Chapter breakdown:
The greatness of Melchizedek: A Biblical Example of a High Priest (7:1–10). Melchizedek is presented as a high priest who continually remained to minister to his people. His name carried with it the suggestion of righteousness, and his receiving tithes from and offering blessings to Abraham showed his greatness.
The New Priesthood Supersedes the Old (7:11–14). Why did God’s people require a new high priest? The Levitical priesthood could not bring the people to God (v. 11). This sad condition led God to establish Jesus as High Priest in a new order which could genuinely relate people to God (vv. 12–14).
The Superiority of the New Priesthood (7:15–28). Why was Jesus’ priesthood for His people so important? God’s oath to establish Jesus as a High Priest gave this office a stronger foundation (vv. 15–22). What God supported with an oath would become a reality. In Jesus we have a permanent priesthood, not one subject to change with the death of the priest (vv. 23–25). Finally, we have in Jesus a High Priest of superior character (vv. 26–28). Jesus is holy, blameless, pure, and set apart from sinners. With a high priest of this quality, believers have an unfailing supply of divine grace.
Summary:
Purity, eternality, and superiority! These three features make Jesus a perfect representative for all of us stumbling sinners. We need someone of spotless character and superior position to represent us before God with stability. Praise God we have this in Jesus!
God appointed the house of Aaron from the tribe of Levi to represent His Old Testament people before Him. The laws that Aaron and his priests administered could point out mistakes and sins, but they could not provide power for holy living. The priests who followed Aaron became greedy, immoral, self-centered, and powerless to help others. They elevated themselves to places they were never meant to be at. They were part of the problem instead of the solution. They could not help the people to practice godliness because they were not godly.
God saw this problem and gave us an entirely new representative. He established Jesus in a new priestly order patterned after an Old Testament priest-king named Melchizedek. In serving as our High Priest, Christ brought with Him to the position a prominence and power enabling Him to do a superior job. He assumed a position of superiority and predominance. He was God’s Son. Just as the Old Testament priest-king Melchizedek received honor and recognition from Abraham (7:4–10), Christ received honor and glory from God’s angels (Heb. 1:6). Jesus’ greatness qualified Him to be a great representative for us before God.
In serving as our High Priest, Christ also served eternally and completely. The Aaronic high priests died generation after generation. Often the replacement for a priest was less godly than his predecessor. Just as Melchizedek remained a priest forever, Jesus serves us as priest forever. He has assumed a permanent priesthood, and He will never require a replacement. His eternal priesthood allowed Him to give us the complete salvation we desperately need. His eternal priesthood allows Him to present Himself one time for the sins of His people. His single sacrifice eternally accomplishes the job of bringing us to God.
In serving as our High Priest, Christ also brought with Him purity. No one could uncover sin in Jesus. His own friends witnessed of Him, “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth” (1 Pet. 2:22). Even His enemies remained silent when He challenged them to point out sin in His life (John 8:46). Those who found fault with Jesus accused Him of associating with sinners (Mark 2:15–17). We glory in Jesus’ ability to heal people who are morally sick and make them righteous. In Jesus we have a Savior who is ”holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens” (Heb. 7:26).
Purity, eternality, and superiority! These are the traits which is displayed in Jesus. This is the kind of high priest God gives us in Jesus. This is the kind of representative who can bring us into God’s presence. This is the type of high priest who can produce other holy people.
PRINCIPLES
- In Jesus, God has given us a great and powerful representative in His presence. In Jesus God provided struggling sinners better access to Him than Old Testament believers ever had.
- The ministry of Old Testament priests did not produce godly people.
- Jesus’ ministry for us is effective because it is eternal.
- Jesus’ ministry for us is effective because Jesus has spotless character.
- Jesus’ sacrifice was effective as it was once for all and there is no need for it to be repeated.
APPLICATIONS
- Offer praise and thanksgiving to God for the greatness of the ministry which Christ has for you.
- Let us take some time and just be in awe of Jesus and His greatness. With this chapter, let us think of the ways He has not only granted us greater access to the Father, but also how He makes us pure and holy, because He is and always has been pure, holy, and eternal.
- Find hope in the fact that Christ is able to save you completely and for all eternity.
- Cast the burden of your sins on Christ because His sacrifice has paid for all your sins. No matter what you have failed at, give that guilt and shame to Christ.
- Make no excuses for your own failures. Confess your sins and repent of them. And claim strength and forgiveness from Christ to move forward in obedience.
How Chapter 7 applies to us:
How many times have you heard someone say, “Nobody’s perfect?” How many times have we used this excuse ourselves? People use this excuse to cover up halfhearted commitment. It is used to explain our own lack of character or integrity. It is used to defend a sin or doing something we know we should not do. The excuse contains both truth and error.
“Nobody’s perfect” contains truth because the Bible reminds us that “there is no one righteous, not even one” (Rom. 3:10). All people, including both believers and nonbelievers, have a sinful nature and will fall into sin. Even the best of us still fall prey to self-seeking and self-glory. There is lies, spite, hate, and dishonesty even in God’s saints!
The statement contains error because we use it to cover up our own failure to obey. Instead of admitting our sins, confessing them to God, and repenting of them, we claim, “Nobody’s perfect!” Somehow, we think that this excuses our moral weakness.
Jesus is in the business of perfecting imperfect people. That’s what His high priesthood is all about. Jesus’ death has paid for all our sins. In God’s presence, He is praying for us. When we confess our failures and repent of our sin, God offers us forgiveness through Jesus. Confession, forgiveness, and repentance are processes through which God perfects imperfect people. The perfect sacrifice of Christ, His godly character, and His enduring prayers can take weak people and move them toward God.
We have in Christ a Savior and High Priest who can take imperfect people and lead them to holiness. Christ prays for us. He offers forgiveness when we come to Him with confession and repentance. He is eternally available to offer His encouragement and support. We have in Jesus a priest who can take us in our imperfections and make us what we should be.
Topic: The Superiority of Jesus
When it comes to spiritual matters, people are peculiar. They become obsessed with angels or saints or rituals, but somehow ignore or forget the God who is the Creator and sovereign over all things. They devote themselves to seeking and understanding “truth,” but they never encounter the Holy One who encompasses all truth. They engage in all sorts of rituals and practices to try to find and reach out to their Creator; but they somehow miss the fact that He has already reached down to them.
This is the case today, just as it was in the first century. In fact, this spiritual “peculiarity'” is one of the reasons the Spirit of God inspired the letter to the Hebrews. To Jewish Christians who were dealing with persecution and hardship, who were doubting the truth of the gospel and the New Covenant, and who were considering the idea of turning away, the writer of Hebrews sent this clear message: Christ is the Ultimate.
More than a mere prophet, Christ is God in the flesh (1 :2, 3, 8). He is Creator (1:10—12) and Sustainer of all (1:3). As the “holy, innocent, undefiled” High Priest who is “separated from sinners” and who does not need to offer up sacrifices “for His own sins” (7:26, 27), Jesus Christ alone is capable of providing salvation and sanctification (2:10, 11).
Given these facts, it is easy to see why the author of Hebrews states that Christ is better than the angels (1:4). It is clear why even Moses pales in comparison No wonder Hebrews states that Christ is the Author and Mediator of a better covenant (7:22; 8:6) that He offered a better sacrifice for sin (9:23), that He possesses a more excellent name (1:4), and that He carries out a more excellent ministry (8:6).
We must resist the temptation to settle for a superficial spirituality. Angels, rituals, and human role models all have their place. But none of these things compares to Christ. And therein lies the staggering promise of the gospel: Jesus Christ comes to us and offers Himself. Because of His perfect payment for sins, we can find the forgiveness we so desperately need. More than that, we can experience eternal life, which Jesus Himself described as an intimate, never-ending relationship with God the Father and God the Son. Given that mind-boggling opportunity, why would we look anywhere else or settle for anything less?