Christ is the mediator of the new covenant of which we, his Church, partake. He stands in the true sanctuary, in the presence of his Father, by the power of his own blood, with the offering of his once for all sacrifice.
Not that he might offer himself repeatedly,
as the high priest enters each year into the sanctuary
with blood that is not his own;
Because Jesus offered himself, an offering infinitely superior to any other sacrifice, he did not need to repeat it. The sacrifice of his death on the cross was enough for all times and all places from the foundation of world, to our present age, and on to the end when he "will appear a second time" to bring the fullness of "salvation to those who eagerly await him".
But now once for all he has appeared at the end of the ages
to take away sin by his sacrifice.
It is true that the one offering of the life of Jesus was enough, even abundantly and extravagantly more than enough that it need never be repeated. But this does not put it into the same category as a single completed animal sacrifice. Such sacrifices had to be repeated ad infinitum in order to continue their (limited, symbolic) efficacy through time. Rather, the once for all sacrifice of Jesus was not merely a fact in history, but is now an eternally present reality in the true sanctuary of heaven. It is in this reality that the mass participates, by reason of which we refer to the mass as a proper sacrifice.
The sacrifice of Christ and the sacrifice of the Eucharist are one single sacrifice: "The victim is one and the same: the same now offers through the ministry of priests, who then offered himself on the cross; only the manner of offering is different."
The sacrifice of Christ in the mass is how we experience the power of the mediator of the new covenant opening the storehouse of his gifts for us. Before the Father he took away sin and still helps those of us who still struggle with sin to walk more and more in his freedom. And for us he gives the gifts that he himself has from the Father, including making us sons and daughters and giving us his Holy Spirit. Because of the power of the sacrifice of Jesus that is present in the mass, the mass is the perfect place to enter more deeply into all of these realities. It is the definitive demonstration that the weakness of God was stronger than human strength, strong enough to set free those who were held imprisoned under the jealous gaze of Satan.
But no one can enter a strong man's house to plunder his property
unless he first ties up the strong man.
By allowing himself to be bound Jesus bound Satan's power. By allowing himself to experience suffering and death he destroyed the one who had the power of death and was thereby able to "plunder his house" and set us free. Let us therefore not be divided in heart, with one foot still stuck in our former prison. If we want to truly know the promise of power of Jesus sacrifice for us we need to go all in. But, by definition, this is something that happens only when we stop insisting on reliance on our own strength which always comes up short. May we learn to allow the blood which is enough for the entire world, to cover us, to avail for us more and more. There are truly no limits on the potential for lives thus consecrated.
The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
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