Monday, November 4 - Hebrews 8

 Hebrews 8 (NIV)

 Now the main point of what we are saying is this: We do have such a high priest, who sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, ² and who serves in the sanctuary, the true tabernacle set up by the Lord, not by a mere human being.

³ Every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices, and so it was necessary for this one also to have something to offer. ⁴ If he were on earth, he would not be a priest, for there are already priests who offer the gifts prescribed by the law. ⁵ They serve at a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven. This is why Moses was warned when he was about to build the tabernacle: “See to it that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.” ⁶ But in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises.

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SHADOWS
   When I teach my class entitled "The Bible" at Concordia, I have one unit where I show slides I created with shadowy figures.  I ask the students to try and guess what they actually are.  Sometimes they can figure it out, other times they cannot.
   I use these slide to teach that the Old Testament was filled with some shadows that ultimately were intended to point to Christ.  These included the animal sacrifices, the festivals, the tabernacle, as well as some events in the lives of God's people.  Now that Jesus has come, it's easy to look back and see how these things hinted at what He was going to do.  But I'm guessing that before Christ came, sometimes it was hard for the Israelites to understand why they were supposed to do these things.
   Life is that way too, sometimes.  God has an ultimate plan and He knows where He is leading us, but sometimes, as we journey, it's hard to know what His plan is.  We are, shall we say, "stuck in the shadows."
   This is where faith is so important.  When we are in the shadows, God is still at work;  and it's important for us to remember His character, His actions, and His love so that we do not lose heart and fall into confusion, despair, or lose hope in His promises.
   The Old Testament people had to hold onto the promise that ultimately God would send His Christ.  And we should know, also, that our loving God will, in the end, "work all things together for the good for those who love Him." (Romans 8 28)
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⁷ For if there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another. ⁸ But God found fault with the people and said

“The days are coming, declares the Lord,
    when I will make a new covenant
with the people of Israel
    and with the people of Judah.
⁹ It will not be like the covenant
    I made with their ancestors
when I took them by the hand
    to lead them out of Egypt,
because they did not remain faithful to my covenant,
    and I turned away from them,
declares the Lord.
¹⁰ 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.
¹¹ 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.
¹² For I will forgive their wickedness
    and will remember their sins no more.”

¹³ By calling this covenant “new,” he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and outdated will soon disappear.