"...having made purification for sins..." Hebrews 1:3
What has Jesus done for you? Has He become a granter of covetous wishes for you? Lord, my car is 5 years old so can You please give a new one. Has He become the chariot that will whisk you away from the fires of hell? Some 20 years ago, Lord, I walked that isle at church and prayed with the pastor so even though my actions reveal I never really loved You, I know Your goodness will take me to heaven in the end. Sound familiar? If not, take a seat this Sunday in a chair at a mainline evangelical church. Listen to the pastor and scan the prayer requests. To many pastors and churchgoers Jesus is a genie who came to make possible whatever we want to indulge in or escape from. Is this really what Jesus has done for you?
This Sunday morning I hope to answer this question as I preach through Hebrews 1:3-4. Though there is much more to this passage than answering this question, I could not resist writing a short post on the perfect, once for all, cleansing act of Christ.
Let's begin with the word rendered "having made." This is my translation. If you have a translation that makes this word seem like Jesus is still "making" purification or cleansing for sins then the impact of this word is lost. Jesus is not continuing to make purification for sins because He has already done so. The text does not say how He did it, it simply says He did. According to the writer of Hebrews, it is a finished act that occurred in the past. What the Old Testament priests had to do over and over, year after year, Jesus, as the best and greatest Priest, did in one fell swoop.
And here is what He accomplished -- "purification for sins." In the 3rd Edition of A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (BDAG for short) this word translated "purification" is said to mean "cleansing from inward pollution." I love this definition. Do you see what Jesus has really done for you? He purified your putrid soul. If our souls could be laid bare before our very eyes, we would forget about that new suit we obsess over or that get out of hell free card we want because neither could do anything about our sinful hearts that are black as coal and more foul than the nastiest septic tank. We need inward cleansing for our sinful hearts and we need it now. But you need not look any further. It has already been done.
Thank You Jesus for doing what we really needed done the most. Outside of your cleansing we stand condemned before God. Give us the eyes to perceive this time-bound but timeless truth. We know if we really do believe you made us pure then we will live for you and not abandon the relationship You made possible for us to have with You. Help us Jesus to cut through our self-deception and see ourselves as You see us. Helpless sinners who must turn to You, the only One who provided a perfect purification for our sins. Amen.
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