‘SUCH A HIGH PRIEST’ – Hebrews 8:1-6
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on June 10, 2015 under PM Bible Study |
PM Home Bible Study Group; June 10, 2015
Hebrews 8:1-6
Theme: After describing Jesus’ superiorities over the Old Covenant priesthood, the writer stresses the glorious truth that “We have such a High Priest”.
(These notes are adapted from a message preached at Bethany Bible Church on May 23, 2010. All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated.)
In our last time together, we saw how the writer of Hebrews delved into a deep theological topic—one that is truly glorious. He wrote about the ministry of our Lord Jesus as High Priest. He stressed, however, that Jesus’ priesthood was not of the same order as that of the priesthood that was established in the law given through Moses. The members of that Old Covenant priesthood could only come from the tribe of Levi through the lineage of Moses’ brother Aaron; and Jesus was not of that lineage. He was born of the tribe of Judah, and was of the royal lineage of King David.
Instead, the writer of Hebrews tells us, Jesus ministered from a completely different order of priesthood—one that was established long before Moses or Aaron; one that, in fact, received honor from Levi while he was still in the body of his father Abraham. Jesus serves as High Priest in the priestly order of Melchizedek (Genesis 14:18-20; Psalm 110:4). All of Chapter 7 was occupied with the writers effort to describe this great man Melchizedek (7:1-3); and then to show us how Jesus—serving a New Covenant priesthood on our behalf in the order of Melchizedek—is a greater High Priest than could ever have served us on the basis of the Old Covenant. As we saw, Jesus’ High Priestly ministry stands superior to the Old Covenant priesthood as one that received tithes from Levi through Abraham (7:4-10), one that promised to annul the priesthood of the law (11-19), one in which He was confirmed in His ministry by a direct oath from God (vv. 20-22), and one in which He Himself is made perpetual in His priesthood by the fact that He is eternal and undefiled (vv. 23-28).
It’s a high and lofty theme—one that we won’t take up time to review now; but that is very much worthy of our careful study. We should praise God for the glorious theological truth of Jesus’ superior priesthood on our behalf.
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But we should do far more than simply study this great theme. We should completely trust the superior priesthood of Jesus for every need that we have before a holy God. That, above all else, is the great burden of the writer. He wanted his Jewish readers to give themselves over to the ministry of Jesus’ priesthood with absolute confidence—no longer clinging to the now-replaced older forms of the Old Covenant priesthood, and no longer seeking to earn God’s favor on the basis of the ceremonial laws that that older priesthood served.
Perhaps the writer was concerned that this was such a complicated theological reality that his readers might have a hard time trying to grasp it all. He had already expressed frustration that his readers didn’t yet have the maturity to grasp the things that he wished to express to them (see 5:11); and he felt he needed to take the time to explain the differences between the two priesthoods to these Jewish Christian readers. We, of course, can be glad that he did; because the truths that he outlined show us the ministry of Jesus on our behalf as well—that is, as Gentiles who have also trusted Him. That may be why the writer summarizes his theme by saying, “Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such a High Priest . . .” (v. 1). It’s not that such a High Priest merely exists; but that we ‘have’ Him, and that He actively serves on our behalf before God. He is our precious Possession by the gracious provision of God the Father. And we ought to rejoice in Him and reflect often on how sufficient His ministry is for us.
The writer goes on in this evening’s passage to tell us about Him. And we ought to receive the details of this passage not as merely ‘theological truths’—although they are truly great ones—but as the content of unending thanks and worship! In fact, we should consider that it may even be a particular delight to the Lord Jesus Himself that we are taking the time to study what it is He does for us as our High Priest! We truly have great reason to delight in the ministry of “such a High Priest”!
Consider that we have such a High Priest . . .
I. WHO MINISTERS FOR US FROM THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD (v. 1).
A. The writer says, “Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens.” Let’s take this apart:
1. First, note that our High Priest is “seated”. That is no small matter. In Hebrews 10:11, we’re told that with respect to the Old Covenant priesthood, “every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.” The Old Covenant priest had to “stand” because he was always on the job. But our High Priest “sits”, because His ministry on our behalf is completed. In Hebrews 1:3, we’re told that “when He had by Himself purged our sins,” He “sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high”. Praise God! It is finished!
2. Second, note where it is that He is seated. He sits “at the right hand of the Majesty in the heavens”. This is describing the highest possible place of honor beside God the Father Himself. That means that our High Priest never has to work to approach the Father on our behalf and plead before Him—as the priests of the Old Covenant did. Our High Priest eternally sits at the highest place, with immediate and endless access to the Father; ever able to plead the complete sufficiency of His own blood on our behalf; never ceasing in His perfect ministry for us. As the apostle Paul put it, “Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us” (Romans 8:33-34).
B. We can rejoice greatly in the fact that we have a priest before God who serves in the highest possible place for us; one who has completed His ministry for us, and who forever pleads that completed ministry for our salvation! How could we ever fail, then, to be completely accepted before God the Father? May the Holy Spirit help us to rest fully in the ministry of “such a High Priest”!
Consider also that He is a High Priest . . .
II. WHO SERVES FOR US IN THE TRUE TABERNACLE THAT GOD RAISED (v. 2).
A. The writer goes on to say that Jesus is “a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man.
1. The word “Minister” is a translation of the word leitourgos. It’s one from which we derive the word “liturgy” or “liturgical”. It speaks of someone who serves the people of God in religious matters and who does the work of fulfilling ceremonial duties in the place of worship. And that’s what our Lord Jesus is for us. He stands before God on our behalf in the heavenly tabernacle and serves in matters of ceremonial duty for us. Everything that God does for us is done through Jesus; and everything that we do before God in response is received by Him through Jesus.
2. The “sanctuary” is a translation of the word “holy” or “sanctified”; and it speaks of the place in the tabernacle that we often call the Holy of All. It is the place where the High Priest, in the Old Covenant, was able to enter into only once in a year—on the Day of Atonement. The writer of Hebrews describes it somewhat for us in 9:3-5. Our High Priest doesn’t enter the earthly tabernacle for us, but rather in the heavenly one. And He doesn’t do so only once a year; but forever sits there on our behalf in a perpetually perfect ministry.
3. The “true tabernacle” is also where He ministers. When the writer speaks of this, he is speaking of the full tabernacle in the heavenlies—one that is the archetype of the earthly one that was built by Moses. It’s what the writer describes in Hebrews 9:1-2. Jesus’ priesthood does not only concern itself with one aspect of the heavenly tabernacle of God, but rather with all of it! Every dimension of our need for a High Priest is fulfilled by our Lord Jesus perfectly!
4. Note finally that this is a tabernacle not built by man, but by the Lord Himself! The earthly tabernacle was not the true one. It was only a ‘copy’ of the true one in the heavens. “For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us . . .” (Hebrews 9:24).
B. If the Lord Jesus, then, now serves a perfect ministry for us in the true tabernacle, what need is there then to cling to the mere copies? It would be like clinging to a shadow of a person, when the substance of that person is there with us (see Colossians 2:16-17).
We also rejoice in the fact that Jesus is a High Priest . . .
III. WHO OFFERS PERFECT GIFTS AND SACRIFICES ON OUR BEHALF (vv. 3-4).
A. The writer reminds his readers, “For every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices.” These gifts and sacrifices were appointed by God in His law. They needed to be of a specific kind and were decreed for specific situations. Some involved devotion to God, and others involved atonement for sin. In no case were they able to accomplish perfection before God; because, as the writer later goes on to tells us,
For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more consciousness of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins (Hebrews 10:1-4).
B. Jesus, as our High Priest, had to offer gifts and sacrifices on our behalf. The writer says, “Therefore it is necessary that this One also have something to offer. For if He were on earth, He would not be a priest, since there are priests who offer the gifts according to the law.” He would not be able to offer gifts and sacrifices as the priests of the Old Covenant did however, because He was not of that priestly line. But that meant that the offering that He could make on our behalf was far better. As a High Priest of the New Covenant—of the order of Melchizedek—He offered something better than could ever be offered by the law. He offered Himself as our sinless Sacrifice. Quoting from Psalm 40, the writer says;
Therefore, when He came into the world, He said:
“Sacrifice and offering You did not desire,
But a body You have prepared for Me.
In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin
You had no pleasure.
Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come—
In the volume of the book it is written of Me—
To do Your will, O God.”’
Previously saying, “Sacrifice and offering, burnt offerings, and offerings for sin You did not desire, nor had pleasure in them” (which are offered according to the law), then He said, “Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God.” He takes away the first that He may establish the second. By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all (Hebrews 10:5-10).
No offering of the Old Covenant could ever do for us what the offering of our High Priest does!
And finally, note that our High Priest is one . . .
IV. WHO SERVES US ON THE BASIS OF BETTER COVANENTAL PROMISES (vv. 5-6).
A. The writer says that the Old Covenant priests are those “who serve the copy and shadow of the heavenly things, as Moses was divinely instructed when he was about to make the tabernacle. For He said, ‘See that you make all things according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.’” Here, the writer is speaking specifically of Exodus 25:9; but also of the many passages in the Old Testament where God gave very specific instructions to Moses for the construction of the tabernacle. This is because it was a representative of another and greater tabernacle—one in the heavenlies.
B. That old earthly tabernacle was eventually lost and faded from the scene. That’s because it was not meant to be permanent. It was a temporary provision—awaiting the day when the perfect High Priest Jesus—the Minister of a new and better covenant than the old one—would come and fulfill His ministry for us in the true tabernacle in the heavens. The writer says, “But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises.” That better covenant is described for us in great detail in the rest of Chapter 8. And what a glorious covenant it is! The old one failed—not because there was anything wrong with the covenant itself, but because of the failure of those with whom God made it. But the new one would be secure because God would write His law in His people’s hearts. And Jesus—as the High Priest of this newer and better covenant—now has a far more excellent ministry on our behalf than could ever be enjoyed in the old!
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These are theological truths that should cause us to worship and thank our heavenly Father. If ever there was theology that our study of which would thrill our Lord’s heart, it is this! And it, above all, speaks of a ministry that should move us to do just as the writer tells us in Hebrews 10:19-22;
Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, and having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water (Hebrews 10:19-22).
Praise God forever!—We can freely ‘draw near’ to God’s throne, because we have ‘such a High Priest’!
