Genesis 14:18-20-Proverbs 110:4 For 10 weeks we’ve been studying the book of Hebrews. We have come to learn that author had a difficult task. The challenge he faced was how to persuade first-century Jews to fully embrace and accept Christianity.
He doesn’t do it by telling them that everything they previously believed and practiced was wrong. Because it wasn’t. He does it by telling them the truth; that the system of the Old Testament was always intended to be temporary, and that it was now being replaced in God’s sovereign plan for his people by something better. We know they were having some issues: He does this by making four points.
First of all, he argues:
- Not that the law of Moses was wrong in itself, but that it was ultimately weak and useless, unable to cleanse completely from sin, and that’s why is now being changed.
Vs12 For when the priesthood is changed, the law must be changed also.
Vs18 The former regulation is set aside because it was weak and useless
Vs19a (for the law made nothing perfect)
The Old Testament Law was appropriate for its time/era; it was what they needed prior to the coming of Christ, but it was fundamentally flawed. It was “weak and useless”, and is therefore now being changed. What was its weakness? It was powerless against sin. It couldn’t cleanse from sin. It couldn’t erase the guilt of sin. All it could do was document all the ways in which they did sin. And so it was ultimately weak and useless.
Hebrews 10:4 “It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.”
In other words, the animal sacrifices only atoned for sin, they didn’t actually pay the penalty for sin. They were fine as far as they went — they reminded people that sin had to be paid for, and they demonstrated that the penalty for sin was death — but they never actually succeed in taking away the sin; The true payment for sin would come later, in the death of Jesus on the cross of Cavalry.
- The author is arguing: 2. Not that the covenant God made with Abraham was false, but that it was now being superseded by a better covenant.
Hebrews 7:21-22 And it was not without an oath! Others became priests without any oath, 21 but he became a priest with an oath when God said to him: “The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind: ‘You are a priest forever.” 22 Because of this oath, Jesus has become the guarantor of a better covenant.
What is a covenant? A covenant is a basic charter that describes the relationship between God and his people. God is not just making some minor adjustments to the covenant he established with the people of Israel. He isn’t just instituting a new order of priests, or altering some of his laws. He isn’t just eliminating animal sacrifice as a worship practice.
He is fundamentally transforming the nature of his relationship with his people, by instituting a New Covenant far superior to the Old one. And he is doing this through Jesus, our Great high priest in the order of Melchizedek.
- Third, he is arguing: 3. Not that their prior hopes were false, but that they now had available to them a better hope.
Vs19b “..and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God..”
What was this better hope? That their temporary, ceremonial cleansing from sin would be replaced by a permanent, and actual forgiveness of sin, accomplished once and for all. The better hope was that they would be able to draw near to God, instead of being kept at arm’s length.
- Fourth, He is arguing: 4. Not that the Old Testament priesthood was invalid, but that it was limited and ultimately powerless, due to the mortality and sinfulness of the priests themselves.
Vs23-24 Now there have been many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office; 24 but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood.
Vs27 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.
The Levitical priests, fulfilled their duties faithfully, day after day, year after year, century after century. They spent their entire lives administering the rituals and sacrifices of the Old Covenant.
But it wasn’t enough. No matter how many hundreds of bulls or goats they slaughtered, it never removed the stain of sin. It never removed the guilt of the worshippers. It never dealt with the problem of our separation from God. Because if it had, there would have been no more need for priests, or sacrifices.
The Old Testament Levitical priests all died and had to be continually replaced. Not only that, but every one of them had sins of their own. And so a better priesthood was necessary, to be administered by a better priest, Vs26 Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. That priest is Jesus!!
So Jesus, our GREAT HIGH PRIEST, did what no priest before him had ever been able to do! He removed the stain of sin, once and for all. He erased our guilt, once and for all. He bridged the gap between us and God, once and for all. By the sacrifice of his own indestructible life. As a result,
Hebrews 7:25 Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.
Why do we need a priest? Because we still sin. Because God still hates sin. Because sinful creatures such as you and I cannot stand in the presence of a Holy God without being annihilated. We need someone to advocate on our behalf, to intercede for us.
And that is what a priest is, a mediator, one who intercedes on behalf of another.
1 Timothy 2:5-6 For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time.
Jesus is the priest the world has been waiting for since the Fall of man in the garden of Eden; the priest who can finally do what centuries of Levitical priests could not do. He can be that intermediary/mediator between God and man, the one we need to intercede for us, to offer an effective sacrifice for our sins, to shield us from God’s wrath and judgment. A priest who doesn’t die who’s never sinned who will never fail or falter.
The question for each of us is whether we are placing our trust in Christ as our advocate before God the Father, or whether we intend to represent ourselves on the day of judgment.
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