The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship.
Hebrews 10:1[1]
If you would have been raised in the home I was, you had a few things taught to you. From my earliest memories, I can still hear my mom and dad beating the drum to constantly remind me about the basic truths of this world. Truths to build a life on. Words of wisdom that would see me through life.
At the top of their Mount Wisdom of The Ages was the timeless truth that you were always going to come up short in life. You might have dreams, but they were going to be dashed on the ground. You might want something really bad, but you’d never get it. You might want to become somebody, but you’d always, always, always fail to accomplish your dreams.
And if you think I’m exaggerating, my dad and I were watching the Baltimore Orioles on TV. I was jumping up and down, rooting for our home team. As my dad just sat there in his chair drinking a beer, I asked why he wasn’t rooting. I’ll never forget his answer.
I don’t want to get my hopes up because I’ll only be disappointed.
True story. Pops believed that no matter what, he was going to come up short in life. That things would never work out. That he’d never win the prize. That he’d never succeed. That life was to be endured, and then you die.
The idea of life coming up short isn’t anything new. As a matter of fact, the writer is telling the Hebrews that there was a great big coming up short thing in their lives. That there was something that they were doing all the time and it always, always, always came up short.
And that thing where they were always coming up short was their sacrifices. They had to do them over, and over, and over again. The fact that they had to keep doing them over and over again proved that they didn’t really take care of the problem. After all, if the sacrifice worked, you’d only have to do it once.
Think about the last time you were in the dentists’ office. You’re pretty much laying down while they stick all these things into your mouth. And then they bring in the big guns – the drill. You hear that sound that puts you so much on edge that you grab onto the chair for all your life.
And then what happens? They drill. They drill some more. And then they drill. And they drill. And they drill. Finally, after what seems to be an eternity, they fill the hole. After a lot of scraping, picking, and squirting, the cavity’s fixed. You walk out and you never have to get that cavity fixed again.
That’s how it should work with forgiveness. Once should be enough. But our trying to offer sacrifices for our sins is always going to come up shot. We’re going to have to offer another sacrifice. And then another. And another. And another.
When the writer calls these sacrifices a shadow, he means that they’re not the real thing. They are a hint of something real, but they aren’t the real deal. They have no real power to forgive. They have no authority to make us just and clean before a holy God. They can’t buy us back and take care of our sin once and for all.
This means that the good thing, God’s once-and-for-all forgiveness in Jesus, is the real thing. He’s the one who throws the shadow. He’s the one that the shadow points us to. He’s the real deal and he never comes up short.
Religion is the shadow, not the reality. All the sacrifices, traditions, routines, repeated prayers, and temples are just a shadow. They can only point us to the real thing. They will always come up short. Religion is a fuzzy, dark outline at best. The truth of Jesus is the reality.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
John 14:6
No one else in the history of the world has made such a outlandishly bold claim about themself. He’s either has the biggest ego or he’s a total nut job. Or, he could just be wh he said he was.
We need to be ready for the idea that Jesus isn’t about to back down from who he says he is. He’s God Almighty from eternity past[2]. He says that he both fully God and fully man, and everybody clearly understood what he meant[3]. It’s time to take Jesus for who he said he was. No more time to dilly-dally around. Turning away from who Jesus claims to be is the one sure way to come up short in this life, and in the life to come.
Noodling Questions
How has your life come up short? Explain.
Do you fear going to the dentist’s office? Why?
Because Jesus never backs down, what changes does he want in our lives?
[1] Unless otherwise noted, all Bible references are from the New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
[2] John 10:30
[3] John 10:31-33
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