Hebrews 9:27-28
Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgement, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.
I wish I could say that this clarified things for me, but alas, it does not. Actually, I do believe that Jesus will appear to each and every one of us at the time of our own passing, and in particular I believe he will offer salvation to those who do not yet believe. (I cannot offer scriptural backup for this belief, I just hope and believe it to be true.) But this is not the focus of these verses in Hebrews. There is some sort of “end times” implied. But not much to go on. The only thing clear is that the timing and details are not clear. Take home for me is to continue to hope and pray for those who do not know Christ, that they may be shown the way, and that their hearts and minds may be open to receiving the truth. I pray this with my whole heart, and ask God to make it so. Amen
Becky, transforming
Monday, July 15th, 2024
Hebrews 9:27-28
And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.
This is why you and I eagerly wait for him. We want to be free, totally free, from the presence of sin. Free from all of its effects in our lives and our relationships and in the world around us. And so absolutely we're eagerly waiting for this. We don’t want sin anymore in our lives. We don’t want sorrow and suffering and death, what we want…
Hebrews 9:27-28
The rather crude analogy I see in this verse is one of sowing followed by harvesting. Jesus’ short life on earth was spent as a sower of the seeds of the gospel. Just like in the parable, some seeds will not fall on fertile ground. But another parable tells about a stubborn fig tree that the gardener convinces the landowner not to cut down. It is given some extra TLC and comes to yield fruit. When Jesus left, His Great Commission to all believers was to play the role of that diligent gardener and coax fruit out of the struggling seeds. At the time Jesus returns for the final harvest, the yield will be much greater than it…