The Perfect Offering of Christ

Hebrews 9 and the Earthly Sanctuary

And once again, not to anyone's shock, we will be in Hebrews, Chapter 9, the book of Hebrews, Chapter 9. Again, let us ask the Lord's blessing upon our time. Our gracious Heavenly Father, once again we come into your presence with your Word in our hands and desire that we would understand what your Word would have us to understand this evening.

That you would communicate with us by your Word and by your Spirit. That we would be confirmed in the faith, strengthened in our confession that Jesus Christ is Lord. We thank you for this time, we pray in Christ's name.

This morning we began looking at the ninth chapter of the book of Hebrews and we worked through those first ten verses that laid out for us the form and function of the holy place and the holy of holies.

And we had to struggle with some issues, some difficulties, but we managed to get through and as a result come this evening to the 11th verse. But obviously it would be best to sort of go back and at least get the context through the section we wish to cover this evening.

So, I will begin reading once again at verse 1. Now, even the first covenant had regulations of divine worship and the earthly sanctuary. For there was a tabernacle prepared, the outer one, in which were the lampstand and the table and the sacred bread.

This is called the holy place. Behind the second veil there was a tabernacle which is called the holy of holies, having a golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was a golden jar holding the manna, and Aaron's rod which budded, and the tables of the covenant, and above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat.

But of these things we cannot now speak in detail. Now, when these things have been so prepared, the priests are continually entering the outer tabernacle performing the divine worship, 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.

The Holy Spirit is signifying this, that the way into the holy place has not yet been disclosed while the outer tabernacle is still standing, which is a symbol for the present time. Accordingly, both gifts and sacrifices are offered, which cannot make the worshipper perfect in conscience, since they relate only to food and drink and various washings, regulations for the body imposed until a time of reformation.

The Greater and More Perfect Tabernacle

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, and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through his own blood he entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.

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, 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.

So this morning we worked through the first 10 verses and we looked especially at the form of the argument that the Holy Spirit was signifying according to verse 8, and that is that the way into the holy place has not yet been disclosed while the outer tabernacle is still standing, which we were told was a symbol for the present time.

And since that was the case, then the argument was made that both gifts and sacrifices are offered, which cannot make the worshipper perfect in conscience. So there was something lacking. There was something that these gifts and sacrifices were pointing away from themselves to something greater, a greater fulfillment.

Obviously, it is also part of the argument that these were not intended to perfect in conscience. And of course, as we even consider, for example, some of our favorite texts from the Psalter, how often is it very clearly stated to us then that it was a broken and a contrite heart, that there was this spiritual element that needed to be present in the sacrifices.

There were many, many people. There were many unjust people as we've been going through, as we've been going through Jeremiah, think about it. How much of that dialogue and that conflict takes place either just outside the temple with people going into the temple or in the temple precincts themselves?

So here you had people who were going into the temple and they're offering sacrifices. We had the false prophet just a few Sunday nights ago. We had the story of the false prophet in conflict with Jeremiah.

And we certainly would imagine he was a person who attended the sacrifices in the temple and he was involved in the temple worship. And from an outward perspective, he went through all of these things and yet he was a false prophet even by the testimony of Scripture itself.

And so you could have people who went through these things, but the mere experience of that kind of activity was not enough. There needs to be something more and that something more would actually touch the conscience.

These things relate only to food and drink and various washings, regulations for the body imposed until a time of reformation. As soon as he makes reference to this time of reformation, that's when we step into the text that we look at this evening beginning at verse 11.

Christ as High Priest of the Good Things That Have Come

But when the Messiah, when the Christ appeared as a high priest of... And then you have two different translations here. Some of your translations will say the good things to come, but others will say the good things that have come.

Now, basically, if we take it in the way, for example, the New American Standard has it, the good things to come, then it would be referring from the old covenant forward to the fulfillment in Christ.

But most probably, it is the good things that have come, that is the fulfillment that is found in Christ. He is the high priest of the good things that are presently, have come in His ministry, in His work, in His fulfillment.

And so there is an important time, a break when Christ appears as a high priest of the good things that have come. And He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not as creation, and not through the blood of goats and cows, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place, once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.

Now, there is so much here that we can almost be overwhelmed, but we need to hear each element of the statement to, I think, fully understand what's being said. We have the old, incapable of cleansing the conscience, incapable of making that inward change just in of itself.

And we had the high priest who only goes in once on the day of atonement, and He puts the blood upon the altar, and He sprinkles the blood. He does all that work. But now we have the Messiah who appears as a high priest.

And remember, the book of Hebrews has already established this. How? In the subject of Melchizedek. He is a priest after the order of Melchizedek. He has a priesthood based upon indestructible life. And so now the Messiah has come.

And He is a high priest of good things. That must be in contrast to the regulations of food and drink, which could never cleanse the conscience. Now there's good things that have come. And just as the high priest on the day of atonement, you would see Him disappear.

You would see Him enter first into the holy place, and then into the holy of holies. And He was there for a period of time. And you would have this silence. And the people would stand outside wondering because He's their representative, but He has to keep coming out.

He can't open the way. He can only go in that one time. But He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle. Remember what His argument has been so far. That the greater and more perfect tabernacle is that which is in the heavens, rather than the types and shadows upon the earth.

Even though that still is in existence at this point in time, that's just a type and a shadow. Jesus didn't have to go into the holy of holies on earth because that's just a representation. It's a shadow of a greater reality, which is in heaven.

The greater and more perfect tabernacle, the one not made with hands, that is to say not of this creation. All the old covenant scriptures had told us in great detail about the making of the first tabernacle, and how men's hands, and how God had to give gifts to men as to how they could make these things.

We all know that that tabernacle is of this creation. But no, He has entered through the more perfect tabernacle, the heavenly tabernacle. But just as the high priest did not enter in without a sacrifice, so Jesus, as the fulfillment of the picture of the high priest, does not enter in without a sacrifice.

But the old priest would go in, and he would have that bowl filled with blood of goats and calves. But this is not how the perfect high priest goes through. It is not the continuing sacrifice of animals.

All of those animal sacrifices pointed away from themselves, not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood by means of that sacrifice which He Himself made. Now, we've already at times, because it's impossible really to cut everything up into nice, neat little subjects, but we've already had time to ponder and to consider the message of the book of Hebrews concerning the high priest who is the only sacrifice.

This causes many people to stumble. This causes many Jews to stumble. Paul told us that. He mentions this many times. It was a scandalon, a stumbling block, a crucified Messiah. To this day, there are many who follow in their footsteps.

My Muslim friends are stumbled by this idea of a high priest who is His own sacrifice. Why would God need to do this? Not seeing how God had established in the prophetic Scriptures this picture of how His perfect justice would be fulfilled by His own extension of His own grace and power.

Not through someone else, but God Himself providing in the person of His Son the sacrifice and the perfect high priest. So, through His own blood, through His own sacrifice. Now, there has been a tremendous amount of discussion.

A tremendous amount of heated discussion, I might add, about various theories that have been developed over the years concerning what this means. There was one writer a while back that was just absolutely certain that what this meant is that Jesus bled every drop of blood out of His body, but because it could not be destroyed, it was all gathered up and He brought it all into heaven.

And that physical blood, therefore, is the source of eternal salvation because it cannot be destroyed. And one of the commentaries that I was reading, there was I don't know how many pages of discussion of the arguments pro and con regarding this and so on and so forth.

It certainly seems to me that what the writer is saying, he's not making a one-to-one correspondence here. He is talking about the offering of Christ. He mentions the blood of Christ in verse 14. How much more would the blood of Christ who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve a living God?

But clearly, it's not the physical blood of Christ that somehow cleanses a conscience as if a conscience is a spiritual thing and then you have a physical thing that's somehow cleansing it or something like that.

It is, however, the self-sacrifice. It is the giving of life which was what was represented in the death of the animal. Jesus' death was a real death. It was not a fake death. He truly gave His own life.

And so it is through His own blood then He does bring a sacrifice. He does not enter into the holies of holies without a sacrifice. But it is not a sacrifice of goats or calves or bulls or whatever else it might be.

But He entered the holy place and here we have a place for you to put down a stake in your faith. Here is a place you need to put down a will not compromise here. For those of you with Roman Catholic friends and relatives, this is a hill to die on.

Once for all. One time. Now, I've mentioned this before, but things like this bear repetition. The term does not mean once for all people. We can sometimes say that in English. I'm going to do this once for all of you.

Or something like that. No. In the original language, this is not a disputable thing. This is not an arguable thing. This is not a debatable thing. At least not for anybody who knows language. This is a temporal term.

It speaks of time. One time He enters in unlike the old priest. In, out, in, out. Each year the repetition is going to become part of the argument in chapter 10. Chapter 10 is going to emphasize repetition means it's a reminder of sin.

So, if Jesus goes in and out, in and out, there's something that more He has to do than this one time He enters in and His work is not finished. His work is not complete. And really, the entire argument of the book of Hebrews collapses.

Once for all He enters into the holy place. Not over and over again. It's literally the holy places, but it's already been used in the book of Hebrews to refer to the holiest place. That inner sanctum.

And the parallel here is the high priest who goes in once a year, but then he has to come back out. And then he has to go back in. There has to be a new sacrifice. It's a continuing representation of sin.

And the fact that what's going on here has not actually perfected those for whom the sacrifices are being made. He entered the holy place once for all having obtained eternal redemption. Now, some translations say thereby obtaining eternal redemption.

And that raises an important issue for us to consider in light of the once-for-allness of the work of Christ. One of the richest, deepest insights that in God's grace I was able to glean from one of God's great writers, well, decades ago now, literally, was from, of course, the great John Owen.

And Owen wrote extensively, as you may know, probably his magnum opus as a mature interpreter of the Word of God was his huge commentary on the book of Hebrews. And it is huge. And he had written on some of these things as a young man.

And it's interesting to compare the greater depth of insight that was his later in his life on some of these particular issues. But in reading his work and indeed reading one of his earliest works, The Death of Death and the Death of Christ, along with his commentary on Hebrews, one of the emphases that I picked up at that time that has been so important in my theological work and apologetic work is the relationship that's laid out right here between Christ as sacrifice and Christ as High Priest.

What was the duty of the High Priest? And you may recall I have already emphasized more than once in our study of the book of Hebrews, that it is one work that the High Priest does. The sacrifice is not complete.

If he does not present the sacrifice in the Holy of Holies. And he cannot go into the Holy of Holies without the sacrifice. It is one thing. It is not one part that can be separated from another part.

We can distinguish the parts. We can, you know, on a timeline, the sacrifice has to come first, logically, before entering into the holy place. We can see in the timeline what it is. But conceptually, it is the one work, the finished work of the High Priest.

You would never say that a High Priest who managed the sacrifice, but then couldn't bring himself maybe out of fear to go into the Holy of Holies had actually finished his work as a High Priest. And so when we talk about Jesus entering into the Holy of Holies in heaven, as it's going to be described in the very presence of God for us later on in this chapter.

Because, I mean, what does the Ark represent but the very presence of God with his people? And so if the Son, as High Priest and as sacrifice, is entering into the presence of the Father, is this an addition to a separate work from His work upon the cross?

No. It is all one work. So the writer of the Hebrews recognizes He enters in through His own blood. He enters in once for all. And I think the best translation would be having obtained eternal redemption in His sacrificial work.

But even if your translation says thereby obtaining eternal redemption, even that could be understood solely in the fact that it is the one work of the High Priest to offer the sacrifice and to enter in to the holiest place.

The Holy of Holies. But we dare not hasten past that phrase having obtained eternal redemption. Because what was the very nature of the sacrifices of the Mosaic Covenant? It wasn't eternal. How was that demonstrated?

By the fact it had to keep being repeated. And yet, this One who has been described in Hebrews 1 as the Creator of all things, the unchanging Yahweh, enters into human flesh, gives His own life on Calvary's tree, kind of redemption.

But an eternal redemption could He obtain? Could He possibly obtain a partial redemption? Could He possibly by His work obtain only a kind of redemption that is dependent upon future actions of individuals to make truly effective?

What other description could be given? It does not say that He made possible eternal redemption. It does not say that there was a hypothetical redemption awaiting some type of future fulfillment. He obtained eternal redemption.

When He enters into the presence of the Father, there is nothing more that needs to be added. Nothing more that needs to be done. Now, don't get confused. Often people hear this, and we might look at Paul's words in Ephesians 2.

He talks there about how we're already seated in the heavenly places in Christ. We sort of look around and go, well, I hope it gets a little bit better than this. It's the now and the not yet. There is that true sense which because of the reality of our union with Christ, we are already seated in the heavenly places.

The certainty of the fact that God is not going to fail in accomplishing His intention means we're already seated there. And we need to keep that same type of concept in mind when we're thinking about this, because clearly, there was a time when you and I were under the wrath of God, as all the rest.

And we experience the reality of the eternal actions of divine election and the fact that, yes, we were united with Christ. And so, yes, our salvation is absolutely certain. It was certain from eternity past.

It was certain at the cross of Calvary. But we do not experience that until that time when God by His Spirit raises us to spiritual life, gives us spiritual discernment, shows us Jesus Christ, faith, repentance, all those things that we associate.

So we understand that we experience that, but the amazing thing that we should be growing into as believers as we study God's Word is to realize, as we so often sing in that hymn that we love so much, that my goodness, this was a certainty from eternity past.

His love was set upon me. And the very sacrifice of Christ, it wasn't just some impersonal thing. If I have been united to Him, then my redemption truly was worked out, not theoretically, but in reality on the cross of Calvary.

When He entered into the presence of the Father, He had obtained eternal redemption. It really was finished, as Jesus had said there in John 19. You see, if it wasn't once for all, then He hadn't obtained eternal redemption.

If He comes out, He has to go back in. Comes out, He has to go back in. How can you say He's obtained? Did He leave it in there? What more would need to be added? He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.

The Blood of Christ, the Eternal Spirit, and the Cleanse of Conscience

Now, this should absolutely cause us to rejoice in the biblical doctrine of atonement. I mean, this is the very foundation of our peace with God. But isn't it amazing at what professing Christians do with this?

Why are there so many today whose doctrine of the cross is, quite honestly, primarily an emotional thing rather than a biblical thing? It's not like these words are all that difficult to understand. Yeah, the Old Testament backgrounds can be a little bit challenging, but why is it?

Well, can I suggest something to you? He enters in through His own blood once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. I don't know about you, but I'm not in there. Faith's not in there. My good works aren't in there.

In fact, if He enters in once for all, having obtained eternal redemption, there really isn't any place for any of my merits or works or anything else, is there? There's no room for man's ego, man's pride.

There's certainly no way of controlling this powerful Savior by my act. And I suggest to you that fundamentally... That's why people don't like this. Fundamentally, if Christ is actually a perfect Redeemer and a perfect Savior, that means all I am is a perfect sinner.

And that undercuts human religion, which uses sacraments and ceremonies and things to control the people. So we have to find a way around that. And people have done it down through the ages. 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.

Now, if you look at that and go, yeah, it must have been some Old Testament stuff. Well, that's true. We've already seen the blood of goats and bulls. The ashes of a heifer, that was another sacrifice that was made where the ashes of a heifer were mixed with water to, in essence, create a mechanism whereby a person would be cleansed if they had had contact with a dead body.

And so it could just be the general idea of these Old Testament sacrifices and things like that. But the connection might be here. Again, remember, the writer assumes his audience pretty much knows the Old Testament very, very well.

And you'll notice it says, how much more of the blood of Christ who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God cleanse your conscience from what? Dead works. What was these ashes of the heifer used for?

Cleansing from contact with a dead body. So probably it is the idea of dead works, the cleansing of the conscience. Remember what he said earlier? All those things could not cleanse the conscience, could not perfect the worshiper, could not impact here.

But now he's going to be making the argument that the blood of Christ can, in fact, cleanse the conscience from dead works. And so that's probably the background of what brings in the ashes of the heifer.

Sprinkling those who have been defiled sanctify for the cleansing of what? The flesh. Not the spirit. Not the conscience. If God had set up a way by which external ceremonial cleanliness could be re-established by these sacrifices, how much more will the blood of Christ, His sacrifice, His self-giving, the giving of the Messiah who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

This is meant to be a rhetorical question. The answer is meant to be rather obvious. But, once again, let's make sure we look carefully at what is said. How much more, rather than these old sacrifices, will the blood of Christ?

And notice the description that is given of Him. Now, again, two ways of understanding this. Who, through the eternal Spirit, and, for example, in many of your Bibles, if your Bible uses capitalized forms for references to deity, you might have the word Spirit capitalized there.

That would be the editor's way of saying, well, this is actually, in essence, a Trinitarian text. You have the Messiah offering Himself through the eternal Spirit, through the power of the Spirit. We could spend quite some time talking about Jesus' teaching on the Spirit and the role of the Spirit.

And certainly it was the Spirit that gave to Christ the power and ability to go through what He went through. Offered Himself without blemish to God, which would be the Father. Others would say, no, eternal Spirit shouldn't be capitalized because the reference is actually to the Son Himself, the second person of the Trinity, who offered Himself without blemish to God.

I think that the first reading is probably best. That is that the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit, by means of the work of the Spirit, empowering Him, directing Him, because He is... What is the description of the suffering servant, Isaiah?

Is there not an intimate connection as we've read Isaiah 53 between the Spirit and the suffering servant? The Spirit will be upon Him, we're told elsewhere. Who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself.

There's the priest. There's the high priest offering Himself. Now, again, that type of language is a huge stumbling block for many people. This October, Lord willing, I will be revisiting Australia and I will be doing a debate with a Muslim down there.

And I have listened to this Muslim speak and this just absolutely makes no sense to him. Offered Himself. There's no parallel to this in the Old Testament, he says. Totally unheard of. Well, I wonder how the writer of the Hebrews would have responded to that.

I think the writer of the Hebrews would have said, I've never said that there was any divine Messiah in the Old Testament. What I have said that the types and the shadows... Those types and shadows are lesser than, but they point to a greater fulfillment.

And what kind of greater fulfillment could you have than the self-sacrificial giving of God? Now, I would argue that we do have pictures. Certainly in Abraham and Isaac, as we will see in the next chapter.

In Genesis, as we read through it, if Isaac can give his own son, and so if Abraham can give his own son, is that not the very reason that God put him through these things? But he offered Himself. There is a priestly element in his self-giving.

Now, we sort of pass over that, but that's the natural language to the Jewish people. They knew that the sacrifice had to be without blemish. The sinlessness of Christ. He gave Himself. He offered Himself.

I cannot help but think of that Himself language in Philippians 2. He made Himself of no reputation. Here it is. He offered Himself without blemish. His sinless life for sinful people. And yes, the emphasis here is upon the fact that at the point of His self-giving, He is without blemish.

But that required an entire life. Because see, you could have an animal that would be brought to the priest. And he examines the animal and there's no blemish. But he doesn't know that as a younger animal, it was blemished.

But the blemish has gone away. How's the priest supposed to know? But you see, the sinlessness of Christ had to be a lifelong thing. It had to be a perfect thing. A complete obedience to the law of God.

So, He offered Himself without blemish to God. This was an inter-Trinitarian offering. It wasn't anything outside of God. God is providing salvation in and of Himself. He doesn't have to go outside of Himself to obtain the redemption of His people.

Here, the Son, by means of the Spirit, offers Himself, obviously here being the Incarnate One, to the Father. And how can it not be then? The argument is that that self-offering, that giving of a perfect life, will not cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God.

Cleanse your conscience. The whole point was all that stuff that people went through, all the sacrifices, the veils and the altars, didn't cleanse the conscience. It didn't touch internally. Now, did the Spirit of God touch people internally in the Old Covenant?

Of course. We mentioned this morning. You can't read Psalm 51 without seeing the very same spiritual application of these types and shadows. But you see, there were so many people who stood outside under the Old Covenant and they went through the motions.

You see, high priests even. Think of Caiaphas and Annas. They had done these things. They had been in the Holy of Holies. Conscience defiled by dead works. Unclean. But you see, the work of Christ cleanses the conscience from dead works and opens up the ability to serve the living God in newness of life.

Here is the great fulfillment. Here is one of the great arguments of Hebrews. There's nothing to go back to. And what an argument it was. Think about it for just a moment. I know I'm running a little long, but I'll wrap up.

Think about it just a moment. Remember, go back months now. Maybe a year or more. I'm not sure when we started. Go back. What is the argument of Hebrews? There's nothing to go back to. You counteract the pressure that's being put upon the Jewish Christians by showing the supremacy of Christ.

There's no reason to go back to those old ways. And how does this fit in perfectly with that? How many of those people arguing, come back, come back, come back, had stood there in the temple? They had thought, well, here I am again.

There goes the high priest again. There's the smell of sacrifice again. But am I changed? Their conscience was weighed down with those dead works. And how many of them had thought there must be something more?

Oh, they may have for various reasons not even thought that just Jesus could be the Messiah. But they themselves had stood there and they themselves had wondered. What a powerful argument to take what you know has been going on in someone's heart and say, you see, there's nothing to go back to.

Because you see, those who bow the knee to Christ, those who see who He is, who recognize who through the eternal Spirit He offered Himself without blemish to God, their consciences have been cleansed from dead works.

They've been freed to serve the living God. To truly serve. To do so in the highest sense. This is the term la truo. To give the highest form of worship. And how can you do so? You can only do so with a renewed heart and a renewed mind.

And this is the result of the work of Christ. That is why we will go on next time. Lord willing. For this reason, He is the mediator of a new covenant. See how He connects it all together? Because what was the whole point of Hebrews 8 in the quotation of Jeremiah 31?

None of them say to one another, Know the Lord, for they shall all know Me from the least of the greatest of them. I will forgive their sins. I will be merciful to them. Their consciences have been cleansed from dead works to serve the living God.

That's why He's the mediator of a new covenant that has the power to do that for each and every person in that. This guy must have been a great debater. Some people, that's why they feel it was Apollos.

Apollos, mighty in the Word, refuting the Jews from the Old Testament script. It sounds similar. But you see, He's made an argument. And that argument establishes the very foundation upon which you and I, each morning when we rise, can say I have peace with God.

Not because of anything I've accomplished, but because of what Christ has accomplished. And when He said it is finished, and He entered into the holy of holies in heaven itself, there was nothing to be added to.

There are many ramifications, but our time has passed us by. Let us simply be thankful to God that He has given us a gospel that needs no additions, admits of no subtractions, but needs no additions. Indeed, our gracious Heavenly Father, our hearts are filled with rejoicing as we consider that once for all He has entered in.

We cannot help but thinking forward to just a few verses later. For it is said that He appears in your presence in our behalf, in our place. Oh, we rejoice, for we know that we could not bring about our own salvation.

We could not be saved if it was but a plan that we had to somehow work out ourselves. But we rejoice in a perfect Savior who offered Himself. Oh, what condescending love! May we rejoice in that love. May we, the next time we partake of the Lord's Supper, remember it again afresh just as we did before that He offered Himself.

What love! What condescension! Oh, how our hearts should beat for His glory in the proclamation of His name out of thankfulness. May we live in light of that thankfulness in this coming week. To His honor and glory, we pray in Christ's name, Amen.