THE HOLY BIBLE (The Message – Hebrews 9:11-14): But when the Messiah arrived, high priest of the superior things of this new covenant, he bypassed the old tent and its trappings in this created world and went straight into heaven's "tent"—the true Holy Place—once and for all. He also bypassed the sacrifices consisting of goat and calf blood, instead using his own blood as the price to set us free once and for all. If that animal blood and the other rituals of purification were effective in cleaning up certain matters of our religion and behavior, think how much more the blood of Christ cleans up our whole lives, inside and out.
THOUGHTS: In the beginning books of the Bible we see where there were many examples of sacrifices of animals for the forgiveness of sin. We also see where this was pretty much a routine or a tradition, that did absolutely nothing towards bringing the individual closer to the God of this universe. In His infinite wisdom, God saw that this was not working, so He sent His precious, only Son into the world through miraculous means, with an awesome, miraculous kingdom agenda of being the ultimate sacrifice for mankind – the only channel available for leading the unrighteous to the Righteous One, God! Friends, I really want you to grasp the depth of love by our Maker in this scripture today. Imagine, He created us to worship Him. We saw no importance in this, so we went our own way and did our own thing. Our ancestors felt such grief and remorse for their sin, that they followed with a sacrifice of something near and dear to them, as a blood offering in lieu of their ugly sin, hoping that God, or sometimes 'the gods' would accept their sacrifice and see fit to forgive them of their sin. God saw this was not working as a long term goal towards drawing His children to Himself, so He intervened and sent His Son, Jesus, as a once for all sacrifice for the sin of those who simply accept Him as Lord. Jesus, became the facilitator for us who would forgive us of our sin and cleanse us of all unrighteousness so that we might stand before God as one who has been made whole, or eternally 'clean'! Yes, we have an Advocate who has bridged the gap between our sinful nature and our Holy God! Where do you stand today friend? Have you asked Jesus to forgive you of your sin and bridge the gap for you? The Bible says that He will accept you just as you are and whomever you are, for all are welcome (John 3:16). Please consider surrendering to the One who sacrificed His very life for the forgiveness of your sin.
PRAYER: Praise the wonderful name of Jesus for your sacrifice on the cross for my sin, and the sin of all those who will read this devotional today! As I am reminded of the purpose and the ultimate sacrifice made on my behalf, I am eternally grateful and, considered blessed by the amazing love of my Father. I sincerely pray for all who will be reminded of this today, and ask that you humble their hearts so that they might actually see beyond their selfish desires and sin, and actually see the love of the Savior who sacrificed Himself so that we all might live eternally. May this be a day of surrender by folk who are ready to accept the love and sacrifice made available to them? I would be eternally thankful Father! I ask all these things in the name of Your Son, Jesus, AMEN!
FOOTNOTE: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching pastor, or read through Biblical truths on How To Know Jesus, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com so that we can pray with you and give you help and or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Any words underlined above will indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to blogger.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day's devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, Sebring, FL! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!
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