00:00In ancient times, the scent of burning flesh rose to the heavens. Lambs, bulls, and doves, offered on stone altars. Because people knew, God was holy, and they were not. Sacrifice was the price of sin. Forgiveness came through blood. That was the law. But that law, was just a shadow, a reflection of someone yet to come.
00:21And then, he came. A man from Nazareth. Eyes full of compassion. Face filled with peace and truth. He said, I have not come to abolish the law, but to fulfill it. Matthew 5 17. He ate with sinners. He touched the sick. He looked past the ritual. And into the heart. He said, I desire mercy, not sacrifice.
00:42Matthew 9 13. God had never been satisfied with just blood. He had always longed for love, for faith, for a broken and humble heart. But one day. When he walked into the temple, he saw something else. The altar had become a marketplace. Animals sold in the name of religion. The poor being robbed in God's house. His heart burned with holy fire. He overturned the tables. Coins scattered. People and animals ran in fear. He cried out. My father's house shall be a house of prayer.
01:11But you have made it a den of thieves. Matthew 21 13. And then. He became the sacrifice himself. Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. John 1 29. No more animals. No more blood on stone. Only him. There he hung. On a Roman cross. His body torn. His blood poured out. This was the final sacrifice. This was the true cost of sin. Not another lamb. Not another altar. But a man. And a cross.
01:41And when he breathed his last breath. The temple veil tore in two. From top to bottom. The holy was no longer hidden. Man could now come to God directly. The sacrifices. Were over. A new way had opened. So no. Jesus didn't oppose sacrifice. He became its fulfillment. He didn't say. Bring more blood. He said. Here is mine. He didn't demand another offering.
