A Dim View of the Good Things to Come
Hebrews 10:14
"For by that one offering he forever made perfect those who are being made holy."
It was God's desire to overcome the problem of human sin. He promised to forgive and to no longer remember our sins, removing them once and for all.
His law couldn't forgive sin.
His law couldn't forget.
The sin offerings made by the priests of the temple could never forgive and never forget. In fact, the law served only to remind the people of their sins, and caused them to sin again and again. In some ways it's like a credit card. The card doesn't eliminate the purchase price, eventually the day comes when you'll most certainly have to pay the full price. And the more you use it, the more you miss your payments, the more you'll eventually owe with interest. Compounding interest is sin creating more sin. And so, these sin offerings, made seasonally, are merely a dim view of the forgiveness yet to come.
These offerings could not forgive sin, it was merely delayed grace. It's like a visit with the probation officer. Your crimes are still your crimes. Your punishment is still your punishment. You're only checking in with the bureaucrats at the temple. Checking the box, and leaving with a new license to sin again. The worship has the appearance of being a modern and up-to-date religious institution, yet in fact it was timeworn and unable to cure the problem of sin. The priestly ministrations were as obsolete as the ancient wilderness tabernacle itself. It's a thing of the past. They are a dim view of the good things to come. And the really sad thing about this situation is, so long as the present temple stood, the people had no true access to God. It had to be destroyed and rebuilt. For them the Lord was hidden behind a veil. The people were perpetually caught in their sin, their hearts and minds and their consciences remained weak and imperfect. Something needed to be done. Someone needed to do something.
God had a new thing in mind. God, through the greater and more perfect tabernacle [Jesus Christ], secured eternal redemption once and for all. A more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made. This new perfect covenant is made by virtue of what Jesus accomplished in his death and resurrection, by virtue not of the blood of animals but by his own blood. His blood, purifying our consciences, enabling us to genuinely worship, to know what not to do and to not do it. By the power of the eternal Spirit we are made perfect and enabled to overcome our sins. His offering before God, his perfect sacrifice, purified us from our dead works. What the old covenant religion foreshadowed was now made reality in the person of Jesus Messiah, the Son of God. And by clinging in faith to Jesus Messiah, we are becoming the living tabernacle of God, in his presence abiding within us.
Hebrews 3:6
"And we are God’s house, if we keep our courage and remain confident in our hope in Christ."
The intent of religion is to serve the living God. If you're attending church, you're not there to get something, you're there to give, to give up your sin and give service to Him. Under the old system the problem of sin would return again and require yet another sin-offering so long as the inward weakness of the worshiper remained unaddressed. The religious service could never cure that inward weakness, because the sinner was free to sin again under the license of that seasonal priestly offering. In effect the sinner was encouraged to sin again. The values and morals of the people was not transformed, there was no need for it, the sin offering covered the crime. There was no need to convert and commit yourself to the Lord and his mercy, you simply purchased it at the right time for the right price.
In Christ our concern for the bodily purity has been replaced by the purification of the inner person, the conscience. This is accomplished by the Spirit of God. It is an act of recreation, in Christ and in those whose faith is in him.
Hebrews 10:14
"Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins."
Christ’s self-offering is perfect, not an animal substitute temporarily covering human sin, his is a perfect human offering eternally covering imperfect humanity. He was accused falsely, maligned and tortured, and by his unmerited death and timely resurrection, he has overcome the accuser Satan. He transcended death by his perfect sacrifice for the spirit of death can only claim those who have sinned against God. The agents of death have no power over the perfect lamb of God.
Humanity is powerless, enslaved to the spirit of death. And their sin is both physical and spiritual death. In Christ, Satan's power is nullified. Christ effectively emancipated a powerless humanity, he transforms them, he gives them rebirth making all things new. In him they are now free to choose faith and receive the inheritance promised to everyone in Christ. His death activated his final will and testament, the new covenant, and it is actuated, and the inheritance is released. Now the people are free to answer his call to come and see.
Friends,
I want you to see just how amazing this new covenant really is. This isn't merely a supernatural cleansing of an earthly vessel. All of creation was in need of a perfect sacrificial lamb offering. All earthly creatures and the universe itself, but also all the heavenly realms. Think about this for a moment. Before mankind was created, before the earth, there was a Great War in the heavenly places. A third of God's created immortals were fallen away, cast down, damned for eternity because of their rebellion. In fact, God needed to create Hell just to remove them from the sanctuary for a time. That means the heavenly realms were also in need of a purification.
Hebrews 9:23
"That is why the Tabernacle and everything in it, which were copies of things in heaven, had to be purified by the blood of animals. But the real things in heaven had to be purified with far better sacrifices than the blood of animals."
The earthly sanctuary must be cleansed of sin by the sprinkling of His blood, but also the heavenly sanctuary must be cleansed by Christ's perfect sacrifice and presence. And this is why he in person ascended and remains in the heavenly realm, he is securing our eternal salvation in the heavenly realms and purifying the heavenly realms from his throne. Without the blood, without his covering, the heavenly realms would remain spoiled by the rebellion and incapable of bringing the new creation and new life in Him. He has entered heaven’s sanctuary to purify it and to stand for us and plead our cause.
Hebrews 7:25
"Therefore, he is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf."
Ephesians 4:8 This is why it says:
“When he ascended on high,
he took many captives
and gave gifts to his people.”
All that remains for Him now is that he returns and delivers the kingdom promise that he has already won for the sake of heaven and on our behalf. And all that remains for us is to make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace, being humble and bearing one another in love. To answer his call and receive his gifts. To be equipped by the Spirit; becoming apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers, and equipping his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up [Ephesians 4:11-12].
What's Jesus waiting for?
Ephesians 4:13
"Until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, becoming mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ."
This is our inheritance today. We're all called today to be authentic today, in truth and in love today in a dimly lit world. In preparation for the new creation, we are growing up in Christ today for the day of redemption yet to come in Christ's new home in the New Earth and New Jerusalem. Recreated to be like God in true righteousness and holiness (Ephesians 4:24).