Hebrews 10:1-4

Summary retelling of Hebrews 10:1-4

We can see that the Law is but a shadow of the good things to come.  Since it is but an example, it cannot make people perfect; it can only point to our need for perfection.  If the Law – and the sacrifices it began - could make people perfect, why would they have stopped being offered?  However, in the fact that the sacrifices had to be offered every year we see that the sacrifices did not take away our sinfulness but instead remind us that our sinful nature remains.  It is impossible for the blood of something in the created world to take away the sinful nature of the created world.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Again we return to the author of Hebrew’s main point regarding the Law.  The Law was not given to us so that our sin could be taken away; the Law was given to us so that we could learn to understand and see our sinfulness.  This is really a critical point to understand.  It is tempting to want to skip the Law and overlook the Law.  But it is the Law that teaches us how to honestly look at ourselves and see ourselves as God sees us.  It is the Law that convinces us that we cannot save ourselves.

Do you like the Law?  Why or why not?  How often to read the Law and use it to learn about yourself?

Second Thought:

The sacrifices have stopped because Christ is the true sacrifice.  However, there is something to the point that until Christ, the sacrifices never stopped.  They never stopped because they were not effective.  They could not remove our sinful nature.  They could not affect our sinful nature.  They merely covered over our sinful nature and pointed out our need for Christ.  They had to keep being offered because until Christ came, there was no permanent solution to our humanity.

Have you ever thought about the fact that the sacrifices of the Old Testament had to be offered up again and again?  How does this help us understand that we cannot save ourselves?

Third Thought:

It is impossible for something created to save itself.  It is impossible for something created to save another created thing.  A goat or a lamb cannot save me – only God can save me.  Another human being cannot save me, only God can save me.  We can help lead other people to God; but we must remember that ultimately it is God who saves.

Why is it important to remember that only God saves?  What are the dangers of forgetting that only God can save us?

Passage for Tomorrow: Hebrews 10:5-7