ASSASSIN
06-13-2008, 08:09 AM
Sunday School Lesson For June 15, 2008
PERFECT REDEEMER -
Hebrews 9:11-18; 10:12-18
BACKGROUND:
Last week we talked of Jesus as our High Priest; our Intercessor. Today, He is our Redeemer. Obviously, in order to be these personages, He must also be the Son of God. Thus, the prerequisite of our worship of Jesus is our accepting Him as the Son of God. He is thereby not just “redeemer”, but the Perfect Redeemer. He is unique in that He has the wherewithal to pay for our sins. No other being can make such a claim. Paul once wrote that mankind has been “….bought with a price” (1 Corinthians 6:20, 7:23), with the pricetag being of such that only Jesus could pay...
And why is a “ransom” (or price) necessary? Because without this “payment”, we would all continue to be slaves of sin, and thereby unable to serve God in the truest meaning. Put another way, the unredeemed in our churches and communities do not serve Christ from the heart simply because they don’t have the capacity to do so. Their “ransom” remains unpaid, and their transgressions stand between them and Christ. Therefore, Jesus came to pay the ransom...
ETERNAL REDEMPTION (Hebrews 9:11-14)
One of the problems with the world accepting Jesus was the fact of His origin. Jesus plainly told Pilate that His Kingdom was not of this world (John 18:36); of course, that meant among other things that Pilate would have to take His word about His Kingdom. Here, the writer of Hebrews issues a similar challenge in stating that Jesus is “…a high priest of good things to come...”. His priesthood, then, is not of the Jerusalem Temple , but of a “more perfect tabernacle”. And just what IS this more perfect tabernacle? It is Heaven – ALL of Heaven. There will be no “church” or “temple” in Heaven; indeed, the entire realm of Heaven will be the temple...
This temple will not have an altar suited for the sacrifice of dumb animals; it will be a place bought and paid for by a SINGLE Sacrifice – not of a lamb, but of The Lamb. And this was no accident, for this is why Jesus came into our world (John 1:29). After all, the sacrifice of animals only temporarily cleansed one’s flesh of sin. Jesus’ Sacrifice permanently cleansed the spirit...
ETERNAL INHERITANCE (Hebrews 9:15-18)
Think in this case of the word “testament” as being a “will”. Even in today’s society, the one making the “will” must die before the terms of that will take place. Here, Jesus left us a “Will”, and He has already died to place it into force. But just what is IN that Will? It is the redemption of transgressions. Now let us be careful about meaning here. The Greek word used for “redemption” means generally “paying a ransom”. Ransom for what? It is NOT for the consequences of our transgressions, but for our transgressions themselves. In truth, we may have to suffer as a consequence of our transgressions, but at the point of death or the Second Coming, our debt will be paid in full...
Our inheritance is somewhat spelled out in John 14:1 ff. Jesus has placed us in His Eternal Will as recipients of His preparations. Remember in earlier lessons we learned that Jesus’ seat in Heaven is on the Right Hand of the Father – or the side of power. Our life will be eternal, as will our divine dwelling places...
ETERNAL FORGIVENESS (Hebrews 1012-18)
The rituals must have seemed endless to the faith temple-goers in Jerusalem . Three times daily many made their way to the temple to pray and to offer sacrifices. The priests of varying courses streamed through the temple carrying out their duties amid numerous requirements for rituals. All this because mankind had so transgressed God’s Law that it was almost a full time job to try and stay “clean” from iniquity. The blood of the sacrifices must have left an odor throughout the city, as more and more tried to re-establish and maintain a right relationship with God...
But Jesus came that man would not have to settle for temporary forgiveness – a forgiveness that may not last until he got home from the temple – but for a permanent forgiveness so that no other blood sacrifice would ever be needed. In fact, we have not needed an altar of sacrifice since Resurrection Sunday...
The “keeper” of us all who have been “washed” in Jesus’ blood is the Holy Spirit. It is He who guides us and “reminds” us of our commitment. What is the result? “…their sins and iniquities will I remember no more…”. There is a lesson in that. We should not deceive ourselves into believing that we may “forgive but not forget”. No, if you still “remember” (i.e. it is still weighing on your heart), then you have not forgiven. With God, when He forgives, it is as though it never happened...
A
PERFECT REDEEMER -
Hebrews 9:11-18; 10:12-18
BACKGROUND:
Last week we talked of Jesus as our High Priest; our Intercessor. Today, He is our Redeemer. Obviously, in order to be these personages, He must also be the Son of God. Thus, the prerequisite of our worship of Jesus is our accepting Him as the Son of God. He is thereby not just “redeemer”, but the Perfect Redeemer. He is unique in that He has the wherewithal to pay for our sins. No other being can make such a claim. Paul once wrote that mankind has been “….bought with a price” (1 Corinthians 6:20, 7:23), with the pricetag being of such that only Jesus could pay...
And why is a “ransom” (or price) necessary? Because without this “payment”, we would all continue to be slaves of sin, and thereby unable to serve God in the truest meaning. Put another way, the unredeemed in our churches and communities do not serve Christ from the heart simply because they don’t have the capacity to do so. Their “ransom” remains unpaid, and their transgressions stand between them and Christ. Therefore, Jesus came to pay the ransom...
ETERNAL REDEMPTION (Hebrews 9:11-14)
One of the problems with the world accepting Jesus was the fact of His origin. Jesus plainly told Pilate that His Kingdom was not of this world (John 18:36); of course, that meant among other things that Pilate would have to take His word about His Kingdom. Here, the writer of Hebrews issues a similar challenge in stating that Jesus is “…a high priest of good things to come...”. His priesthood, then, is not of the Jerusalem Temple , but of a “more perfect tabernacle”. And just what IS this more perfect tabernacle? It is Heaven – ALL of Heaven. There will be no “church” or “temple” in Heaven; indeed, the entire realm of Heaven will be the temple...
This temple will not have an altar suited for the sacrifice of dumb animals; it will be a place bought and paid for by a SINGLE Sacrifice – not of a lamb, but of The Lamb. And this was no accident, for this is why Jesus came into our world (John 1:29). After all, the sacrifice of animals only temporarily cleansed one’s flesh of sin. Jesus’ Sacrifice permanently cleansed the spirit...
ETERNAL INHERITANCE (Hebrews 9:15-18)
Think in this case of the word “testament” as being a “will”. Even in today’s society, the one making the “will” must die before the terms of that will take place. Here, Jesus left us a “Will”, and He has already died to place it into force. But just what is IN that Will? It is the redemption of transgressions. Now let us be careful about meaning here. The Greek word used for “redemption” means generally “paying a ransom”. Ransom for what? It is NOT for the consequences of our transgressions, but for our transgressions themselves. In truth, we may have to suffer as a consequence of our transgressions, but at the point of death or the Second Coming, our debt will be paid in full...
Our inheritance is somewhat spelled out in John 14:1 ff. Jesus has placed us in His Eternal Will as recipients of His preparations. Remember in earlier lessons we learned that Jesus’ seat in Heaven is on the Right Hand of the Father – or the side of power. Our life will be eternal, as will our divine dwelling places...
ETERNAL FORGIVENESS (Hebrews 1012-18)
The rituals must have seemed endless to the faith temple-goers in Jerusalem . Three times daily many made their way to the temple to pray and to offer sacrifices. The priests of varying courses streamed through the temple carrying out their duties amid numerous requirements for rituals. All this because mankind had so transgressed God’s Law that it was almost a full time job to try and stay “clean” from iniquity. The blood of the sacrifices must have left an odor throughout the city, as more and more tried to re-establish and maintain a right relationship with God...
But Jesus came that man would not have to settle for temporary forgiveness – a forgiveness that may not last until he got home from the temple – but for a permanent forgiveness so that no other blood sacrifice would ever be needed. In fact, we have not needed an altar of sacrifice since Resurrection Sunday...
The “keeper” of us all who have been “washed” in Jesus’ blood is the Holy Spirit. It is He who guides us and “reminds” us of our commitment. What is the result? “…their sins and iniquities will I remember no more…”. There is a lesson in that. We should not deceive ourselves into believing that we may “forgive but not forget”. No, if you still “remember” (i.e. it is still weighing on your heart), then you have not forgiven. With God, when He forgives, it is as though it never happened...
A