Hebrews 9
Apr 3, 2022 2022-04-03 Ben Hoyer Hebrews 9A message on Hebrews 9, explaining the Old Testament tabernacle and sacrificial system and how Christ, as high priest offering his own blood, secures eternal forgiveness that liberates believers to live as they were intended.
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This story about Abraham that they give us in the lecture is pretty brutal. So we're going to look at the epistle reading that really instead. Hebrews. He's got the punchline God provides. Now let's look at Hebrews. Evers chapter nine is the New Testament reading that they give us for this morning.
I've talked about this before but when they were deciding on the books that would be in the New Testament, right, coming out of the Council of Nicaea, that the way of Jesus had become kind of this dominant faith, the Roman Emperor converts. And so he needs a definitive set of documents. And so all the leaders of the church gather and they say, what books do we all have that we're all using? And there were some that popped up that some people had but not others had, they left those
out. There were some that popped up that several people had but the authorship wasn't clear, meaning they didn't know who wrote it. And so then they decided what about his consistency with a book that someone else wrote or what about its universality? Does everybody have this book? Hebrews is one of those books. Hebrews is a book where nearly everybody had it. There was almost consensus. There's a group of books that in the church history they call the hetero-labooman, a diversity
of opinions about whether or not to include it in the scriptures or not, right? Hebrews is one of those books because we don't know who wrote it. It's attributed to Paul but the style of language is so completely different than 1st and 2nd Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians that we're nearly certain Paul did not write it. But the theology is consistent with what Paul, a thousand of the other things. So near as we could tell, a student of Paul or an aide of Paul probably wrote this letter
to the Hebrew believers to help them connect the dots to the Hebrew, the Israelite faith that they had been working under and how it's evolved into the way of Jesus now. It connects the dots between a Jewish faith and how Jesus is the fulfillment. And so it's this letter to the Hebrews which is very dense. In some places really beautiful. You know it has this famous chapter 11, Hebrews chapter 11, sometimes called the Hall of Faith.
But the text that they have assigned for us this morning is in Hebrews chapter 9. And they give us 11 through 15, but in order to really get the context of 11 through 15, we need to start at the beginning of chapter 9. And I'll go quick through the first part but it will set the tone for us here going forward for this morning. Before we do that, let me pray that God helps us because it's a little bit thick this morning, Beverly.
Hey Lord, thank you for this story, this letter. However it comes to us, we are grateful for the scriptures and Holy Spirit, you're working preserving the church until today. Be with us now Holy Spirit. Open our eyes, our minds, our hearts to the text that you have this morning and teach us what it means that we are deeply and completely forgiven in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. So Hebrews chapter 9, looking at verse 1, now even the first covenant had regulations for
worship and an earthly place of holiness. For a tent was prepared, the first section in which there was a lamp stand and the table and the bread of presents. It is called the Holy Place. He's talking about the tabernacle that they made when they were walking around in the desert of Sinai, you know. And they made this tent, this tabernacle, he's about to tell us off of a model that God gave
to Moses, that's supposed to model the heavenly city. And he's saying there was a tent that was prepared and in the first section there were these things, the lamp stand, the table, the bread of the presents and that's the Holy Place, the place that's set apart or set aside. Verse 3, and behind the curtain was a second section called the Most Holy Place, this holier than the Holy Place. There's a Holy Place that's set aside and then there's a place that's really set aside. Right?
Most Holy Place. Having the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold in which was a golden urn holding the manna and Aaron's staff that butted and the tablets of the covenant and above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat of these things we cannot now speak in detail. It's hard to know. I think that mainly he's saying he can't speak in detail because he doesn't have the time.
But when you read the story of the ark of the covenant and you see there are the tablets from Sinai, the broken tablets, Aaron's staff that butted, there's a little thing with manna in it. You can see why we have movies about the ark of the covenant. It's fascinating to imagine that those things might still exist somewhere. Right? Like I just would be fascinating to see what do those tablets look like. But of course, unless Indiana Jones found them, we haven't found them.
Maybe they're somewhere. The best as you can guess is are in North Africa somewhere. And then above the mercy seat, above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat. Just really briefly, they had the, it was directed to have these angels with wings stretching out over top of the cover and that this would be the place where you met with God. It's called the mercy seat that God would wait the manifest presence of God hovering
above the ark of the covenant with the artifacts of his presence or interaction in the world, the commandments of manna and the budding staff beneath him. That then you would approach this is where God's physical presence is, right? Right above the mercy seat. Verse six, these preparations having thus been made the priest go regularly into the first section performing their ritual duties. But into the second, only the high priest goes and he but once a year and not without taking blood, which he offers for himself and for the unintentional sins of the people.
By this, the Holy Spirit indicates that the way into the holy places is not yet opened as long as the first section is still standing, which is symbolic for the present age, according to the arrangements gifts and sacrifices offered that cannot be, that cannot perfect the conscious. Hold on. Okay. This is like he sets up the tabernacle because he realizes as they're leading Egypt that humanity, if they're going to approach the life that they were made for, needs the, the physical proximity of the God, right?
That humanity separated from God outside of the garden will always devolve, right? Humanity coming up to Noah devolved till all desires were harder, all evil all the time. Coming out of Noah within a few generations, they're deciding that they do not need God. But without the manifest presence of God coming in and being God, humanity will always rebel against the God and figure we know better.
Wait a minute. There once was a God and now I have arrived. Once there was something that knew the way for humanity to live and now I make my own decision. This rebellion against God, this assumption that I know better than God is the heart of all sin and the fatal flaw of all humanity and God in his like persistent deep well of grace and patience. At the parting of the Red Sea, at the position of Sinai lays out a way for him to take his
manifest presence out from wherever it dwells infinitely and shrink it down and move it into a place where it can dwell among the people. He tells Moses, let's make a tabernacle that mirrors the heavenly city that brings my presence down in and among the people, still separated not inside of the people but inside the camp of the people. And so he sets up this system of sacrifices because the presence of God is this unique
thing. It took me a while to come up with a way to think about the presence of God that didn't have him being totally like a jerk. He's talking about the presence of God in the Old Testament and pretty consistently it's like just danger and people dying. And this is the instance with the tabernacle that like if you don't atone for the sins
properly and come into the presence of God, then people die. You can read the stories and remember the story where they're trying to bring the Ark of the Covenant and they carry it wrong and one dude dies. And so the metaphor that I came up with trying to put into my head the way that I think about the presence of God repelling life from people like that is that idea, I don't know if this is true because I don't, I just don't know, but you know how they say
that the subway has a third rail on it? Like where, this is how I understand it so go along with me I might be wrong, that there are two rails that the train rides on and that there's a third rail that stays charged all the time that powers the thing. And so then it stays connected to this third rail and it moves the train along the path
of the two rails but the third rail always stays charged. And without the third rail you're not moving forward at all but if you just walk up and touch the third rail, the third rail is not a jerk, it's just doing third rail stuff. This is doing third rail job, its job is power. So disrespect third rail and go with it. The presence of God does not make a decision, does not force or decide in these instances
that some people must be punished. The problem is the presence of God suffers no rebellion, no one can try to be God in the presence of God and succeed. If you come into the presence of God pretending or thinking you know better than the God you lose because the God is God like just what it does. It repells rebellion or usurpers or people who might believe that they are also God.
And of course this is the kernel of sin. Don't eat the tree, yeah right I know better than you. Live this way I think I'll live my own way, thank you. The kernel of sin is rebellion. Okay so they have this thing where one idea, one dude walks into the presence of God. Here we are, thank you for being here in the midst of the camp.
Sorry we're such rebellious usurpers. Have patience with us again this year please and don't remove your presence from us because it gives us the capacity to be your people yet. Thank you. Box out. Alright. Around much ceremony and circumstance. And that says that according to this arrangement gifts and sacrifices are offered that cannot perfect the conscience of the worshiper but deal only with the externals, regulations
for the body and the time of the reformation. I feel like this sacrificial system that we have in the Old Testament accomplishes two things. One it like that like natural capacity or facility of the God to suffer no intrusion is forced all this is held back at bay by the penalty that is paid for the rebellion of people. And also it cultivates in the people a recognition of the severity of their rebellion.
It does two things it for stalls the judgment of God and cultivates the people into recognizing man we are a mess and have made mistakes. But verse 11 here's our reading okay that's the preamble. Sorry about that. Hopefully it was helpful. But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come the one that goes into the room once a year is called the high priest. But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come.
Then the greater and more perfect tent that made with hands that is of this creation that is talking about the heavenly tent the one that the tabernacles modeled after he entered once for all into the holy places. By means of the blood of goats and calves what by means of his own blood and securing and eternal redemption. For this sprinkling of the filed persons with the blood of goats and bulls and with the ashes of the heifer sacrifices for purification of blood how much more will the blood of Christ
who through the eternal spirit offered himself without blemence to God purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. He had a system God did to bring his presence down into the proximity of humanity and that was held together by this repeated revisiting of the failure of humanity over and over again. There is a sacrificial right for each individual to come and make a torment for their sin to say I have rebelled against you in these ways and that rebellion cost this and then
there was a system for the whole group we as a group once a year have rebelled against you in these ways and that rebellion cost this and that keeps God at bay but in proximate in near them. When Christ does something different the writer of Hebrews is saying. Ours surpassing. What it feel like to have a list of rules in your head and to know when you cross them
and what it would cost you to try to make it right all the time. These folks living under this system maybe you know the feeling have felt like there are rules upon rules that cannot be broken that hedge them in and bind them in and they work with guilt and relief over and over again and the writer of Hebrews says Christ
has done something radically different unseen in humanity before unknown as an option the unbounded infinite God comes down and resolves the rebellion of humanity in one person so that don't we rebel still infinite atonement has been made meaning the presence of God washes in and guilt infects us not anymore that for infinity into the future and all the
way to your beginning your rebellion has been resolved your sin has been forgiven and the presence of God once kept for most holy places to be entered in with trepidation and blood once a year has found its way down into use the breath of creation the the love of eternity
the justice of perfection found its way into you so he says that how much more will the blood of Christ through the eternal spirit offered himself without blemish to God purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant so that those
who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance then death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions admitted under the first covenant they receive the promise eternal inheritance if you experience guilt
for self condemnation these are not from God the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob without a Christ and the church more oh need for use for condemnation
once i realized that i may have instances of rebellion but i am not a rebellious person this was liberating when i realized i am not defined by the sum total of my worst choices i'm not limited to my basis instincts that though i succumb to rebellion though i think at times and even act as though i know better than God i am not defined by those choices instead i am who God calls
me to be perfectly liberated free un-condemned alive and experiencing eternal inheritance in God and so are you you are not defined by the sum of your worst choices for your basis are not you do not you are not condemned now you will not be condemned forever that was liberating when i realized i didn't have to continue to point the finger at myself
God was not pointing the finger at me either but it went further i realized if i am if though i rebel i am not merely a rebellious person inside me is something else that because of the forgiveness of God you have the capacity to live as you are intended right now
meaning you can love freely and forgive generously you can create with four thoughts and self-sacrifice you can move in places of mercy and generosity you can be agents of the reign of God in the world where you live in the relationships that you have you can administer forgiveness you can speak life you can move with generosity you can be the people of God right now the forgiveness of God does more
than absolve your mistakes it liberates you to live as you were intended to live from the very beginning but this is what we're moving towards in our celebration of Easter not merely the resolution of what was wrong but the birth of all that is right inside of you like right now the death and resurrection of christ means you have infinite capacity to grow in goodness grace
mercy justice love joy generosity creativity over and over again starting now and going says forever not mere forgiveness not mere resolution of problem but birth of everything that is right here's the trick you'll see it he says in a foretaste in little fifth and starts and the temptation will be to believe that those little embers of who you will be forever are not
actually you are there that the temptation will be to believe that who you really are is your worst choices and basis I say that's a lie let's see people who believe in the gospel of God who say that the the forgiveness of God is real for us and birth something new let's let's be people who believe that the good that is embryonic or new who is young and beginning that has
burst inside of us now that is who we are and who we will be with God forever that's the promise of Easter that we're coming to do life now it's already done let me pray that we would have that kind of faith a lord thank you for the high priest Jesus who sacrificed outside of space and time is sufficient for us this morning to resolve in equity and earth new life just to recognize
and be Lord yes of new life this month the sake of Jesus Christ that is sacrificed to be realized in our hearts and minds today