Hebrews 9:16-17

Hebrews 9:16-17

Wills and death

This is familiar ground, my wife worked in the law, managing Probate and Wills etc. and my work, before retirement, involved giving tax advice to solicitors and executors. One thing is absolutely sure, and it has not changed over the centuries; no beneficiary can make a claim on what is described in a Will until the testator dies. Beneficiaries may well know what has been promised to them and some greedily anticipate the death that guarantees their entitlement; however, their inheritance cannot kick-in, and the Will has no legal power until death has taken place. It seems that the legal rules being practiced when this Epistle was written were not much different to modern regulations in that a death must be proved, which today means that a formal Death Certificate must be completed. On seeing this, a lawyer will be able to read the Will and make the wishes of the deceased known.

The context of this verse is very simple, v15 has already informed us that those for whom Christ died have received an eternal inheritance. However, before the terms of the Will, in other words the Covenant, can be made public and be implemented, the death of the Testator must be proved. We could not receive our inheritance before Christ came to this world and we could not become beneficiaries of His covenant promises until He had died and there was sufficient evidence to prove His death. Since His death has been proved, the promised “eternal inheritance” is now available to all who are named as beneficiaries in His Will or covenant. Makes sense? Hallelujah! Now let’s read on. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Psalm1:5       Our earthly journey will allow us, at times, to stand with the redeemed in holy awe and worship exhilarated by the presence of our Father.  In the Psalmists’ day these “assemblies of the righteous” would have been joyful times of worship at God’s sanctuary where music played, choirs sang and the people joined in the excitement and corporate wonder of being together in God’s presence. If our own church worship is anything, it should be a prelude to the time when we will join with a numberless throng and sing the praises of the Lamb and the One who sits upon the throne of heaven. Many go to events like Spring Harvest, Keswick Convention, New Day and the rest, primarily for this experience of joy and exhilaration.  Our earthly, joyful experiences are but a foretaste of what is to come and we are promised that we will join with heavenly choirs and our song will be “Worthy is the Lamb.”   Such music and exalta...
Read more

Psalm 119:83

Psalm 119:83 Wineskins in the smoke Well, this verse has caught us by surprise! What does it mean? As we will be aware, in ancient times, wine was not stored in purpose-made glass bottles but in animal skins. In order to keep the skin pliable and soft it must not be allowed to dry out for it would soon shrivel and crack. It follows that the last thing you would do with your treasured wineskins is to hang them up over a smoky fire, not only would they quickly wither but the smoke would clearly ruin the flavour and texture of the wine!  What does the author mean when he says that he is like such a wineskin?  It denotes the uncomfortable condition he was in or at least thought himself to be in; being caught in the midst of smoke is very uncomfortable, and he considered himself to be in darkness with sin and afflictions, like a wineskin in smoke, black and sooty. He felt like an empty wineskin with nothing in him. Maybe he was worn out with cares and old age and had become pale an...
Read more

Psalm 119:6

Psalm 119:6 Shameful or shameless The writer of this Psalm clearly describes the dilemma that we all face from time to time. We love to call ourselves believers in the Living God, we align ourselves with His Word and His people. We take some pride in our spiritual walk and the importance of our faith. That is, until we have a moment of honesty, and we truthfully measure ourselves against the standards of the Lord. It is when we look at the true self in the moral mirror that we see the warts and the deformities that have hindered our journey and have made us fall so far short of God’s standards. The moral mirror is, of course, the commands of the Lord, these are, in Hebrew, the “miswot”, the terms and conditions of God’s contract or covenant, and when we honestly appraise ourselves against His standards, we have to be ashamed!  In the verses of the Psalm being “put to shame” suggests public humiliation, there is nothing worse than when others become aware of our sin and our failings...
Read more