Reading: Hebrews 9
My Verse: "He has once for all at the consummation and close of the ages appeared to put away and abolish sin by His sacrifice [of Himself] (9:26).
It is said we of today do not/cannot fully appreciate this idea of You, Lord Jesus, being our High Priest, our mediator. We do not live in a culture of priests and so lack ability to truly grasp this concept. We live in a culture where independence is king. We are to be fully able to do everything on our own - if we don't then we are failures. Yet, most cultures of the past had mediators that stood between their god and the people. These mediators had to spend much time prepping themselves to go before their god. This was true of the Jews as well. It happened once a year that the priest would go into the holy of holies. They even put bells and a rope on his ankle. For if he went in unworthily he would be struck dead. For You Lord God are holy. All this stopped, of course, when You, Jesus, gave Yourself as that final supreme sacrifice "once for all." The temple was even destroyed so the Jews could not carry on the empty ritual.
Yet, today, even though we do not have this culture of sacrifice it does exist in various forms. People still think there are things they can and must do to be worthy of You, Lord. People still have certain things that they think they must "give up" in order to get to heaven. Many religions have some sort of "works" program - so people can work their way into heaven. In fact, this seems to be preferred. People seem to like the idea of working their way into heaven rather than accepting Your free gift of salvation. But, Lord, You did it all "once . . . for all at the consummation of the ages."
Does this idea that we can work our way into heaven exist simply because of our pride or our need to have some control? Why is it so hard to admit our need - admit You, Lord Jesus, alone can save us?
You constantly remind us "And . . . it is appointed for [all] men once to die, and after that the [certain] judgement" (9:27).
You continually call us to ". . . fearlessly and confidently and boldly draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy . . . " (4:16).
You want us to put aside all that we are, that we think we are and accept that supreme sacrifice of Yourself that You did "once for all." You told us as You died on the cross. "It is finished!" (John 19:30)
Lord, I pray for loved ones that do not see this truth, that the eyes of their hearts will be opened and You will give them understanding.
Ditat Deus - God Enriches!
My Verse: "He has once for all at the consummation and close of the ages appeared to put away and abolish sin by His sacrifice [of Himself] (9:26).
It is said we of today do not/cannot fully appreciate this idea of You, Lord Jesus, being our High Priest, our mediator. We do not live in a culture of priests and so lack ability to truly grasp this concept. We live in a culture where independence is king. We are to be fully able to do everything on our own - if we don't then we are failures. Yet, most cultures of the past had mediators that stood between their god and the people. These mediators had to spend much time prepping themselves to go before their god. This was true of the Jews as well. It happened once a year that the priest would go into the holy of holies. They even put bells and a rope on his ankle. For if he went in unworthily he would be struck dead. For You Lord God are holy. All this stopped, of course, when You, Jesus, gave Yourself as that final supreme sacrifice "once for all." The temple was even destroyed so the Jews could not carry on the empty ritual.
Yet, today, even though we do not have this culture of sacrifice it does exist in various forms. People still think there are things they can and must do to be worthy of You, Lord. People still have certain things that they think they must "give up" in order to get to heaven. Many religions have some sort of "works" program - so people can work their way into heaven. In fact, this seems to be preferred. People seem to like the idea of working their way into heaven rather than accepting Your free gift of salvation. But, Lord, You did it all "once . . . for all at the consummation of the ages."
Does this idea that we can work our way into heaven exist simply because of our pride or our need to have some control? Why is it so hard to admit our need - admit You, Lord Jesus, alone can save us?
You constantly remind us "And . . . it is appointed for [all] men once to die, and after that the [certain] judgement" (9:27).
You continually call us to ". . . fearlessly and confidently and boldly draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy . . . " (4:16).
You want us to put aside all that we are, that we think we are and accept that supreme sacrifice of Yourself that You did "once for all." You told us as You died on the cross. "It is finished!" (John 19:30)
Lord, I pray for loved ones that do not see this truth, that the eyes of their hearts will be opened and You will give them understanding.
Ditat Deus - God Enriches!
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