Hebrews 10: 11-18 (NIV)
Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy. The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says:“This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.”Then he adds: “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.” And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.
This remarkable New Testament passage recalls vividly the covenant that God made with Noah and his family, the survivors of the great Flood. God declares that never again will he destroy the Earth. As the Earth renews itself after the Flood, this will be God’s act of Creation, a process that he promises to perform again and again with his people, ultimately the children of Israel.
But this is not the end of the story. Far from it. This passage from Hebrews reminds us of that Christ’s life, death, and resurrection have changed the fundamentals of the story. God’s love for humanity has always existed, but humans have always felt they had to strive for it. They had to do good works to be worthy. They had to, in the writer’s words, offer sacrifices.
Because Jesus lived, died, and rose again, our sacrifices are no longer necessary. Our good works are no longer sufficient.
Yes, we should indeed continue to make sacrifices and to do good works. We do these, not to achieve God’s love but in response to the understanding that we are God’s beloved. “There sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.” As humans, we are unable to fathom the depths and the power of this love, but our understanding can begin on that promise.
Let us pray:
Dear Lord, help us to respond to your love and grace but showing that love and grace to others in our every thought, word, and action. Amen.zzz
Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.
If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: [email protected].
First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.
