Jesus,the Perfect Sacrifice,
Hebrews 10:1-18
Key Verse 10
And by that will, we have been made holy through the
sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
Introduction: In the previous lesson had focus on the effect
of Jesus’ sacrifice brought to the history of salvation of man . It was
waged against human life and human history from the fall of man to Jesus’
second coming in glory.
Here in today’s word, the focus is what the will of God is
in this sacrifice. First God the Father shall not accept anything imperfect.
This is demanded. This demand is well revealed in the old covenant. Second,
Jesus, the Son of God, responded to the will of the Father. He offered
himself as the perfect sacrifice—perfect obedience even to the point of
death. The third, the holy Spirit effected the power of salvation by Jesus’
sacrifice in the depth of man’s heart. As a whole, God the father and Son and the Holy Spirit worked for the
salvation of man and to appease the will of the Father. Here the willing
sacrifice of Jesus is at the center this work of salvation.
I. God the father demands perfect sacrifice.
Here when it says that the law is only a shadow, it does not
mean that it is insubstantial or vain thing. It implies that the sacrifice
prescribed by the law is there to indicate something concrete. Since it is
there to indicate what is yet to come, the sacrifice of animal can never fully
fulfill the purpose. The purpose of sacrifice is to make sinful man a perfect
When one offer sacrifices, whether the offering is good or
not does not depend on how good the offerer feels about the offering. It
depends on the one who demands the offering. It is God. No one else but God who
determines who is or not acceptable.
When Abel and Cain offered sacrifices. God accepted Abel’s
but rejected Cain’s. Though there was difference in offering, the word of God
says this way; God accepted Abel and his offering. God said the same thing
about Cain. God rejected Cain and his offering. God concerned about Abel, his
true being that offered the fat portion of the first born.
Here about the law, it was God who gave the law. According
to the Law,Israel offered again and again. It has to do one thing; the
offering was not sufficiently acceptable to God. whatever the mind and heart
was of those who offered the animal, it was not acceptable to the Lord. So God
set it to be repeated again and again. It has to do with God’s character. God
does not accept anything impure and imperfect. Sin that defiles man sits at the
root of his being. It is said that man are evil all the time. And corrupted
from the heart.(Gen 6) In the law, the sacrifice must be offered again and
again, year after year. God prescribed this law. This means that from the
inception of this law the sacrifice was never good enough to appease God who
does not or shall not anything unholy, and imperfect. Here repetition was
necessary; here limited access to the holy place was available. So it was only
a show that gives an almost identical shape and form of the real thing. Simply
speaking the blood of bulls and goats never be able to cleanse the heart
stained with sin. God knew this and god embodied the real thing in the shadow.
Like this in the law, God’s desire and hope for the restoration of sinful men
embedded.
As we have discussed, the imperfection of the law is well
proven in the history of Israel. Israel was divided into two.
Each kingdom utterly failed to follow God. God had to subject both kingdoms to
foreign power. The warnings of God through prophet Jeremiah, Isaiah, Hosea and
many others were of no avail.
Once, the temple was totally destroyed. God let it happen.
It was clear sign of God’s rejection of Israel. This is a history; what
God did in his will and in his righteousness; what God would do and what God
will do again. The law has failed. All the law will surely fail to appease God.
God can never be propitiated by the blood of lamb and bulls.
Then there must be a solution. The solution was the good
things of which the law of Moses was shadow. If it was God who set the tone of
what is and what is not acceptable, his son Jesus is the one who provided the
solution, the prefect sacrifice that can appease God.
II. Jesus offered a perfect sacrifice (5-14)
Read v 5. When the Son of the father came to this world he
said, 5-6. actually it was not the Christ but the psalmist said this. The
psalmist lived by the law of Moses. He saw many thousands of bulls and goats
were sacrificed. But sin was still loomed in and among people. He saw God who
would provide a body in place of bulls and goats. This is the body Jesus came
to be among man. Though he was the Son of God, he took himself in flesh and to
be among man, to be the sacrifice. Jesus, the Son of God. was keenly aware of
this prophecy. Jesus knew that it was for him and the purpose of the father in
him.
V7 He knew this. What was his conclusion?
Heb 10:7 Then I said, ‘Here I am—it is
written about me in the scroll—I have come to do your will, O God.’ ”
I have come to do your will. God ‘s will is to bring a
perfect sacrifice.
Jesus knew that the law was not able abel to do. He knew
that the word is of God and was for him.
What is his final decision?
V9-10. Heb 10:9 Then he said, “Here I
am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the
second. Heb 10:10 And by that will, we have been made
holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
He knew that the first failed utterly and there must be a
new way, new one. Here the emphasis was made on the will of Jesus decision.
What kind of this will or decision? How was this will revealed? Mark
14:32-36. not my will but your will! It was the theme of Son of God even if it
meant his own death on the cross. He himself became the sacrifice on the cross,
being nailed on both hands and feet. He shed all his blood. His body was so
weak and so fragile and was gasping for air. But he never failed to trust the
father. Mat 27:46. It as one thing to tormented on the cross as the sacrifice
for our sins. It is another to submit himself to the will of the Father even to
the point of death. Submission and obedience to the point of death; this is
summed up one word, “that will” This is the thing that could not be seen
and understood what appears on the cross. In this way God the father was fully
appeased. His will was propitiated fully and perfectly. Phil. 2:7-8 says
this way;
Phil 2:7 but made himself nothing, taking
the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness. Phil 2:8 And
being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death
on a cross!
He made himself nothing; he humbled himself; he obeyed to
the point of death. It was his will to submit to the father even to the point
of death. For the will of God, he put to death of his own will expect the will
to uphold the will of God. Also he put to death of his own being to uphold the
will of God. This will of Jesus was veiled to the eyes of sinners. But this
will was evident in what Jesus did and is understood through his word and
actions by those who believed. We know that long before his death on the cross,
this will was there in Jesus and God the father was happy with this will. (Mat
17:5a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am
well pleased. Listen to him!”) This was reaffirmed and uphold above his own
life. InGethsemane, Jesus prayed, Luke 22:42 reads, “Father, if
you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”
Now he sat down at the right hand of God. he finished his
work of redemption. It is done away. No more work is needed. So he sat down; he
sat down at the right hand of God, God the father, the Father who was not happy
with those who offered animal sacrifices. The God who kept silence when Jesus
pleaded “please take this cup from me.” Beside him, Jesus is sitting. Not
only he finished his work but also he is at peace with the Father, sitting
just beside him.
Yet all these are hidden from the yes of ordinary sinful
eyes.
In these two, we discussed the will of the father and will
of the Son, who fulfill the will of the father. Now in this third one, the holy
spirit and his work on this sacrifice of Jesus.
III. Holy spirit effected the perfection through Jesus’
sacrifice (15-18)
V16-17. This is a prophesy spoken by Jeremiah. This
prophesies is contained in the section that we believe to be the promise of the
new covenant. But here strangely said that this is what the Holy Spirit
testifies of. This word was given to the people of Israel. But they could
never comprehend the meaning of this word. It remained as only hope of
uncertain thing, remained veiled to the eyes of ordinary.
As we look at this carefully, it is what happens in the
hearts of man. God will put His laws in their hearts and write them down on
their mind. Here God revealed a plan ; God’s intension to work in the depth of
human being
Then how can one know what happens in the hearts of man? It
can not be proven or unproven. It is beyond the perception of man.
It is the domain of God and his power. No one else!, not by
his own will or will of teacher or will of parents or will of slave master
bring changes in the hearts of men.
How can God put his law in the hearts of man?
In the old covenant they were taught to put the word of God
on the wall, on forehead and on every place of their living. Yet the law
departed from their hearts and many rebelled and set their lives against God.
This was the situation of Pharisee and teachers of the law.
Also it was the situation of the disciple of Jesus as well.
But when the holy spirit came upon them, the truth of Jesus’
sacrifice penetrated into their hearts. It put everything upside down. Sin is
confessed and God’s holiness and righteousness was known and new hope was born.
Desire for sin has dissipated and/or permanently impaled. No one could
explain the prophesy. But it is suddenly happening at their hearts; truly God’s
law was at the depth of their heart by and because of the sacrifice Jesus made
for them.
The Holy Spirit worked the miracle—putting the law in the
depth of one’s heart. It is not a matter of memorizing and willful application
of that law. The law is already there and working in power. How powerfully did
the Holy Spirit effected the sacrifice of Jesus in the depth of human being?
V17Heb 10:17 Then he adds: “Their sins
and lawless acts I will remember no more.”
Before we take this word, I like to discuss a little
exegetical matter because of common misunderstanding. Here “then” is to
indicate the after math of the previous event. It could be taken; as the cause
of, or as the result of, or as the sequel to the previous event. So when God
said that he will remember no more their sins and lawless acts, it is the
result of or sequel to the previous event; the previous event is that God put
His law in the hearts of men. So it never meant something of God’s willful
decision to forget all the sins of the past. All the more so,
it doe not mean God will not mind sins of men from then on. Did God lower his
bar of holiness and righteousness for the sake of sinners? Never! God who said
three thousands year ago that the adulterer must be stoned to death still will
not tolerate adultery. The punishment for adulterer is death even now. He never
lessens the punishment of any sin even after Jesus.
Then what did he mean by saying I will remember their sin no
more? God is talking about findings in the lives of those on whom God put the
law in their hearts. Because of this contractual agreement by the blood of
Jesus, seeing and experiencing the pain and anguish over un-holiness, and
defilement are no more. God is propitiated or appeased fully by the power of
the blood of Jesus.
Here the power of Jesus’ sacrifice speaks more powerfully
and more authoritatively as far as the sins and acts of those whom God imparted
the grace of Jesus’ blood.
Also the power of Jesus’ blood is so great that sin has no
place in their lives. They become as pure as God expected. A radical
change in the essence of human being has taken place by the blood of
Jesus. In Gen 6, God was disgusted over the sinfulness of men. It is trenched
in the depth of human hearts. The final verdict for this ungodliness is that he
will not contend with man forever. This is a thorough exclusion of man in the
sphere of God. This exclusion is more prominent feature of Mosaic system. No
one dare to come to the most holy place as he is. No matter how good one may be
in his efforts or in his good will, no one is allowed to enter the place of
God. Only on exception, the high priest with the blood of an animal. Even this
was not a free access, only once a year.
Now this exclusion is no more! Man became acceptable to
the Lord. This change is in the depth of human being; the heart and the
mind—from its foundation and from the essence of his being. This
is the work of the Holy Spirit and this is possible because of Jesus blood. This
is powerful enough to appease God on behalf of sinners, powerful enough to
bring the changes in the essence of human being.
What is the conclusion?
V18 Through v 16,17 it is now evident that there is a
radical changes in the inner being of believers and is now acceptable to the
Lord, no more work is needed. This statement is made not on the
basis of what Jesus did on the cross, historically. Also it is not based on the
fact that the requirement of the law is met fully to appease God of holiness.
But it is based on the fact that by the power of the Holy Spirit, the
changes in the depth of man has been made so radically and the changed
man by the blood is now acceptable to God that no more sacrifice is
needed.
Blood of Jesus, how marvelous it is! It is God’s power and
wisdom and will for sinful human being. Finally God, the father, with his Son
Jesus, and the Holy Spirit remedied the way to His holiness and his
righteousness for sinners like you and me.
Amen, Hallelujah!
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