Hebrews 9:23-28 (NRSV)
Read Hebrews 9:23-28 on biblegateway.com
Verse 23Thus it was necessary for the sketches of the heavenly things to be purified with these rites, but the heavenly things themselves need better sacrifices than these. Verse 24For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made by human hands, a mere copy of the true one, but he entered into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. Verse 25Nor was it to offer himself again and again, as the high priest enters the Holy Place year after year with blood that is not his own; Verse 26for then he would have had to suffer again and again since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the age to remove sin by the sacrifice of himself. Verse 27And just as it is appointed for mortals to die once, and after that the judgment, Verse 28so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.
Devotion
One of our family members sent me an e-mail with the subject “Son of Hamas Leader Turns Back on Islam and Embraces Christianity” and a note to me about its “powerful testimony.” I remember reading a prayer: “Let us not pray for the unity of Arabs, Jews and Muslims but let us pray for ourselves that we may not keep them separated in our hearts and prayers.” The purpose of Christ’s great suffering is to make us one with God so we all may be one. Christ offered himself once and for all, made alive in the spirit. Likewise, we Christians are called to put our earthly nature, our differences and our prejudices to death—and in a symbolic way we are also alive in spirit and have the unity of the spirit.
Prayer
Unite us, God of unity, that we may have love for one another, a tender heart and a humble mind. Amen.