Original Entry: April 24, 2008
Then
Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the
world. But now he has appeared once for
all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself.
Hebrews 9:26
And by
that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus
Christ once and for all. Hebrews 10:10
But when
this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the
right hand of God. Hebrews 10:12
Because by
one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy. Hebrews 10:14
Pain is a
part of life. Without pain sacrifice cannot exist. Pain is a characteristic of
a sacrifice. For example, giving is not sacrificial
until it hurts. Ministry is not one of
sacrifice unless it causes some kind of discomfort in a man’s schedule, life or
dreams.
Pain is
sacrifice leaving our selfishness.
But there
is more to sacrifice then just pain.
There is a singleness found in the greatest of sacrifices-death. The
greater the sacrifice the greater the honor, but the greater the sacrifice the
less in frequency it occurs. The more
difficult the task the less often it can be attempted. For example, a man only
sacrifices his life for his country exactly once.
Men love
to talk about sacrifice but talk is cheap without the scars.
The
chronic pain in my neck and the loss of my range of motion in the left side is
a constant reminder that my playing days are done, sacrificed for the tailbacks
I gladly blocked for such as Mike Lee, Paul Marcy and Matt Shaw.
But I am
still alive. Many are not, having sacrificed their lives on the fields of
battle.
William
Bennett in his Book of Man writes, “War provokes the highest virtues of a man’s
soul: honor, fortitude, service, and sacrifice. It is no wonder that the
greatest moment s of man are often found in battle.”
To give
your life for your comrade is the highest honor. It only happens once, but many
are the men who have sacrificed their lives for their brothers. Their names are written in history and the
monuments of those they have served and saved.
But only
one man sacrificed himself for all, “For
Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring
you to God” (Peter 3:18). Only one
paid the price for all humanity. The
sacrifice of Christ is the greatest sacrifice of all because it can never be
replicated. It stands alone in its
singleness of suffering. It stands alone as the single greatest act. It is the
one sacrifice that has the power to “do
away with sin” (Hebrews 9:26). The
sacrifice of Christ has given him the highest seat of honor at “the right hand of God” (Hebrews 10:17)
where one day “every knee will bow’
(Philippians 2:10) to pay honor to the ultimate offering.
It is a sacrifice
so great as to make those who receive it “perfect
forever” (Hebrews 10:14) by the power of its unique capacity.
