These gruesome thoughts are in my head this morning because I’m reminded of what worship for Old Testament believers was like. Every time they went to church, they started with a sacrifice. Blood had to be shed, and caught in bowls or allowed to run down. Carcasses were burnt. Can you imagine, the noise of bellowing and bleating animals who can smell the death and know it means bad things, along with the horrible odors?
There was a purpose to it all, which was to remind the people in a very visceral way how much God hates sin. What happened to the animals is what sin deserves, but no animal can atone for all of a person’s sin. God’s law of the sacrifice allowed, for a time, a way for people to try to make things right with God.
Not me, though, or you. We live in a wonderfully different reality, after the cross. This morning, in Romans 10:4 I read, “Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.”
The law of the sacrifice was fulfilled completely and for all time by Jesus’ sacrifice. His blood running down the wood of the cross was such an amazing act of grace that the righteousness it earned is enough for all my sins, and for yours.
This is the great wonder of our faith, the thing that no other faith on earth offers. God loves us completely and forgives us fully because all the death we owe him, death equal to thousands of animals, was made good by one death, that of Jesus. A free gift of grace that frees me forever from guilt. Now, every time God looks at me, instead of my grimy, sinful self he sees the clean white clothing that Christ has dressed me in. He sees Jesus’ righteousness as though it were mine, and he loves me as he loves Jesus. I will never have to pay that price. My trips to church don’t include blood and burnt flesh, nor does my future.
How to respond? There isn’t enough I can do to adequately express my gratitude, and to my shame I don’t do all that I could. But today, I’m resolved to do better.
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