Grace and Peace to you from God our
Father and the Lord Jesus Christ and may our Lord and Savior sanctify you in
the truth, for His word is truth. Amen
The Twenty-Fourth Sunday after Pentecost (2009)
Your Sins God Will Remember No More Rev.
Toby Byrd
Hebrews
10:11-25 (ESV)
And every priest stands daily at his
service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away
sins. [12] But when Christ had offered
for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of
God, [13] waiting from that time until
his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. [14] For by a single offering he has
perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.
[15] And the Holy Spirit also bears witness
to us; for after saying,
[16] "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,"
[17] then he adds,
"I will remember their sins and their
lawless deeds no more."
[18] Where there is forgiveness of these,
there is no longer any offering for sin.
[19] Therefore, brothers, since we have
confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, [20] by the new and
living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his
flesh, [21] and since we have a great priest over the house of God, [22] let us
draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts
sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure
water. [23] Let us hold fast the
confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. [24] And let us consider how to stir up one
another to love and good works, [25] not
neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one
another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
In today’s Gospel Reading, the evangelist Mark shows
us an apostle exclaiming to our Lord just how wonderful the temple is. What a
marvelous, magnificent structure. Within its walls are the timeless traditions
of Jewish worship. Oh, he seems to be exclaiming, how wonderful it is to be a
part of this great temple and its people. However, in response to his
exuberance, our Lord quickly puts water on his smoldering flame of
self-glorification. Reminding him that the temple is just another structure
built by man, thus it is subject to decay. In fact, He tells him that a day
will come when not one stone will be standing upon another. Indeed, our Lord
prophesized the destruction of the temple by Roman soldiers in 70AD. In that
year, Romans soldiers sacked
Later, when the apostles Peter, James, John, and
Andrew ask Him when will these things be and what will be the sign of the
times, He tells them to beware because many will come and claim to be Him. They
will lead people astray; away from the faith. Even families will not be immune
from their evil influence as father will oppose son, brother will oppose brother,
and children will oppose their parents. Furthermore, there will be numerous
natural calamities; earthquakes and famines, and there will be wars and rumors
of wars. To make matters even worse, our Lord tells them that the faithful will
be turned over to earthly councils and beaten because of their faith. However,
they are not to despair, but rather they are to rely on the Holy Spirit who
will lead them to remain faithful and bear witness of Christ. Thus, our Lord
paints a gloomy picture of not only the destruction of the temple, but the
persecution of believers. The world will turn against the faithful, hating them
more than all things because of their love for Jesus. However, all is not lost
because the one who endures to the end will be saved.
Listening to the words of Mark, one cannot help but
wonder how many have heard or read these words and asked themselves how can I
remain faithful under such circumstances? What must I do to ensure that I am
among those saved? However, this is the wrong question because the answer lies
not in our selves, our strengths or our efforts; rather, it lies solely in
Christ.
The writer to the
Hebrews provides us with this marvelous truth that our Lord Jesus has already
accomplished all that is necessary for our salvation. He reminds us that God
has made a new covenant with us, a covenant which declares, “I
will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds” and “I
will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more” (vv. 16-17). This
is possible only because of the sacrificial death of our Lord Jesus, who,
unlike the high priest of the temple, offered a single sacrifice; Himself, for
the remission of our sins.
Prior
to the Incarnation of our Lord, God had commanded the Levitical priesthood to
offer bloody sacrifices for the sins of the people. On the Great Day of
Atonement, the high priest of the temple would offer a bull without blemish to
accomplish this purpose. However, this sacrifice was not enough; it did not
keep the people sanctified until the following year. Therefore, on a daily
basis, the common priests had to offer the same sacrifice numerous times for
every type of sin. Since sin ruled the hearts of men, these sacrifices never
ended, they went on and on and on and on. . . . . .
In
contrast to this daily offering for the forgiveness of sins; our Lord Jesus
offered Himself as a single, perfect sacrifice, to end all sacrifices. His
sacrifice, and His alone, is the all sufficient work needed for the forgiveness
of our sins. The writer to the Hebrews shows us this truth when he writes, “For
by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being
sanctified” (v. 14). There, upon that accursed cross, our Lord poured
out His life’s blood so we could be rescued from eternal death through His
sin-forgiving sacrifice.
After
the priests completed their daily sacrifices they would retire to their homes,
to their families enjoying a relaxing meal and the evening to rise, yet again,
in the morning to begin anew, another daily task of their priestly duties.
However, our Lord, when He had completed His priestly duty of sacrifice, He ascended
into heaven to sat at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, there to be
our intercessor day after day until that Day when He returns in judgment to
separate the wheat from the chaff. Furthermore, unlike the high priest of the
temple, whose office was temporary, our Lord’s office as High Priest does not end,
rather He remains in that position by virtue of His everlasting sacrifice while
He waits for the, “time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet” (v.
13). Those enemies are Satan, death, and all those who reject Him. Thus,
by the power of our Lord’s single sacrifice all believers for all time are
rescued from those enemies who lie powerless under our Lord’s feet.
The
writer to the Hebrews contrasts all the sacrifices of the Jewish priests to the
single sacrifice of our Lord Jesus in such an overwhelming way, how, one must
ask, after having read Hebrews could anyone possibly think of turning away from
the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus to the endless, ineffective sacrifices of the
Jewish priests? How, one must ask, after having read Hebrews, could anyone
possibly think of turning to themselves believing there is something within
them that is as effective at remitting sin as the blood of our Lord, Jesus
Christ?
The
basic truth of Christianity is that forgiveness of sin and salvation is
accomplished only through the blood of Christ. This truth is possibly the most
misunderstood truth of Holy Scripture. Many believe there is something they
must do, that somehow they must add to what Jesus has done in order to be
saved. They are bewitched by the power of Satan and the lies of the world, into
believing that the work of flawed and sinful human-beings could remit sin? Yet
this flies in the face of Scriptural truth which reveals for all to see in the
words of Christ, “for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for
the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28 ESV).
This
truth is the climax; the whole will of God; that the sacrificial death of His
Son is the central focus in the removal of our sins. Therefore, relying on this
truth we are freed of our sins and heaven is ours. Thus, without our Lord’s expiation
there is no remission and no deliverance from sin. This is the very heart of
Holy Scripture. Moreover, those who remove this heart because they regard it as
“the old bloody theology” have nothing to cling to but a hopeless corpse.
Brought
to this truth by the Holy Spirit, we are fortified to face the prophecy of
Christ regarding the Last Day. Wars, persecution, separated families;
earthquakes, famines, and the like are indeed the sign of the times. This is
the world into which God has placed us. However, He has also provided a refuge
for us, a sanctuary against the assaults of Satan and the world; He has given
us the Church. We are emboldened by the words of our text, which informs us our
Lord Jesus has opened the temple to all sinners, Jew and Gentile alike. The
writer to the Hebrews writes, “brothers, since we have confidence to enter
the holy places by the blood of Jesus by the new and living way that he opened
for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a
great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full
assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and
our bodies washed with pure water” (vv. 19-22).
Unlike
the apostles, who were forbidden to enter the Holy of Holies in the temple
because they were not Levites and priest, we, as followers of Christ are able
to enter the heavenly Holy of Holies; because our Lord Jesus prepared the way
with His flesh. Therefore, washed in the waters of Baptism and nourished by the
body and blood of Christ in the Holy Eucharist, which is given for the
remission of sins, we are permitted to enter the Holy of Holies, a place not
made by human hands, a place where God dwells in all His glory and majesty. Therefore,
it is not our goodness or our holiness that permits our entry into the heavenly
Holy of Holies; it is solely the righteous blood of Christ shed for the
forgiveness of our sins.
Because
of the sacrificial work of our Lord Jesus on
God
established His Church so that His people could gather around Word and
Sacrament; receiving the means of Grace through the proclamation of the Gospel,
orally and physically. Thus, by the sacrifice of His Son, God allows us to draw
near to Him. Moreover, He fulfills His promise to put His law on our hearts, and to remember our sins no more. This
He does through the sacrifice of His one and Only begotten Son; Jesus Christ.
The
writer admonishes us to, “hold fast the confession of our hope without
wavering, for he who promised is faithful” (v. 23). When we stop
believing, we separate ourselves from God. When we shun true faith and return
to a reliance on our own goodness, we are barred from entering the presence of
God. However, we know that His promise is unswerving. He is always faithful and
He has promised to remember our sins no
more. The one, final, everlasting sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ, will
stand forever as the only sacrifice and work for the forgiveness of sins.
When
our Lord Jesus commanded us to baptize all nations, teaching them to obey all I
have commanded you, He gave us our marching orders for proclaiming the Gospel.
The writer to the Hebrews also stirs our passion as he writes, “let
us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting
to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all
the more as you see the Day drawing near” (vv. 24-25). When we are
given the gift of faith, we cannot be satisfied to say, “God has found me, now
I am finished.” No, on the contrary, our work of proclaiming the Gospel is
never finished in this life. We are not only to encourage each other as
brothers and sisters in Christ to love one another but we also are to encourage
each other to attend every worship opportunity.
No
one knows the day or the hour that our Lord will return, but we do know that He
came into this world to give His life as a ransom for the forgiveness of our
sins. Thus, we pray, that our heavenly Father would keep us steadfast in the
faith while beseeching Him to forgive us for the sake of His only begotten Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
May the peace
of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through
Christ Jesus. Amen.