Admiration Time

Hebrews 10:32-39

Think back on those early days when you first learned about Christ…do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. [NLT]

Hebrews 10:26-27

For if we sin deliberately and knowing after having received the knowledge of the truth, there is no further sacrifice for sin.

Instead, there is a fearful prospect of judgment, and a hungry fire which will consume the opponents. [KNT]

After reading several deep thinking, scholarly scholars’ examination of this passage (both ancient and modern), it is consistently clear what these somewhat frightening verses are conveying.

First off, what they do NOT mean–that if you sin after having received the truth of Christ, you are totally and eternally screwed. That of course would make no sense whatsoever within the context of the whole story of God in Scripture.

The “no further sacrifice” is key. What’s being communicated is that Jesus’ sacrifice is it. That’s as far as the path goes. There’s nothing beyond it. There is no other answer to our sin problem. So if you reject that answer, you have nowhere else to go. Try any other method, technique, or god, you will not find resting peace.

Turning to God is always a possibility. This passage is not speaking of the unpardonable sin.

Whatever we do, however heinous, we can keep coming back to Jesus. And there, we will find peace and rest, if we but believe and approach Him boldly, having faith in His open-aremed goodness.

Something in us wants to always try something new and different. It’s tough going back to the same old answer every time and feel He’s not tired of us.

I picture Jesus in one of two stances–hugging me, or open-armed, waiting to hug me.

Never do we see Him with arms folded, uninterested. That is the great lie we are told or we tell ourselves.

Hebrews 10:1-3,14

…their feelings of guilt would have disappeared.

When I worked at Outreach, Inc. with homeless youth, I adopted this mantra I had received from a training: “You can talk to me, even if you fail.” This was a good reminder for me and what I wanted to be for these very damaged street kids. One of the main things I tried to instill was that they could come to me with anything, even if it was awful in their eyes, whether it be failing a test, not showing up to class, beating someone up. This was a basic need, in my opinion, for working with these youth.

This is one of the ways I think we can most be like God to people. By being openly available no matter what. God has cleared the way for relationship with Him by lovingly removing all obstacles. So it’s really on us to recognize, accept, and live into this beautiful reality.

Some of my kids did not come to me when they failed. Though I was open armed to them, they were either ashamed, wanted to do whatever they were doing and not face it, or just didn’t believe me. So this hurt our relationship of course. It’s hard to blame them, for they’ve suffered abuse, manipulation, and being lied to most of their lives. Why trust this long-haired dude? And yet, that did not change the fact that I wanted relationship with them no matter what. I’d tell them we could work through anything, if they just come to me honestly. Sure, there may be some consequences for their actions, but coming to someone who is in your corner, who cares for you and is willing to fight for you is nite and day better than the isolated alternative.

The ultimate was my guy who confessed to murder. He felt safe to tell me of even this level of crime. Yes, he is locked up for a while, but he and I are in relationship as opposed to his living a lonely life on the run, not only from the authorities, but from his own conscience. He told me two weeks ago that one of his motivations for turning himself in was the fear that if he didn’t, he and I could not be friends since he would be on the run. That’s pretty heavy.

Sometimes we cry out for God and want Him to do something, and I hear Him say, “I already have.” Will we exercise our free will to embrace what God has done–cleared the path for relationship with Him so that we may live in concert with Him? Once you truly wake up to this reality, your life is one that is characterized by appreciation and love of others.

In the Name of Jesus,
Soli Deo Gloria

Hebrews 9:24

For Christ did not enter into a sanctuary made by human hands, the copy and pattern of the heavenly one, but into the heavenly one itself, where he now appears in God’s presence on our behalf.

It’s kind of a mind-bending thought that Jesus, upon his death on the cross, entered the actual Holy of Holies, God’s presence, and offered his blood to YHWH on our behalf.

YHWH gave specific instructions to Israel way back in the day to construct the tabernacle to be an earthly, human-made representation of what exists in the heavenly realm. The point was not the old Jewish sacrificial system itself, but to foreshadow the work his son would do thousands of years later.

As we’ve already said, the high priest descended from Levi would enter the Holy of Holies one day a year to offer blood for all the people’s sins. But this Jesus enters the real HOH, offering his own blood, as opposed to animals’, and offers it just one time, which is all that is needed forever.

Again, what we crazy Christians believe.

This is pretty out there, right? Yet, oddly comforting and beautiful when you think about it. Someone has gone to incredibly great lengths to be close to us. I think that’s the message, not that we’re so disgusting and Jesus had to save us from God. Obviously, we’re quite precious to God.

I can’t really wrap my head around all of this.

I see the reiteration of Christianity being a “done” religion as opposed to a “do” religion. We talk about receiving, but I wonder if a good word would be recognizing. Recognizing what already is, and then living into it.

Also, I’ve been thinking how American Christianity has been very transactional. The emphasis seems to be on the contractual nature of atonement rather than the covenantal picture we see over and over in Scripture. Christ calls us to a loving covenant, not a transactional contract.

In the name of Jesus, Soli Deo Gloria

Hebrews 9:9

This is a picture, so to speak, of the present age. During this period, gifts and sacrifices are offered which have no power to perfect the conscience of those who come to worship.

I wonder how much more we could live and enjoy an entire day if we could go through it guilt-free.

You know, we are at our most creative when, well…we are bored. If you’ve got nothing to do, you’ve got the ability to come up with something creative to do. You need space to be creative. Not just time, but space within yourself. Think Maslow’s heiarchy here. If your basic needs are not met, it’s tough to think creatively. Most likely, you’re spending your energy thinking about where your next meal is going to come from, where you’re going to stay if it rains, how to protect yourself from predators.

One of our basic spiritual needs is a clear conscience. To be able to function well and creatively and to enjoy yourself, you need to be relatively guilt-free. That’s why they made “guilt-free cookies”–so that you could actually enjoy them.  You don’t have to think about all the calories you will need to burn later in chastisement of yourself for your careless splurging.

If we’re always occupied with thoughts of not being enough, not measuring up, how much we have to do, it’s extremely difficult to enjoy your day. It’s extremely difficult to enjoy God. Someone observed that most of us go to bed saying to ourselves, “I didn’t do enough today,” and we wake up saying, “I didn’t get enough sleep last nite.”

Never enough.

How imprisoning. So much energy is going to thoughts of not being or not doing enough, that we are not free to just be, to just enjoy God, ourselves, and one another. This is why the simple life is so appealing–less to think about.

I think this is one of the greatest things Christ brought us–freedom from a guilty conscience–and yet, very few seem to embrace this most wonderful of gifts. It is there for the embracing for each one of us. It’s just a choice away.

Imagine going one whole day without thinking at all about guilt over something or about not doing enough. Think of how much space, energy, brain power, and time it would free up! We’re all different, so for some it will free up more than others. When you think about it, the energy we expend on this guilt and not-enoughness does not actually accomplish anything. We do not get all the stuff done in a day because we stressed about it. We got it done because we did it. Why not choose to do the same stuff guilt-free? Paradoxically, we usually get more done when operating this way. But you can’t operate guilt-free in order to get more done. Then it doesn’t work so well.

I mean, did Jesus clear us or not? We Western Christians love guilt, don’t we? We’ve been using it and shame for centuries. I think sometimes we can even focus too much on all the terribleness we’ve been forgiven of. Yes we are forgiven, but then what? Can we stop for two seconds and move on to living the life that results from that forgiveness? If you’re feeling guilty all the time or that you’re just not enough, then you’re obsessed with yourself and not with God if you think about it.

Bask in the reality that you are indeed enough today. Revel in a clear conscience. Live today satisfied with what is, with whatever you get done or don’t get done. Think of the space cleared up by accepting the clear conscience that has been granted to you.

If this sounds too difficult, you may find it helpful to “trick” yourself into it. Think of watching a movie or recorded sporting event that you’ve already seen before and therefore know the outcome. You can watch it stress-free and really enjoy it because you know how it ends. The hero saves the day. Your team wins. Imagine today that you already know the outcome, that God will totally take care of all that is needed at the end of the day, all those things you don’t get to. Imagine you “win” in the end no matter what. All you have to do is participate, and embrace whatever is before you right now, guilt-free, pressure-free.

Enjoy.

Live free. Be creative.

Jesus OS

Hebrews 7:11-28

So if the priesthood of Levi, on which the law was based, could have achieved the perfection God intended, why did God need to establish a different priesthood, with a priest in the order of Melchizedek instead of the order of Levi and Aaron?

And if the priesthood is changed, the law must also be changed to permit it.  For the priest we are talking about belongs to a different tribe, whose members have never served at the altar as priests.  

What I mean is, our Lord came from the tribe of Judah, and Moses never mentioned priests coming from that tribe. [NLT]