A Perfect High Priest -- Hebrews 7:11-28
Jesus is Superior (Book of Hebrews) • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 52:40
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Introduction
Introduction
We are concluding a very important portion of the book of Hebrews.
We opened up the book with a series of comparisons.
Jesus compared to the angels
Jesus compared to Moses
Jesus compared to us as human beings
Conclusion: Jesus is superior to any and everything in creation
This Jesus became flesh and dwelt among us
In becoming flesh, he opened a pathway to God the Father that only He could open.
The author then extends this by saying that Jesus Christ is a High Priest
He compares his High Priesthood to that of a guy named Melchizedek.
Today, we are going to look at the final segment in Jesus being appointed a high priest.
Next, we will get into his function as high priest.
This may not seem all that interesting or applicable to us.
Everything we have covered in this book is repeated elsewhere in the New Testament
We have seen the concepts of salvation by grace through faith
We have seen Jesus as the sacrifice and we will see more of that
We have seen the humanity of Jesus, then His exaltation to the right hand of God the Father.
The difference is that all of this uses OT references and Jewish custom to communicate these truths.
Gentiles like us wouldn’t be familiar with these references and customs.
But to this unique audience, it is an explosive text about Jesus, the gospel, and Christian living in difficult times.
Today, I hope to show you that in some ways, we don’t drift too far from the struggles of the Hebrews in their walk trying to follow Jesus.
Read Hebrews 7:11-28
If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood—and indeed the law given to the people established that priesthood—why was there still need for another priest to come, one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron?
For when the priesthood is changed, the law must be changed also.
He of whom these things are said belonged to a different tribe, and no one from that tribe has ever served at the altar.
For it is clear that our Lord descended from Judah, and in regard to that tribe Moses said nothing about priests.
And what we have said is even more clear if another priest like Melchizedek appears,
one who has become a priest not on the basis of a regulation as to his ancestry but on the basis of the power of an indestructible life.
For it is declared: “You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.”
The former regulation is set aside because it was weak and useless
(for the law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God.
And it was not without an oath! Others became priests without any oath,
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.’ ”
Because of this oath, Jesus has become the guarantor of a better covenant.
Now there have been many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office;
but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood.
Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.
Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens.
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.
For the law appoints as high priests men in all their weakness; but the oath, which came after the law, appointed the Son, who has been made perfect forever.
Pray
Introduce the priesthood
To start off with, I need to tie a few of our last sermons together. Those were building blocks for today’s primary point.
Jesus is being called this high priest. But having a high priest is something that we are unfamiliar with.
Last week, we looked at the promise that God swore to Abraham. A part of that promise was that the whole world would be blessed through his offspring.
A part of that blessing was fulfilled with the tribe of Levi.
The Levites became priests
They built the Tabernacle in the Wilderness and the Temple in the Promised Land
In the Tabernacle and Temple, God’s presence resided with the people.
Human beings were blessed with the presence of the Almighty God.
But it was more than this. God didn’t just live there separated from them.
They had access to God through the priests
They had atonement for their sins through the priests and the sacrificial system
They had a means of worship, where they could sing, give, and serve all in the presence of God
The priests served as the intercessor or the go-between between the presence of God and man.
Access to God
Atonement for sin
Means of worship
Intercessor between them and God
Draw Near to God Graphic
The priests had some very important rules they had to follow.
God was holy. They were sinful people. They had to make sacrifices for their own sins as well as the sins of the people.
There were important steps they had to take to be pure before the eyes of God
If they touched any unclean thing (like a dead body or bacon), there was a process God established by which they could purify themselves before being in the presence of God.
This was a critical position. Not anyone could do it. Only those from the tribe of Levi were selected for this role.
Re-Introduce Melchizedek
Another guy we are going to bring up today is Melchizedek (Mele-kee-tsedek)
This Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High. He met Abraham returning from the defeat of the kings and blessed him,
and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, the name Melchizedek means “king of righteousness”; then also, “king of Salem” means “king of peace.”
Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, resembling the Son of God, he remains a priest forever.
Melchizedek was a priest, but he was a different type of priest.
He was not a Levite. He was a priest before Levi was born.
God had declared Melchizedek priest. His priesthood was not based on tradition or lineage, rather on the appointment by God.
Melchizedek Graphic 2
Melchizedek also served some of the functions of what a priest would serve
Did he give access to God to Abraham? Yes
Sin isn’t mentioned in this passage, so we don’t know about that
Did he provide a means of worship? Yes, Abraham gave 10% as an act of worship
Did he act as an intercessor? Yes, he went to God on behalf of Abraham, then went to Abraham with a blessing on behalf of God.
Bottom line of this whole intro:
God desires relationship with His people. He made himself available to Abraham’s descendents. He dwelt among them and gave them a means to be with Him and know Him. This was through the priests.
Topic
Hebrews 7:11 (NIV)
If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood
To start off here, I want to talk about this word “Perfection”
It will be our critical word today. If you have your Bible or notes in front of you, I want you to highlight this word. You will connect it to a couple of other words in our text
We see “perfection” and we think, “absolutely perfect” That seems logical
Hebrews 2:10 says that our salvation is made perfect
The idea in the word “perfect” is completion.
Hebrews 5:9 says that Jesus was made perfect by what he had suffered.
Again, this does not mean that Jesus was imperfect, then suffered, and now somehow was made perfect.
It means that Jesus work was completed, made perfect, through the suffering he endured on the cross.
Now, here again we see the word “perfection”
I want you to interchange this with the idea of “completion”
When God’s will is complete, it is perfect
Perfection and completion go hand in hand.
If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood—and indeed the law given to the people established that priesthood—why was there still need for another priest to come, one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron?
For when the priesthood is changed, the law must be changed also.
If God’s perfect will could be completed through the Levitical priesthood, there would not be a need for a greater priesthood.
There would have been no need for Jesus.
But there are laws around the type of priest that we serve.
I want to highlight this. One question that came up was that Jesus did not come to abolish the law, but rather, he came to fulfil it.
That statement is absolutely true. And I believe it fits perfectly with this statement.
If there is a different type of priest, then there would be a different means of access to God.
The whole point is that humanity has access to God.
Keep verse 12 in your mind. It will define itself as we move forward.
He of whom these things are said belonged to a different tribe, and no one from that tribe has ever served at the altar.
For it is clear that our Lord descended from Judah, and in regard to that tribe Moses said nothing about priests.
He of whom these things are said.
Who is he talking about? This is Jesus. That has been established in the previous text.
Jesus descended from Judah, not Levi.
It was impossible based on the Levitical law for Jesus to be a priest.
No one from the tribe of Judah had ever served at the altar.
And what we have said is even more clear if another priest like Melchizedek appears,
one who has become a priest not on the basis of a regulation as to his ancestry but on the basis of the power of an indestructible life.
If a priest comes along that serves as a priest, but doesn’t fit the regulations of the law. We need to pay attention.
Jesus’ priesthood is not based on his ancestry.
Jesus’ priesthood is based on the power of an indestructible life.
I think this is really cool language.
Why do you think that Jesus would be identified as having an indestructible life?
Did they try to destroy His life? Yes, He was crucified.
What happened? He resurrected from the dead.
Death has no authority over Jesus.
This is a descriptor of a different type of priest that is mentioned by David is Psalm 110:4.
For it is declared: “You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.”
In his prophecy about Jesus, David says of Jesus: “You are a priest for how long?”
Forever.
In the order of Melchizedek. Not in the order of Levi.
The order of priest like Melchizedek is eternal.
There is no beginning and no end.
This is very different from the other priesthood.
The former regulation is set aside because it was weak and useless
This brings up the conversation we had in verse 12
For when the priesthood is changed, the law must be changed also.
The priesthood had changed. So the law surrounding the priesthood changed.
The law around the Levitical priesthood was weak and useless.
Why was it weak and useless?
Law Graphic
(for the law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God.
The law does not make anything perfect. It only shows imperfections.
Paul says it this way:
Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.
The law makes no one righteous. It only shows how unrighteous and unholy we are.
(for the law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God.
However, a better hope is introduced. This is the way we draw near to God.
This is the whole point of the priesthood.
It is the purpose of mankind
It is God’s unmoving and unchanging and perfect will
That mankind would draw near to God.
The world was blessed through the Levitical system.
Mankind was capable of drawing near to God through the Law given.
But now there is a better hope! There is a better way by which we can draw near to God!
And it was not without an oath! Others became priests without any oath,
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.’ ”
Last week’s discussion about an oath comes to the forefront now.
An oath is not simply a promise. It is God’s word in which He has made Himself accountable to follow through with His promise to completion.
This is meant to be an encouragement to us and serve as an anchor for our soul.
God’s oath is as secure as anything in all of creation.
It is the most stable and unchanging statement that has ever been uttered.
Is Psalm 110:4 the author quotes by saying, “The Lord has sworn and will not change His mind: You are a priest forever”
Jesus is an eternal priest.
This is huge. We have an unchanging, unmoving, means to draw near to God.
Because of this oath, Jesus has become the guarantor of a better covenant.
A snapshot of the old covenant
What we have seen is there with the old way of priesthood, there was an old set of laws.
The old set of laws were designed to allow people to draw near to God. However, this was incomplete (imperfect).
However, there would be a new priest, with a new means of drawing near to God that would bring to completion or perfection God’s will.
OLD WAYS DIAGRAM
Now there have been many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office;
OLD WAYS DIAGRAM
but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood.
Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens.
This high priest truly meets our need
How does He do this?
He does this because He is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.
This high priest truly meets our need.
I want you to hold onto that statement. We will come back to it.
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.
New Ways DIAGRAM
This last verse pounds home the point.
For the law appoints as high priests men in all their weakness; but the oath, which came after the law, appointed the Son, who has been made perfect forever.
Law vs. Oath
DIAGRAM COMPLETE
The Son has been made perfect forever.
Do you remember the word I wanted you to tie to the word “perfect”?
Complete
There is something about completion that happened when Jesus was appointed as high priest.
What was complete?
It was God’s promise. That He confirmed with an oath.
One day, the whole world would be blessed by the offspring of Abraham.
It was seen in part through humanity gaining the ability to approach God through the Old Covenant system.
But it was made complete. The promise was kept. The oath was fulfilled in Jesus.
Here is the picture
The Bible teaches that the wages of sin is death
When sin entered the world, there was separation from the Tree of Life. Death entered the world.
Sin and Death are intertwined
But Holiness, perfection and purity equal life
We have a high priest who is Holy, but brings us holiness
The old high priests would become unclean when they would touch something unclean
Jesus would make clean that which he touched.
FINAL DIAGRAM
Preach to the brokenhearted, there is one in every pew.
Application
He perfectly meets our need
We cannot use the old system and follow Jesus
We can draw near to God