Hebrews 7:27 Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself.
Nothing works forever! In fact, most things that we have are meant to wear out, so that we must purchase something newer. This keeps our economy moving forward. This cycle of obsolescence runs the world economy. If there weren’t purchases that needed to be made, factories would shut down and workers would starve.
But some things, like the Old Testament rites and rituals were made with an expiration date. They were meant to be observed for a limited time. And that time came to an end through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
The central role of the High Priest in these old rites and rituals was one of these “best by” truths. The High Priest had a role to play, but the role came to an end. The role was never meant to be played for all time in all places. It had a run time, and then it was removed by the permanent object of fulfillment.
Jesus made all those old rites and rituals obsolete. They were all pointing to Him and His role in the world, so when He had fulfilled His role, the old way of doing things become superfluous. His actions made the rites and rituals empty of meaning since their meaning only pointed to the meaning found in Jesus.
One of the shortcomings that the old High Priest carried with it by nature was the sinfulness of the High Priests who filled the role. They were not above sining themselves. So they were in need of cleansing just like the rest of the people of God.
But Jesus, the new High Priest, never sinned and therefore didn’t need to partake of the temporary cleansing that the rites and rituals proclaimed. And those who trust in Jesus’ cleansing have no need of repeat cleansing. Once we are in Jesus, we are clean in Him.
Now that doesn’t mean that we live a life free of sin in the present moment. It does mean that the old rites and rituals have no bearing on our lives today. Jesus’ sacrifice and resurrection replaces all that old stuff.
That is because Jesus’ sacrifice is the perfect sacrifice, being offered by the Perfect Human, on behalf of the imperfect humans. His sacrifice did what the old could never accomplish because the old was carried out by imperfect humans. And they were never meant to be a permanent solution to then problem of sin. They were only a placeholder until Jesus’ sacrifice was complete.
The Arnold Journey 