"Free To Serve"

The study of Hebrews 9 and 10 helps us understand the difference between the physical worship of the old covenant and the spiritual worship of the new covenant. Remember, Jesus introduced us to the idea of spiritual worship in John 4 as a contrast to physical worship places and times.

First Covenant: Laws or regulations for worship
Earthly sanctuary or place
Priests performed rites
Gifts and sacrifices couldn’t perfect the worshipper
The sacrifices only made them outwardly clean (physical not spiritual)


New Covenant: No regulations for physical worship (since worship is not performed by us)
We enter the Most Holy Place individually by Jesus’ sacrifice (worship)
Jesus’ own worship is what perfects us (true worship)
Jesus’ blood makes us inwardly clean (spiritual)
God is not pleased with offerings other than Jesus own sacrifice
Since Jesus worshipped for us we are free to serve the Living God
Serving God always implies loving each other (our sacrifice)


Heb. 10:23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.
Heb. 10:24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.
Heb. 10:25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-- and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Isn’t it interesting that the writer of Hebrews includes in this discussion of worship an admonishment to love one another and build each other up when we meet. Nothing is said about us getting together to worship since he has just explained our new relationship with God. Understanding the admonishment in Hebrews 10:24 -25 in context is most important. It is usually used to make those feel guilty who don’t come. It is really a sign of our understanding the will of God for our lives.


Heb. 9:1 ¶ Now the first covenant had regulations for worship and also an earthly sanctuary.
Heb. 9:2 A tabernacle was set up. In its first room were the lampstand, the table and the consecrated bread; this was called the Holy Place.
Heb. 9:3 Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place,
Heb. 9:4 which had the golden altar of incense and the gold-covered ark of the covenant. This ark contained the gold jar of manna, Aaron's staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant.
Heb. 9:5 Above the ark were the cherubim of the Glory, overshadowing the atonement cover. {Traditionally } But we cannot discuss these things in detail now.
Heb. 9:6 ¶ When everything had been arranged like this, the priests entered regularly into the outer room to carry on their ministry.
Heb. 9:7 But only the high priest entered the inner room, and that only once a year, and never without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance.
Heb. 9:8 The Holy Spirit was showing by this that the way into the Most Holy Place had not yet been disclosed as long as the first tabernacle was still standing.
Heb. 9:9 This is an illustration for the present time, indicating that the gifts and sacrifices being offered were not able to clear the conscience of the worshiper.
Heb. 9:10 They are only a matter of food and drink and various ceremonial washings-- external regulations applying until the time of the new order.
Heb. 9:11 ¶ When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, {Some early manuscripts } he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation.
Heb. 9:12 He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption.
Heb. 9:13 The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean.
Heb. 9:14 How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, {Or } so that we may serve the living God!
Heb. 9:15 ¶ For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance-- now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.
Heb. 9:16 ¶ In the case of a will, {Same Greek word as ; also in verse 17} it is necessary to prove the death of the one who made it,
Heb. 9:17 because a will is in force only when somebody has died; it never takes effect while the one who made it is living.
Heb. 9:18 This is why even the first covenant was not put into effect without blood.
Heb. 9:19 When Moses had proclaimed every commandment of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves, together with water, scarlet wool and branches of hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and all the people.
Heb. 9:20 He said, "This is the blood of the covenant, which God has commanded you to keep." {Exodus 24:8}
Heb. 9:21 In the same way, he sprinkled with the blood both the tabernacle and everything used in its ceremonies.
Heb. 9:22 In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.
Heb. 9:23 ¶ It was necessary, then, for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.
Heb. 9:24 For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God's presence.
Heb. 9:25 Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own.
Heb. 9:26 Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself.
Heb. 9:27 Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment,
Heb. 9:28 so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.
Heb. 10:1 ¶ 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.
Heb. 10:2 If it could, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins.
Heb. 10:3 But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins,
Heb. 10:4 because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
Heb. 10:5 ¶ Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said: # "Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,# but a body you prepared for me;
Heb. 10:6 #with burnt offerings and sin offerings# you were not pleased.
Heb. 10:7 #Then I said, 'Here I am-- it is written about me in the scroll--# I have come to do your will, O God.' " {Psalm 40:6-8 (see Septuagint)}
Heb. 10:8 First he said, "Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them" (although the law required them to be made).
Heb. 10:9 Then he said, "Here I am, I have come to do your will." He sets aside the first to establish the second.
Heb. 10:10 And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
Heb. 10:11 ¶ Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.
Heb. 10:12 But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God.
Heb. 10:13 Since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool,
Heb. 10:14 because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.
Heb. 10:15 ¶ The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says:
Heb. 10:16 # "This is the covenant I will make with them# after that time, says the Lord. #I will put my laws in their hearts,# and I will write them on their minds." {Jer. 31:33}
Heb. 10:17 Then he adds: # "Their sins and lawless acts# I will remember no more." {Jer. 31:34}
Heb. 10:18 And where these have been forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin.
Heb. 10:19 ¶ Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus,
Heb. 10:20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body,
Heb. 10:21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God,
Heb. 10:22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.
Heb. 10:23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.
Heb. 10:24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.
Heb. 10:25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-- and all the more as you see the Day approaching.


The comparison in these verses is between the way people under the old covenant approached God and the way we approach God. They had to perform ritual acts (their worship) in complying with the law to approach God or remain His people. We are now free of needing to worship God with rituals in an attempt to approach Him since Jesus did it for us. Now, we are free to serve God by loving others, which, is His will for us.

Do we continue to try to approach God by our own “worship services?” Why don’t we trust that Jesus’ sacrifice has taken care of that relationship and focus on loving one another? Our worship is spiritual because it is a matter of trusting God and doing His will.
Romans 12 is Paul’s take on spiritual worship. He defines it and then explains how this sacrificed life will look. “For by grace” in verse 3 he starts showing how we must translate this grace into our lives as we deal with others. God is glorified by this sacrifice.


Rom. 12:1 ¶ Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God-- this is your spiritual {Or } act of worship.
Rom. 12:2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is-- his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Rom. 12:3 ¶ For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.
Rom. 12:4 Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function,
Rom. 12:5 so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.
Rom. 12:6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his {Or } faith.
Rom. 12:7 If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach;
Rom. 12:8 if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.
Rom. 12:9 ¶ Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.
Rom. 12:10 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves.
Rom. 12:11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.
Rom. 12:12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
Rom. 12:13 Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality.



The significance of these words in John 4, Hebrews 9 and 10 and Romans 12 is that we don’t have to go somewhere to worship God in order to be in His presence. He has removed that lawful requirement by the sacrifice of Jesus the Christ. Jesus, as promised, has now sent his own Spirit to reside in us. God doesn’t reside in an earthly building but in us. He doesn’t meet us on Sundays in our buildings and our collective presence doesn’t mean that God is more present. Our lives of sacrifice for each other does not supplant Jesus’ sacrifice for putting us in God’s presence but rather is God’s will for our lives, which glorifies Him. We can express praise for this relationship but no praise will be pleasing to God if it does not come from a life that is filled with love for one another. The fruit of love glorifies the God that defines love through the sacrifice of His own son. The praise of our lips is an edifying recognition of our trust in God that the sacrifice of Jesus is the act that puts us in a relationship with Him. It does not, by it’s performance, put us in a relationship with God or make that relationship closer.
There is no command or example of Christians getting together to “worship” God in the New Testament writings. The examples of Christian gatherings in the New Testament always involve the acknowledgment of God’s grace and the importance of edifying the body and building it up. Meeting together was never used as a way to come into God’s presence as had been done under the old covenant because God now resides in the Christian and He declares in Heb. 10:16 "This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds." {Jer. 31:33}

Our own attempts at worship can never bring us into a relationship with God or sustain that relationship. Only the recognition that Jesus has brought us into that relationship can give us full assurance of our hope. We must trust God!

Many think that God wants us to worship Him on Sundays. Others acknowledge the importance of daily worship but continue to hold on to the tradition of coming together in “corporate worship.” God wants us to understand that Jesus has taken away our need to bridge the gap between us by our acts of worship. He now seeks those who worship Him in spirit and truth, no longer needing to go somewhere to find Him or seek to atone for our sinfulness with acts of worship. We are now worthy to approach Him through the Spirit that lives in us because of the true sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

Now we are free to serve the Living God!


Don Campbell