A Will Put in Force

A Will Put in Force
Words of Faith 3-2-26
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2026
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
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Hebrews 9
[15] For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance— now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.[16] In the case of a will, it is necessary to prove the death of the one who made it, [17] because a will is in force only when somebody has died; it never takes effect while the one who made it is living. [18] This is why even the first covenant was not put into effect without blood. [19] When Moses had proclaimed every commandment of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves, together with water, scarlet wool and branches of hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and all the people. [20] He said, "This is the blood of the covenant, which God has commanded you to keep." [21] In the same way, he sprinkled with the blood both the tabernacle and everything used in its ceremonies. [22] In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

Why did Jesus have to die? Of course, some suggest He did not have to die. Some suggest that Jesus simply got caught up in politics that were beyond His ability to control. Some have suggested for years that it was primarily the exemplary life of Jesus that was redeeming, and only after His death did the idea of blood atonement enter in. God always turns something evil into something good, so they say.

But the Writer draws us to an important point. This was the intention, the will of the Lord all along. And a legal will is in force only when somebody has died. An inheritor who seeks an inheritance from a will before the death of the person who wrote and signed that will is more than presumptuous.

But Jesus put His will into effect by His own death. Just as the old covenant was put into effect with blood, if only the blood of animals, so the new will was put into effect by blood and at the death of the benefactor.

The Writer also introduces the word "ransom," as the NIV translates it. This is not necessarily a ransom paid to a captor to release a captive, but the Greek does speak to the complete redemption and deliverance of a person. The death of Jesus did not partially pay the price of sin. His work is complete.

For today? Ponder the blood. It is not easy. It is not comfortable. But it is the power of salvation that is whole and complete.

Lord, I give thanks for Your blood shed freely that I might live. I give thanks for Your will and testament, now effective in my life. Let me read deeply into that will that I may not miss any of the inheritance You have intended for me. In Jesus' name, Amen.

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2026
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2026 Jeffrey D. Hoy.