The Superior Sacrifice of the Christ
Hebrews 9:11-28
Consider the message this morning to be one long ‘pre-Lord’s supper’ meditation—we’ll spend time in the scriptures focusing on Jesusand his superior sacrifice and then we’re headed to the Lord’s Table.
Let me give you a brief outline of our time. We’ll start in Exodus 24, a place we’ve visited recently. We want to go there again. It’s the place in the Old Testament where the first covenant, the old covenant, the Mosaic covenant was formally adopted, ‘officially ratified’[1]and confirmed. We’ll highlight how blood was fundamental to the first covenant being inaugurated. It seems that sprinkled blood in that Exodus 24 scene ‘removed the defilement of Israel’[2]
We’ll then make a stop at the foot of the crossin Matthew and look afresh as Jesus is slaughteredas a blasphemer and a criminal.
And then we’ll pick up our journey in Hebrews chapter 9. The message is entitled “The Superior Sacrifice of the Christ”[3]
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If you have your bible,let’s begin in Exodus 24. On the screen I’ve put an artist’s rendition of this unique scene…you see the people, the leaders, the altar, sacrifices and the 12 pillars
As I said, we’ve been here recently and that’s because it’s an important chapter. As we look at some verses in Exodus 24, the nation of Israel is gathered at the foot of Mt. Sinai. Moses, the priests and the seventy elders of Israel and the people are gathered together. Moses has been given the covenant words and rules that the Israelites must abide by and Exodus 24 involves what we could call a covenant ratification or confirmation ceremony of sorts. We pick up in verse 3…
3Moses came and told the people all the words of (Yahweh) and all the rules. And all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words that (Yahweh) has spoken we will do.” 4And Moses wrote down all the words of (Yahweh). He rose early in the morning and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. 5And he sent young men of the people of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to YAHWEH. 6And Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he threw against the altar. 7Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that (yahweh) has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.” 8And Moses took the blood and threw it on the people and said, “Behold the blood of the covenant that (Yahweh) has made with you in accordance with all these words.”
Now let’s process a bit of what we see in these verses. God is “cutting a covenant” with his people and there is an altar and twelve pillarsand lots of sacrifices and the throwing(or sprinkling) of blood.
Why an altar? Well there were animals that needed to be sacrificial offerings. And why was it necessary for animals to be sacrificed? It turns out that for man to be in a covenantal relationship with Godblood must be shed.It’s hard to know how much an individual Israelite understood about this at the time but this was just the way God determined that life would work in covenantal relationship to him—to be in covenantal relationship with God blood must be shed (or said differently to be in covenantal relationship with God, someone or something must die). Or explaining it with an insight from our passage in Hebrews this morning—without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.[4] Blood needed to be shed because God is holy and man is sinful and there must be a payment for sin if man is able to relate to God in a covenant.
Look at verse 5.Therewere burnt offerings. These were for atonement (we import that understanding from the book of Leviticus[5]). And what is atonement? Justin gave us a concise definition of atonement last week—atonement means to pay a price that results in cleansing and reconciliation. So the oxen were sacrificed to pay a price so that the Israelites were cleansed and reconciled with God. But notice peace offerings were also sacrificed to the Lord. Later we find out that peace offerings (or fellowship offerings) were the offerings that individual worshippers shared in. So it seems that peace offerings represented the reconciled relationship that men and women had with God once their sins were addressed.
Why 12 pillars? The 12 pillars represented the twelve tribes of Israel.
Why the “covenant-confirming actions”[6] of throwing the blood? Half the blood went into basins, verse 6. And half the blood Moses threw against the altar. The altar probably represented God and ‘this was probably a picture of Yahweh accepting the sacrifice, the death of the animals in place of the death of the people.’[7] After throwing the blood on the altar, the Book of the Covenant was read—probably the Ten Commandments and the material that follows in Exodus 21, 22, and 23. Then the people declared their obedience to God and then, verse 8, Moses took the blood in the basins and threw it on the people and said, “Behold the blood of the covenant that Yahweh has made with you in accordance with all these words.”
Now let’s make a point. Who were the covenant partners in this Mosaic covenant? God and the Israelites. And whose blood was used in cutting the covenant? Wellthe Israelites surely deserved to die for their sin but God chose a substitute. So oxen blood splattered the altar representing God and it splattered the people (or maybe the pillars representing the people). And It was the blood of a substitute which was used to ratify the covenant between God and the people of Israel.
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Well let’s leave this scene and spend a few minutes at the foot of the cross on Good Friday. Turn to Matthew 27, verse 35… Matthew 27, verse 35…. What I’d like to do as I read these verses—and we’ll read about 17 verses-- is imagine the author of the book of Hebrews there at the foot of the cross on Good Friday sharing his stunning insights about the identity of Jesus…
Matthew 27:35…
35And when they had crucified him, they divided his garments among them by casting lots. 36Then they sat down and kept watch over him there. 37And over his head they put the charge against him, which read, “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.”
So we’re imagining the writer of Hebrews is there at the foot of the cross and he speaks of what he knows about Jesus out loud to anyone who will hear, “Look at Jesus…they call him the king of the Jews and so he is, Jesus…. the heir of all things, the one through whom God created the world…Jesus, the one who is the radiance of God’s glory, the one who is the exact imprint of God’s nature…. Jesus, the one who upholds the universe by the word of his power[8]….He’s being slaughtered on a tree…He is dying a criminal’s death!”
Verse38Then two robbers were crucified with him, one on the right and one on the left. 39And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads 40and saying, “You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.”
At this point I imagine the writer of Hebrews pulling those passing by aside, “Oh friends…quit ridiculing this man hanging between two thieves … you don’t want him to come down from the cross…you don’t want him to save himself…. though this looks like a criminal being punished, though this looks like a guilty man receiving his just desserts…. this man whom you are ridiculing is really the unblemished lamb of God giving his life as a sacrifice to put away sin…this man is opening the way to God by paying for our sins… and though you might never believe it…because of this sacrificial death…. we will now be able to draw near to God’s throne of grace to receive mercy and grace to help in time of need[9]. Oh….listen to me… when this man dies the way to God will be opened!” Those ridiculing stare in unbelief and walk off.
Verse 41 So also the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocked him, saying, 42“He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. 43He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’”
Again the author of Hebrews approaches these important religious leaders…
You religious leaders…you chief priests from the high priest’s family, I urge you to see this dying man for who He really is. As you yourselves have said, “He is the king of Israel” …..you are right about that…. but he is also a priest of the order of Melchizedek, declared a priest by an oath of God, Psalm 110 verse 4[10]…. And though you won’t believe it….he is our high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners…and one day he will be exalted above the heavens[11]….. Oh you religious leaders open your eyes…. You’re looking at our great High priest Jesus who will soon pass into the Holy of Holies[12]…. when he dies, he will enter the greater more perfect tent[13], not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood….and in doing this he will secure an eternal redemption[14].Look at the blood pouring from his brow and his hands and feet…. Oh you religious leaders you’re looking at the inauguration of a new covenant that God is making with man through the death of his dear son Jesus.
45Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. 46And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”Verse 50And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. 51And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.
Brothers and sisters, the cross is (way) more than mere jewelry that can be (purchased) with or without the little man on it[15]
Well let’s turn over to Hebrews 9….Hebrews 9…. We’ll look at verses 11 and 12 first….Hebrews 9:11–12…
11But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) 12he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.
Now the verses that we’ll look at this morning –we’ll be looking at verses 11-28–speak of three different appearances of Christ presented chronologically[16].
Here in verse 11,Christ appears as high priest—this is an allusion to Christ’s sacrifice for sins and so this, of course, would be in the past.
In verse 24, look at the very end of the verse, Christ now appears in God’s presence on our behalf….so this is what’s going on now. Christ is appearing before God and interceding for us.
And then look at the last verse of the chapter, verse 28, Christ will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to bring final salvation to those who await his coming…. obviously that would be future.
Along with Paul and other New Testament writers, Hebrews presents the work of Christ as past, present, and future.[17] In the past he appeared to obtain our eternal redemption, verse 11. Currently he appears in God’s presence to intercede for us, verse 24, and in the future he will appear to bring salvation (verse 28).[18]
Look again at verse 11. It says that Christ appeared as the high priest of the good things that have come—I take the phrase ‘good things that have come’ to mean all the blessings associated with the New Covenant, the inner inclination that believers have been given to obey God, complete forgiveness of sins, etc[19] Verse 11 also says Jesus entered into a greater and more perfect tent (one not made with hands…not of this creation…I take that to mean that simply Jesus entered God’s presence.[20]
Look at verse 12….he entered once for all into the holy places…once for all… he doesn’t need to go yearly like the other high priests…..not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood….the passage before us is all about the blood of Christ and it’s superior cleansing power.
And he has secured an eternal redemption for us. We’ve been purchased by God, delivered from sin’s penalty.
Now verses 11-12 give us threereasons in a summary form why Jesus’ sacrifice was superior to the priestly sacrifices of the Old Covenant. Look at verses 11-12 again…
--he entered into a greater and more perfect tent and
--he entered once for all and
--he entered by means of his own blood
Now we’re going to see that the author is going to elaborate on these three reasons in the verses that follow. And so here is how we’d put it in an outline
1. Reason #1-- Christ’s blood achieved a superior cleansing (vs. 13-22)
Follow with me as I read verses 13-22
13For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, 14how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.
15Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant. 16For where a will is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established. 17For a will takes effect only at death, since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive. 18Therefore not even the first covenant was inaugurated without blood. 19For when every commandment of the law had been declared by Moses to all the people, he took the blood of calves and goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, 20saying, “This is the blood of the covenant that God commanded for you.” 21And in the same way he sprinkled with the blood both the tent and all the vessels used in worship. 22Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.
Now in verses 13-14 the author argues from the lesser to the greater. IFthe blood of animals (and the phrase sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer is from a sin offering ceremony in Numbers 19), if the blood of animals purifies a person physically, removing ceremonial defilement, HOW MUCH MORE will Christ’s blood purify the conscience. And in Hebrews the term conscience is the inner person.[21] In the Old Testament, typically uncleanness was from physical defilement. Such defilement was related to sin but Jesus’s blood purifies the insides of a worshipper. That’s way better isn’t it? That’s way superior isn’t it?
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Albert Speer was once interviewed about his last book on ABC’s “Good Morning, America.” Speer was the Hitler confidant whose technological genius was credited with keeping Nazi factories humming throughout World War II. In another era he might have been one of the world’s industrial giants. He was the only one of twenty-four war criminals tried in Nuremburg who admitted his guilt. Speer spent twenty years in Spandau prison.
The interviewer referred to a passage in one of Speer’s earlier writings: “You have said the guilt can never be forgiven, or shouldn’t be. Do you still feel that way?” The look of pathos on Speer’s face was wrenching as he responded, “I served a sentence of twenty years, and I could say, ‘I’m a free man, my conscience has been cleared by serving the whole time as punishment.’ But I can’t do that. I still carry the burden of what happened to millions of people during Hitler’s lifetime, and I can’t get rid of it. This new book is part of my atoning, of clearing my conscience.” The interviewer pressed the point. “You really don’t think you’ll be able to clear it totally?” Speer shook his head. “I don’t think it will be possible.”
For thirty-five years Speer had accepted complete responsibility for his crime. His writings were filled with contrition and warnings to others to avoid his moral sin. He desperately sought expiation. All to no avail. [22]
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