THE SOLE LITURGIST - verses 11-12 constitute a single sentence in the Greek. Several variant readings make this passage a bit tricky, esp. concerning skene, "tent;" the basic idea however is that Christ went through the tent, and entered the most Holy Place-the presence of God as sole liturgist on our behalf.

CHRIST’S HIGH PRIESTLY OFFICE - For the Christian community itself, the message of the high priestly activity of the exalted one spells the certainty of salvation . . . Since Christ has broken through the power of death and accomplished the forgiveness of sin, he is guarantor of a new covenant and announces it through his unremitting intercession for his own before God. For God’s wandering people on earth, this fact contains sufficient reason for pa???s?a [confidence]. Now it can continue and conclude its wandering confidently and certain of its goal. [1]

BLOOD AND LIFE - As many commentators note, the word "blood" in the ancient texts is the equivalent of "life," to borrow also from the Leviticus purity phrase, "the life is in the blood" (Lev. 17:11). Thus the writer of Hebrews describes Jesus as offering or exchanging his life in the act of high priestly sacrifice; he presents his life to God. Jesus’ offering of his life to God was the ultimate act of worship so that we too, could offer God our own self-giving worship. (See Romans 12:1 which carries the implications even further.) [2]

If giving one’s life away or giving one’s life up is the ultimate act of worship, what are the implications about our worship?

Romans 12:1 says, " . . . present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual [rational, reasonable] worship. What specific ways can we worship God through giving our lives away?

When have you been at your nadir? When have you felt isolated, alienated, wounded or vulnerable? Name "famines" that cause people to be bitter.

A homily on this passage would inevitably require a rehearsal of the ancient rituals of the Jewish system of animal sacrifice and then comparing that with Christ as the High Priest who enters into the Heavenly Sanctuary offering his life on the behalf of others.

You might want to explore the adjectives that we’ve come across earlier to describe Christ as the high priest of the good things to come: holy, blameless, undefiled, separated from sinners.

Using a more therapeutic way of entering the text, you could begin with the problem of guilt / how people react to guilt / and how Christ’s sacrifice can have an impact on the kind of guilt that often keep us from boldly entering God’s presence.

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[1]  Ernst Kasemann, The Wandering People of God (Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1984), p. 239-240.
[2] The New Interpreter’s Bible XII (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1998), page 118.