The emphasis of the preacher/author of Hebrews is hard to miss. In a word (or two):
Hold on!
Don’t give up!
Hang in there!
To encourage his congregation, the preacher of this ancient homily has grounded his message in the Word of God: God now speaks through his Son who is better than the angels, better than Moses, and now is a better high priest.
In the text under consideration, the preacher wants his people to see Jesus as the “great high priest” who passed through the heaven (he will explain this later). He emphasizes that Jesus is a sympathetic high priest because he has been tempted in every way we are; however, he is a qualified high priest because he had not sinned as we have—so unlike the high priest of old, Jesus did not need to offer a sacrifice for his own sins before he could take care of the people’s sin. Therefore—and this is important—we should be eager to approach God because we know that we will find mercy and help there.
In weaving the analogy between the role of Jesus and that of the Old Testament high priest, the preacher seeks to clarify a couple of points. First, like the high priest, Jesus is called from among the people (his brothers; so chapter 2). So he understands us because he is one of us. Second, high priests are not self-appointed and neither was Jesus. God appointed him as stated in Psa 110:4.
Yet what really touches the Hebrews preacher is the sheer humanness of Jesus’ ministry. He prayed and prayed with weeping tears to the one who could save him from death—and God heard him. This invites some reflection since when Jesus prayed he was seeking another route other than his death but in the ends submits: “Your will not mine.”
Still, in a rather cryptic statement, the author of Hebrews says the Son “learned obedience from what he suffered.” How could the Son—who did not sin—learn obedience? Perhaps obedience goes beyond just doing what is commanded; maybe it is deeper than that. Perhaps it has something to do with lining our wishes, desires, and wants up with God’s.
“Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (Heb 4.16)
Dr. Stan's Study 