And it is by God’s will that we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. (Heb. 10:10)

Christmas is coming, and its images float in our heads like decorations on a tree. A star, a donkey, a tired woman, and a stoic husband. Shepherds and angels and, in the midst of it all, a tiny newborn baby. We sometimes think about prophetic promises frequently applied to the coming of Christ: a shoot from the stump of Jesse, a miraculous conception, a coming servant who would suffer for the sake of others. 

The Gospel of John declares that Christ was present before the creation of the world, indeed, from the very beginning: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being” (John 1:1-3). In John’s gospel, “the Word” is Christ.

If Christ was consciously preexistent prior to his earthly incarnation, then it follows that he would have made a purposeful decision to give up the accoutrements of deity and be born into the physical world that we humans inhabit. Paul wrote to the Philippians that Christ, “though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death – even death on a cross” (Phil. 2:5-8).

Today’s text is another writer’s attempt to visualize the life-changing decisions that went on in heavenly places and resulted in the birth of a baby in a manger. The text declares that Christ came because it was absolutely necessary for our redemption. The writer is amazed at the willingness of Christ to take on flesh and to take up the dread task leading to our salvation. The experience of Christmas will be much richer if we remember that Christ did not come into the world to be coddled and cute. Christ came to save us from our sins, even at the cost of his life. 

The bodies of bulls (vv. 1-4)

The book of Hebrews was written anonymously. Though an old church tradition attributed it to Paul, it is quite different from Paul’s other writings, especially in its elevated style and its focus on Christ as a High Priest. Fortunately, we don’t have to know the author in order to appreciate his or her message. [DD]

The writer of Hebrews consistently views Christ as the ultimate High Priest, presenting careful and detailed arguments designed to argue that the Old Testament system of sacrifice was an inadequate means of atoning for human sin. Only Christ, the writer contends, is able to provide the perfect sacrifice needed for our redemption.

The author argues cogently that the Law and its attendant sacrifices could never be a sufficient and lasting remedy for human sin, mainly because they had to be offered continually, year after year. If animal sacrifices were effective at removing sin, why should they have to be repeated so often (vv. 1-2)? 

He concludes that such yearly sacrifices served only as a continual reminder of the human proclivity to sin (v. 3). That might encourage repentance, but it would do nothing about the sin itself, “for it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins” (v. 4). The shedding of sacrificial blood may symbolize human need for repentance, but it cannot wash away the stain of wrongdoing. 

The idea that sacrifices alone were ineffective in pleasing God was not new, but previously expressed in Old Testament narratives, psalms, and the prophets. [DD] It is likely that many faithful Jews of the first century no longer put much trust in animal sacrifices. The entrenched priestly system continued to offer them while the temple endured, but when it was destroyed in 70 CE, the rabbis quickly adapted. Synagogue worship soon took the place of the old temple services.  

The body of Jesus (vv. 5-9)

The gospels suggest that Jesus also saw the inadequacy of animal sacrifices, since Matthew’s gospel twice portrays him as quoting Hosea 6:6: “I desire mercy, and not sacrifice” (Matt. 9:13, 12:7). According to the writer of Hebrews, the same view was held by the pre-incarnate Christ. 

Using his inspired imagination, the author boldly ascribes to Christ the words of Psalm 40:6-8. He asserts, “Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said . . ..” The author then quotes from the psalm – originally the words of a worshiper speaking to God in prayer – as if God the Son was speaking to God the Father as he prepared to come into the world. 

And what did he say? “Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body you have prepared for me; in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure. Then I said, ‘See, God, I have come to do your will, O God’ (in the scroll of the book it is written of me)” (vv. 5-7).

The author, like most New Testament writers, quoted from the Greek translation of the Old Testament known as the Septuagint (or LXX) rather than the Hebrew text, which reads, “you have given me an open ear” (literally, “an ear you have dug for me”) instead of “a body you have prepared for me.” The Hebrew version implies a readiness to hear and obey. [DD]

The author could have made his point with either version, for he emphasizes the importance of Christ hearing and obeying the will of God. However, the image of Christ’s body is especially vivid, given the context of his remarks about Judaism’s sacrificial system. The writer suggests that the bodies of bulls and goats were not sufficient for removing sin, but God had given to Christ a body, also destined for sacrifice, that was sufficient.

The efficacy of Christ’s sacrifice is not based on some mystical difference between his human body and the bodies of animal sacrifices – the difference is that Christ, in a fully human existence, voluntarily surrendered his life.

Animals brought to the sacrificial slaughter had no knowledge of what was happening and no choice in the matter, but Christ willingly went to his death to redeem us from sin: “See, God, I have come to do your will.” The value of sacrifices is that they were given as tangible expressions of the believer’s devotion and obedience. Only in Christ could the obedient giver and the gift be one and the same.

Does this idea help us to appreciate the sacrifice Christ made for us, or to have any deeper insight as to its purpose? What kind of response does it call for in our lives?

For the writer of Hebrews, Jesus’ human life (and death) of obedience began with the incarnation (“you have given me a body”) and was a fulfillment of God’s eternal plan (“in the scroll of the book it is written of me”).  The practical effect was that God had abolished the old order of animal sacrifice, since the effective work of Christ had superseded it (vv. 8-9).

The body of believers (v. 10)

Those who follow Jesus are thus brought into a right relationship with God through their faith in the efficacy of Christ’s sacrifice, the author says: “And it is by God’s will that we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (v. 10).  

The writer was emphatic about the Christ event being “once for all” time. Old Testament sacrifices were offered continually while the temple stood, and the author saw that as evidence of their inadequacy (vv. 2-4). In contrast, Christ’s voluntary gift of himself needed no repetition: it is effective for all persons, and for all time.

That does not mean the word “sacrifice” is now passé – Christ’s redeeming sacrifice for sin is all-sufficient for our salvation, but Christian believers are also called to lives of personal sacrifice for the sake of others. Paul expressed the idea beautifully in Romans: “I appeal to you, therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship” (12:1).

There is no more sacrifice for sin, but there is a sacrifice of service to God, and that is demonstrated best through actively loving others. Such service may involve the sacrifice of time, of material goods, or even of one’s physical being. 

Any worship or service that we offer to God can be thought of as sacrifice. Even the writer of Hebrews, echoing language often found in the psalms (40:6, 50:12-15, 51:15-17, 69:30-31), spoke of how believers may offer a sacrifice of praise to God through words of testimony (Heb. 13:15).  He knew that there would be times when it would cost believers to be faithful in giving and living out their testimony. [DD]

We might ponder some of the different ways we can sacrifice ourselves in service to others, for the sake of Christ.

In this Christmas season, let us not fail to look with joy upon the cuddly baby in the hay – but let us not forget that the same baby so lovingly wrapped in swaddling would one day be stretched out naked on a cross – not because Jesus was a masochist, but because he was (and is) a Savior: “we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”