“…but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself” (Hebrews 9:26).
Like many of the New Testament epistles, the book of Hebrews is replete with powerful proofs which fully falsify the foundational tenets of premillennialism. This verse provides one such proof.
According to this false and outlandish doctrine, Jesus’ purpose for coming to this earth was to establish a universal, political kingdom for the physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It further avers that when Jesus’ generation supposedly rejected Him for having this intention, this kingdom had to be postponed until a later point in time. Because of this, the Father and Son had to improvise on the fly; they ultimately came up with the church as a stopgap measure.
Whenever Jesus’ mission for coming to this world is discussed in the New Testament, its focus is upon spiritual matters, not carnal or political ones. For example, prior to His birth, the angel Gabriel instructed Joseph to name Him “Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). (NOTE: “their sins”, not “their oppressive Gentile political rulers”)
Hebrews 9:26 echoes this truth. Jesus left heaven and appeared in human history “to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself”—the Lamb of God (John 1:29). The kingdom He established as its King-Priest according to the order of Melchizedek is not of this world (John 18:36). His battles are not carnal in nature, but spiritual (Ephesians 6:12; 2 Corinthians 10:3-5).
Far superior to political freedom, Jesus’ sacrifice of Himself to put away sin gives spiritual liberty. Jesus has deprived sin of its tyrannical force. He has thwarted the destructive efficacy of sin. There is spiritual victory in Jesus for all—Jews and Gentiles alike.
Like the Sadducees, premillennialists are “greatly mistaken” (Mark 12:27).
