(Today’s post looks at how the Old Testament Law and sacrificial practices were a Shadow of Good Things to Come. All this month on the blog we’re doing a series called Once for All and studying Hebrews 10:1-25 where we’re looking at the finality and completeness of Christ’s sacrifice.)
Each day, I clean my kitchen. And each day, dishes pile up again, counters gather new crumbs, and floors get fresh splashes and mysterious smudges. It’s a daily cycle of the clean getting dirty (again) and the dirty being made clean.
The Old Testament System
It reminds me a bit of the sacrificial system in the Old Testament.
There was a similar cycle of clean and dirty, relating to sin, of course. Each day, year by year, (and also at the yearly Day Of Atonement) God accepted the offered sacrifices and so covered the people’s sin. But each day, year by year, new sins “dirtied up” the hearts of God’s children creating the need for more sacrifices. The sacrifices reminded the people of their sins and their continual need for right standing with God.
The author of Hebrews reminds his audience of this fact in Hebrews 10:1-4.
1 For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near. 2 Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, since the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have any consciousness of sins? 3 But in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. 4 For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
Read that very last verse again.
It is impossible for bulls’ and goats’ blood to take away sins! So why did the Jews offer them?
In short, because God said to. But a longer explanation would tell how these sacrifices were a substitutionary covering of sin.
The Jamieson Faucett and Brown commentary puts it this way:
“The Greek, Hebrews 10:11, is stronger, explaining the weaker word here, “take away utterly.” The blood of beasts could not take away the sin of man. A MAN must do that (see… Heb 9:12-14).” (Bold emphasis, mine.)
Shadows of Things to Come
My toddler grandson noticed a shadow today, and for the first time, he verbally expressed his observation. We’d gone to an event and he was given a helium balloon. As we trudged to the car, the hot sun behind us cast the balloon’s shadow ahead on the asphalt. “Ball, ball!” He squealed and jumped in my arms.
It seems funny to be excited or content with a shadow, doesn’t it. But if it’s all you have? Well then, that makes the story different.
Hebrews 10:1 shows us that the Old Testament Law was a shadow of the good things to come. It was a guardian that taught people how to live in the presence of a holy God until Christ came and gave His life once for all. (See Hebrews 10:12 and Galatians 3:19-26)
The people only had the shadow and knew nothing else.
Until Christ came.
This Side of the Cross
The Bible tells us that Jesus is “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” (John 1:29) His sacrificial act of laying down of His life was so mighty and so complete! Offered to everyone, it is enough to wash clean the hearts of as many as receive Him (John 3:16, John 1:12 and Romans 5:17-19).
Why be content with shadows to make us righteous? You and I likely don’t (okay, never) turn to the shadows of a Levitical sacrificial system, but maybe we turn to other things.
Sometimes we seek righteousness through obedience. There is definitely a connection between the two, but it’s this: righteousness comes by faith. Faith is shown through obedience.
Good questions to ask ourselves are: What is my motivation for obedience? Is it faith? Does it originate from an inward change of faith in Jesus? Or is it works? Does it originate from the desire for an outward appearance of righteousness and holiness?
If works are the motivation behind things like reading the Bible, having a daily quiet time, praising God, praying, or fill-in-the-blank, that’s just a shadow. (For more on legalism read Colossians 2:20-23 and see this article.)
If faith in God prompts our obedience and devotion, then that’s the real thing! It’s only through faith in Jesus that our sins are removed and we are made right with God.
Like I said in the introduction,
“There is no work good enough and no deed powerful enough for us to remove our sins and thereby making ourselves righteous in God’s eyes. Only Jesus’ blood can remove sin, once for all. His sacrifice is final and complete! How beautiful and how freeing!”
True freedom and cleansing from sin comes by grace through faith Jesus. (See Ephesians 2:8-9) And that’s no shadow. That’s the real thing: grace and truth! (See John 1:17)
Is God calling you to give up any shadows to walk in real freedom?
Ali
[…] But the Law was never meant to save us. As Ali reminded us in last week’s post, […]