Introduction: Grace be to you and peace, from God our Father, and from our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Our text is the Epistle Lesson just read, from Hebrews 9. We begin with prayer.
Dear fellow disciples of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ:
- People seem aware, at least many of us, that there are things that are real but that are unobservable to our empirical senses. Scientists also – at least some of the more philosophical – have speculated that there may be different “layers” of existence, or “dimensions,” in the same space at the same time.
- Other people are firmly convinced of the phenomenon of “intuition,” of being aware of things that are real without using reason and our senses to discern them. Some people have had quite poignant experiences of these “intuitions.” Most of us have had some sense of them – although if you are like me you tend to just move on. They are inexplicable and impossible to “objectify” or “prove.”
- The Scripture assures us of these kinds of “spiritual” realities as well. The existence of God is like this – He is present everywhere, although not empirically experienced. Or take for example, of the existence of angels who watch over God’s children, guarding and protecting us, and demons who seek to lure us into temptation, despair, delusions, and finally eternal destruction. We are both comforted and warned in the face of these realities which are above and beyond material existence and are generally unobservable. And we confess our face in God Almighty, the Maker of all things, “both visible and invisible,” in the Nicene Creed.
- In our text, the apostolic author speaks of the realities of Christ’s sacrifice for the sins of the world. Obviously, His crucifixion took place on earth, just outside of Jerusalem, nearly 2,000 years ago. The physicality of His crucifixion was real and observable – there were many witnesses, and this historical event has been described in writing in the ancient texts of Holy Scripture.
- However, in our text we are informed that there was also a “heavenly” aspect to the sacrifice and offering up of Jesus. In addition, the author informs us that “holy places made with hands” are in fact “copies of the true things” which are in “heaven itself.” Elsewhere in this same book, and also in other scriptural texts, the same claims are made about our worship activities in these “holy places made with hands,” that they also have a presence in the “true things” which are in heaven.
- These are mysteries, to be sure, and they are certainly beyond any kind of empirical proof – at least at present. But these things did not “slip” off of the tongue of the Holy Spirit carelessly or casually – but were also written for our learning, and for our edification, the strengthening of our faith and our life of love. We will also consider more of these teachings next week in our sermon – based on Heb. 10.
- So we consider today, on the basis of our text, the “HEAVENLY REALITIES IN EARTHLY PLACES.” And most wondrous of all we learn that:
I. Christ’s Sacrifice On The Cross Was Also A Heavenly And Eternal Offering And Sacrifice
A. In His Sacrifice On The Cross He Entered Into Heaven Itself
Text: “For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.”
B. In So Doing He Has Put Away Sin – Its Guilt, Stain, And Punishment
Text: “But as it is, He has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.”
1. This was accomplished “by His blood”
Text: “Nor was it to offer Himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then He [Christ] would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world.”
2. And this sacrifice takes away the sin of the world is once and for all
Text: “But as it is, He has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ [has been offered] once to bear the sins of many.”
Statement: These eerie and mysterious aspects of the crucifixion of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ are extremely important, and worthy of our contemplation. But the consequence and blessing of His crucifixion is quite clear – and this we must be certain of, for our great joy and celebration. What occurred in Jerusalem so long ago was not a mere historical fact of “human history,” but rather an eternal fact of Divine history! The earthly place of the cross intersected with “heaven itself,” and the shedding of Christ’s blood on the cross took place in the heavenly “holy of holies,” at the heavenly Ark of the Covenant and mercy seat of God. Jesus is the “hilasmos,” the blood of atonement for our sins – His blood shed on the cross was sprinkled on the heavenly “hilasterion,” the mercy seat of God in the “heavenly places.”
As a consequence, the “putting away of our sin” was not merely ceremonial, needing to be repeated, but rather was eternal and absolute – once and for all. This means that the world is no longer under condemnation of sin and guilt – but rather free to enter the kingdom of God. The great tragedy of human existence is not sin, it is not the continued power and pervasiveness of human sin, but rather that salvation and freedom has come in the sacrifice of Christ – but human beings choose to ignore it and deny it and remain in the dark corners of their self-made inner cosmic jail-cells.
Application: Now I haven’t seen these heavenly places, and I cannot show them to you, but God’s Word asserts what has been done in them – at the cross and crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ. The consequence for us is immense – the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin; we are free from death and condemnation; we have eternal life; God is reconciled to us; we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. For this our faith should be unshakable and inviolable, and our joy and rejoicing should know no bounds or limits! This is the joy of God’s salvation – and we should rise above what we merely see and feel to join in the hymns of all creation, of those on earth and in heaven, both visible and invisible!
Transition: All of this occurred “at the end of the ages.” This means, as Jesus proclaimed, that “the kingdom of God is at hand,” that His appearing is near – close to each of us even now in time! And this is another great cosmic reality:
II. God’s Judgment Is Coming – Jesus Will Appear Again In Glory
A. For Many Of Us, This Will Occur At Death
Text: “It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.”
B. For Some Of Us This Will Occur At His Second Coming
Text: “So Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for Him.”
C. So It Will Be Good For Those Who Are Eagerly Waiting For Him – For Those Who Believe In Him
Text: “He will appear a second time . . . to save those who are eagerly waiting for Him.”
Jn. 3:36 “He that believes the Son has everlasting life.”
Eph. 2:8,9 “By grace you are saved, through faith, and that, not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”
D. For Now, We Remember And We Rejoice With Copies – And Also With The Real Thing – As We Will Consider Next Week
Statement: These are the promises of Holy Scripture, the truthful description of the reality. We cannot “see” and “experience” these things in the way we normally interface with material things, the created empirical things of this earthly world. But they are ever so true – and they are ever so good for us. They mean that our forgiveness, redemption, salvation, and eternal life are real and sure and certain and secure forever! It means that it is only a matter of time – and remember that time itself is but a created aspect of this earthly life – until Christ returns in glory and we enter into a new heaven and earth.
Application: Until then we utilize “copies” – an earthly altar, a sanctuary – to remind us of where we truly are, already in the very presence of God Himself. Yes, in our worship there is also a intersection of earthly and heavenly places and realities – as we will contemplate more fully next Sunday in the sermon. All of this is what the apostle was referring to when he reminded us that “This light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” [2 Cor. 4:17,18] These are “HEAVENLY REALITIES IN EARTHLY PLACES.”
Conclusion: I recognize the limitations of these “heavenly” and mysterious thoughts – but I urge you to grasp what is not mysterious in the least – the joyous blessings of forgiveness, new life, and salvation, that God has provided for us in the Divine and cosmic sacrifice of Christ Jesus.
I would also encourage you to consider that it is not what is “seen” that is important; what is seen is transient, but “the things that are unseen are eternal.” These are presented to us in our text – cosmic, Divine, and heavenly realities. And they are also here right now – in the body and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ “given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” A mystery, to be sure, but a most blessed and strengthening reality! Amen.
Votum: And the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds in the true faith, which is in Christ Jesus, even unto life everlasting, Amen.