Christ Is The Perfect Sacrifice!
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Have you ever had to give up something so that someone else could have something? In other words have you ever had to make sacrifices? Parents often work several jobs in order for their children to have something good or better. Sometimes friends give of themselves or make sacrifices in order for their best friend to have something nice. Soldiers lay down their lives for their country in order for the people to have freedom. God’s word tells us about love and sacrifices in John chapter 15.
13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.
Sacrificing your own life in order that others may live has been regarded as the ultimate act of courage and selflessness. Did you know today that someone gave up his life so that you may have life? Someone made this sacrifice for you. You may be here today and say what kind of sacrifice???
Jesus Christ went to the cross and suffered a slow and painful death for you and I. Christ suffered in all his senses. Even while Christ suffered his enemies insulted him, people shouted out him, “He saved others why can’t he save himself. (Matt. 27:42) People spit in his face as he was being led to the cross. On his head was placed a crown of thorns that went deep into his skull. He was scourged or whipped with a cat of nine tails that tore up his back and sides. After this, his hands and feat were then nailed to a cross. His whole body suffered and ached. He then took on His Father’s wrath. This is what caused Christ to cry out, “My God, my God why have you forsaken me.” Christ was in bitter agony. Christ began to be faint, He was exceedingly sorrowful. So why did Christ suffer? Why did he go to the cross to be our sacrifice? He suffered and died, so that he might satisfy God’s justice for us! He died to bring us into favor with God. And Christ’s blood and sacrifice was the only way that this could happen.
So, just a little bit of a recap of what is happening here in Hebrews chapter 9. We have witnessed Christ who is the great high priest bring redemption to his people by the shedding of his own blood. Because of this we have been redeemed.
22 Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.
Are you thankful today that we can be forgiven of sin? Each and everyone of us as we take a look at our own lives fall short and we should be truly thankful for this amazing sacrifice and forgiveness. In the Old Testament everything was purified by the blood of animals, but this also foreshadowed the blood Jesus gave on the cross. As we are going to see in these final verses of Hebrews chapter nine, the Lord’s sacrifice was the perfect and final sacrifice that we desperately needed.
1. The Old Sacrifices were insufficient, so we Needed a Better Sacrifice!
1. The Old Sacrifices were insufficient, so we Needed a Better Sacrifice!
23 Thus it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these rites, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.
24 For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.
God instructed Moses to set up an earthly tabernacle and then God instructed Aaron and his sons to be priests. Have you ever wondered why did the people need a priest? The priest was put in place like an umpire that we see in sports. He was there to mediate between the guilty sinner and a holy and righteous God. The priests were also there to take care of the sacrifices as well as to take care of the vessels that were in the tabernacle. Of course, these were just replicas of the heavenly tabernacle or home of God. The earthly tabernacle and then sanctuary made by Solomon were made by humans and these types of tabernacles are made unclean by the sins of people and they need cleansed or purified. In the Old Testament the High Priest would come in to the Holy of Holies once a year and make a sacrifice for the sins of the people. This is how purification would happen, and the sins of the people would then be atoned for.
So, the question is why exactly did we need a better sacrifice? What was wrong with the system in place?
-First of all, In order to purify God’s people. Or to cleanse our conscience.
14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.
When we go back to the Old Testament and look at the old system of things the priest would engage in these purification ceremonies so that he could be outwardly clean, but these ceremonies and sacrifices could not cleanse the inner person or the conscience. We needed something better! Christ Jesus our Lord is decisively different. When Jesus came to earth he did not need a ritual cleansing because he was already clean. He offered up himself as a spotless lamb without blemish. Christ’s sacrifice of himself internally cleanses those for whom he died. So, Christ purifies our consciences. When we have sin in our lives or have a guilty conscience because of something we have done we can run to Christ and ask him to forgive us and he alone cleanses us from our unrighteousness.
This brings us full circle to what the author is explaining here about heaven and the better sacrifice. The heavenly sanctuary is a far greater sanctuary than any earthly sanctuary or temple. It’s far greater because this is where God dwells. And because this is where God dwells, heaven is a place without sin or stain. Without the sacrifice of Christ we as sinners would have polluted heaven and there would be no way possible for us to enter in. God desires for us to be with him and someday as believers we will dwell with the Lord because of the sacrifice of Christ.
-The Second reason i want you to see is this. Christ stands on our behalf. Christ’s priestly role in heaven is to appear for us in God’s presence. Christ is our advocate. If Christ is our advocate in heaven, then we should desire to be his servants or agents here on earth. We should use our hands and feet for Christ. We should use our mouths to speak of Christ. The Lord is also our mediator, He is a witness that goes before us in our defense and He represents us and even now intercedes for us as believers. You need to know that today if you are a believer Christ is interceding for you and His sacrifice on the cross allows this to happen. We should be drawn even now to a place of thankfulness and humbleness. Here is something I want you to remember today. You may want to write this down.
When Christ first came, he came to save us from the penalty of sin. His present ministry now taking place in heaven is to save us from the power of sin. And when Christ comes again for the second time He will then be able to deliver us from the presence of sin and take us to a new heaven and new earth where there will be no more sin. The 3 P’s. What an awesome time that will be!!!
2. Christ’s once and for all Sacrifice means no more sacrifices are needed!
2. Christ’s once and for all Sacrifice means no more sacrifices are needed!
25 Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own,
26 for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.
We now begin to see the contrast between the once and for all sacrifice of Christ Jesus our Lord and the continual sacrifice system that took place once a year when the High Priest would come and offer a sacrifice of blood for himself and the People’s sin. This took place on the Day of Atonement. The whole point of this here is to help us now see that no more sacrifices are needed. Christ did not need to suffer and die repeatedly.
“Since the Foundation of the World” here means or is a reference to creation. And as Christ has appeared once for all at the end of the ages, helps us to see that all the eras and ages came together and were consummated in the coming of Christ the true Messiah.
When Christ humbly came to this earth he came to be the light of this world the bread of life the living water, and to offer up his life as a once and for all sacrifice for mankind in order to do away with sin. This is the wonderful and good news of the gospel. In fact, it’s not just forgiveness of sins, but a total removal of sin.
12 For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.”
Church, this is such a wonderful sacrifice that we should all be drawn to tell others about what Christ has done. It should cause us to make sacrifices ourselves and to give and serve our Father and others here on this earth.
3. The Sacrifice of Christ enables us to survive judgment!
3. The Sacrifice of Christ enables us to survive judgment!
27 And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,
28 so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.
We now come to this comparison with human experience. The point of death is that it can’t be repeated. Here we see this observation that death is only once and then comes the judgment. It is important to note here that this refutes Eastern religions that believe in reincarnation and Western materialism’s belief that physical death annihilates human being’s personal existence. There are also today many people who laugh at this thought or idea of God’s judgment. Many people deny God’s judgment and would say there is no way a loving God would judge someone. This would be too harsh. So, what does Scripture teach us???
36 I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak,
10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.
12 So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.
Clearly we see that God’s just judgment will come. This is a general term encompassing judgment of all people. Believers and unbelievers. Now this may be difficult news to hear today, in fact this may frighten you because you are not a believer or you have not been walking with the Lord. Maybe you have been walking in sin, and you know what will come, but I want you to know today that there is good news. So, please hear this today.
The Sacrifice of Jesus allows us to survive God’s judgment. You may say but how is this? Christ takes away our sin, in fact Hebrews verse 28 tells us here that Christ bears the sin of many. We also see this in several other texts.
12 Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.
21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
God’s Word assures us today that when Christ returns for the Second Time, for those of us who are believers and are eagerly awaiting his return, Christ comes to take us to be with Him. Sin has been dealt with in the first coming and in this second coming Christ will come to save and rescue us out from sin and this present world.
Let me ask you today, are you eagerly awaiting the Lord’s Return? Are you living for Him or do you find that you are living for yourself and your pleasures? You can’t have the best of both world’s today church. There are 2 roads. You are either following Christ or you are not.
My prayer for our church today is that we would be found to be a faithful church anticipating the Lord’s return, eagerly awaiting for him. Knowing that Christ is the better sacrifice and that He gave His life for you and will someday return to take us home to be with him should change everything. It should change how we talk, how we act, and how we live. Is your life today marked as a faithful believer who loves the Lord and is living a life pleasing to the Father?
(Close and Lead into Communion)