ONCE FOR ALL
DURING my days at Primary school, each classroom would have a
mission box. There was a picture of an African child on the box,
and the wording: "There are millions like me in
Africa". The teachers always encouraged us to 'help the
black babies', by putting something in the mission box. We never
had much money, but sometimes we would save a half-penny from our
'sweets money', and put it into the box, always making sure the
teacher and everybody in the classroom witnessed our generosity.
Occasionally, a missionary priest would visit the school, and
relate to us the news of what was happening in the many areas
where his fellow-priests were working. We were especially
interested to hear of how the many priests who were working in
Africa were using our offerings to help the black babies. We
would be told of many villages being reached by the priests, and
of many Chapels being built. Sometimes, the priest would point
out on the map the many different areas in Africa where the
priests were saying mass each day. When all these masses were
added to all the masses being said in South America, North
America, Latin America, Australia, Asia, Europe, etc., it meant
that thousands of masses were being said every day, 365 days each
year, and this continued year after year. Many years later, as I
thought about this, I asked myself: "How many times does
Christ have to be sacrificed before sin can be forgiven?" We
had been taught in school that the mass is a re-enactment of
Calvary. According to our religion book: "It is also a
sacrifice, the sacrifice of the holy mass, in which, at the time
of consecration, the bread and wine are changed into the body and
blood of Jesus Christ, and in which He is offered up for us to
His eternal Father."
"How many times has this sacrifice been repeated since
Christ died on the cross at Calvary?; How many more times will it
need to be offered before sin can be forgiven", I asked
myself? I knew the only place I could get the answer to these
questions was in the Scriptures and, as I began to read God's
Word concerning Christ's sacrifice, the words 'one'; 'once', and
'once for all' were very significant:
"And by that will, we have been made holy through the
sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Day after day
every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and
again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away
sins. But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice
for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God." 1
"Because by one sacrifice he has made perfect for ever those
who are being made holy." 2
"Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer
sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for
the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all
when he offered Himself." 3
"-But he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own
blood, having obtained eternal redemption ." 4
"Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again,
the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year
with blood that is not his own. Then Christ would have had to
suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has
appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin
by the sacrifice of himself." 5
"So Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many
people-" 6
- So, the answer to my question; "How many times does Christ
have to be sacrificed before sin can be forgiven?", was very
clear-Christ was offered once, and this one sacrifice was
sufficient. The effectiveness of Christ's once for all sacrifice
is summed up in God's Word like this:
"-having obtained eternal redemption for us." 7
Now, I had been taught that every time a priest said mass, Christ
was being offered again in sacrifice. This meant that Christ was
offered thousands of times each day, as a sacrifice for sin. I
had been told that this was necessary. In fact, I had been taught
it was so necessary that, though I may have attended mass
regularly throughout my lifetime, this sacrifice would still have
to be offered for me after I died. Many, many masses would have
to be said for the repose of my soul, and for the forgiveness of
my sins. The big question for me was this: "How would my
family know when there had been enough masses said for me? How
would the priests know when they had said enough masses for me
after my death? How would they know when Christ had been
sacrificed and offered enough times for me?"
I had to face up to the fact that the Church could give me no
assurance at all that my sins had been forgiven; no assurance at
all that I would go to Heaven when I died. This was borne out by
the fact that the Church deemed it necessary for masses to be
said for me after I died. Christ would have to be offered as a
sacrifice for my sins again and again. How very different this
was from what I read in God's Word: "So Christ was
sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people." 8
Christ's 'once for all' sacrifice was sufficient, and cannot be
repeated. Christ cannot die again! God's Word says that Christ
lives forever, never to die again. He cannot be sacrificed again!
No priest can offer Christ as a sacrifice! He, as our great High
Priest, offered Himself as a sacrifice for sin 'once for all'.
Christ cried out on the cross: "it is finished.".9 All
sacrifices were finished. The work of Atonement was completed.
God says in His Word: "-Their sins and lawless acts I will
remember no more. And where these have been forgiven, there is no
longer any sacrifice for sin." 10
It was very clear to me, as I read the Scriptures, that Christ
had not instituted another sacrificial system, the mass, but had,
in fact, abolished and forbidden any more sacrifices. As far as I
was concerned, I had a decision to make. I could either:
(a) Continue to depend upon 'Christ being offered' in the mass,
thousands of times each day, 365 days each year, year after year,
and still have no assurance that I would benefit from this. In
fact, it now seemed to me that I certainly would not benefit from
it as far as the salvation of my soul was concerned for, if the
mass was effective, it would not need to be repeated at all. Yet,
the Church deemed it necessary that masses still be offered for
me, even after I died. There was certainly a marked and very
obvious lack of assurance of salvation in this system.
or (b) Put my faith in what God said in His Word concerning
Christ, who:"-Entered the Most Holy Place once for all by
his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. " 11
Choice (a) guaranteed that I would be left hoping, for the rest
of my life, and even at the time of my death, that I would get to
Heaven. Choice (b) guaranteed salvation for me. This guarantee
was not based upon what the Church, or what I, myself, could do
to earn or merit salvation. It was based upon what Christ had
done for me, through His 'once for all' sacrifice. He had
obtained eternal redemption for me. Now I knew that God was
leading me out of the darkness and into His wonderful light,
revealing to me the assurance of salvation that I had been
searching for all my life.
1. Hebrews 10:10-12.
2. Hebrews 10:14.
3. Hebrews 7:27.
4. Hebrews 9:12.
5. Hebrews 9:25-26.
6. Hebrews 9:28.
7. Hebrews 9:12.
8. Hebrews 9:28.
9. John 19:30.
10. Hebrews 10:17-18.
11. Hebrews 9:12.
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