Daily Meditations

Hebrews 10:15 The Holy Spirit testifies Let us be absolutely clear here, whilst the Holy Spirit was not given to the church until Pentecost, in ancient times He was still a massive influence on God’s people and on individuals, especially those who were called to lead or to speak with the voice of the Lord. The truth is, we either follow the Spirit of truth and righteousness, or we obey the spirit of lies and deceit. It has ever been so. For instance, Peter writes,  “You must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”  2 Peter 1:20-21. Paul’s famous quote to Timothy encompasses the Old Testament, for the New had still not been written, when he writes , “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant ...

Hebrews 10:14 Perfect but being made holy Let’s emphasize straight away the difference between the fact that Christ has made us perfect through His sacrifice, but conversely, we are still being made holy! The first act is completed and stands forever, the second is an ongoing process. The first is what Christ has done for us, the second requires our co-operation with Him and is a journey of faith. Let’s examine each one in more detail. We all know that the death of Jesus Christ was a “once for all” moment in human history. He cannot and will not be crucified a second time, that is not necessary, the offering has been made, the blood that secures our salvation has been shed, the righteous demands of the Law have been met. This incredible event will never be repeated, that is why there is no second chance for men and women, we either believe in Him while we have the opportunity, or we die in our sins and face God’s righteous judgements. His salvation is eternal because its effects are un...

Hebrews 10:13 The footstool of Jesus Christ It could be argued that the author of Hebrews is a bit guilty of repetition, and yes, he certainly makes an attempt to drive his points home. That suggests that they are of considerable significance; if we simply skim over the words and think, “Well, I’ve heard all this before,” we miss the point. When the Lord repeats Himself, it is of the utmost importance. He wants us to understand, this is the Gospel, this is the spiritual significance of all that Christ has done, and it reverberates throughout the heavens and throughout the ages. These are the roots of our faith, they can never be undone, the enemy cannot counterfeit the work of Christ Jesus in the way in which He counterfeits so much through human religions. These vital transactions between the spirit world and the earthly one are established for all time, suddenly the reason and purpose for Israel becomes clear, suddenly the Old Testament of our Bibles becomes completely relevant, sudd...

Hebrews 10:12 It's all done! This verse succinctly summarises all that we have recently learned. Look at the various phrases that are used; - ·        Offered for all time ·        One sacrifice for sins ·        He sat down This is written so that we might put the final seal on all that has been discussed. The sacrifice at Calvary will never be repeated; it covers all time. There will never again be the need for repetitive sacrifices for all sins have been atoned for. The job has been done, the act of salvation is complete, just as God our Father rested from His creative works on 7 th  day, so Yeshua rests from His work of salvation. He now sits at the right hand of God. Unlike all priests who preceded Him, He need no longer stands before the Lord for His work is completed.  We encountered this status of Jesus Christ as early as Chapter 1:13 when God spoke to His son and commanded Him to...

Hebrews 10:11 Standing to perform This verse goes on to expand on what we have already been told. Notice that our attention is deliberately drawn to the fact that the ancient Jewish priests always stood as they performed their duties. The act of sitting down symbolised the fact that a task had been completed, the job had been done, it need not be repeated. As we shall see, this is the case with Yeshua! However, for the priesthood, the same old routines had to be performed day after day, there was never an end to it, it was generally understood that these relentless religious duties could not be terminated until Messiah came. And come He did and the Temple was destroyed and the pointless sacrificial system was ended.  How tragic that some Jews today still long and plan for the revival of the sacrifices, the priesthood and the Temple, for those who think this way show that they still do not accept the status and purpose of Jesus Christ and His sacrifice! Even though He is one of them...

Hebrews 10:10 Made Holy - once for all! There are two phrases in this verse that have mind-blowing consequences for all who believe.    Firstly, “ we have been made holy.”   Secondly, Jesus was sacrificed,   “Once for all.”     Both of these outcomes were impossible under the old sacrificial rituals of the Law but now, through the body of Christ and His willing submission to the Father’s will, our salvation has been made possible. Let’s just think about the implications for a minute. We all know, that when we take a good, hard look at ourselves we are anything but holy because we define it as being pure and righteous and God-like. However, the word correctly means that we are set apart, we now belong to God. God Himself is holy, He is separate from Creation, His holiness does, of course, mean that He is absolutely pure, and is not stained by any evil whatsoever. What Christ has done for us, through His sacrifice, is to fully wash away our sins, to carry the...