NOTES for Heb 9:11-22
“Service to the living and true God.” As the Apostle says, the very possibility of such labor exists only because Christ’s Blood was shed for the redemption of our sins. And in the Gospel we read that following, directly imitating Christ’s path, is our only way to the Kingdom of Heaven. The Lord will deal with us as He did with Isaac, whom Abraham was ready to slay on the altar. What did Isaac think and know for the rest of his life after the events on Moriah? Most likely, he always thanked the Lord for stopping his father’s hand. The miracle of his salvation happened to him, a miracle that God worked upon him. So too for Christians: even if they are not called to ascend the cross, their hearts should hold the same joy and gratitude to Christ for having done this for us. And if the world should need the Gospel to be proclaimed in it once again through torture and the cross, then every Christian will hear the question addressed to him: “Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, and be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” Until then, through repentance and Communion we can cleanse our conscience, serve, and be servants to the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.