“And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” — Hebrews 10:10
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In the sport of hockey, there’s a special type of shot known as a “one-timer.” A one-timer happens when a player shoots on goal directly from the pass, without taking a moment to gather the puck on his or her stick. One-timers require precise timing in order to be executed correctly, but if they are, they result in powerful shots that often catch opponents off guard.
Jesus executed a “one-timer” of a different sort in His sacrificial death on the cross and subsequent resurrection.
In the Old Testament, Israel’s priests were instructed by God to offer sacrifices to Him on account of the sins of the people. However, these sacrifices had to be offered repeatedly, often multiple times in a single day. Now, as you and I read of these Old Testament sacrifices, we understand that they pointed to the one ultimate sacrifice of Jesus.
The Bible tells us in Hebrews 10:10 and elsewhere that Christ’s sacrifice of His very self for His people was perfect; it didn’t need repeating, like those temporary Old Testament sacrifices offered by priests who were sinful themselves. Jesus was perfect, so His sacrifice was perfect, accomplishing once and for all the salvation of His people.
You and I and everyone else sins. We don’t want to, but we can’t escape it, because we were born with a sinful nature. God’s just penalty for sin is spiritual death. But, if you are in Christ, He loved you so much that He came to earth, took on human flesh, bore the burden of your sin, and rose again so that you can relate to Him as a child relates to a loving Father.
Jesus pulled off the greatest one-timer there ever was. And just like in hockey, it took the opponent — Satan — completely by surprise. The Good News of the Gospel is that Jesus has already done everything necessary to save you. It is truly finished, so rest in that amazing truth today.
— Kevin Mercer
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