Lecture 10 Hebrews 10.1-18

The OC-prescribed sacrifices were ineffective to take away sin (10:1-10)
1. The continual OC sacrifices remind of sins; they do not take them away (10:1-4)
  - They cannot make perfect
    1. He restates that the law is a part of the old covenant which is a shadow not the true.
    2. Since it is only a shadow these sacrifices cannot perfect those who draw near.
      - Again this is priestly terminology “perfect” and “draw near.”
      - this time it clearly means what we think it would be: to make blameless. We know this because in verse two it talks about having been cleansed and having had consciousness of sins. This is blameless terminology.
      - Those who draw near are those laymen who draw near to worship God with the help of the priest.
  - if those sacrifices could make perfect, they would have ceased to have been offered (10:2)
    1. the old covenant sacrifices would have stopped, they could have effectively removed the consciousness of sin in the heart of the worshipers.
    2. They did not cease to offer them.
    3. Therefore, they did not cleanse the worshiper nor keep him from having consciousness of sins.
  - Conclusion: therefore, instead of those old covenant sacrifices taking away sin, they in fact only remind of sin (10:3). Clearly then, the blood of bulls and goats do not ever actually take away sin (10:4).

Therefore, Christ came to offer his body as an effective offering for sin (10:5-10).
- This passage functions in order to prove that the old covenant sacrifices could not take away sin and that God had ordained that Christ sacrifice his body for sin.
- The preacher quotes from Psalm 40:6-7. It pictures the Messiah praying to the Father.
- Hebrews 10:5 contrasts old covenant offerings with the body of the Messiah. Clearly if God did not want the sacrifices of the old covenant but he wanted the body of the Messiah, then clearly the body of the Messiah would be sacrificed.
- Hebrews 10:6 is a restatement of the Father’s lack of desire for the old covenant sacrifices.
- 10:7, the Messiah responds to the Father saying “I have come.” Messiah is ready to do God’s will.
- The Messiah argues from Scripture that it is God’s will that Messiah be sacrificed.
- 10:8-9 present 2 statements the preacher had just quoted previously. He will comment on them at the end of 10:9.
  1. 10:8 mentions that these sacrifices are offered according the law. God wanted them to be offered.
  2. 10:9 the first statement, found in 10:8, is now taken away. Sacrificial system has been done away with.
  3. What is established is the statement in 10:9. Christ established the will of God by offering his own body as a sacrifice.
  4. 10:10 the will of the Messiah as found in 10:9 is what has sanctified us. It is through the offering of that “body,” mentioned in 10:5,10, that we are sanctified.
  5. That offering of the Messiah’s body was done once for all of time.

Transition: On one hand, the old covenant priests sacrifices were ineffective. They could never take away sin (10:11).

the priests had to keep standing

the priests ministered daily
the priests ministered the same sacrifices

The NC sacrifice is effective to take away sin (10:12-18)
1. On the other hand, Christ sacrifice was effective. It took away the sin (10:12-14)
  - In contrast to the old covenant priests as described above. (10:12-13)
  - Christ offered one sacrifice
  - Christ’s sacrifice was once, for all time
  - Christ sat down, waiting for the subduing of all his enemies
    1. Quotation from Psalm 110:1
    2. enemies made a footstool: at the second coming.
  - Christ’s offering perfects those being sanctified
    1. Christ’s offering brings you into his presence (“perfects”), yes you, who are growing in Christ (“being sanctified”).
      - Note the contrast between perfect and being sanctified.
      - Clearly here “perfect” has reference to your coming into God’s presence. This he has done for all of time. Though right now you are not perfect in the sense of being blameless, you are “being sanctified.”
2. Proof: The NC is prophesied to take away sins (10:15-17)
  - The fact that Christ’s sacrifice was effective to take away sin is proven by a prophet under the old covenant. Jeremiah predicted the new covenant under the influence of the Holy Spirit.
    1. At the end of verse 16, it is clear that the preacher is wanting to make a distinction between verse 16 and verse 17. Both are quoting Jeremiah 31.
    2. The focus once again is on the law. The law will be written on the heart of man. Not only that, but the sins will not be remembered. Their sins against the law is written on their hearts will not be remembered.

Conclusion: If sin is forgiven, no need for offerings (10:18).
1. thus the conclusion is that there is now forgiveness of sins. Therefore, there is no longer any need to offer offerings for the forgiveness of sins. Christ’s sacrifice is sufficient, once for all of time.

Hey ______ , the author of Hebrews twice uses Jeremiah 31:31–34, though he does not equate his readers, the church, with Jeremiah’s readers, Israel. In citing Jeremiah 31:33 in 10:16, the author of Hebrews changes the identification of the new covenant recipients from “the house of Israel” to “them” meaning “the house of Israel” (see 8:10 and 10:16). The author to the Hebrews agrees that his readers benefit from the forgiveness as promised in the NC in Jeremiah, but he does not equate Israel/Judah with the NC church. “Them” describes the actual recipients of Israel and Judah, “This is the covenant that I will make with them,” the nation of Israel. He did not say “you,” the readers of the letter to the Hebrews. If the author wanted his readers to understand that God made this covenant with his readers, he would have said “you” in 10:16. The author clearly wanted to make a distinction between Israel and the church. Therefore, the church is distinct from Israel.

This section proves that Christ’s new covenant sacrifice exceeds the OC sacrifices. The law is in focus. The law prescribed the sacrifices. The Scriptures also prescribed the new covenant sacrifice of the Messiah’s body. However, the old covenant sacrifices were not sufficient to take away sin. The new covenant sacrifice was.