Once Upon A Time

My sister-in-law is a published author of children’s stories. Her most successful book is called One-Eyed Jack. It is about a little boy who finds a stray dog and has to convince his father to let him keep it. The ideas for her story came from stories my brother had told her about a dog that we had when we were growing up. Our dog had come from an animal shelter and Dad had decided we should get him, but what had really gotten Paula’s attention was hearing her husband, Travis, talk about the special bond that formed between a boy and his dog.
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I had formed bonds with that same dog, but in different ways than my brother had. Because I was older, I wanted to train him, and was quickly able to teach him to shake hands. Travis on the other hand just wanted that puppy to be his friend and soon they were spending hours together jumping on the hay stacks.
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I recently picked up Paula’s book about the little dog named Jack, and realized that she was wise enough to avoid the old cliché, “Once upon a time,” in her introduction. I began to think about that phrase and realized that it would not be fitting for her book at all, for the relationships boys and dogs have are not a one time story. In fact, that same story plays out in the lives of many children all over the world. I am confident that many of the readers of this article could share special stories of a dog that they were close to when they grew up.
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The fact that these stories are so common does not make them any less interesting, in fact, they sometimes make them more so because we are able to connect with them. At the other end of the spectrum are the stories that are so very exiting because they really did happen only once. Those once in a lifetime adventures like a solo hike to the top of a treacherous mountain or the journey of Lewis and Clark across an uncharted America continue to intrigue readers for generations. But what if an event were so special that it wasn’t just once in a lifetime, but would only occur once in forever? There is such a special event in Scripture, and that event was the death of Christ in order to pay for our sins. Consider Hebrews 9:24-28:
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24 For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us: 25 Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others; 26 For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: 28 So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.
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What an amazing story from history. Look at verse 26. Christ appeared to put away sin and He did it once when He offered Himself as a sacrifice. Please read this passage again, for it makes it very clear that He only did it once. Do you realize how good that news it? Christ was sinless and His sacrifice was so perfect that it only needed to occur once in order to take care of the sins of those who would trust Him. Please look at verse 28 again as well.
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If these verses are true, why do some people teach that Christ needs to be reoffered weekly? If you do not believe that these verses are really part of scripture, please look them up in your own Bible and reread them again.
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Romans 3:4 tells us to let God be true, but every man a liar. I trust what the Word of God teaches. This is an issue concerning the very gospel itself. It is an issue concerning how many times Christ had to offer His body to pay for our sins. The apostle Paul warned about false gospels and was quite adamant in his warning of Galatians 1:8 when he said, “But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.” I must say that I am more concerned about the anathemas found in the Holy Scriptures through the pen of the Apostle Paul than I am about the anathemas of men through the church. “As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.” (Galatians 1:9).
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Hebrews 9:24-28 makes it very clear that Christ only paid for our sins once upon a time, and that that time was upon the cross. So are you trusting in what He did to pay for your sins then, or are you trusting in what you do in taking part in a ritual now? One is an anathema, and we must look to the Scriptures to know which one it is.