burden of trying to earn access all because Jesus, our high priest, enables us to enter god's presence. Because of Jesus' sacrifice, the curtain is torn, And god's presence is fully hear me. God's presence is fully available to you tonight and every single day of your life. [00:51:53] (37 seconds) #AlwaysInHisPresence

So you put the two of them together, and they mean to say everything. Now this this word has political connotations because it was first used to describe the privileges that Greek citizens enjoyed. The word meant absence of fear when speaking, to speak boldly with frankness and openness and assurance and courage. So this passage is telling all of us here tonight that not only do we get to speak, but we get to speak freely, openly with confidence and boldness to the god of the universe. [00:51:01] (52 seconds) #SpeakBoldlyToGod

He took your sin and the punishment for your sin, which by the way was death. And the torn curtain is god's invitation. Come near. Come near. Not after you fix your life, but right now, as you are, come near. [00:53:28] (23 seconds) #ComeAsYouAre

You see, the curtain was torn from top to bottom. Do you know how amazing that is? Do you? Because the curtain that that this verse is referring to is the curtain that separates the holy of holies from the holy place in the temple that Herod had built. Now Josephus, a Jewish, historian, recorded that that curtain was 30 feet wide and 60 feet tall. [00:43:53] (35 seconds) #HolyOfHoliesCurtain

We're talking six stories high. And it wasn't like your kitchen curtains. It was woven. It was between four and six inches thick. That's how thick it was. It was so heavy. Reportedly took hundreds of priests to handle it. Now the size and the thickness of that curtain made its tearing at the moment of Jesus's death on the cross extremely significant. [00:44:29] (35 seconds) #CurtainTornSignificance

But the fact that it was torn from the top to the bottom, even more so, no human hands could have torn that curtain. It could only have been torn by God himself. But why did he? Now remember that curtain separated the most holy place, the holy of holies from the holy place. And the high priest was the only man in the country who could go in behind that curtain to the most holy of places. [00:45:03] (38 seconds) #GodToreTheCurtain

Because if something went wrong and he died in the god's presence, If anybody went in to get him, they'd die. Yeah. So they would have to pull him out by the rope. Everything about that curtain screamed, stay away. Do not come near. But before there was a curtain, God planned to tear it down the middle. [00:46:47] (35 seconds) #CurtainCameDown

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From Curtain to Cross: Come Near to God

Devotional

Day 1: The Unfathomable Cost of Our Access

Day 2: The Barrier That Screamed "Stay Away"

Day 3: Torn by God: The Divine Invitation

Day 4: The Privilege of Confident Access

Day 5: The Ongoing Question: Will You Walk Through?

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Chatbot

From Curtain to Cross: Come Near to God

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