A Perfect Priest

Good morning, church family.

If you are a guest, my name is Stefan Wilson, I am the pastor of preaching here at Harvest.

We are in our advent series, “Manger to Majesty”

In this series we have been celebrating that humiliation and exaltation of Christ

His humiliation refers to him humbling himself by becoming human

His exaltation refers to his glory as savior and Lord

In his humiliation, he was born in a manger, and live and died in his humanity

In his exaltation, he is resurrected and reigns as Lord

And we are specifically looking at how, in his humiliation and exaltation, he meets our deepest needs

And the way that he does this is by perfectly fulfilling what theologians refer to as the threefold offices of Christ: Prophet, king, and priest.

We have seen how Jesus meets our need for truth as the perfect prophet who embodies the word of God

We have seen how he meets our need to overcome as the perfect king who overcame sin, and death, and defeated Satan.

And if you’re keeping score at home… That means that this week, we will see Jesus as the perfect priest in Heb. 4

[So would you turn there in your Bibles…]

And just like we have done with the last two weeks, we need to understand the Old Testament background…

In the Old Testament, priests served as a go-between, a mediator between God and the people.

He represented the people before God, bringing their prayers and their sacrifices.

He represented God to the people as he pronounced forgiveness and spoke God’s blessing over the people.

At the heart of the priesthood was this simple reality:

Sin is real. God is holy. And the relationship between God and people is broken because of their sin.

And if that relationship is ever going to be restored, someone must stand in the middle.

We all understand this at a human level

If you’ve ever been in a serious conflict you know how valuable it is to have a mediator.

Someone who can listen, speak for you, and help restore what has been broken.

And you and I, because of our sin, have a conflict with God

He is holy and will not tolerate anything unholy in his presence

We are sinful and fall short of the good and righteous standard of God’s holiness…

And no amount of effort, morality, or religion can fix that problem.

There is no way that you and I can close the distance between us and God without a mediator to intercede on our behalf

and restore us to God.

So the question is not whether we need a mediator.

The question is whether we have one who is sufficient.

And Hebrews tells us this morning that we do.

Jesus Christ is not merely A priest.

As we will see in our text this morning - He is the perfect Priest

Because he took on flesh, being born in a manger in Bethlehem 2000 years ago, He is the only one sufficient to mediate between us and God

So let’s give these words our full attention

Hebrews 4:14–16 “Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

These are God’s words for us as his people - May we have ears to hear them and hearts to obey them.

Big idea: Jesus intercedes for us perfectly and preserves us faithfully. [7:00]

I want you to see the present tense of those verbs

He didn’t just intercede once on the cross.

Like, “Well… good luck with the rest of your life.”

He did intercede for us on the cross.

But He also intercedes for us right now.

Romans 8:34 “Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.”

It is a constant reality for the Christ follower that Jesus stands as the mediator between us and God

When we come to him for the first time, and when we come every time after…

Jesus stands there as our perfect priest who intercedes for us and preserves us.

And he will continue to do so until we see him face to face.

Now, the question this begs is, “Why do we need intercession? Why do we need a go-between?”

These three verses are actually an answer to a problem that is presented in v. 12-13, so look back at those with me for just a moment

Hebrews 4:12–13 “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”

What is the problem?

God’s word, the truth from God, exposes us for what is really going on inside of us.

It is really easy to think that we are doing OK in the eyes of God because we aren’t as bad as the next person

But v. 12-13 are saying, “In comparison to the perfect word of God, you and I are all doing equally bad.”

James refers to the God’s word as a mirror - It shows us where things are not right

and when you and I look at God’s word, when we compare ourselves to his word rather than to other people, all of the charade and all of the games disappear…

You and I can pretend to one another all day long with what is on the outside…

You know what we can’t pretend about?

Our thoughts… Our motives… our desires.

And if those played out on the screen for all to see, and then we compared those things to God’s word…

We would all be standing in the same place… Before the judgment seat of God, condemned for our sin that we can no longer hide.

And that leaves us with a question that exposes our deep need:

What help do we have when God’s Word exposes us and we stand before His throne?

Who stands for us when we cannot stand on our own?

And the answer in v. 14-16 is that when you and I are exposed before God’s throne by his perfect word, Jesus as the perfect priest, intercedes for us perfectly and preserves us faithfully.

[Bridge] How does Jesus intercede for us and preserve us?

As the Perfect Priest…

Jesus secures our relationship with God (14) [11:00]

v. 13 said that we were exposed before God because of his word… which should produce fear in us...

But v. 16 says that we should approach God’s throne with confidence.

So what changed?

v. 14 tells us what changed….

Hebrews 4:14 “Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God…”

Now, we need to make sense out of that phrase “passed through the heavens”

In the Old testament, on what is known as the day of atonement, the high priest would pass through the veil of the temple into the presence of God, representing the people of God as the priest, and he would offer a sacrifice that would pay the penalty for the sins of the people, and for his own sins, so that the people could be restored to a right relationship with God

And the priest had to do this every year…

Now, Paul tells us in Colossians that the things in the Old Testament were shadows of things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ

So that day of atonement when the priest would pass through the veil of the temple was a shadow of the things to come and the substance, the true form of it, belongs to Christ

And v. 14 is saying that there is a barrier between us on earth and God in heaven

And we are unable to pass through it

So the veil in the temple was a shadow, a picture, of the barrier between us and God

And the priest was a shadow, a picture, of Jesus who is the only one who can pass through the veil of the heavens and restore us to God.

Tom Schreiner puts it this way:

Hebrews Exegesis

He has entered the presence of God by virtue of his sacrifice… As the Son of God, he has brought believers near to God so we can enjoy fellowship with him.

Because of the sacrifice of Christ, he has atoned for our sin, paid the penalty for our sin, and has secured the relationship with God that we could not secure.

And there are three important things that Jesus did to secure our relationship with God as the great high priest

Propitiation

Payment for sin that satisfies God’s wrath

1 John 4:10 “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”

Jesus paid the debt that we owed to God through his death, so there is no more wrath for those who belong to Jesus

Redemption

Setting us free from from sin

Ephesians 1:7 “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace”

So where propitiation paid the penalty for our sin, redemption frees us from the power of sin

Reconciliation

Removing what stood in between us and God, restoring us to a right relationship.

2 Corinthians 5:17–18 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself…”

Through his life and death, Christ made us new so that we could be restored to God

By passing through the veil of Heaven, but coming to earth in his humiliation, Jesus has secured our relationship with God…

… because we do not owe for our sin, we are no longer slaves to sin, and there is no longer anything standing in between us and God

This is where Christianity differs from every other religion in the world.

All of the other religions in the world say, “Do enough and God will love you.”

And so what do you have? You have the constant question of “Have I done enough?”

With deafening silence as the answer…

Because there is no way to know

And so the relationship between people and God in that kind of religion is an insecure one.

If you have mormon neighbors or muslim neighbors, this is the reality of their lives

An insecurity that is rooted in never knowing if they have done enough to earn God’s favor

But in Christianity, Jesus gives us security because it isn’t about if you and I have done enough, but that he has done enough

You never have to wonder if you’ve done enough to earn God’s favor

You never could…

You have God’s favor because Jesus earned it for you

And so you and I can have security.

And when you and I have that security, the response is obvious:

Hebrews 4:14 “… let us hold fast our confession.”

Confession = The truth of the Gospel of Jesus

He is saying, “Because Jesus secured our relationship to God, run to Jesus, always.”

Do not waiver from that truth

Do not look for help from other messages

Hold fast to the truth

Do you doubt your relationship with God? Hold fast to the Gospel, because you are secure in that truth

Are you beat down by life and wonder if following Jesus is worth it? Hold fast to the Gospel, because you are secure in that, so come what may in this life, your life is eternally secure in Christ.

I often hear the question: Can I lose my salvation?

And this verse helps us to see that that is the wrong question…

Our security is not dependent on our performance.

You and I didn’t pass through the heavens…

You and I didn’t pay the penalty for sin and set ourselves free from sin and reconcile ourselves to God

You and I did none of that work, so our security is not depending on our work.

Jesus did that by his work - He holds us firm in his grasp - Our security is dependent on his ability to hold us.

The question is not, “Can I lose my salvation?”

The question should be, “Can Jesus lose a Christian?”

And the answer is no, he will not

He humbled himself and was born in the manger

He lived on our behalf, died on our behalf, rose on our behalf, and intercedes on our behalf…

...not just back then, but right now, and every day until we see him face to face

Because Jesus is the perfect priest who secures our relationship to God.

Next, as the perfect priest…

Jesus provides our holiness before God (15) [21:00]

If you keep reading in hebrews and get to chapter 12, you read in Hebrews 12:14 “Strive for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.”

Now, if holiness is required to see the Lord, and holiness depends on us, then we are in serious trouble.

Because remember, he just told us in 4:13 that we are exposed before God by his word… And what is exposed most clearly is that you and I are not holy…

But we find in v. 15 of our passage where it is that the holiness required comes from

Hebrews 4:15 “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.”

Now, I want us to notice what the text is saying—and what it is not saying.

It does not say Jesus simply understands our feelings.

It does not say He merely relates to our struggles.

It says He sympathizes with our weakness because He was tempted in every way we are

He was fully human, so he was tempted like you and I

But he was “without sin”

He never gave in like you and I so often do.

And because Jesus never gave in to temptation, He actually understands temptation more fully than we do.

Consider the fact that you and I have never been tempted to the fullest, because at some level, we give in, either in our thoughts, our desires, or our actions.

Jesus endured it completely and never gave in

And here is why that matters…

You and I cannot say that Jesus doesn’t know what we are tempted by

It is actually we who do not know just how much he understands it

Because he can sympathize with our weakness completely without sinning, he lived in perfect holiness

And that holiness that he lived in, he now provides to us.

There are two ways the New Testament speaks about the holiness Jesus gives.

First is

Positional holiness.

Jesus changes our position before God

We stood condemned before God for our sin

Now we stand forgiven, justified, and holy before God.

2 Corinthians 5:21 says, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

This is what Martin Luther called “The Great Exchange”

Jesus stood in you place, taking on your sin, so that you could stand in his place, taking on his righteousness.

You and I are not accepted because we are holy.

You and I are made holy because we are accepted in Christ.

That is why Hebrews can say holiness is required, and yet also say we have confidence before God.

Because the holiness God requires is first given, not earned.

But Jesus does not stop there.

He also provides…

Progressive holiness

The enablement and empowering grace to grow in a holy life.

Not only does Jesus provide the holiness we need to stand before God, he also provides what we need to be made more and more holy in this life

2 Peter 1:3 says, “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness.”

Jesus does not merely declare you holy and leave you on your own.

He walks with you.

He strengthens you.

He supplies what you need to grow.

When we put these two together, Jesus intercedes for you by providing the positional holiness you need, but he also preserves you by providing the progressive holiness that you need as you live each day for him.

Now, it is important that we see this, because if we don’t we will have a wrong view of our standing before God…

And if we have a wrong view of our standing before God… when we sin…

We will withdraw from God.

So many times in my life when I would struggle with sin, I would hide from God and I would think that his view of me had changed

Like he was disappointed in me and so I now couldn’t come to him

And I am sure that I am not the only one who has felt that way.

And when we do this, it is because we have an insufficient view of Jesus as our perfect priest, who intercedes for us perfectly and preserves us faithfully.

In fact, I want to read you this quote from Gerry Breshears that sums this up so well:

“A general lack of love, grace, mercy, or patience are often the product of a deficient understanding of Jesus as priest… As a result, God seems primarily cold, distant, stern, harsh, and even cruel. This Jesus sits on a throne far away and yells at us but never gets off that throne to help. He's just sitting there, disappointed, waiting for us to mess up. In short, this is a God that we are more prone to run away from than toward in our time of need. The result of this error is either despair or pride, but not worship, humility, or joy. Because God is a boss who yells at us, this form of religion traps us into a cycle where if we think we're doing well, we get proud, and if we think we're doing poorly, we get depressed. At no point do we receive loving help because Jesus is not fully valued as a priest.” - Gerry Breshears

Is that the view you have of God?

If so, you need to hear these words from Heb. 4

Because Jesus sympathizes with our weakness…

because He understands temptation without sharing our guilt…

because He provides the holiness we lack…

That is precisely why we should run to Him, not from Him.

When you are struggling in something, you go to the one who will understand right? You go to someone who you think can help, right.

Jesus is both - He understands and he can help

And he is ready and willing to do so

He came in humility, to provide the holiness that we need

So don’t run away from him in fear… Run to him in confidence

Which leads us to our third point…

As the perfect priest…

Jesus ensures our access to God (16) [31:00]

Look with me at v. 16

Hebrews 4:16 “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

Just a few verses earlier, we were told that we stand exposed before the Word of God.

But now, the author says, “Draw near with confidence.”

God’s is still God… He is still seated on a throne

God is still holy and still judge

So how is it that we can come to the throne with confidence?

For those who are in Christ, it is no longer a throne of condemnation.

It is a throne of grace.

Do you see it in v. 16?

“Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace”

God did not change.

Instead, through Christ, God changed us

Our standing before Him was transformed by the work of Jesus, our perfect priest

Because he intercedes for us and preserves us…

It isn’t that God changed - It is that our relationship to him changed

Imagine a courtroom… with a judge…

To walk in a courtroom as a defendant is scary

And what you will receive from him is a judgment.

But to walk into that courtroom as the child of that judge is totally different

Same judge. Same authority. Same power. But a completely different relationship.

At that first Christmas, the Son of God left heaven’s throne to enter our world.

He laid aside glory, took on flesh, and walked into our weakness.

He told us that he came not to condemn the world, but to save it.

And because He humbled Himself in the manger, endured the cross, and rose in victory, we are now invited to approach God… not as enemies, but as children.

And so we now have access to God to receive all that we need from him.

And there are two things that the text highlights that God gives when we come to him:

“…that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

In our times of need, what do we need most from God

Mercy and grace

Mercy is not pretending sin doesn’t matter, nor is it a denial of our guilt.

Mercy is that I don’t receive the punishment I deserve, and instead, I receive compassion.

Every time you come to God aware of your sin, aware of your failure, aware of your weakness, you and I can come confidently knowing that the promise is not judgment, but mercy.

And grace is more than forgiveness.

Grace is to receive something you don’t deserve

And what we receive is access to God

Grace is the unmerited favor that allows us to come to God, though we do not deserve to.

And that access to God empowers us, enables us, to live in God’s presence as his people.

To keep walking, to keep trusting, to keep repenting, to get up from our sin and to keep pursuing obedience and holiness.

Grace is what preserves you in trial and nourishes you when you are weak

All from the throne of God, the throne of grace.

Because we receive mercy, our sin is not held against us, so nothing keeps us from God

Because we receive grace, we have access to the fulness of God’s blessings, so nothing from God is kept from us

And because Jesus is interceding for us constantly and preserving us constantly, that mercy and grace comes whenever we need it.

Not late

Not once we clean ourselves up

At every time of need.

And there is an old him that captures this so well

“I need Thee ev'ry hour, most gracious Lord; no tender voice like Thine can peace afford.

I need Thee ev'ry hour, stay Thou nearby; temptations lose their pow'r when Thou art nigh.

I need Thee ev'ry hour, in joy or pain; come quickly and abide, or life is vain.

I need Thee ev'ry hour, teach me Thy will; and Thy rich promises in me fulfill.

I need Thee ev'ry hour, most Holy One; O make me Thine indeed, Thou blessed Son.

I need Thee, O, I need Thee; ev'ry hour I need Thee; O bless me now, my Savior, I come to Thee.”

And when we come, confident of our access to God through the intercession and preservation of Christ, we will receive the mercy and grace that we need… every hour.

[Gospel Call]

If you are not following Jesus by faith, but you are aware of your deep need for restoration with God…

… know that Christmas time is not one when we celebrate a story about a baby

It is when we remember that the God of the universe entered into our lives as a human to restore us to himself

And you can have the security of being restored to him only by putting your faith in Jesus, the one who understands your weaknesses and covers all your sin.

[Conclusion] 37:00

For all of us, I want you to reflect where you know you are in need

Where is sin close by and you need mercy and grace?

Where is life pressing in on you, and you need mercy and grace?

Where are the effects of sin feeling too great and you need mercy and grace?

There is only one place to go - To the throne of grace with confidence

To know that Jesus intercedes for you, preserves you, and will provide the mercy and grace that you and I need.

[Illustration]

John Newton was a english pastor who advocated for the abolition of the slave trade. But before this, he was the captain of slave ships

And he carried with him the guilt of knowing that he was responsible for so many slaves being captured and sold

And what was it that gave him comfort later in life, after he turned from his sin?

It was the confidence of knowing that Jesus interceded for him

“How unspeakably blessed to know that all our concerns lie in hands that bled for us.” John Newton

When Newton needed to know that he was forgiven, he looked nowhere else, but to Jesus as the perfect priest…

Who came in humility in the manger, he lived in holiness on earth, he died in substitution on the cross, he rose in victory from the grave.

And who is now exalted in majesty, as our great high priest, interceding for us perfectly and preserving us faithfully.

And you and I need look no further than that as well.

He

secures our relationship with God

provides our holiness before God

ensures our access to God

So there is nothing for us to do but to hold fast to the truth fo the Gospel and to draw near with confidence.

Amen.

[Communion]

Remember

Bread and Juice - Means of Grace

Don’t mock the cross

Instructions [GLUTEN FREE]

As you come, consider how these elements are the declaration that Jesus is interceding for you before the throne of God because of his shed blood and that he will preserve you until you see him face to face.