Hebrews 7 October 3, 2016
The closing verse of Hebrews 16 serves a signal pointing toward the continued correlation to chapter 17. The primary theme of chapter 16 is that of a superior salvation in Jesus Christ. A salvation that does not depend upon the actions of man in order to remain secure. Rather, the security depends upon the actions of the greater High Priest, Jesus. In contrast to the imperfect priests of the Levites and in noting the similarities to Melchizedek, chapter 17 clearly argues for Jesus as a superior priest.
I remember by softball coach teaching me as a youngster, “keep your eye on the ball, boy.” That is good advice in approaching this chapter. The temptation is to focus on Melchizedek and seek explanations concerning his connection to Christ and miss the arguments for the superiority of Christ. I am going to avoid that temptation here in order to focus only on Christ’s superiority as a priest.
Just as Melchizedek had no recorded mother or father and no recorded beginning and end, Jesus came to earth without the kind of lineage required by the priests of his day. Yes he was born of the flesh of Mary, but he had no earthly father. Priest of the Levitical priesthood had the correct lineage on both sides of the ledger. While Jesus had a beginning in his incarnation, he predated the incarnation. Jesus has always been. So while the earthly priests were of the created order, Jesus is of the eternal order.
Second, Jesus is greater than the Levitical priests because he paid tithes to no man yet through Abraham, the Levitical priest paid tithes to the man, Melchizedek. It is customary for the lesser to pay tithes to the greater.
Third, there was a priesthood that predated the law of Moses and there follows a priest hood spanning the dispensation of the law. Note when there was a change in the priesthood, there was a change in the law as well. This change was not in principle but in practice. The need for a priest was not invalidated by this change but the effectiveness of the priest changed dramatically. While the priesthood changed when Aaron was appointed as the first Levitical priest, it was also changed when Jesus came. So the priesthood of Aaron (Levites) was temporary, the priest hood of Jesus is eternal. It will not change again. The former commands of priesthood had a weakness and that weakness was the sinfulness of the priest themselves. They had to make atonement for their own sins before they could minister to the sins of others. Jesus, who had no sin, offered himself up as the sacrifice for others and lives eternally. The priesthood is perpetual and he is the only priest needed to perform the sacerdotal duties of an atoning sacrifice. Because he lives, his blood is a continual sacrifice atoning for the sins of man. He is not one who must be sacrificed again as it would seem for someone falling away, but whose blood is effectual on a continuing basis.
Finally, priests of the law were appointed to an oath administered by men. Jesus was appointed by God. His oath was heavenly while the oath of the priests was earthly. He is the better priest. In fact, he is the only priest needed. He never sleeps, He never slumbers. There is never a time when you cannot come before the presence of God with a repentant heart and not find a listening ear. Because of the perpetual ministry of Jesus as a priest, God is always available to His redeemed people. When it seems as though the world has turned its back, God is always near. In the midst of failure, God is near. On the mountain top, God is always near. He trolls the valleys seeking those whom He can support. Because of the perpetual ministry of Jesus as a priest, God is always near. What a great truth, God is ALWAYS near.
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