Devotional 30 June 2025

June 30, 2025 • Steve Torres

Hebrews 8:1-2.jpg

"Now the point in what we are saying is this: we have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, a minister in the holy places, in the true tent that the Lord set up, not man. For every high priest is appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices; thus it is necessary for this priest also to have something to offer. Now if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all, since there are priests who offer gifts according to the law. They serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. For when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God, saying, “See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain.” But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second." (Hebrews 8:1-7, ESV)

For all it’s pomp and circumstance, the old covenant seen in the Old Testament was always just a copy and shadow.

In the new covenant we have a High Priest that is eternal, and a sacrifice that was once-for-all. The Temple is our hearts and God dwells in us (1 Corinthians 3:16). Instead of the presence of God being fixed to a building, every believer serves as a mobile sacred ground (1 Corinthians 3:17, 2 Corinthians 6:16, Revelation 21:3). God is no longer behind a veil (2 Corinthians 3:16-18), He is revealed totally and completely in Jesus Christ our Savior (Colossians 1:19, 2:9, Hebrews 1:3). Instead of priestly robes we put on Christ in His righteousness (Romans 13:14, Galatians 3:27). It is a faith of living a changed life, not of rituals, the rituals could never save, because they never changed the heart (Romans 2:29, 2 Corinthians 7:10). But we are renewed by the Spirit through Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 4:16, Titus 3:5). Being born of the Spirit not to a nationality, but to the very Kingdom of God (John 1:12-13, 3:3-6).

There is a desire in the heart of man to look towards ritual, this is an echo of the thinking of the tower of Babel. We seek to approach God through our own way. We feel a satisfaction when we can point to something we do that makes us a person that is closer to God. While the old covenant had rituals, they did not bring the people of the nation of Israel closer to God (Isaiah 29:13). The Pharisees that Jesus often chastised were proud of their adherence to the law, to the ritual, but their hearts were not changed (Matthew 23:5-7). In much the same way, even the Christian is tempted to look for a ritual that they can be proud of. Wanting to attend highly structured liturgical meetings such as in the many rites of the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox church, is the natural man screaming for satisfaction and credit.

All the while, there is Christ: seated. He has already completed the work. The Christian life should be taken seriously, but we can never rely on the shadows and copies to give us fulfillment that can only be found in Christ. Jesus is enough. Jesus is our ritual. We should be producing fruit in keeping with our trust in Christ (Luke 3:8, Romans 12:9-10, Galatians 5:22-23). Our faith ever growing(Matthew 6:34, Philippians 4:6, 1 Peter 5:7). Every day, our reliance on the Father should be clearer and more evident. Hold fast to Him, put aside everything else you rely on. Christ is enough.