Wednesday, September 30 –
We have come to the last day of September, and from where I
write, Autumn is in full swing. We
continue reading thru the book of Hebrews, reading 10:1 – 18. Please return to read some more after you’ve
finished reading the passage.
The beginning of Chapter 10 is a bit of a flash-back on what he said before in
chapter 7. The problem was simple, “the
law was only a shadow, and it made nothing perfect.” Why?
Two main reasons follow. First,
the law could not provide a permanent solution, which is proved by the
necessity to repeat the sacrifices every year -
“For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of
the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are
continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near.
Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, since the
worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have any consciousness
of sins? But in these sacrifices, there is a reminder of sins every year”
(10:1-3).
The yearly repetition was proof that God never intended for the Old Testament
Sacrifices to be permanent. He makes it
clear – “For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away
sins” (10:4).
The second reason follows:
The sacrificial elements were a shadow anticipating a future solution –
and that would take place when Christ Jesus came, living a perfect obedient
life, to provide a perfect sacrificial death -
“Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, “Sacrifices and
offerings you have not desired, but a body have you prepared for me; in
burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure. Then I
said, ‘Behold, I have come to do your will, O God, as it is written of me in
the scroll of the book.’” (10:4-7).
What should serve as a reminder to us is the nature of Jesus’ person. The incarnation meant that Jesus was born as
a human, but conceived through the Holy Spirit, so also God. Our emphasis on Jesus’ divinity is correct,
but our need to remember his humanity is essential. Jesus came to do the Father’s will, in his
human body. He did not come as a Spirit,
or as God-over-Human, but as God and Man.
The body is a reference to His human nature. The verses 5 – 7 are a quote from Psalms 40:6
– 8, where David desired to do God’s will, even though he failed and needed the
sacrifices to atone for His sin. Yet,
the writer of Hebrews is emphasizing that Jesus did what even David could not
do – he did the will of God perfectly, obeying the Law completely.
The contrast between what the law required and what Jesus
accomplished is what follows. The law
was good, but inadequate to fulfill the righteousness of God.
“When he said above, “You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in
sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings” (these are
offered according to the law)” (10:8)., The law had its purpose, but now in
Jesus, the law is fulfilled, and the old Covenant is no longer in force – “then
he added, “Behold, I have come to do your will.” He does away with the first in
order to establish the second. And by that will we have been sanctified
through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (10:9-10). Jesus came as a human to completely fulfill
all of the law. The law was always
pointing to a better, more permanent solution for human Sin. Jesus accomplished what needed to happen, and
as a result, we are the recipients of a grace that sanctifies us – through
Christ’s death for us – once and for all.
Hinting back to his comparison of Christ to Melchizedek, the
writer reminds his Jewish doubters that Jesus didn’t have to go back to do it
over, but “sat down” as a King -
“And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same
sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered
for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of
God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool
for his feet. For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those
who are being sanctified” (10:11-14).
What the law, and the sacrifices, could never do, Jesus did. He offered himself as a “single sacrifice
for sins,” and then, in the Resurrection and Ascension, he sat down
as King. Jesus is both the Lord of
Lords, as he also is the King of Kings.
He adds, for those who reject Him, he will patiently wait until all his
enemies are subject to Him. To those who
receive Him as Savior and Lord, Jesus has accomplished everything we need to
live sanctified for Him.
Finally, the author leads us back to the major issue –
Christ Jesus is superior in every way to the Old Covenant and created the way
into a New Covenant that God established –
“And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying, “This
is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord:
I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,” then
he adds, “I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more” (10:15-17).
The scripture quoted is from the prophet Jeremiah (31:31 – 34). He makes the final case, as a lawyer in a
courtroom makes his final plea. Jesus
has perfected, through his sacrificial death, all that are being sanctified
(10:14), and there is nothing more to do.
The Covenant God establishes through his Son is the purpose of God completed. Through the Holy Spirit, we have the
sanctifying work of God in us. Yet, not
through laws, but by grace. God promises
that He will forgive and forget our Sins.
The last sentence is a closing summary - “Where there is
forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin” (10:18). How do we know forgiveness is freely given
through God’s grace? Answer: There is no
more sacrificial system! Jesus put an
end to sacrifices, and there is no other way to receive forgiveness of Sins but
through Jesus Christ. Everything needed
to be done has been done. We need not
and cannot add to what Christ Jesus has done for us! All that remains for us is to live with the
gratitude that is a response to grace: gratitude and grace, two sides of the
same coin. What Christ has done for us
means we have grace for our past, present, and future sin. Gratitude prevents us from thinking we
deserve that, or can “use” His grace to do our own thing. Jesus came to offer an “abundant life” (John
10:10). It is possible through the joy
of gratitude for the gift of grace!
Comments