Day 2259 – Hebrews 14 – May I Speak To Your Conscience, Please – Daily Wisdom

Welcome to Day 2260 of Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.
This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom
Wisdom Nuggets – Proverbs 17:8-14 – Daily Wisdom
Wisdom-Trek Podcast Script - Day 2260

“May I Speak To Your Conscience, Please?”

Hebrews 9:1-14

As we continued our extended series through the book of Hebrews in the New Testament last week, we discussed the New Covenant that Christ brings to us. The New Testament, or New Covenant, is the Good News, commonly called the Gospel.

This week, we will explore the Reformation of Conscience.

Let’s read Hebrews 9:1-14.

Now the first covenant had regulations for worship and also an earthly sanctuary. A tabernacle was set up. In its first room were the lampstand and the table with its consecrated bread; this was called the Holy Place. Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place, which had the golden altar of incense and the gold-covered Ark of the Covenant. This ark contained the gold jar of manna, Aaron’s staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant. Above the ark were the cherubim of the Glory, overshadowing the atonement cover. But we cannot discuss these things in detail now.

When everything had been arranged like this, the priests entered regularly into the outer room to carry on their ministry. But only the high priest entered the inner room, and that only once a year, and never without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance. The Holy Spirit was showing by this that the way into the Most Holy Place had not yet been disclosed as long as the first Tabernacle was still functioning. This is an illustration for the present time, indicating that the gifts and sacrifices being offered were not able to clear the conscience of the worshiper. They are only a matter of food and drink and various ceremonial washings—external regulations applying until the time of the new order.

The Blood of Christ

But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that are now already here, he went through the greater and more perfect Tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption.  The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!

Throughout the book of Hebrews, up to this point, the author has been leveling a biblical argument for the superiority of Christ’s person and work over the Old Testament priests and their ministry. In Hebrews 8, the topic pursued the earthly Tabernacle and its temporary ministry (8:4–5), asserting that Jesus’ high priestly ministry in the true, heavenly Tabernacle is superior.

Returning to the Old Testament scene of the Tabernacle, the writer again directs our thought to the preeminent person and work of Christ. He contrasts the external, physical worship at the Tabernacle—with its sacrifices and ritual washings, which

Welcome to Day 2260 of Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.
This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom
Wisdom Nuggets – Proverbs 17:8-14 – Daily Wisdom
Wisdom-Trek Podcast Script - Day 2260

“May I Speak To Your Conscience, Please?”

Hebrews 9:1-14

As we continued our extended series through the book of Hebrews in the New Testament last week, we discussed the New Covenant that Christ brings to us. The New Testament, or New Covenant, is the Good News, commonly called the Gospel.

This week, we will explore the Reformation of Conscience.

Let’s read Hebrews 9:1-14.

Now the first covenant had regulations for worship and also an earthly sanctuary. A tabernacle was set up. In its first room were the lampstand and the table with its consecrated bread; this was called the Holy Place. Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place, which had the golden altar of incense and the gold-covered Ark of the Covenant. This ark contained the gold jar of manna, Aaron’s staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant. Above the ark were the cherubim of the Glory, overshadowing the atonement cover. But we cannot discuss these things in detail now.

When everything had been arranged like this, the priests entered regularly into the outer room to carry on their ministry. But only the high priest entered the inner room, and that only once a year, and never without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance. The Holy Spirit was showing by this that the way into the Most Holy Place had not yet been disclosed as long as the first Tabernacle was still functioning. This is an illustration for the present time, indicating that the gifts and sacrifices being offered were not able to clear the conscience of the worshiper. They are only a matter of food and drink and various ceremonial washings—external regulations applying until the time of the new order.

The Blood of Christ

But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that are now already here, he went through the greater and more perfect Tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption.  The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!

Throughout the book of Hebrews, up to this point, the author has been leveling a biblical argument for the superiority of Christ’s person and work over the Old Testament priests and their ministry. In Hebrews 8, the topic pursued the earthly Tabernacle and its temporary ministry (8:4–5), asserting that Jesus’ high priestly ministry in the true, heavenly Tabernacle is superior.

Returning to the Old Testament scene of the Tabernacle, the writer again directs our thought to the preeminent person and work of Christ. He contrasts the external, physical worship at the Tabernacle—with its sacrifices and ritual washings, which can only cleanse the body—with the internal, spiritual work of Christ’s sacrifice, which is able to cleanse the inner conscience. Though he mentions details of the furnishings of the physical Tabernacle and the ministry of the priests, the author’s primary purpose is spiritual, drawing attention from external, tangible things to internal, spiritual matters of the heart.

But how easy it is to get wrapped up in the externals—those things we can see, touch, and experience with our bodies. And how easy it is to forget that within our bodies is a network of emotions, thoughts, and impulses, all bound up with our conscience—that powerful inner “voice” that can prod us to do right … or convict us when we do wrong. However, the conscience isn’t a fail-safe. It can be damaged and dulled, making us feel good about our wickedness or guilty when we’re innocent.

The problem with this letter's original Jewish Christian recipients was that they were tempted to address the internal, spiritual concerns of the conscience with external, physical forms of worship that were never intended to cleanse the inner person. Such efforts were futile. They belonged to a temporary stage in God’s plan of redemption—an age that pointed to a future time of reformation that would address not merely the external aspects of a person, but, more importantly, the internal conscience.

Hebrews 9:1–10 describes in summary fashion the arrangement of the furnishings of the Tabernacle (9:1–5) and the regulations for the worship that occurred there (9:6–10). However, this isn’t an exhaustive tour of the Tabernacle facility in all its details. The author writes, “But we cannot discuss these things in detail now” (9:5). In other words, it wasn’t his purpose to go into great detail; so we won’t either. Instead, we’ll discuss the furniture and functions of the Tabernacle in a general way.

The Tabernacle was a tent the Levites carried with them during their wilderness wanderings. When they stopped somewhere, the priests would reassemble the elements of the tent and thus erect the portable place of worship (see Exod. 25–31; 35–40). This temporary structure then housed a variety of implements of worship necessary for carrying out the sacrifices and rituals—all strictly prescribed by God in the regulations of the old covenant sacrificial system (Heb. 9:1).

As you can see in the diagram in your bulletin insert, the Tabernacle had three main areas:

First, the main court of the sanctuary was the large, outermost court that fenced in the Tabernacle itself and set it apart from the Israelite encampment, establishing the space for conducting the work of the priesthood (Exod. 27:9–19). In this outer court stood the bronze (or “brazen”) altar for presenting the various offerings to the Lord (Exod. 27:1–8; Lev. 1–7). Between that altar and the Tabernacle stood the bronze laver (or “washbasin”) for ritual washings conducted before entering the Tabernacle.

Second, the holy place or main Tabernacle was situated behind a thick veil beyond the bronze laver. The priests would enter the holy place through the veil, where the golden lampstand and table of showbread (the “Bread of the Presence” or the “sacred bread”) stood opposite each other to the left and right, respectively (Exod. 25:23–40; Heb. 9:2). Usually, on the far end of this holy place, just outside the veil to the holy of holies, stood an altar of incense; but it seems, according to the author of Hebrews, that on the Day of Atonement, the alter of Incense was located within the holy of holies.

Although Exodus 30:6 and Leviticus 16:12–18 place the altar of incense in the holy place, Hebrews 9:3–4 indicates that it is part of the innermost “holy of holies.” This apparent contradiction has vexed commentators for ages. However, the purpose of the author of Hebrews is not to go into great detail about the furnishings (9:5), but to summarize the arrangement of the implements of worship, primarily as they related to the Day of Atonement (9:7). As such, the writer was right to associate the golden altar of incense with the holy of holies. Allen explains:

In Verse 4, the participle echousa, “which had,” does not refer to location, but rather to use and thus should be given the translation “associated with it.” The strength of this view is that the altar of incense was closely associated with the holy of holies by virtue of its location immediately in front of the veil and because on the Day of Atonement, the high priest brought incense from that altar into the holy of holies.

Likewise, Guthrie states, “The altar was so placed that the smoke from the burning incense was supposed to penetrate the curtain and rise to God before the Ark of the Covenant.” It is also possible that on the Day of Atonement, the high priest adjusted the veil of the holy of holies so it temporarily wrapped around the altar of incense so its smoke could fill the holy of holies during the ritual. If that were the case, the altar was, for practical purposes, within the veil with the Ark of the Covenant.

Third, the holy of holies or inner Tabernacle was a small space behind a second veil, in which rested the ark of the covenant, containing the original tablets of the Ten Commandments, the rod of Aaron, and a golden jar of manna from the wilderness (Exod. 25:10–22; Heb. 9:4–5). The golden altar of incense (9:4)—regardless of its location—was used to obscure the glory of God above the Ark of the Covenant with thick smoke (9:4).

Having set the stage and arranged the props in 9:1–5, the author focuses attention in Hebrews 9:6–10 on the main actors of the worship in the Tabernacle: the priests—especially the high priest (9:7). Whereas a rotating order of priests had various, daily responsibilities to offer sacrifices, make offerings, and attend to rituals in the holy place (9:6), (Zacharia) only the high priest was permitted to pull back the veil and enter the holy of holies—and only once a year during the special rituals related to the great Day of Atonement (Lev. 16:1–34; Heb. 9:7). This annual offering of blood was “offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance” (9:7).

The Inner and Outer Person, Hebrews 9:13–14

The Bible teaches that humans have a material, tangible part—what we might call the “outer person”—and an immaterial, intangible part—what we can call the “inner person.” This is the Bible’s teaching concerning humans from the beginning: “The LORD God formed man of dust from the ground [the physical aspect], and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life [the spiritual aspect]; and man became a living being [the whole person of body and soul]” (Gen. 2:7).

We see a distinction between these two aspects of our person throughout Scripture. In 1 Samuel 16:7, God says, “The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” Paul writes, “That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day” (2 Cor. 4:16). And when our bodies die, returning to the ground until our future resurrection at the return of Christ (1 Thes. 4:13–16), our immaterial (inner) part will in some way continue, as Paul teaches, “Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord” (2 Cor. 5:8).

Thus, as humans, we are neither strictly material, as most atheists tend to believe, nor are we essentially spirit-beings “trapped,” as in a physical body, as many Far Eastern, New Age, or Gnostic religions believe. Theologians call us a “psychosomatic” union—a unity of soul and body, internal and external, invisible and visible.

God prescribed this entire system of worship in the Tabernacle in painstaking detail. Yet, these rituals addressed only the outer person and revolved around material things and physical actions. These gifts and offerings, “They are only a matter of food and drink and various ceremonial washings—external regulations applying until the time of the new order” (9:10). Yet, by the prophetic Spirit, these temporal, physical forms of worship were intended to point forward symbolically to “the new order” (9:10). Unless the outer Tabernacle was taken down, opening the way for entrance into the inner sanctuary where God dwelled, there could be no access to God apart from the high priests and the continual sacrifices (9:8).

 

The first-century audience of Hebrews was tempted to return to this highly formalized worship—with priesthood and sacrifice, washings and incense, lampstands, and sacred bread—carried on in the physical temple in Jerusalem. They were hoping to find inner relief through outer rituals. The author of Hebrews, however, argued that external activities—no matter how flawlessly performed—can’t cleanse a guilty conscience.

9:11–14

Times have changed, but human nature hasn’t. In my many years in various ministries, I’ve seen the same mentality that characterized the audience of Hebrews creep into many churches and corrupt the lives of countless Christians. In an attempt to soothe an uneasy conscience, ease doubts about personal worthiness, or make up for too many missteps, people turn their backs on grace to embrace a life of legalism. The audience of Hebrews was guilty of this in the first century. They probably thought that if they could return to a secure routine or a specific religious ritual, they could somehow find rest for their souls and relief for their consciences. Remember, they had already become dull of hearing (5:11). They were stalling out in their spiritual growth (5:12). Especially during such times of spiritual doldrums, the currents of legalism can begin to cause us to drift back into old patterns of wrongheaded religiosity.

But the writer of Hebrews puts an end to this thinking with four crucial words: “But when Christ came” (9:11). With this simple contrast, the writer turns the spotlight from the external to the internal, from rituals to righteousness, from imperfect priests to the perfect High Priest. He stresses that body-soul creatures can’t use an external, physical cure for an essentially internal, spiritual problem—the sinful heart. That problem can be solved only by Jesus Christ.

When Jesus died for our sins, rose victorious over death, and ascended into heaven, He replaced the temporary symbol of the sacrificial system with a permanent reality to which it had always been pointing. His was “the greater and more perfect tabernacle” (9:11), not fashioned by mallets or woven by human hands, but created in the heavens by God himself (9:11). His offering for sin was not another in an endless slaughter of animals whose blood could never cleanse spiritually or eternally; He offered His blood “once for all” and thus accomplished for us “eternal redemption” (9:12).

Yes, the old covenant sacrificial system had its time, place, and specific purpose. It was established for the nation of Israel until the coming of the Messiah, and it kept them centered on the reality of their sin and their need for salvation. However, the cleansing accomplished through animal sacrifice was only useful for ceremonial “so that they are outwardly clean” (9:13). Christ is superior as our High Priest. He offered himself to the Father by the power of the Holy Spirit, and His priceless blood has the infinite power to “cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!” (9:14).

Application: Hebrews 9:1–14  - Reformation of Conscience

The visible, physical, and tangible are common artificial salves for a guilty conscience. How easy it is to become addicted to them! Many people suffering from the pain of guilt and the weight of sin turn to religious rituals that can quickly cross into outright superstition. They believe that if they surround themselves with religious images, Christian music, artwork, or “holy” people, places, and things, these will magically counteract the deep-seated pain they feel from a restless conscience. This is nothing new. In Numbers 21:4–9, God provided miraculous healing through a bronze serpent … then eight hundred years later, the people of Israel were caught dragging around that piece of bronze nothing and burning incense to it (2 Kgs. 18:1–4). They were using that once-significant symbol as a magical talisman.

In a similar way, we can attach mystical or magical significance to our religious symbols, whether a stained glass window, a gilded cross, a leather Bible, a particular approach to Christian living, or even a respected pastor! There’s nothing wrong with symbols, artwork, or wise Christian mentors; but sometimes a fixation on activities and externals can distract us from the only One who can cleanse our consciences. Let me suggest two guidelines for turning our attention toward an authentic reformation of conscience.

First, we need to stop overemphasizing the externals. I don’t mean that we need to ignore externals. After all, we are physical beings, created to live in a physical world. But our over-sensual, touch-it, taste-it, see-it, experience-it world has swung the pendulum away from a proper internal-external balance. We need to push it back. We must de-emphasize ritualistic religion, stop going through the motions, and avoid over-cluttering our lives with more superficial religious junk. Simply clearing the clutter of Christian crutches will allow us to move on to the essential second step.

Second, we need to refocus on the internals. Look beyond the shadow of the symbols/ to the substance to which they point. Whether it’s hymns and choruses, daily devotions, or weekly sermons—any one of these means of spiritual discipline can become an end in itself. Let these things move you to reality. Focus on what God focuses on—the inside (1 Sam. 16:7). Look to Christ; fix your eyes on Him (Heb. 12:2). When you do, even your frenzied activity for Him will fade in the light of your nourishing fellowship with Him. When you approach Him—really approach Him—the cleansing will have already begun.

You’ll experience—body and soul—a reformation of conscience.

Next week, we will continue our adventure through Hebrews as we focus on Our Internal Inheritance in a message titled “Signed, Sealed, Delivered…In Blood” So please read Hebrews 9:15-28 in preparation for next week.

As we continue our journey through the pages of the Bible, remember that the wisdom it offers is our guiding light in navigating the complexities of life. Until next time, keep seeking God’s wisdom and make it a part of your daily trek.

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As we take this trek together, let us always:

Live Abundantly (Fully)
Love Unconditionally
Listen Intentionally
Learn Continuously
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Lead with Integrity
Leave a Living Legacy Each Day...