Apart from Jews and Seventh Day Adventists, there are very few who have religious scruples today regarding food. Regarding those who thought that they were made clean or unclean by what they ate, Jesus said, "There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man" (Mk 7:15). So the writer to the Hebrews warns his readers not to be carried away by strange doctrines regarding foods. Here he echoes the Apostle Paul's words in Colossians 2: "Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations - do not touch, do not taste, do not handle, which all concern things which perish with the using-according to the commandments and doctrines of men?" (Col. 2:20-22).

Hebrews draws us away from the foods set apart by the commandments and doctrines of men, to the grace of God that we are given from Christ's altar. "We have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat," says our text. This is the altar established by the Lord Jesus when He sacrificed His body and blood on Calvary for the forgiveness of the sins of the world. By the body and blood of our Lord which we are given to eat and to drink in the Sacrament, we are given Christ's own righteousness and made partakers of His holiness. Those who continue to live under the old covenant have no right to eat from this altar for they do not recognize that Christ has come and that He is the Lamb of God whose blood sets us free from sin.

In verse 11 of our text, the holy writer makes a reference to the practice associated with the Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement in the Old Testament. The carcasses of the animals slaughtered for sacrifice on this annual day of atonement would be drained of their blood. The high priest would carry the blood into the Holy of Holies, but the bodies of those sacrificed animals would be burned outside the camp. Hebrews draws an analogy with the death of Jesus. Jesus "suffered outside the gate." That is, He was crucified outside of Jerusalem as we heard in the reading from the Passion History a few minutes ago. He suffered outside the holy city, shedding His blood to sanctify us.

The rites of Yom Kippur were repeated year in and year out and they pointed ahead to the real "Day of Atonement," Good Friday, where Jesus Himself would be both the High Priest and Victim. He would suffer outside the camp and yet with His own blood enter the heavenly Holy of Holies to make an everlasting atonement for the sins of the world. The sacrifice which He renders is done once and for all. When our Lord cries out from the cross, "It is finished," He indicates that redeeming work is complete. No more will there be a need for the slaughter of lambs and goats. The Lamb of God sanctifies us by His own blood. By His blood He cleanses us from the infection of our sin. His blood makes us holy people. People who belong to God and can stand before Him. The Book of Revelation describes who we are in its opening doxology to the Lamb of our salvation: "To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever."

God has consecrated us to His people by the blood of His Son. He has purchased and won us from sin, death, and hell by that blood. We belong to Him. Belonging to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus, how then do we live? Our text makes two points. First, Hebrews says, "Therefore let us go forth to Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach. For we have no continuing city here, but we seek the one to come." We go where Jesus is. He is "outside the camp" of Jerusalem. We need not and we cannot go back to Jerusalem of the Old Testament. To go back to the Old Testament as though Jesus Christ had not come, suffered, died , and rose again would be to forsake the faith, to reject the Gospel. We cling to Christ crucified and him alone. We trust Him as He distributes to us the fruits of His sacrifice in the Sacrament of His body and blood as we await the heavenly city which is to come.

Second, Hebrews says, "Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. But do not forget to do good and share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased." The Bible makes a distinction between two kinds of sacrifice. There is the sacrifice of atonement which takes away sin. And there is the sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving. The sacrifice of atonement was made by our Lord on the cross. This sacrifice can never be repeated. It was done once and for all. Then there is the sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving. These are the sacrifices spoken of in this evening's psalm, Psalm 50, where we are told to "sacrifice thank offerings to our God." Receiving the Lord's gifts in faith, we confess Him as the Giver in our hymns and psalms of praise and thanksgiving.

The sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving embraces not only our lips but our lives. Paul says in Romans 12, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service." God consecrates our lips to praise His holy name and He hallows our lives to live for Him in service to the neighbor. You see, God doesn't need our good works, but the neighbor does. In Psalm 50, the Lord says, "If I were hungry I would not tell you, for the world is mine and all that is in it. Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?" God doesn't need our food, the work of our hands, or our money. But our neighbor needs these things. Living by faith in Jesus Christ we will live by love in the neighbor. Works of love directed toward those in need are part and parcel of our sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving to the Lord. Jesus says, "inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren you did it to Me" (Mt. 25:40).

Jesus' blood cleanses us from all sin and consecrates us to be His holy people, His royal priesthood living in faith toward Him and in love toward one another. Amen.

The peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus to life everlasting. Amen.