God’s Gift of Hope – Hebrews 10:11-25

A text – Hebrews 10:11-25

¹¹ And every priest stands day after day at his service, offering again and again the same sacrifices that can never take away sins. ¹² But when Christhad offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, “he sat down at the right hand of God,” ¹³ and since then has been waiting “until his enemies would be made a footstool for his feet.” ¹⁴ For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.

¹⁵ And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us, for after saying, ¹⁶ “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds,” ¹⁷ and he adds, “I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.” ¹⁸ Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin.

¹⁹ Therefore, my brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, ²⁰ by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain (that is, through his flesh), ²¹ and since we have a great priest over the house of God, ²² let us approach with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. ²³ Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful. ²⁴ And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, ²⁵ not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

A reflection:

The writer of Hebrews wants the Jewish audience of this letter to know that Jesus’s sacrifice of his own life accomplished two things.

First, it made temple sacrifices obsolete. Jesus’s death and resurrection is the one sacrifice we can all claim as our salvation. No more buying goats or birds for sacrifice to atone for our sins. Jesus has claimed us, and his death and resurrection is more than enough to atone for the sins of the whole world. Atonement itself is unneeded, because God saves us even though we don’t deserve it – God loves us that much!

And second, Jesus’s dying and being revived to life is what God promises to do for everyone who believes. Jesus is merely the first fruit – the prototype resurrection. We believers will be the next.  So if you believe in God’s promises, you can claim right now that you too will be raised to eternal life. You can be certain of it – sure and certain.

This knowledge gives a believer confidence, boldness, and a delight to gather with others and talk about all this good news. We have a full assurance of faith. We can have unwavering hope for ourselves – we have an eternal future living with the Triune God, and nothing can wreck that future for us. Such hope gives us the energy to encourage ourselves and others, even in dark times. Meet together, rejoice in the promises God has made and always kept. Live in bold hope. We live in this hope, every day of our lives. So don’t behave as though you are defeated. You are strong because God’s love has made you strong. You are free because God’s love has made you free. You are living in God’s gift of hope.

A prayer:

Lord God, Thank you for loving us. Thank you for the gift of Jesus’s death and resurrection. We who make many mistakes can be totally forgiven to awake another day and bring hope to our neighbors and friends. Thank you for letting us be your hope-bringers to the world. Amen.