Hebrews 9:16-22

Hebrews 9:16-22 In the case of a will, it is necessary to prove the death of the one who made it, because a will is in force only when somebody has died; it never takes effect while the one who made it is living. This is why even the first covenant was not put into effect without blood. When Moses had proclaimed every commandment of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves, together with water, scarlet wool and branches of hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and all the people. He said, “This is the blood of the covenant, which God has commanded you to keep.” In the same way, he sprinkled with the blood both the tabernacle and everything used in its ceremonies. In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

Without shed blood, without death, there is no forgiveness for sin, no new beginning. God brought both the old and new covenants into effect by death: the first by the blood of animal sacrifices and the second by Jesus' death. Both covenants conveyed God's blessing: I will bless you with my presence and my goodness if you will trust me and become obedient to my words, if you will allow my will to be done on Earth as it is in heaven. These covenants with man were unbreakable if both sides kept their parts. Since God's words are unchangeable, He kept his side of the agreement; however, as lawbreakers, believers could not keep their side of the covenant. The old covenant was never completely successful because people broke their words of allegiance and could not fulfill their side of the agreement. Jesus Christ always did the Father's will, and through his obedience, death, and resurrection, Christ fulfilled man's side of the covenant, sanctifying it with his blood. On the cross, when He said, "It is finished," the law was completely fulfilled: He secured the new covenant of faith and righteousness through his completed work. We who place our faith in him receive the blessings of God because through his sacrifice, Jesus Christ fulfilled both sides of the covenant.

It is interesting that blood denotes the seriousness of the agreement between man and God. The law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. Right relationship with God starts and ends with the covering of the blood. Right standing with God demands the death of the old vessel and the creation of a new one through the cleansing of the blood. The sacrifices illustrate the starting over, the ending of the old life. The shedding of blood brings forgiveness and righteousness to the new creature. We who have been cleansed with the blood of Christ have a new beginning in him. We are "born again" in Christ, cleansed by his innocent blood and forever adopted into God's family. The blood of bulls and goats could not bring continuous cleansing and the hope of new and eternal life; it could only momentarily cover sin as a temporary sacrifice. Jesus Christ brought us new life because his blood not only covered us, but as Jesus came back to life, God raised us with him into new life. Because of Jesus Christ's work, his death and resurrection, all believers live a new life in him.

With such a wonderful salvation, we should live our new lives by faith as God's children, mimicking our elder brother, Jesus Christ. Our old selves will never inherit eternal life, so let us not serve the flesh but live as new creatures with the resident Holy Spirit to guide and to teach us. And when the old spirit, the old man, raises its ugly head, let us reckon ourselves dead to sin by repenting of our old nature through faith in Christ Jesus. Otherwise, we choose to believe God's words, trusting in Christ's work on the cross rather than in our experiences. The just live by faith, not by works. As Paul said, we do not go on sinning to prove God's great grace. A faithless person continues sinning without repentance, but those who are saved through faith believe and trust in Christ's sufficiency in us. As children of God, we commit our lives to him and desire to do better, to follow Jesus. Jesus wanted God's will fulfilled on Earth as it is in heaven. Consequently, when we fall, as people will do, we get up, repent, and thank God for his cleansing power, for his life and not ours. By reckoning the flesh dead, we put a sword through its heart, for faith overcomes the sin and death of the world. As the Spirit makes the things of Earth strangely dim, eternal life in Christ becomes our abiding concern. IN CHRIST, through his strength and power, we will overcome and inherit life eternal, regardless of the antics of the flesh.