Read

Hebrews 10:1-10

¹The old system in the law of Moses was only a shadow of the things to come, not the reality of the good things Christ has done for us. The sacrifices under the old system were repeated again and again, year after year, but they were never able to provide perfect cleansing for those who came to worship. ²If they could have provided perfect cleansing, the sacrifices would have stopped, for the worshipers would have been purified once for all time, and their feelings of guilt would have disappeared.

³But just the opposite happened. Those yearly sacrifices reminded them of their sins year after year. ⁴For it is not possible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. ⁵That is why Christ, when he came into the world, said,
“You did not want animal sacrifices and grain offerings. But you have given me a body so that I may obey you.
⁶No, you were not pleased with animals burned on the altar or with other offerings for sin.
⁷Then I said, `Look, I have come to do your will, O God–just as it is written about me in the Scriptures.’ ”

⁸Christ said, “You did not want animal sacrifices or grain offerings or animals burned on the altar or other offerings for sin, nor were you pleased with them” (though they are required by the law of Moses). ⁹Then he added, “Look, I have come to do your will.” He cancels the first covenant in order to establish the second. ¹⁰And what God wants is for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all time.

Reflect

I don’t pretend that I am good at building things, but I try. I built a tool cabinet in my garage to keep all of the various hanging tools that accumulate but never get used. Instead of using a “measured drawing” that would have given me exact instructions on how to build it, I sketched out a rough idea of what I wanted and then proceeded to build it. Eventually, I finished the project and hung it on the wall. After loading my cabinet with all those useless tools, I tried to shut the doors. Somehow, between my drawing and the actual construction, the measurements were a little off and the doors won’t close fully. Now, every time that I need a tool, I am reminded of my imperfection.

Under the Old Covenant, the sacrifices that the people had to make daily only reminded them of their sins. Jesus came to cancel the first system of sacrifices and established the second through his perfect sacrifice on the cross.

Respond

Why wasn’t God pleased with animal sacrifices?

Are there things in your daily life that remind you of your imperfections?

How does Jesus’ death on the cross cover those imperfections?

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