1. Insufficient (verses 1-4)
2. Sufficient (verses 5-10)
3. Sufficient (verses 11-14)
4. Sufficient (verses 15-18)

As I have had opportunity over the past year or so to give testimony to something in Scripture that has stirred my heart, I have found that I have often come to the text that we will be looking at today, Hebrews 10:1-18. I have often been stirred by three verses:

Hebrews 10:10
By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Hebrews 10:14
For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.

Hebrews 10:18
Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin.

Each of these verses says the exact same thing. They all focus their attention upon the perfect, finished, completed, sufficient sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Indeed, that's the main point of our text: the single, sufficient sacrifice of Jesus Christ, which happens to be the title of my message this morning. This is the point of verse 10. This is the point of verse 14. This is the point of verse 18.

The one offering of Jesus was sufficient. There is no need for any other. Because, we have been sanctified through this offering (verse 10). Because, we have been perfected through this offering (verse 14). Because, we have forgiveness through this offering (verse 18).

These three verses have stirred my heart, because they have shown how complete the sacrifice of Jesus Christ is. We don't need to look to anything else! We don't need to do anything more! This is the gospel! It's been done in Jesus. We have been sanctified, perfected, and forgiven in Jesus, once for all!

This is the message that we preach! This is the message that we believe. This is so unlike any religion in the world! Christianity is the only religion in the world "in which one great happening brings salvation through the centuries and through the world." ^[1] And let me just say this: in my own heart, I have found great comfort and blessing in knowing that my sins have been completely dealt with and completely wiped away. My aim for my message this morning is that you might know the blessing as well, by believing in the single sufficient sacrifice of Christ! As you read the text below, look for the single, sufficient, sacrifice.

Hebrews 10:1-18
For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near. Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, because the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have had consciousness of sins? But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins year by year. For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, "Sacrifice and offering you have not desired, but a body you have prepared for me; in whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin you have taken no pleasure. Then I said, 'Behold, I have come (in the scroll of the book it is written of me) to do your will, O God.'" After saying above, "Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin you have not desired, nor have you taken pleasure in them" (which are offered according to the Law), then He said, "Behold, I have come to do your will." He takes away the first in order to establish the second. By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time onward until his enemies be made a footstool for his feet. For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.

And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us; for after saying, "This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the LORD: I will put my laws upon their heart, and on their mind I will write them," He then says, "And their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more." Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin.

Now, before getting to the three verses I mentioned before, we first have a contrast. Before we see the sufficiency of the sacrifice of Christ, we see the insufficiency of the sacrifices of the Old Covenant. This is my first point, ...
1. Insufficient (verses 1-4).

That is, the Old Testament Sacrifices didn't work. They were insufficient.

Andrew, an eight year old in our congregation, was over at our home this week. He had been working with his father on mowing the lawn with his dad. He had developed a blister on his thumb. Anyway, he was washing his hands at our house, and I happened to notice that he had taken his band-aid off. Once he was finished washing his hands, he began to put his same, old band-aid back on again.

I said, "Hey, stop, Andrew. That's not good. I'll get a new band-aid for you."

I rummaged through the drawer and found a band-aid that would work for him. I made sure that his thumb was dry. And then, I began to open the band-aid and apply it. Now, as I was opening the package, I found out that it was a "princess" band-aid, which is perfect for my six-year-old-who-loves-princesses daughter. But, it wasn't good for Andrew, a young, hardworking boy. The princess band-aid was insufficient for the task.

Notice in verses 1-4 how we see the insufficiency of the Old Testament sacrifices.

Hebrews 10:1-4
For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near. Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, because the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have had consciousness of sins? But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins year by year. For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

Verse 1 calls the law (which instructed that these sacrifices be made) a "shadow." A shadow is a two-dimensional, dark representation of the original. There is some resemblance, but it's not a very good resemblance. There's distortion. There is a lack of depth. There's a lack of color. It is fleeting. And that's what the Old Testament sacrifices were. Oh, to be sure, they represented the real thing, but they were distortions of the real thing. They lacked color. They lacked depth.

The Old Testament sacrifices were fleeting. Despite the numerous sacrifices offered year after year after year, they were never really able to accomplish ultimate forgiveness of sins. If they would have been able to accomplish ultimate forgiveness, they would have been stopped. That's the point of verse 2, "Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, because the worshipers, having once been cleansed would no longer have had consciousness of sins." But, their very continuance--year after year after year, was a testimony to their ineffectiveness.

A good illustration of this is the massive oil spill in the gulf. On April 20, 2010, there was a disaster aboard the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling rig. Spilled oil caused an explosion which killed 11 people, injured 17 others, and resulted with the United State of America experiencing its worst environmental disaster in our history. From that day, oil has been spewing into the gulf. Some estimates place the spill somewhere around 200 million gallons of oil (and growing by the minute).

Since that day, almost three months ago, workers have sought to cap the spill. They have made repeated attempts to stop the spill, but to no avail. They have attempted to use an oil siphoning tube. They have dropped containment domes on the site of the spill. They have attempted a "top kill." Even yesterday, the news was filled with a new, tighter oil cap that is going to be tried on the well. As I speak, they are attempting to drill a secondary site, so as to relieve the pressure and stop the flow of oil into the gulf. But, none of these have worked. Oil is still spilling into the gulf. Here's the point. The very fact that they are continuing their efforts to stop the leak, demonstrates that the leak is not yet plugged. But, once its capped, they aren't going to continue to keep trying to cap it, are they? Their continued efforts demonstrate that they haven't stopped the leak.

So also with the Old Testament sacrifices. They try and they try and they try to deal with the effects of sin. But, their continued sacrifices were a constant testimony that they never fully dealt with sin. Or, as verse 3 says, "In those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins year by year."

As oil spills into the gulf, it's a continual reminder that we have a problem. So also with sins, as the priests of the tabernacle continued to offer up sacrifices for sins, it was merely a reminder that there still was a problem.

And the truth of the matter comes in verse 4, "For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins."

All human effort to take away sin through animal sacrifice was ultimately ineffective. Or, as I have said, it was insufficient.

Now, something did happen in the sacrifices. They weren't entirely without effect. Over and over you read in the book of Leviticus, where God established the sacrifices that, "[in offering the sacrifices, ...] the priest shall make atonement for him, and he will be forgiven" (Lev. 4:31, 35; 5:6, 10, 13, 16, 19). It's a good promise, but you need to notice what is never said in Leviticus. No mention is made of the removal of sins. Only, the covering and the forgiveness of sins. In fact, the Hebrew word for atonement used in Leviticus is a word which literally means, "to cover." But, notice the language that the writer to the Hebrews uses. "It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins" (verse 4). Animal sacrifices could cover sins. But, they could never remove sins.

Animal sacrifices granted forgiveness much like we grant forgiveness to one another. When someone sins against you and you forgive them, you aren't removing their sin. Rather, you are merely overlooking their sin. You are "covering" their sin. And this is a good thing. Proverbs 19:11 says that, "It is [a man's] glory to overlook a transgression." But, removing sin is another matter. It's something that neither you can do, nor I can do. But, the glory of the gospel is this: Jesus Christ has removed our sin from us! In Him, our sin is taken away. In Him, our sin is gone.

You might think of it like this. Jesus has single-handedly plugged the oil leak. And, He has cleaned up all of the mess that is in the ocean and has rolled up upon the beaches. This is the reality of the gospel. In some regards, it is too good to be true. Do you believe it?

Let's move on. Whereas the Old Testament sacrifices were Insufficient (verses 1-4), the sacrifice of Jesus Christ was ...
2. Sufficient (verses 5-10)

We read there in verse 5, ...

Hebrews 10:5-10
Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, "Sacrifice and offering you have not desired, but a body you have prepared for me; in whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin you have taken no pleasure. Then I said, 'Behold, I have come (in the scroll of the book it is written of me) to do your will, O God.'" After saying above, "Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin you have not desired, nor have you taken pleasure in them" (which are offered according to the Law), then He said, "Behold, I have come to do your will." He takes away the first in order to establish the second. By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

One of the things that I love about the book of Hebrews is the way that the writer argues. He argues on the grounds of his Jewish readers. Remember, his readers were those who had come out of Judaism and into the church. Indeed, many of them had embraced Jesus as their Messiah, no turning back. Others still had their doubts. But, due to their upbringing, they all still held to the authority of the Old Testament Scriptures.

Now, in the course of time, the unconvinced Jews outside of the church were speaking with them and questioning their new-found faith. In this case, they would argue (among other things), "Doesn't the Old Testament teach us to sacrifice? How is it that you are now so quickly turning aside from what you have heard?" But, the author here takes them back into the Scriptures and shows them how they, themselves, prophesied of the uselessness of the sacrifices.

For instance, verse 5 is a quote from Psalm 40:6, which says, "Sacrifice and offering You have not desired." Yes, God commanded that sacrifices be offered. But here, it's plainly stated that God didn't have delight in the sacrifices that the Israelites were offering.

The same thing is said in verse 6, "In whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You have taken no pleasure." Again, we see that God had no pleasure in the sacrifices that he commanded. And Psalm 40 isn't the only place in the Scriptures where this is mentioned. There are other places. It's also mentioned in Hosea 6:6: "For I delight in loyalty rather than sacrifice, and in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings." David also said this in his penitential Psalm, Psalm 51, when he's dealing with his sin. After confessing his sin with Bathsheba, he says: "For You do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise I would give it; You are not pleased with burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise" (Psalm 51:16-17) I could give you a handful of other passages as well (1 Sam. 15:22; Isaiah 1:11-15; Amos 5:21-24; Jer. 6:20; Mal. 1:10).

At this point, you might ask, "How can this be?" How can God command sacrifices on the one hand, and yet declare that he doesn't really want them on the other hand? I think that there are two answers to this question.

First, it's a bit like with our children. We want our children to obey, right? But, there are times when they obey with a crummy attitude. Is this what we want? No. We want our children to obey with the proper attitude. This is a bit like what the sacrifices were like in Israel. There were many times in the life of Israel, when they were going through the motions and offering up sacrifices, while living in rebellion against the LORD. In such cases, God wasn't pleased with sacrifices, because the people who offered them were living in rebellion.

Isaiah 1:13-15
Bring your worthless offerings no longer,
Incense is an abomination to Me.
New moon and Sabbath, the calling of assemblies--
I cannot endure iniquity and the solemn assembly.
I hate your new moon festival sand your appointed feasts,
They have become a burden to Me;
I am weary of bearing them.
So when you spread out your hands in prayer,
I will hide My eyes from you;
Yes, even though you multiply prayers,
I will not listen.
Your hands are covered with blood.

That's why the Old Covenant sacrifices were worthless. They were mingled with the sin of the Israelites. God doesn't merely tolerate sin, but because you sacrificed, you are OK. That's not how it works.

But, there is another reality going on here as well. It can also be illustrated with our children. When they are young, we use diapers. And for good reason we use diapers. But, as they get older, we don't want them to wear diapers, do we? No, we want them to use the toilet like grownups. Would you delight in your 12 year old continuing to wear diapers all day long? I think not. This is a bit like what the sacrifices were like. There was a time for the sacrifices. But, fundamentally, they were destined to go away, because God had a greater desire--that people would believe in the Messiah to whom the sacrifices pointed.

Galatians 3:24 says, "The Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ." The sacrifices were a tutor to lead the Jewish people to Christ. In some regard, that's what Psalm 40 is all about. Psalm 40 is a Messianic Psalm. To be sure, David is the original writer. In the context of Psalm 40, you will find that David is submissive to the LORD and seeking His help. But, in David's words, He was prophesying of the coming Messiah. Look closely at these words and you can easily see that they describe the coming of Jesus.

Hebrews 10:5
Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, "Sacrifice and offering you have not desired, but a body you have prepared for me ^[2]; in whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin you have taken no pleasure. Then I said, 'Behold, I have come (in the scroll of the book it is written of me) to do your will, O God.'"

The main point is this: when the Messiah would come, He wouldn't come to present an offering of bulls and goats before the Lord. Rather, He would come with a body. He would come to offer up that body (verse 10). Such was the Father's will.

This is what the author explains in verses 8 and 9. I love these verses, because we see the writer expositing the passage before us.

Hebrews 10:8
After saying above, "Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin you have not desired, nor have you taken pleasure in them" (which are offered according to the Law), then He said, "Behold, I have come to do your will."

There are two things happening here. First of all, God isn't delighted in the sacrifices of the Old Testament. Second, the Messiah has come to do what delights the Lord. In verse 9, we see the conclusion that the writer to the Hebrews draws. He says, "... He takes away the first in order to establish the second." That is, He takes away the sacrifices, in order to establish God's will, our sanctification (1 Thess. 4:3).

It's the will of God that Jesus come to die. Do you remember the prayer that Jesus offered up in the garden of Gethsemane? When facing the reality of His death, Jesus was in great agony of soul. And thus, he fervently prayed to His heavenly father, "Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done" (Luke 22:42). Jesus wasn't thrilled with the prospects of dying and bearing the sins of the world upon the cross. And yet, what did Jesus say? "I have come to do your will" (verse 9). You can see the conclusion that the writer draws, ...

Hebrews 10:10
By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

In the dying of Jesus, we, who believe, "have been sanctified." Notice, that we have been sanctified, "through the offering of [His] body." And it's done! His sacrifice was "once for all." It never needs to be repeated, as the sacrifices of the Old Covenant were (10:1-4). Oh, may we rejoice that the sacrifice of Christ was sufficient (verses 5-10).

Too often, we are like the Jews, thinking that our religious deeds can overcome our sin. We sin and think to ourselves, "Yeah, but at least I read my Bible this morning." Or, we comfort ourselves to think of how we spent a good time in prayer yesterday. Or, we are encouraged by our church attendance (as if that really means much in light of your sin). Any time that you trust in your religious works for God's approval, you are like the Jews of old, trusting in the insufficient sacrifices. But, our sufficiency to stand before God doesn't come from our works, however righteous we may be.

The sacrifice of Christ was ...
3. Sufficient (verses 11-14)

Point 2 and 3 are the same, because the writer makes the same point! This time, however, he pulls from Psalm 110, once again showing that the Old Testament prophesies of the end of the sacrifices.

Hebrews 10:11-14
Every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time onward until his enemies be made a footstool for his feet. For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.

The point comes here by way of contrast. You can see the contrast with the word, "but" in verse 12. I trust that you see the contrasts in this verse.

The first contrast comes in the number of priests. In verse 11 we see "Every priest" mentioned. In the Old Covenant, there were thousands of priests, who handled the duties of the sacrifices. As you approached Jerusalem, you were able to see the many priests that were around the city and in the temple area. But, in the New Covenant, there was only one priest, the Lord Jesus Christ. In verse 12, He is simply identified with "but He."

The second contrast comes in the number of sacrifices. In verse 11, we see the priests "ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices." What they did yesterday, they will do today. And what they did today, they will do again tomorrow.

I often ask men regarding their jobs, " "How was work this week? Was it slow? Was it busy? Any particular challenges? Any new projects?" Should I have asked that to a priest of the Old Covenant, I would have receive the answer, "I had a typical week. I offered sacrifices this past week. Next week looks to be more of the same. I'll offer up a bunch of sacrifices every day. In fact, that's about all that I will do!" But, Jesus, on the other hand, "offered one sacrifice for sins for all time" (verse 12). Jesus didn't need to offer many, many sacrifices, day after day. His one sacrifice was sufficient.

We see a third contrast in the posture of the priests. This is the point of Psalm 110. Verse 11, "Every priest stands daily ministering and offering." The point has often been made that there was no seat in the tabernacle. There was the lampstand, the table of showbread, and the altar of incense. There was no chair in the temple. There was no throne in the temple. There was no place of rest in the temple. And this was no accident. I believe that God was teaching the people of Israel that a priest's work is never done. There were always more sacrifices to be offered up. But, Jesus, on the other hand, "sat down at the right hand of God" (verse 12). Jesus sitting was a picture of accomplishment. After preaching, I will sit down. His work was finished. We all know what this is about. We work hard all day. But, when all the work is done, it is awfully nice to spend a few moments in the recliner.

And this is Jesus. His work is done. He is seated upon His recliner. He's merely waiting around. Verse 13, "... waiting from that time onward until His enemies be made a footstool for His feet." If there was more work to be done in bringing people to Himself, I believe that Jesus wouldn't be sitting around. But, His work is finished. His sacrifice wassufficient (verses 11-14). My guess is that He is sitting in a comfortable chair, as He's been sitting for a long time.

And that's the point of verse 14, ... "For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are [being] sanctified." What an interesting verse. On the one hand, this verse points to the finished work of Jesus. We, who believe in Jesus, have been perfected! That is, we are complete. There is nothing more that can be done for our salvation. And yet, we who are complete still see a work going on in our sanctification. We have an ongoing work in living righteous lives.

You can see there at the end of verse 14 that those who are perfected are the very ones who are "being sanctified." The NIV at this point is the best, most literal translation, "being made holy." It's those who are changing and being more and more conformed into the image of Christ who are perfected. If you aren't experiencing in your soul a continual increase in your love for God, then it may well be that you have never been perfected through the blood of Christ.

Again, it's not that you work for your sanctification, reaching some point, when God finally gives in to perfect you. No, it's quite the opposite. Those who are perfect are those who see God at work in them to sanctify them. And the perfection all comes through the single, sufficient sacrifice.

4. Sufficient (verses 15-18)

Now, I know that this is the word that I have used for 2, 3, and 4. But, they are all making the same point. Perhaps having the same three final points to my message this morning will help you to remember the main point of this passage (which is stated in verses 10, 14, and 18).

Again, the writer to the Hebrews reaches back into the Old Testament and pulls out a passage that shows that Jesus is the single sufficient sacrifice. In this case, Jeremiah 31. And, upon first reading, it's not too obvious. But, when you think about it for only a little bit, you see it right there in front of your face.

Look there at verse 15, "And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us;" (A little word of God's involvement in the writing of the Scripture). Yes, it was Jeremiah who put the ink on the paper, but it was a man moved by the Holy Spirit who wrote from God (2 Peter 1:21).

Hebrews 10:15-16
And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us; for after saying, "This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the LORD: I will put my laws upon their heart, and on their mind I will write them,"

The writer is quoting from Jeremiah 31. We already saw this in chapter 8 and verse 10. This is the great promise of God in the New Covenant. It's a promise that God will transform us from the inside out. The law will no longer be a mere external requirement. Rather, the law will be the internal delight of our souls. We will pursue God, not out of obligation, but out of love for Him! This is what it means to be born again. We have new desires that we never had before. God's law is upon our hearts and we want nothing more than to obey our Lord!

Well, we could go on, but that's not the point. Verse 16 is merely setting up the context of the quotation that comes in verse 17.

Hebrews 10:17
[10:16 ... He then says,] "And their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more."

This is the culminating promise of the New Covenant: divine forgetfulness. God "forgets" our sins. That is, He will never bring them up as a charge against us ever again! To know this frees your conscience. I'm released! I'm forgiven! And then, the conclusion, ...

Hebrews 10:18
Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin.

Here's the main point of why the writer brought up this quotation from Jeremiah 31. If God has "forgotten" your sins, then there is no longer any need to make an additional sacrifice for your sins, right? The only reason the Jews needed to offer sacrifice was because of the problem of their sin! They had sinned against God. The only way to have those sins forgiven by Him was to sacrifice. But, if the sins were "forgotten," there was no need for a sacrifice! And that's the point of verse 18.

Hebrews 10:18
Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin.

The single sacrifice of Jesus was sufficient! Let us rejoice in the Lord this day!

This sermon was delivered to Rock Valley Bible Church on July 11, 2010 by Steve Brandon.
For more information see www.rvbc.cc.

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[1] Leon Morris, The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Vol. 13, p. 100.

[2] There is some textual difficulty with this passage, dealing with the translation of the phrase "but a body you have prepared for me," but for the sake of time, we will not address it.