Blood of bulls and goats

(Hebrews 10:4)  “For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.”

The laws of sacrificial offering were introduced by God through Moses way back in the early stages of Judaism. And yet with such a detailed account given to the children of Israel in which they needed to religiously follow, the conclusion that the writer of Hebrews arrives at is this; “For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.” So many years of habitual practice and yet the very thing that it was designed for, to help the children of Israel find forgiveness for a particular trespass was only ever a temporal solution, but with an over-arching truth that many so called Christian organisations of today have adopted similar practices. A religion that is driven by the flesh and its repetitions; with a similar outcome that just like the blood of bulls and goats could never take away sin; religious organisation that look to approach God in the flesh can never free those in their congregation in finding true forgiveness. A tickling of the conscience, which is in fact a total waste of time when it comes to finding the will of God for their lives.

Why did God spend some much time on the sacrificial ordinances throughout history? There are obviously many facets to this question that we can explore but for me the greatest truth that springs to life is simply this; God was proving over time that because we are fallen beings, born into sin and that we are naturally anti-God, the law was a teacher to demonstrate that we needed a Saviour. It proves how helpless we are within ourselves and how futile our own efforts are.

Satan on the other hand looks to hone in on the efforts of particular individuals like mother Teresa, a person that is hard to fault when we compare her efforts to the worlds; this was on of her quotes “If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.”  A contradiction to the Lord Jesus instruction on how we will find peace; “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you.” (John 14:27) – True peace has nothing to do with us being linked to one another but rather an understanding that our sins have been forgiven in and through the finished work of the cross. One train of thought derives from an understanding that comes from the flesh whilst the other through the Spirit of God. We must start right in order to end correctly; Simple mathematics.

Who will resist the point I raise, will it not be those who are driven by their flesh? There have been many other great examples that lure us always from the truth of God’s Word. Gandhi or Nelson Mandela, great example of the revolts of their times, but how often did you ever see them point you to Christ and the finished work of the cross? Peace was the message that drove their intentions. They were driven by their own efforts which glorified themselves and not the Lord Jesus Christ.    

The said that drives is what I have been contemplating over the past week or so, which is; the flesh and the Spirit and how they cannot be mixed in the same bowl in order to be favoured by God. We have already established that those who live in the flesh cannot please God, and no matter how we slice it, our attempts in the flesh are futile, with an outcome that never changes; “Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” (Romans 8:8) - An impossible quandary to avoid if we remain in that mind-set and we must learn to live here; “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.” (Galatians 2:20-21)  

The opposite of walking in the flesh is someone who understands what it means to walk in the Spirit, as they find victory in the finished work of the cross in their lives; this is a fundamental that Christ has established for every believer; those who are sanctified by His blood; all those whose names are written in the “Book of Life”.

It is becoming very obvious to me what is meant by these words; “you shall know a tree by its fruit”. Regardless of the season that trees needs to endure, it has to have seasons of palatable fruit. Its fruit must glorify God and it will never achieve this from a platform of the flesh (our own efforts). The root of that tree, Jesus Christ must be the one nourishing the individual and the way this is achieved is through the Spirit. Even the Lord Jesus, God in the flesh, taught us this principle; “And Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.” (Mark 10:18) – Any effort done whilst walking in the Spirit will glorify God and not the other way around, with our own efforts bringing praise to ourselves.     

Signing off

Tyrone