“who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people’s, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself…Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption…By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Hebrews 7:27, 9:12. 10:10, emphasis added).
Used only five times in the New Testament, ephapax (“once for all”) is an emphatic adverb. Its usage in Hebrews boldly underscores the finality of Christ and Christianity.
Unlike the daily and yearly repetitive sacrifices of the Old Testament—which could never remedy the horrific guilt of sin, Jesus’ one-time sacrifice for sin—the offering of His body as the Lamb of God—provides the comprehensive, all-sufficient remedy. It is not a halfway measure. It is not a temporary fix. It is not an “almost enough” solution. It has no expiration date. It is once for all. It is THE solution to human sin in every generation—past, present, and future. Worthy is the Lamb because worthy was the Lamb.
Unlike the annual appearance of the Jewish High Priest in the temple’s Most Holy Place, Jesus obtained eternal redemption for humanity by entering heaven’s Most Holy Place once for all. Humanity’s Day of Atonement has occurred. The sacrifice presented to God was accepted. Jesus has sat down at God’s right hand (Hebrews 1:3), because His work of securing human atonement is over. His royal priesthood is not a temporary measure. There is no line of succession; there never will be. It is once for all.
By one sacrifice Jesus has perfected forever those who are being sanctified. Thankfully, neither He nor Christianity is ever going away as long as this earth stands.
EPHAPAX!
