Hebrews 9:23

Hebrews 9:23

The copies and the reality

In chapter 8:5 the writer of this Epistle states that the Tabernacle and its furnishings and all the ceremonial and ritual practices associated with it, were just a copy – a metaphor! Hundreds of years of sacrifices and offerings were rigorously observed, the Jews thought that they were appeasing their God, that their religious devotion was all that the Lord ever asked from them, only to now be told that it was all just a substitute for something far more real and meaningful than Moses and the Law could ever give them. It must have felt like God was using them, that they had made themselves unpopular with the world – for nothing! That is not true, at their best they had been a shining light to the world, at their worst they had simply shown us all the futility of working for salvation and to appease the Lord God. Even better, they had allowed the world a glimpse behind the curtain that separates men from heaven, they had prepared the way for the true Tabernacle of God and for the ultimate sacrificial Lamb. Without them we would have nothing, the sacrifice of Messiah would not make sense!

The author of Hebrews takes these comparisons further, he argues that if the earthly sacrifices and the men and objects associated with them required ritual purification and a reliance on sacrifices, how much more does the heavenly reality require these things? And, of course, because the heavenly Tabernacle is superior in every way, animal sacrifices could never purify the worshippers, it was therefore necessary that a far better-quality sacrifice must be made which was, of course, Christ Himself. This is mind-boggling, you really could not make it up! What other “Faith” system compares with this? What other gods have ever made their plans so clear? Who amongst them has revealed themselves to human beings even to the point of selecting one whole nation to be an example and a light to us all? That is why the Jews are so hated and why their land and their city have been subjected to so much turmoil and abuse over the generations. However, we are now being drawn to lift our eyes heavenwards and to identify ourselves with the risen Jewish Son of God who endured the altar of sacrifice, who left this world so that He might enter the heavenly Tabernacle and who now provides a way of entry for all who have faith in him. Hallelujah! If only His people could see it! And they will! If only the peoples of the world could see it! And they will!

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