A Greater Priest
Jesus is Greater: An Exposition of Hebrews

Below is an automated transcript of this message

Good morning church; it is good to see all of you here. We are in part eight of our series through the book of Hebrews. We’re in chapter five today. We’re going to take a short break after today and enter into a series for Christmas, for the month of December and we’ll come back to Hebrews in 2024, so place your marker there. You can read ahead and get ready, but we’re going to continue next year, going verse by verse through the book of Hebrews. Today, I would remind you that the theme of this passage is found in Hebrews 1:4 (NLT) “This shows that the Son is far greater than the angels, just as the name God gave him is greater than their names.” Jesus is greater than anything you’re facing today – that’s the theme of this book. In chapter five, we’re going to cover the first ten verses today of chapter five. We’ve entitled this sermon, “A Greater Priest.”

What is a priest? A priest is a mediator, a “go between” man and God, someone who can stand in the middle. We’ve heard, over these past few weeks, that the author of Hebrews has been helping us understand how Jesus is the fulfillment of every type, of every metaphor, of every sacrifice in the Old Testament and how Jesus is the fulfillment of the Old Testament. The author of Hebrews is very much interested in letting us see this. He’s greater than all of those that we see in the Old Testament. He’s the fulfillment.

So far, in the first five chapters, we’ve learned that he’s greater than the angels. He has a greater name than any other name. He’s greater than Moses. He’s greater than Joshua. He’s greater, even, than the Sabbath. Today, in chapter five, we’ll find out that He’s greater than Aaron and all of the high priests that came after Aaron and so, He is the great high priest.

As I was thinking about this message today, I was thinking, Ok, what does it mean for us to have a “go-between,” someone who represents us, someone who knows more about something that can help us? I started thinking about how there’s this great “do it yourself” movement in America today. So, many people are learning to “do it yourself.” Along with that, has come Youtube, which gives you all of these “how to” videos that you can watch.

This past year, my sons and I put in an above ground pool in my backyard. We, also, built a deck around it. As we were building the deck around it, every night I was watching Youtube videos on how to build the substructure, so that every morning, when my sons would show up, I could be like an expert because I was watching all of these Youtube videos. Sometimes, we had to do some “do overs” because we didn’t quite understand something, but all in all, I think we saved some money doing it ourselves.

Now, you don’t want to watch a Youtube video on how to do heart surgery. You don’t want to watch a Youtube video on how to do a knee replacement on yourself. There are some categories, if you were in a courtroom and your life was on the line that you probably would want to hire an attorney, a mediator to go between you and the judge. If it’s a life and death situation, I would recommend that you get some help; that you get a mediator.

A mediator was basically what a priest was in the Old Testament. It was someone who could stand before Israel and their God, someone who could represent them and make them right with God. It reminds me of what Job, in the book of Job, was feeling. He was being accused even by his best friends. He couldn’t figure out why so many bad things were happening in his life. It says this in Job 9:33-35 (NLT) 33 “If only there were a mediator between us, someone who could bring us together. 34 The mediator could make God stop beating me, and I would no longer live in terror of his punishment. 35 Then I could speak to him without fear, but I cannot do that in my own strength.” Job felt like God was against him. He wondered, Why am I going through such a bad season in my life? I wish there was someone between me and God.

Do you ever feel like that? Do you feel like you are all alone? Do you ever feel distant from God? Do you wish that there was someone that could represent you, that would understand what you are going through?

The author of Hebrews is telling us that we have that person. His name is Jesus. He’s the great high priest. He’s the ultimate fulfillment of all of the priestly order of the Old Testament. He’s the one to represent us before God.

In the book of Hebrews chapter five, the first ten verses, he talks to these Hebrew background believers and says, ‘Look, all of that that you learned back here was all good, but it all points to its fulfillment in Jesus. He begins to explain to them why Jesus is the greater high priest. He’s the greatest. He’s the fulfillment.

I believe, as we study these ten verses, we’ll find three reasons why Jesus is the greater high priest for us. Let’s look at verses one through ten of chapter five:

Hebrews 5:1-10 (ESV) 1 “For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. 2 He can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset with weakness. 3 Because of this he is obligated to offer sacrifice for his own sins just as he does for those of the people. 4 And no one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, just as Aaron was. 5 So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him, “You are my Son, today I have begotten you”; 6 as he says also in another place, “You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek.” 7 In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. 8 Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. 9 And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, 10 being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek.” This is God’s word. Amen.

THREE REASONS WHY JESUS IS THE GREATER HIGH PRIEST:

1. Because He better fulfills the personal requirement.

We’re going to look at the first four verses as we consider this first reason. Notice that the first requirement here is that He would be chosen from among men. The high priest needs to be human. He needs to come from among men. It was necessary for Jesus to become a man in order to represent us. The first personal requirement is that He has to be chosen from among men.

As we were leaving chapter four last week, those final three verses, verses 14, 15 and 16, we saw in verse 14 that Jesus is the great high priest. He’s greater. Then, it went on to describe that He was able to sympathize with our suffering. This is what we saw at the end of chapter four.

Now in chapter five, the author of Hebrews wants to really talk about how Jesus has fulfilled, in detail, this necessary requirement of being human and, and all that that entails. He’s qualified to do the job of a high priest. He begins to describe this, in verse 1, “For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins.” That’s why Jesus came and became one of us so that He would understand us and so that He could represent us before God as one of us. We see that in verse one.

Then, in verse two, it says, 2 “He can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset with weakness.” He is one that understands our weakness; that is one of the qualifications for Aaron and his sons. Aaron was the brother of Moses, who God appointed to be the first high priest over Israel. Because He was human, hopefully He would deal gently with people who stumbled and were ignored or wayward. He would understand what that felt like.

Sometimes, when we see someone that’s struggling in the same place we’ve struggled, we don’t show them grace because it reminds us of our own trouble. Jesus, however, as we last week, is fully acquainted with our struggles and He sympathizes with us. He’s superior to the human priest and He knows this weakness, but He definitely deals gently with us .

Notice that it says in verse three, “Because of this he is obligated to offer sacrifice for his own sins just as he does for those of the people.” It was true for all of those priests back there, but it’s not true for Jesus because Jesus was sinless.

Let’s back up and look at what a high priest has to do. Verse one, it says to “offer gifts and sacrifices for sins.” The high priest was to be busy, along with all of the Levite priests, offering gifts and sacrifices that represented the people towards God.

There are these different categories that you consider. This is a model of the Tabernacle in the wilderness, the tent of meeting (Pastor Gary shows a pic on the screen). You can see that this enclosure was closed off, that only the Jewish men were allowed in here. They would have these categories of offering: sacrifices of oxen, bulls, cows, sheep, lambs, rams, goats, turtle doves, pigeons, grains, flour, parched wheat, unleavened breads, cakes and wafers. This place was busy. It was continuously working to represent the people of Israel before God, offering gifts and offerings.

Let me just give you one week in the calendar of Israel. (Next picture) This is the first seven days of Succoth. Succoth was the feast of tabernacles. The assignment to the temple was as follows: On the first day of Succoth, they would offer thirteen bulls, two rams, fourteen lambs, making a total of twenty-nine animals. Twenty-nine animals were to be sacrificed that the high priest and the Levites were to offer. You can see every day, the first seven days, it was a total of 182 animals that were sacrificed.

You know, when Jesus says, “Come unto me, ye that are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest,” He was talking about the labor that was going into trying to be right with God. All of these sacrifices required a high priest, who had to be qualified and follow the book of Leviticus and know exactly how to offer all these animals in order to make it right with God. May I say that not one of them made it right with God. It’s kind of like when you write a check; it’s just a piece of paper. It has no value. You sign your name. It’s got this code at the bottom of these numbers that show your bank and your routing number. Basically, it’s a trust note, saying that I trust you that the money is actually in your bank. When I present this check, they’ll actually give me the money. But, if you think about it, a check is just a worthless document unless there’s a deposit that matches it on the other end.

That’s who Jesus is. He’s the deposit. He made all of those offerings good when He came and offered Himself. This is Jesus. He is the great high priest. He fulfills the aspect, but there might be one troubling detail here as we consider this –did He have to offer sacrifices for Himself, like in verse three? No, but Aaron did.

The high priest, on the day of Yom Kippur, the day of atonement, when would bring the lamb. This is the only day he was allowed to go into the Holy of Holies, bring the blood of the lamband sprinkle it on the mercy seat, which was the ark of the covenant, but he couldn’t go in there until he sacrificed for himself. Aaron was required to lay his hands upon a bull right in front of the Tabernacle before he could go in. He had to cut the throat of the bull himself and gather the blood in a bowl. Then, he was supposed to pray over this and say, ‘God, forgive me of my sins and my transgressions, not only for myself, but for my family. Lord, make me right with You now, as your priest, before I go into Your tabernacle. He would go in with the blood and he would go to the altar of the incense, that was right in front of the curtain that separated the holy place from the Holy of Holies. The Ark of the Covenant was on the other side of the curtain. He would go to the altar of incense; it had horns on the sides of the table. He would dip his thumb into the blood and he would anoint the four horns around it. Then, he would pray and he would send up incense that was burning. He would pour the rest of the blood out at the foot of the altar of incense. That was only the beginning of what he had to do on Yom Kippur to get himself right before he could represent the people of Israel with the lamb to carry into the Holy of Holies.

We can see, in the book of Leviticus, the instruction to Aaron. It’s in Leviticus 16:11 (ESV) “Aaron shall present the bull as a sin offering for himself, and shall make atonement for himself and for his house. He shall kill the bull as a sin offering for himself.” He had to do that himself. Jesus doesn’t have to do that because He is sinless. He’s a greater high priest. He’s a sinless high priest . He’s human.

There is one detail here. Verse four speaks of Aaron that he was appointed by God. No one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, just as Aaron was. Now, here’s the thing about Aaron. Aaron was the older brother of Moses. He’s three years older. It says in the Bible that he’s three years Moses’ elder. Moses was the one that God called to deliver the people. God told Moses to anoint his brother, Aaron, to be the high priest. He was to make him these special clothes for the high priest. Moses anointed Aaron. Then, God said that He wanted his sons after him to fill that role. So, you had to be a son of Aaron in order to be a high priest.

Jesus was ahead, in every regard, until we got to that requirement. He was not born to the line of Aaron. Aaron and Moses are in the tribe of Levi and all the priests were Levites. They are all from that tribe or they couldn’t be a high priest. You had to not only be a Levite, but you had to be from the line of Aaron to be a priest. Does Jesus miss out on this one aspect?

Our preacher of Hebrews is not finished. He’s getting ready to explain it to us. But as he closes, in verse four, he’s just reminding us that even Aaron didn’t get to choose himself. God chose him through Moses, but Jesus is the greater high priest. We’re going to leave that open until we get to verse five and six, where we’ll answer how Jesus fulfills that requirement.

In Hebrews chapter two, we see that he makes a point that Jesus fulfills the human requirement, Hebrews 2:17 (ESV) “Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.” He became human. He became like us . He became one of us, in every respect and His credentials are superior.

In Hebrews chapter four, of last week, we read this, Hebrews 4:14-15 (ESV) 14 “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. 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.” He’s the only one that can pass beyond the veil of heaven.

We recognize this credential; this superiority. When I was thinking about this, it reminded me of how we have personal requirements today. In July 1956, President Eisenhower created the President’s Council on Youth Fitness by Executive Order. Do any of you remember this? The president required six exercises that you had to do twice a year. At the beginning of the year, they would measure your height and your weight and then, they would test you on the president’s fitness test. At the end of the year, they would do it again. The test consisted of pull-ups, sit-ups, shuttle run, standing broad, 50-yard dash and a 600-yard run. If you exceeded all of the test requirements, you would get a patch, a metal – the president’s fitness test medal. I never got one. I was too scrawny. I did well on the 600-yard run; I had great endurance, but it was those pull ups that always got me. Iwas too scrawny in those days. I was a late bloomer, so I never qualified, but Jesus has qualified, in every regard, except the last one.

Here’s the last one that we have to think about. How does He get around this problem that He’s not from the line of Aaron? Jesus is not even from the tribe of Levi. He’s born to the tribe of David. He’s born to the tribe of Judah, which fulfills His right to the throne as king, but how do we navigate His credentials that He has a right to be high priest? Let’s keep reading. If we keep reading verses five and six, we’ll come to the second reason that He is a superior high priest.

THREE REASONS WHY JESUS IS THE GREATER HIGH PRIEST:

2. Because He has a superior priestly pedigree.

The author returns, once again, to quoting the Old Testament as has been his habit throughout this book. He quotes, first of all, chapter two, verse seven of the book of Psalms, “The Lord said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you.”

Here’s the book of Hebrews, talking about the Messiah. He was talking about Jesus, that He’s been appointed by God. Then, he says in verse six, “as he says also in another place, “You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek.” Here, he’s quoting Psalm 110:4, “The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, “You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.” I bet the Jewish background believers in the audience said, ‘We’ve been wondering about that guy. He just flashes like a lightning bolt across the pages of the Bible.’

We only hear from him twice in the whole old Testament. He’s over there in Genesis 14 and Psalm 110:4. Who is this guy, this Melchizedek? The author of Hebrews is saying that he fulfills that part because he is from a superior pedigree, a superior lineage. First of all, “Melchi,” in Hebrew, means “king;” “zedek” means righteousness. So, his name means “king of righteousness.”

If we go over to the book of Genesis, chapter 14, we see the story that Abram’s nephew, Lot, and his family and other members of the people that lived in Sodom and Gomorrah had been captured by these five kings, led by this one king named Chedorlaomer, who carried them away. Abram took his servants and they armed themselves, pursued and God gave them the victory. They brought all those people back. So in Genesis chapter 14, we encounter his return. Let me read this scripture to you: Genesis 14:17-20 (ESV) 17 “After his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley). 18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine.”

Let’s just pause there for a second. The king of righteousness, who was the king bringing out bread and wine to who? He was bringing to Abraham. There’s a lot going on here. Oh, by the way, he was the priest of God most high, so, he’s a king and he’s a priest.

Genesis 14:17-20 continues, (He was priest of God Most High.) 19 And he blessed him and said, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, possessor of of heaven and earth; 20 and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!” And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.”

Abram paid him a tithe. Who is this guy? This is awesome. He’s the king of righteousness. He’s the king of peace, the king of Salem, who may be a precursor of Jerusalem. He shows up, he’s also the priest of God most high and he brings forth bread and wine like a precursor to the Lord’s supper or to the Passover. It’s all so beautiful. Some suggest that, perhaps, Melchizedek was a “Christophany;” and old Testament appearance of the pre-incarnate Christ. Perhaps it was or perhaps it’s just imagery that the author of Hebrews wants to pick up and say, ‘No, it was always meant for Jesus to be both the priest and the sacrifice. He predates the type. The type was Aaron and his sons, but Jesus was always the deposit . He was always the one Who would fulfill it all.’

So, Melchizedek “flashes” onto the pages of the Bible. Later in the book of Hebrews, it talks more about him. All of those sons of heirs died and they had to keep being replaced, but Jesus is a priest forever. He passes through the heavens and stands into the real place, not the type, which is the Tabernacle. He’s got a better pedigree. He’s got a better “resume.” y

It says in Hebrews 8:6 (NLT) “But now Jesus, our High Priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood, for he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God, based on better promises.” So, the New Testament is the new covenant. and Jesus is the high priest of the new covenant, which is a far better covenant with far better promises. He’s the forever priest.

It says in 1 Timothy 2:5 (ESV) “For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” He’s got a better “resume.” He comes from a better pedigree that predates the Aaron priesthood, from the line of Melchizedek. Jesus is from the “king of righteousness” line from the “king of peace” line. That’s where He comes from.

Now, if you apply for a job, there’s a lot of jobs that require that you have letters at the end of your name. You must have an MD or a PHD or some other letters. I used to work for a drugstore chain right after I got out of college. I worked for the Jack Eckerd Corporation for twelve years. I ran drugstores. That’s how I ended up in Wilson, North Carolina. They transferred me down here. Well I thought that they did, but it turned out that God did. I got transferred down here from Roanoke, Virginia. I ran drugstores for twelve years. One of the things that I had to do is to recruit pharmacists. Pharmacists have to have letters after their name. They have to go to pharmacy school, then they have to pass a test and be licensed in the state that they work in. Here, they have to be licensed in the state of North Carolina. Every month, I used to drive to Chapel Hill, where the pharmacy board would meet. People would be moving to North Carolina from other states and they would have to get a license in North Carolina. For most states, they were called “reciprocating licenses.” They didn’t have to take the test over again; they could reciprocate their license, but they still had to appear before the Board of Pharmacy and the Board of Pharmacy had to make sure that they had the right letters after their name and that they had a license. I used to sit in the back of the room every month, along with district managers from CVS and Walgreens. We would all be sitting there with our notebooks. Somebody would stand up; each pharmacist had to stand before the board. The board is up on this elevated kind of platform. The pharmacist would say where they were from, where they went to school, where they got their pharmacy degree and where they’ve been practicing. The board would ask them these kinds of questions. Then, the board would ask, ‘Well, where do you plan on moving?’ I was listening for somewhere in eastern North Carolina. If they said they were moving somewhere to eastern North Carolina, I’d write their name down. As soon as it was over, I’d be standing outside. I would say to that person, ‘Hello, I’m Gary Combs with Eckerd drugs.’ I tried to beat CVS before they got a chance to talk to him, but I had to , first of all, make sure that they had the right “pedigree.” They had to have the right letters after their name. They had to have a license in the state of North Carolina; I couldn’t just put anybody back there with a lab coat on. They have to actually be a pharmacist before they are allowed back there.

Jesus didn’t have a PhD after His name. He didn’t have an MD after His name. He had six letters after His name – CHRIST. Christ, the anointed one, the Messiah, the Son of God. He’s got the right “pedigree.” He’s got a higher and greater “resume.” He’s the only one that can stand between us and the Father, represent, understand us and understand the Father’s heart at the same time.

THREE REASONS WHY JESUS IS THE GREATER HIGH PRIEST:

3. Because He offers a more perfect sacrifice.

We’re at verses 7 to 10. We’re going to “unpack” those verses now. Look at verse nine and circle the word “perfect.” Do you see the word, “perfect?” Jesus offered a perfect sacrifice. What was His sacrifice? His sacrifice was Himself. He offered Himself; no high priest before had ever offered himself. Jesus was both the high priest and the lamb of God, that John, the Baptist proclaimed as he saw Him coming to the river Jordan. John said, “Behold the lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world.”

Let’s look at verse seven. It begins with sort of a strange phrase, strange to our ears, “In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence.” “In the days of his flesh;” that’s what we’re doing right now. This is the “days of our flesh; we’re living in the “days of our flesh,” in other words, the days where our bodies are running down and will eventually die. These bodies are not built for eternity. They won’t make it. We’re thankful, though, that Jesus, in the days of His flesh, was a great priest. This was before He was crucified, resurrected and ascended. It was in those days when He was living in human weakness.

Now, does Jesus still have a body today? Yes, He does. The Bible says that He’s the first born from among the dead. The word, first born, is “prōtotokos.” That’s where we get the word, “prototype.”

1 John 3:2 says, “…But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.” We’re going to get a body like Christ, a glorified body, fit for heaven. When we see Him, He will be perfect in every regard, but I believe that He kept some scars. How do I know that He did? It is because Thomas saw them and fell on his face and he said, “My Lord and my God.” Jesus said to Thomas, “Look at my hands, look at my feet, put your hand into my side.” He still has those “badges of honor,” but he’s still the God man. He’s still the prototype. He’s the first born from among the dead.

When it says, “in the days of the flesh,” it’s not diminishing the reality that He is still the one that we will see in bodily form, yet is glorified. Just in those few verses, we could look at it like this: When He was on earth in those thirty-three years, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to Him who was able to save Him from death. He’s offering up like a priest, using that word, “offering.” He’s offering up what? He is offering up loud cries and tears. This is in the garden of Gethsemane. This is Him in the garden. He’s praying to Him who’s able to save. That’s His Father. He’s praying to the Father who can save Him from death and He was heard because of His reverence . That word, “reverence,” could be translated, “submissive, the idea of submitting himself.

Why is Jesus crying in the garden? It’s the night before His crucifixion. Have you ever contemplated why He crying out, “My God, let this cup pass from me.” His tears are like great drops of blood, falling from his forehead, like sweat and tears. Why is he crying? Is it because He already knows how He’s going to be mocked, how they’re going to hit Him in the face with their fists and say, “Prophesy, if you’re the Messiah. Tell us who hit you.” Does He know that? Yes, He does. He knows that. Is it because He knows He’s going to be whipped with the cat of nine tails, one of the most horrific torture methods that the Romans had ever invented? This torture device would completely open up his back, even to the bone. Was it because of that? He knew about that . He knew what was coming. He wasn’t one Who was going to the cross without knowing what He was going to go through. Is that why He was crying? Is that why He was praying and going back out to His disciples and saying, ‘Couldn’t you even stay awake for one hour and pray with Me? I’m all alone.’ Is it because He knew He would be hung on the cross? Was He afraid of death? Is that why He’s crying? Is that why He’s offering up tears as if they were sacrifices?

I think there’s another reason. I think it’s the significant reason. This is my opinion. I was praying about this week. Jesus was not afraid of anything. He knew what was coming. He submitted to the Father in reverence and said , “Not my will but yours be done.” I think that He was crying because He has never been out of fellowship with the Father for all eternity. He only fears one thing–broken fellowship with His Father. He can’t imagine that because He’s never experienced it, so He cries out from the cross, “Eli Eli Lama Sabachthani,” which was prophesied in Psalm 22:1. David wrote those very words, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?…” I think that’s why He offered up this offering of tears and prayers, this offering of loud cries because He knew He was about to be separated from the Father. I believe that’s what was going on. He submits himself.

Verse eight says, “Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered.” How can He learn anything? How can the Son of God, Who knew what was in men’s hearts, Who knows all things, learn anything?

Think about it like this. You can learn something from a book. You can learn something from a movie, you can learn something because somebody tells you what they’ve been through, but you hadn’t really learned a thing till you’ve experienced a thing. He knew about the cross. He knew about the beating; He knew about the mocking. He knew what was coming. But He learned, He experienced obedience to suffering.

Verse nine says, “And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him,” Now, wasn’t He always perfect? Yes. Perfect in character, perfect in demeanor, perfect in word, perfect in deed, perfect in every regard. He needed to experience suffering and die as a representative so that He could be perfect as a sacrifice.

The word “perfect,” is “teleioō” in Greek. It could also be translated “complete, finished,” which is why I believe, from the cross. He says, “It is finished,” which comes from that same Greek root word. In other words, “paid in full.” All of those sacrifices for all those days, for all those years, all of those “checks written on a future deposit,” which are always pointing to Jesus, “It is finished.” The offering is made perfect. He has paid it all; “It is finished” and He gave up His spirit because He was finished. He had done what He came to do. This is our Jesus. This is Who we glorify, this is Who we lift up. He’s our great high priest. He’s the go-between, the mediator between God and man. He’s the only one Who could accomplish this. He suffered in our place and, as a result, being made perfect, He became the source of eternal salvation. He became the author. He became the only way to have salvation to all who obey Him.

This speaks of the type of faith we’re to have in Him. It’s not just faith as a concept or a philosophy, but it’s obedient faith that says, ‘I surrender my life to You.’

Then, he says in verse 10, “being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek.” The word, “designated,” in the original Greek, is a word that comes from the marketplace. It reminds me, again, of my former life, working in drugstores. Back in those days, you would put prices on products. Do you remember when they used to do that? Now, we have to look at a UPC label and hope for the best. We used to put sale stickers on things back in the day, so you could be sure. That word, “designated” has the idea of “to affix a price or value to a thing,” “to look at a thing and designate it worthy of this.” That’s the kind of word that is being valued by God, the high priest after the order of Melchizedek. God can choose who He wants to choose, and He chose Jesus after the order of Melchizedek, who had no beginning and no end, to be the author of eternal salvation and the perfect sacrifice.

The book of Hebrews, chapter two, tells us that He was a perfect sacrifice. It says in Hebrews 2:10 (ESV), “For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering.”

Jesus talks about this in John chapter 10. He says in John 10:17-19 (ESV), 17 “For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. Ihave authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.” That’s why He came. He came to “pay in full.” He came to be a perfect sacrifice.

These are the three reasons why Jesus is our one and only mediator, our great high priest. Let us therefore, with confidence, come close, come near to the Father through Jesus, whom we worship on this first day of the week. We’re reminded, as we need to be, because we are forgetful people, of what Jesus has done for us.

Over these past few Sundays, I have started a habit of singing to you a little bit. I thought, as I finished up the book of Hebrews, of one more hymn that would fit. I was thinking of Him being the perfect sacrifice and it reminded me of that song, written by a Baptist pastor named Robert Lowry. He wrote this hymn in 1876. It still rings true today. Maybe you’ll recognize the words.

Nothing But the Blood of Jesus What can wash away my sin? O precious is the flow Nothing but the blood of Jesus. that makes me white as snow; What can make me whole again? no other fount I know; Nothing but the blood of Jesus. nothing but the blood of Jesus.

He shed His blood, once for all, and there are no more sacrifices necessary. He has done it all. It is finished. He is our great high priest.

Let’s talk to Him now. ‘Lord Jesus, I pray for that person that’s here today and they’ve sensed Your presence in their life, but they’ve never surrendered their life to You. They’re ready today. They’re ready to come to You and through You, to the Father.’ Is that you, my friend? Would you pray with me right now, right where you’re seated, pray like this, “Dear Father, I’m a sinner. I confess my sins. I believe in your Son, Jesus, that He died for my sins, that He was raised on the third day and that He lives today. I invite Him to come into my life. Lord Jesus, would you come into my life right now? Forgive me of my sin. Make me what You want me to be. Clean up my life and adopt me into Your family. I want to be a child of God. I give my life to You as my Lord and my Savior. I surrender to You.” If you’re praying that prayer of faith, believing, the scripture says that you will be saved and you’ll become a part of God’s family. Others are here today, and maybe you haven’t been feeling close to God. Maybe you’ve been feeling lonely. Maybe you’ve been saying, ‘Noone understands.’ You’re a follower of Jesus, but you feel a distance right now between you and the Father. Would you come near? Would you recognize that Jesus paid it all? There’s nothing left for you to pay? ‘Come near, Lord Jesus. Would You draw me near to the Father right now afresh? Would You cause me to be able to hear from You now? Holy Spirit, would You press in so that I might hear Your voice? I know that You understand. I trust You. Help me as I come to the throne of grace right now in my time of need. Would you help me?’ We pray this is Jesus’ name. Amen.