For the Sins of Many (Hebrews 9:24-28)
In 2017, I told Tammy I wanted to fulfill a lifelong wish and travel to Washington on Independence Day to watch fireworks on the National Mall. Tammy is such a gracious wife, and she said, “Let’s go.”
Living in Roanoke, Virginia, we weren’t terribly far from the District of Columbia, so on July 4, Tammy and I got up a little early and drove to Washington. Our first stop was Arlington National Cemetery where so many of our nation’s war dead lay in marbled rows. Being at Arlington was certainly one of the most moving moments of my life; we visited President Kennedy’s grave first and then we went to the Tomb of the Unknowns and watched the changing of the guard.
After we watched the changing of the guard, Tammy and I headed back to our hotel to rest up a bit before the fireworks. Toward dusk, we made our way to the Mall where we plopped down right across the street from the White House. The fireworks were absolutely marvelous—the best I’ve ever seen in my entire life, and it was something to watch them explode over the monuments in Washington. It had also been widely publicized that the President of the United States would be watching the fireworks from the Truman Balcony of the White House, and it was cool to know that the President was just across the street watching the same display as I.
But, then, Tammy and I had to go back to our hotel, and that’s when reality sat in. We were surrounded by a sea of people so large we couldn’t even move. We had a couple miles or more to walk back to our hotel; we were tired, we were hot (it was extremely muggy), and we were crammed in with several thousand people. When reality sat in, the bickering started. And the more tired we became, the closer Tammy and I came to all-out war. We finally sat on a bench to rest in front of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. I was enamored with telling Tammy all about the history of the building, but she wasn’t having it. She said we were hailing a cab and going back to the hotel. And that’s exactly what we did.
I enjoyed spending the Fourth of July in the nation’s capital (it was an unforgettable experience), but I will never do it again! The throngs of people, the heat, and the walking were just too much!
How many of you have done something once that you’ll never do again? Any of you taken a cross-country road trip with little kids? I know some of you have kids and grandkids who have gone skydiving. . . . Did any of you try skydiving and say, “Never again?” Have any of you gone to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade once? Did any of you get a pet once and decide that just wasn’t for you? What about going to a concert for your favorite singer?
Jesus did something once that he’ll never do again—he died for the sins of the world. Understand: “Christ bore the sins of many once.” Jesus didn’t die just once because it was too crowded . . . but there was a large crowd there. Jesus didn’t die just once because crucifixion was too uncomfortable . . . although it was terribly cruel. Jesus didn’t die just once because it was a “bucket list” item . . . although dying on the cross was why he came. Jesus died only once because his blood is that powerful.
Scripture (Hebrews 9:24-28)
verse 24:
The earthly sanctuary where yearly offerings occurred was only a representation of the true sanctuary in heaven. Christ has entered the heavenly sanctuary to appear before God and make supplication for sinners.
verses 25-26:
Jesus used his own blood, not the blood of animals, when he entered the heavenly sanctuary.
Had Jesus’s high priesthood been like an Old Testament priesthood, he would need to die over and over and over again since the world’s creation.
However, Jesus “has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.” Jews often differentiated between the present age and the age to come; the author of Hebrews declared that Jesus helped inaugurate that “age to come” when he sacrificed himself for sin.
verse 27:
Jesus died one time for sin, just as men die one time and then face judgment. The writer paralleled the unique experience of death (it only happens once) with the unique experience of Jesus’s sacrifice for sin (it only happened once).
verse 28:
Christ was offered once for the sins of many, but he will come again. He won’t need to deal with sin then, for he has already done so, but he will save those “who are eagerly waiting for him.”
Application
“Christ bore the sins of many once.” Because Jesus’s blood is so powerful, his one sacrifice covers the sins of all who trust in him. Because Jesus died one time, there are three things you will do only one time.
One: You will Succumb Once
Unless Jesus burst through the clouds in glory in your lifetime, you are going to Succumb to death: “It is appointed for man to die once” (Heb 9:27). “Death spread to all men because all sinned” (Rom 5:12).
What legacy will you leave when you Succumb? Imagine you’re lying in a casket at your own funeral. What do you want your family to be saying about you? What do you want your friends to be saying about you? What do you want the preacher to be saying about you?
Think about it. Will people praise your good works as they praised Dorcas’ works when she died? “All the widows stood beside [Peter] weeping and showing tunics and other garments that Dorcas made while she was with them” (Acts 9:39). Would the preacher describe you like Luke described Cornelius? Would the preacher say you were “a devout man [or woman] who feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God” (Acts 10:2)?
Just what will people say about you when you’re dead? People like to say good things about the dead, whether those things are true or not. But today you can make sure people truthfully praise you when you die.
Two: You will be Sentenced Once
Jesus will Sentence you once: “It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment” (Heb 9:27). “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats” (Matt 25:31-32). “God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus” (Rom 2:16). “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil” (2 Cor 5:10).
Earlier, I suggested you should live so people praise you when you die; however, the far more important question is: “What do you want the Lord to say at your judgment?” Do you want Jesus to say, “Well done, good and faithful servant?” Do you expect Jesus to say, “Depart from me, I never knew you?”
How you live right now will determine what Jesus says. What will your Sentence be?
Three: You will be Saved Once
If you are in Christ, you can be assured that you will be Saved when Jesus returns: “Christ . . . will appear a second time . . . to save those who are eagerly waiting for him” (Heb 9:28). If you sleep in the dust, you will be raised to life eternal: “As in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ” (1 Cor 15:22-23). If you’re alive when Christ comes, you will meet the Lord after the dead in Christ have been raised: “Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord” (1 Thess 4:17).
When Jesus appears again and saves you, all your troubles will be over. No more struggling with temptation or sin. No more seeing your loved ones suffer and die. No more wondering how you’ll pay the bills. No more suffering aches and pains in your frail body. All will be made new. You will be saved. Heaven will be yours.
If Jesus came at this very moment, would you know without a single doubt that you would meet him in the clouds?
This sermon was originally preached by Dr. Justin Imel, Sr., at Church of Christ Deer Park in Deer Park, Texas.