Hebrews 9:13-14
"For if the blood of bulls and goats, or the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, (if it could) sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: (in that old economy, these had NO power to do any thing but cover and that only for a very short time) How much more (oh, beyond comparison!) shall the blood of Christ, (you cannot compare the efficacy of animal’s blood with this divine Blood of Christ and the power which is so intrinsic in it) who through the eternal Spirit offered himself (as the supreme sacrifice. See how plain this is? He is the atoning Blood. He is the supreme sacrifice and so) without spot to God, purged your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?"
Oh, what a difference. We’re not worshiping idols of wood and stone or some precious metal or anything else. We’re not worshiping some man-made religion or a religion which God had instituted as good but had become defiled by man. Because man broke his end of the bargain with God and this breakage nullified the whole deal from God's stand point. And that is why there are now two Covenants. When we come in under that shed Blood of Christ by trusting His faith in His death, burial and resurrection; we now have full access to God through the New Covenant. We can pray to Him twenty-four hours a day and we can slip out into eternity with full assurance that we’re going into His presence.
Just here maybe a good place to share this thought, who are true fishers of men? Jesus said that He would make us fishers of men but....His followers were among the best fisher men of their time. But were they true fishers of men? NO, in each case where they were out even after being with the Lord for those three years were they true fishers of men? NO, and this is seen by the fact that He appeared to them after His ascension after they had been fishing all night and had caught how much fish, nothing. In each scenario it was only after He had told them where to place the nets did they catch fish. For when they went about fishing in their own sufficiency were they like those spoken of by Isaiah in chapter 19 and verse 8: "The fishers also shall mourn, and all they that cast angle into the brooks shall lament, and they that spread nets upon the waters shall languish." For only the Lord can make us true fishers of men but first we have to sit under God patiently as a child while He does His works within us and then and only then do we become a true fisher. For here in is this Gospel of the Kingdom Life and its meaning found, and what we've called the second blessing.
Hebrews 9:14a
"How much more…"
The Epistle of Hebrews is constantly referring back to the system of Law and Judaism – and that it was good. But, now we’ve come on this side of the Cross, and the Law has been set aside as has the fist Covenant; they were completely fulfilled at the Cross. Now everything is what? Better! They have served their purpose, the same purpose that our being placed within or under its tutorship was to have done in Israel but they failed to grasp its significance. We are given the Holy Spirit and His first assignment is to bring us through the minefields of the first estate. And He revealing to us our need for God's Salvation and the New Covenant wherein He binds Himself to us for our good. And so this is exactly what he is talking about here.
The Epistle of Hebrews is not a book of salvation like Romans or Galatians or even a book of church position like Ephesians. The Epistle of Hebrews was written to Hebrews who were still hanging on to a lot of the things of their now dead Judaism in Paul’s day. And remember that, when Paul writes Hebrews, the Temple in Jerusalem is still going strong, still functioning.
Even though the Romans had been hating the Jews for probably a hundred years or more, God in His Sovereignty did not let them destroy the Temple until after Paul’s Epistles were completed and he and Peter were taken out of the way. I hadn’t thought of that before. So now with Paul’s Epistles complete (and he can say that we’re no longer under Law), there was no need for the Temple or the old priesthood. There was no need for the priesthood, and there was no need for sacrifices or any other ceremonial obligations as they are now just dead works. Remember that John the Baptizer was the last priest and he passed his authority to Jesus in the river in fulfillment of all righteousness. Then when the priest's called an unlawful assembly of themselves in the early morning hours to judge the righteous one, the son of man, and the high priest tore his clothing in Jesus' presence he passed his authority to the higher power, the righteous one before him. Because all the priest's were in lawlessness and an unlawful court of judgment. Because they were defying God's Law and the person of the Law was before them in the figure of His Son.
But, it wasn’t until after the revelations of this Age of Grace that God permitted the Temple to be destroyed, and the priesthood dissolved and all the things that were associated with it. What an amazing God we have! And He does everything in perfect timing. Now the other thing I'd like to point out about the Epistle of Hebrews is that it’s not for the novice. I don’t expect new believers to just jump in and say, ‘WOW! I can really get a lot out of Hebrews.' I just don’t think that’s possible because of what Paul says way back in chapter 5, verses 13 and 14. And I think it’s just for this very reason that the novice cannot fully digest the things in Hebrews.
Now for the Hebrews (to whom he was writing), you see, they were steeped in all this. They had been for generations, but for the non-Jew, this is just something that we’re not accustomed to reading and seeing and delving into – and so he says there in chapter 5 verse 13:
Hebrews 5:13-14a
"For everyone that useth milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, (see!) even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised…"
So this Epistle of Hebrews is not milk, let me put it this way. The Epistle of Hebrews isn’t for the novice, the young believer. It’s for the mature believer who studies the Word. And, consequently, I suppose, a lot of people think I may be going over their heads in these Hebrews studies, but we trust that as we come through you’ll understand that, even for the novice, my, to just come in and periodically and feast. They like the fisher men wont get it because they're fishing by their own sufficiency or strength, and many while still within the first estate. But that's alright because the Holy Spirit will still be able to use it to His advantage and purpose.
Glenda and I have been talking about how the world has been changing generation to generation. And she was talking about her Mom having to carry water from the well to the old washing machine and the hand-wringers and hanging out the clothes. You might remember that. Well, we didn’t have any part of that – by the time we got married, we had the washer and the dryer. And now our kids, I suppose they think that what we went through was way back in the ancient times someplace, because they don’t do anything like we did.
Well then, I thought how this just fits in with Hebrews. Hebrews is something you can just jump in and feast on like maybe an occasional trip to a high-class restaurant. Now there again, times have changed. Oh, it was a feast. Well, that’s Hebrews. Every once in a while you come into the Epistle of Hebrews and you just feast on it. Now you don’t do it every day, because Romans and Galatians are the books for everyday. And Paul’s Church Epistles. That’s down where the rubber meets the road as we say. But Hebrews, you just jump in there once in a while for a delicacy. All right, let’s come back:
Hebrews 9:14
"How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?"
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