Daily Scripture Reading Hebrews 9:6-26

It is easy for Christians to get distracted with daily life and lose our focus on the big picture. We go to work, raise children, manage possessions, and participate in our church and community. In the process of dealing with all those mundane things, we forget the true purpose of ourselves and the overall scope of the great commission.

There is a verse at the end of today’s passage that succinctly captures where we fit in the broad scope of human history. It is a reminder that we don’t exist to serve ourselves. Instead, we exist to serve Jesus.

When we stopped reading yesterday, the author of Hebrews was describing the tabernacle. There was the first part, called the holy place, which contained the lampstand, table, and sacred bread. Behind the veil was the second part, called the Holy of Holies, in which was the altar of incense, the ark of the covenant, and the cherubim.

Heb. 9:6 ¶ Now when these things have been so prepared, the priests are continually entering the first part of the tabernacle performing the divine worship,

Heb. 9:7 but into the second, only the high priest enters once a year, not without taking blood, which he offers for himself and for the sins of the people committed in ignorance.

Heb. 9:8 The Holy Spirit is indicating this, that the way into the holy places has not yet been manifested while that first part of the tabernacle is still standing,

Heb. 9:9 which is a symbol for the present time. Accordingly both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make the worshiper perfect in conscience,

Heb. 9:10 since they relate only to food and drink and various washings, requirements for the body imposed until a time of reformation.

Notice the word “symbol” in verse 9. The Greek word used there is the word “parabole”. That word is often translated as “parable”. In other words, the holy place in the tabernacle was a parable of our reality.

This is a repeat of an idea the author expressed in Hebrews 8:5 when he wrote that the earthly tabernacle is a copy and shadow of the heavenly things.

Heb. 9:11 ¶ But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation,

Heb. 9:12 and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy places once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.

Note the word “but” at the beginning of verse 11. The author of Hebrews drew some contrasts. The Old Testament priests entered a man-made tabernacle, but Jesus entered the greater and perfect tabernacle not made with human hands. The animal sacrifices were not able to perfect the worshipper, but the blood of Jesus obtained eternal redemption.

Heb. 9:13 For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled sanctify for the cleansing of the flesh,

Heb. 9:14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

Verses 13-14 are another contrast. The blood of the animals only sanctified flesh. The blood of Jesus sanctified our consciences.

Look at the last phrase of verse 14, “to serve the living God”. Jesus offered Himself on the cross in order to cleanse our conscience so that we would serve the living God.

Humans are naturally selfish. We want to live for ourselves. We do not want to serve anyone else. However, Genesis 1 tells us humans were created to rule over God’s creation. Our purpose for existing is to serve the Creator. Our purpose as Christians is to serve Jesus, the living God.

Heb. 9:15 ¶ And for this reason He is the mediator of a new covenant, so that, since a death has taken place for the redemption of the trespasses that were committed under the first covenant, those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.

Heb. 9:16 For where a covenant is, there must of necessity be the death of the one who made it.

Heb. 9:17 For a covenant is valid only when men are dead, for it is never in force while the one who made it lives.

Heb. 9:18 Therefore not even the first covenant was inaugurated without blood.

Heb. 9:19 For when every commandment had been spoken by Moses to all the people according to the Law, he took the blood of the calves and the goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people,

Heb. 9:20 saying, “THIS IS THE BLOOD OF THE COVENANT WHICH GOD COMMANDED YOU.”

This is a quote from Exodus 24:8.

Heb. 9:21 And in the same way, both the tabernacle and all the vessels of the ministry he sprinkled with the blood.

Heb. 9:22 And according to the Law, one may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

Don’t miss the importance of the phrase “without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness”. This is why the cross is so important in Christian theology. Shedding of blood is a requirement for forgiveness, but only the shed blood of Jesus truly leads to forgiveness of our sins.

Heb. 9:23 ¶ Therefore it was necessary for the copies of the things in the heavens to be cleansed with these, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.

Look at the word “copies”. The earthly tabernacle was a copy of the heavenly tabernacle. The earthly tabernacle was cleansed with animal sacrifices. The heavenly things were cleansed with the blood of Jesus.

Heb. 9:24 For Christ did not enter holy places made with hands, mere copies of the true ones, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us;

Once again we see the word “copies”.

Heb. 9:25 nor was it that He would offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the holy places year by year with blood that is not his own.

Heb. 9:26 Otherwise, He would have needed to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now once at the consummation of the ages He has been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.

Look at the word “once”. Jesus only had to die once.

Look at the phrase “consummation of the age”. The first century AD was a pivotal time in world history. All of history before Christ was setting the stage for Jesus to come to earth and sacrifice Himself. All history after Christ is a harvest. Christians are to be engaging in world evangelization to make known the salvation that is available only through Jesus.

It is very easy for Christians to get so consumed with daily life that we forget our place in world history. However, we need to understand and act on the reality that we exist to serve Jesus. One of the main ways we serve Jesus is to engage in world evangelization. Jesus shed His blood for us in the first century AD. Every century since that event is a time of harvest in which Christians need to proclaim the truth about Jesus to the entire world.

What role does your church have in the several thousand year effort to make Jesus known to all people on the earth?

What is your role in that effort to proclaim the good news of Jesus?

What do you need to do differently in light of the fact that the 1st century was the consummation of the ages, and every decade since is a time of harvest?

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“Scripture quotations taken from the (LSB®) Legacy Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2021 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org and 316publishing.com.”