Observation: The general lesson in this part of Hebrews is that the ritual sacrifices of Israel were always insufficient. They weren't even intended to BE sufficient, for even the Old Testament says they were not truly what the Lord desired, and they did not absolve sin. Jesus - his death, and our acceptance of and faith in his resurrection power - is the only sufficient sacrifice that provides sanctification.
Yet for centuries, priests operated at the alter. They slit the throats of sheep and goats and cattle, poured out their blood, butchered their bodies, then roasted the meat on the fire. They did these things by the hundreds - probably even thousands - day in and day out, for literally hundreds and hundreds of years. As the writer says, they stood day after day, offering the same sacrifices time after time ... and those actions were incapable of accomplishing the most desired outcome of taking away sins.
These priests had the most holy and honored of all professions, working in the temple, standing before the Lord, and performing the most profound task of presenting to the Lord the tithes, offerings, sacrifices, hopes, and prayers of the people ... the pleasing aroma to God. Yet what they were really doing was ... working over the hot grill, doing a redundant, repetitive task. But they did it obediently.
Application: As I consider my daily life, this pretty much summarizes it ... I am doing redundant, repetitive tasks, that in truth have no real long-term outcome, and do not produce any result that would permanently achieve any goal, let alone a heavenly objective. So the test is, do I do it obediently anyway?
Most of the time, the answer to that question would be ... mostly. I do my job. I 'exceed expectations' almost all the time. And yet looking back, I see decades of work that has almost no residual evidence of tangible delivery. Systems have been replaced. Operations have been changed. Teams have been reorganized. Even companies have been wiped from existence.
I have routinely worked, doing similar tasks over and over, and it is likely that my work has never accomplished its objectives in the long-term. However, I should still be doing it obediently, because it is work given to me by the Lord. And I should consider that, as the Lord watches over me, I am doing this work as I stand before him. Therefore, it is worth doing, it is worth doing well, and it is definitely worth doing in a manner that honors him.
Prayer: Lord, may I be daily renewed in my desire to serve you well, by serving others well, and in using my earthly employment to do so. Yes, there are divine appointments in my day, but there are also routine tasks that likely have little future impact, yet I desire to do them well. From a discussion of faith, to a meeting about cloud architecture, may I perform in a manner that honors you. Amen.
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