Go! And Wait For His Return Hebrews 9:28 (Nlt) Series

Go! And Wait for His Return Hebrews 9:28 (NLT)

Hebrews 9:28 (NLT): “So also Christ was offered once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him.”

Introduction: The Promise of His Return

Church, we live in a world filled with anticipation—waiting for news, waiting for breakthroughs, waiting for change. But as believers, our greatest anticipation is not for something, it’s for someone. We wait for Jesus.

Hebrews 9:28 reminds us that Christ, who came once to deal with sin, will come again—not in humiliation, but in glory. Not to suffer, but to save fully. This isn’t mere optimism—it’s the foundation of Christian hope.

1. Christ Came to Take Away Sin

Hebrews 9:28a “Christ was offered once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people.”

The context of Hebrews 9 explores the superiority of Christ’s priesthood over the old covenant. The writer contrasts the repeated sacrifices of the Levitical priests with the once-for-all offering of Christ. The Greek word for "offered" here is prosenenke, meaning “to bring to the altar.” Jesus didn't just die—He presented Himself before God as the final sacrifice.

The phrase "to take away" comes from the Greek anaphero, which means “to bear up” or “to carry away.” He bore our sin and removed it. Not covered, not delayed—taken away!

Isaiah 53:6 (NLT): “All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all.”

Christ didn’t die for some abstract humanity—He died for you. For me. For the wayward.

John 1:29 (NLT): “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”

This is the heart of the Gospel—Jesus didn’t come to condemn, He came to cleanse.

If Jesus bore your sin once and for all, why carry the weight of guilt? Why revisit shame already nailed to the cross?

Charles Stanley “The cross is God’s perfect response to our deepest need.”

That truth is like balm for the broken soul. Jesus didn’t provide a temporary fix—He is the eternal cure.

A man once fell into a pit. Every effort to climb out failed. Philosophers offered theories, friends offered advice, but only one man climbed down and carried him out. That man is Jesus. He didn’t stand afar; He entered our world, bore our sin, and rescued us.

2. Christ Will Come Again

Hebrews 9:28b “He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him.”

Jesus’ first coming was for atonement. His second coming will be for consummation. The Greek word ekdechomai is translated “eagerly waiting”—a compound of ek (out) and dechomai (to receive). It speaks of active, hopeful anticipation.

He’s not coming to re-suffer. He’s coming to redeem fully and finally. His return is certain—it is not an “if,” it is a “when.”

Acts 1:11 (NLT): “Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go!”

The early church lived in light of that promise—and so should we.

Titus 2:13 (NLT): “We look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ, will be revealed.”

Hope is not passive—it fuels holiness, urgency, and joy.

Are we living like Jesus could return today? Are we sharing the Gospel, loving the lost, serving the broken?

John Piper “The second coming of Christ is the completion of the Gospel.”

Christ didn’t just die and rise—He’s coming back. If our Gospel doesn’t include His return, it's incomplete.

Imagine a bride waiting at the altar. She’s dressed, ready, watching for her groom. That’s how the Church should live—expectant, radiant, pure.

3. Eagerly Waiting: A Life of Active Faith

Hebrews 9:28c “...to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him.”

This “salvation” is soteria—the full deliverance and glorification of the believer. We are saved (justification), we are being saved (sanctification), and we will be saved (glorification).

Philippians 3:20 (NLT): “But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Saviour.”

Waiting changes our perspective. We live not as earth-dwellers but as heaven-bound pilgrims.

2 Peter 3:12 (NLT): “Looking forward to the day of God and hurrying it along...”

We don’t just wait—we prepare. We share the Gospel. We walk in holiness. We redeem the time.

Is your waiting active or passive? Faith is not just believing Jesus is coming—it’s living as though He could come today.

Max Lucado “When Christ returns, our greatest regret will be how small we dreamed and how safe we played.”