Christ Opens The Inner Sanctuary

Hebrews 9:11–15
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An evangelist tells a story from the days when he held tent meetings many years ago. One day, after a series of meetings was over, he was pulling up tent stakes. A young man approached him and asked what he had to do to be saved. The evangelist answered, “Sorry, it’s too lat … More

Blood

Christ came as a priest of the New Covenant, called “the good things that have come” (v. 11). Under the Old Covenant, sins were covered by the blood of bulls and goats (vv. 12-13). If you are carrying a load of guilt because you are finding that you can’t be good enough to please God, take another look at Jesus death and what it means to you. Christianity has often been referred to as the “slaughterhouse religion” because of the continual emphasis upon the need for the shedding of blood. We need to accept the fact that the blood of Christ completely satisfies God (vv. 14-15). He welcomes us into His presence, not on the grounds of our Christian progress, the depth of our knowledge, or even the victory we may have, but on the grounds of the shed blood of the Lamb.

Westcott outlines four ways in which Jesus’ sacrifice of Himself differs from the animal sacrifices of the Old Covenant:

The sacrifice of Jesus was voluntary. The animal’s life was taken from it. Jesus willingly gave His life,
The sacrifice of Jesus was spontaneous. Animal sacrifice was entirely the product of law. Jesus sacrifice was not to fulfil the law but to show His love for us.
The sacrifice of Jesus was rational. The animal victim did not know that was happening. Jesus knew all the time what He was doing.
The sacrifice of Jesus was moral. Animal sacrifice was mechanical. Calvary’s sacrifice was not a matter of prescribed ritual but a matter of Jesus obeying the will of God.

Application

God does not love me because I serve Him; God loves me because He is love! He accepts me because I believe in the shed blood of His Son Jesus Christ as the payment for my sin.

Hebrews 9:11-15 (English Standard Version)

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