Jesus: Better

PASSAGE OF THE DAY:
Hebrews 8 (click the link)


KEY VERSE:
For if there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another. (Hebrews 8:7, NIV)


REFLECTIONS:
Do a quick wordsearch of the Bible for the word “better” and you’ll find anywhere between 9 and 14 entries in the book of Hebrews (depending on what version you use), more than any other book in the New Testament. The book of Hebrews uses the “good” from the Old Testament to introduce the “better” found in Jesus. Better hope, better promises, better covenant, better sacrifices, better possessions, better offering, better country, better resurrection (hmm… I would think any resurrection would be pretty spectacular!), better plans, better word... 

What a time of change this must’ve been! Can you imagine yourself in those days, deciding how best to honor the traditions of your family but still chase after this Jesus, who has caused so much upheaval by loving people so well? 

For generations, God’s people had relied on priests to make sacrifices for their sins. Their whole culture was formed around offerings, celebrations and rituals to remind them of God’s faithfulness and of the sure and coming Deliverer, yet when He arrived, many missed it, and even those who recognized Jesus as the Promised One still had a deeply ingrained habit of participating in the rituals… it’s all they knew. But Hebrews 8 speaks of a better priest, one who has taken up permanent residence side-by-side with the God He’s appealing to on our behalf, with His own life as the only suitable offering. That’s what I call friends in high places! And Hebrews 8 speaks of a better covenant, not one that kept with traditions, but written on the heart:  

This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” By calling this covenant “new,” he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and outdated will soon disappear. (verses 10-13)

In such trying times they desperately needed to know that though the old was good, the new was definitely better. The something more, the whole truth, the “better” had arrived in Jesus and they could not afford to go back to the old. 

What does “better” mean for us?  

From my kitchen window I have a good view of the Pedernales River. For months now it has been dry as a bone, but the recent rains have brought the old girl to life again. There’s so much water now that we can hear the sound of rapids as the water makes a turn just upriver from our house. OK, truth is, the drought has been so thorough that even a tiny bit of water flowing over the hard ground sounds like rapids to me. When I look at the river now, I see “good.” It’s only when I take note of the grassy slope leading down to the water that I recognize the lack of water that still exists.  To see that covered with water would be “better.” How often am I satisfied with “good” and stop yearning for “better;” unaware of ongoing spiritual drought in my life?

Wide-eyed Dorothy clutches her faithful friend Toto as she wanders through the tornado-tossed Kansas farmhouse searching for Auntie Em. Moving from room to room, she reaches the back door, grasps the knob, and turns. Cue the orchestra as the door opens to a world of technicolor the likes of which Dorothy has never seen, much less an audience in a major motion picture! How often do I live as if my life were a series of sepia-toned scenes, when there are opportunities, relationships and adventures to be had simply by being willing to walk out of the old and step into to the new?

These are pretty abstract examples, but let me ask you this: How often do you live as if you are under the old covenant? As though your sins are so burdensome they might be forgiven if, and only if, you make the right sacrifices to the right person at the right time? As if your security and acceptance is dependent on the ugliness of your latest failure and your ability to relieve the guilt? Which priest are you choosing? Which covenant are you choosing?

Your sense of
          obligation vs. freedom
                guilt vs. joy
                       perfectionism vs. permission to fail (and…succeed!)
                                  will answer for you. 

POINT OF ACTION:

Spend some time today with your priest, Jesus, and hear from Him if there is more freedom, joy and acceptance for you than you currently are aware of. (Hint: the answer is in 2 Corinthians 1:20 “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ.”)

WHO AM I?

My name is Leigh Anne Bland, and I like coffee.