THE DEATH OF THE TESTATOR
A will is of little value while the one who made it still lives. The promises may be written, the inheritance may be named, and the beneficiaries may be identified, but nothing can be claimed until the testator dies.
The writer of Hebrews uses this simple truth to direct our eyes to Christ. God’s covenant blessings, long promised through the ages, required the death of the One through whom they would be bestowed. “For where there is a testament, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator” (Hebrews 9:16-17).
At Calvary, the Son of God sealed with His own blood the covenant of grace, and all the treasures of salvation were opened to those who trust in Him.
Consider the riches that flow from that sacred death. Forgiveness for the guilty, peace for the troubled conscience, adoption into the family of God, and the hope of everlasting life were not purchased with silver or gold but with the precious blood of Christ (1 Peter 1:18-19).
Every spiritual blessing comes to us through the cross. The nail-pierced hands of Jesus have signed the believer’s inheritance forever.
What was promised in shadow throughout the Old Testament became a glorious reality when the Lamb of God offered Himself upon the altar of divine justice (Isaiah 53:5-6; Hebrews 9:26).
Yet the wonder of the Gospel is greater still. Earthly testators die and remain in their graves, but Christ died and rose again. The One who secured the inheritance now lives to guarantee it. He not only purchased salvation through His death but preserves His people through His living intercession (Romans 8:34; Hebrews 7:25).
The believer’s inheritance is therefore doubly secure. It rests upon a finished sacrifice and a living Savior.
Let every trembling soul look away from self and fix its gaze upon Christ crucified and risen, for in Him the covenant stands firm, the inheritance is certain, and the gates of heaven are opened wide.
_______________
Gracious Father, we thank You for the death of Your beloved Son through which our inheritance has been secured. Teach us to rest not in our own works but in the finished sacrifice of Christ. Amen.
BDD
