Hebrews 10:34-39 - You need to persevere

10:34,35

They stood by those who had been imprisoned, and suffered material loss in the form of property being confiscated. We do well not to hold on tightly to material possessions. The Hebrews were able to withstand these attacks because they knew they had “better and lasting” possessions. This verse shows the poverty of prosperity gospel teaching. The so-called prosperity gospel will never equip Christians to stand up in the face of serious opposition.

So the direct attacks on them had failed, but the danger was the subtle attack that was seeking to get them to trust in useless sacrifices. When we come through a time of trial we need to be on our guard against more subtle attacks. We must never drop our guard.

10:36,37

There are numerous instructions in the New Testament about the importance of perseverance. It is God’s will that we continue to believe in Christ. Being saved is not just a one off thing, but a whole way of life. We then get a quote from Isaiah 26:20 (or Hab 2:3). The fulfillment of all we hope for will only happen when Christ returns.

10:38,39

We then get another quote from Hab 2:4, perhaps indicating that writer was actually thinking of Hab 2:3 in the previous one. This was a favourite verse of Paul, used in both Romans and Galatians. It also contains a warning. The chapter closes with the writer stating that he is convinced that his hearers are actually of those who persist, rather than those who shrink back. We need to live by faith everyday.

Hebrews 10:26-29 - A fearful expectation of judgement

10:26,27

We now come to one of the severe warning sections in Hebrews. Rather than getting involved in silly “once-saved-always-saved” debates, we do better to look at the text and to heed the warnings. The writer has just spent sometime focusing on the absolute completeness of the sacrifice of Jesus, how he has dealt with our sins once and for all. The people needed to believe this and to fully appreciate it, as do we. However, the danger is that we will then swing to the other error and think that it doesn’t matter what we do because whatever sin we commit Jesus has already paid for it, so we can live how we like. The New Testament never teaches this view and roundly condemns it on multiple occasions.

So if we keep on deliberately sinning we can expect only judgement. We have been saved, justified, so that we can live a new life, not so we can carry on living the old life.  Notice that the writer is careful to make it clear he is talking about deliberate persistent sin. He is not saying we will never sin if we are true believers. We should also note that the God of the New Testament is exactly the same God of the Old Testament. Fire and judgement are as much a part of the NT as the OT.

10:28,29

The writer has spent much effort comparing the Law to the Gospel, showing how the Law was a shadow of the reality. Everything in the gospel is so much greater than the shadows we see in the Law. The same principle applies to judgement! Under the Law rejection of the Law resulted in judgement. So the price of rejecting the gospel is so much greater. For if we reject the gospel we are rejecting the Son of God, we are saying He needn't have bothered shedding His blood, dying on the cross. We have rejected the Holy Spirit. Too often we talk as if we sit in judgement on the gospel, as if we can choose to accept or reject it. The choice we have is whether or not to obey the gospel, for the command of the gospel is to repent and believe. If we choose to disobey we will take the consequences.

On preaching

I have just posted a short note on preaching on my other blog. You might like to take a look.

Hebrews 10:24,25 - Spur one another on

10:24

Faith is not just a personal thing. God created us as a community, so we are to encourage each other, to urge each other to live by faith, to have love and to do good dees. The word translated “spur one another” is the same term used of people causing a riot. So we are to be fervent in encouraging one another, it is not something we are to do in a half-hearted manner.

10:25

It seems that some were neglecting to meet together. We were designed to need each other. If we become isolated then we put ourselves in danger. The danger will come from our own thoughts, which need the encouragement of others if we are to keep on the right path. Danger will also come from the world, for if we are not listening to godly teaching we will be listening to ungodly teaching, and that will inevitably have a detrimental effect upon us. We see the Day of the Lord approaching. This was written nearly two thousand years ago, and the return is undoubtedly nearer now than it was then.

Hebrews 10:21-23 - Let us draw near to God

10:21

We have a great high priest over the house of God. The Hebrews were tempted to look for an earthly priest, much as they had had under Judaism. There is no need for such a priest, for we have Jesus. Now we might think we, especially if we are in evangelical, reformed or charismatic churches, don’t think like that, but this is not always the case. We can easily put a preacher, teacher or prophet in the role of “high priest”. Jesus is our high priest and the only one we need. We should note also that Jesus is actively head of the church. His being head of the church is not just a “theological truth”, but a living reality. He directs the church, He prays on our behalf, representing us to the Father.

10:22

So the upshot of all this is that we can approach God with complete confidence, for God Himself has provided the means of purification, of justification, the blood of His own Son. We put our faith in Jesus, the Son of God, and all that He has done. So we are cleansed from a guilty conscience and are perfectly acceptable to God, we do not, indeed cannot, do anything to make ourselves acceptable to God. He has done it all!

10:23

The Hebrews were tempted to go back to at least some of the Jewish practices. This would have been an act that was a lack of faith in what Christ has accomplished on the cross. See that we are urged to hold fast to the hope we profess. Our hope is a sure hope and it is that through Christ we are perfectly acceptable to God. Our hope is not based on human wisdom, but on the promise of God, He has told us that it is true and we can trust Him completely.

Hebrews 10:19,20 - Confidence

10:19

We need to appreciate that the root of the reason why the Hebrews were still hankering after some of the trappings of Judaism was a lack of confidence. They knew that of themselves they were not worthy to approach God, so they wondered if the Law would provide the comfort they needed. No one now seeks comfort in the Mosaic Law, but people still do lack confidence of their acceptability to God. The writer has shown two things: (i) the Law could not actually provide the comfort, the security they longed for; (ii) Christ can and does provide that security. We have confidence to enter the most Holy Place. Just ponder that thought for a moment or two. In Christ we are given the right to go into the very presence of God.

10:20

We have a new and living way of entering the presence of God. This way is not based on rituals, not on shadows or copies, but on the real thing. Jesus actually did pay the price for our sins. Our sins, our guilt, has actually been fully paid for. Not figuratively, but in reality.

In the temple there was a curtain separating off the holy of holies, and at the crucifixion the temple was torn in two.

Hebrews 10:16-18 - A new covenant

10:16

The new covenant is concerned with the Lord putting His laws in our hearts and minds. This is an example of Hebrew parallelism. We tend to think of heart meaning emotions, and sometimes see conflict between heart and mind. In the Bible the heart is the centre of the will and there is no such conflict, heart includes our mind. Notice also the implication that the Law is good, otherwise why would God seek to write it on our hearts? There are those (eg hyper-grace teachers) who seem to have a low view of the Law, such thinking is misguided.

10:17,18

Next we come to forgiveness. Note that the change in our hearts, ie the inner change, the fundamental change in our nature (born again!) is given precedence over forgiveness. The cross is central to the gospel, but it is not the goal. Rather it is the means to achieving the goal. The goal is that we become Christlike, we become the people God wants us to be. The cross is the crucial part of achieving that goal. Through the cross we receive forgiveness, justification, our sins are completely dealt with.

We then come to the crux of the matter. “Sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary”. The cross has done it all.

Hebrews 10:11-15 - Day after day

10:11-14

This is essentially a repetition of the argument that he has been making again and again. The priests repeatedly offered sacrifices. So they could never truly take away sins. Note the implicit assumption that sins do need to be taken away. So much wooly or false teaching is a result of a failure to recognise the problem of sin. Sin is our biggest problem. There are those who deny the substitutionary nature of the atonement. People who expound such views do not take sin seriously, and offer no solution to the problem of sin. I need the sacrifice of Jesus to deal with my sin, my guilt.

Jesus, unlike the Levitical priests, sat down after He had offered Himself. The sacrificial work was finished. Now He waits for His enemies to be made His footstool. We are in a different age, this is the time when Christ’s enemies are being made into a footstool, they are being defeated. The one sacrifice of Jesus Christ has made us perfect forever. Note that it also says,”being made holy”. This is a recognition that perfect here means we are completely acceptable to God, but His work in us is ongoing.

10:15

As is his want, the author refers back to the Old Testament, this time the words of Jeremiah, quoted earlier in the letter. Again we see that the writer is absolutely convinced that the Old Testament is inspired by the Holy Spirit. Moreover, the Holy Spirit is personally testifying to us. We need to be careful how we use the word “inspired” or “inspiration”, as we can use it in a much weaker sense than it actually means in terms of the Bible. The Holy Spirit is speaking directly and specifically through the words of Scripture.

Hebrews 10:5-10 - Here I am

10:5-7

The quote here comes from Psalm 40. The verses in the psalm prior to the ones actually quoted here are significant as well in the context. It speaks of the psalmist waiting patiently for the Lord, and being lifted out of the slimy pit, having a new song in his heart. The verse quoted speak specifically of God not desiring sacrifices and offerings, before going on to speak of one offering Himself to do the will of God, and the Law being within His heart. The writer of Hebrews is quoting from the Septuagint version.

10:8-10

The writer then expounds the verses he has just quoted. God said He did not desire burnt offerings and sin offerings. Now, of course, God commanded that these things be offered in the Law. What the writer means is that God never intended them to be the actual solution to sin, rather they pointed the way forwards to the real solution. The writer is viewing the words from Psalm 40 as being in the mouth of the Messiah. God was not looking for the animal sacrifices to take away sin, but for His servant the Messiah. He was the One who was prophesied, and He has come to do God’s will. The focus is on Jesus, it is all about Jesus, He is the One we are to focus on. It is through His sacrifice that we have been made holy. Note the emphasis on being made holy. The people were looking for a way to be acceptable to God. Jesus is the only way sinful people can be made holy. And His sacrifice was offered once for all. It is finished!

Hebrews 10:2-4 - A reminder of sins

10:2

The Hebrews had a hard time letting go of the sacrifices. They had presumably stopped offering them, but maybe they were tempted to go back to offering them, or at least hankered after the old days. We need to remember that sacrifices had been offered day after day, each time they were offered words about the sacrifices making them acceptable to God would have been said. But the very fact that the sacrifices had to be offered again and again was the very proof that they did not actually “work”. They did not really deal with the problem of sin. All wrong ideas contain the evidence of self-contradiction somewhere within them. As an example, the notion that we are mere material beings who came about purely by chance means that our thoughts and ideas can have no inherent worth or value whatsoever. So the thought that we came about by chance has no value whatsoever.

10:3,4

The animal sacrifices, far from taking away sins, were an annual reminder of the sins that people have, a reminder that we are deeply flawed, and the sacrifices actually did nothing at all about it. The corollary to this is that Christ does actually do something real about our sins. We are not left in exactly the same place we were before we put our trust in Christ, instead something fundamental has changed.

Hebrews 10:1 - Only a shadow

“The Law is only a shadow ..” This the point that the writer has been stressing time and time again. All the things of the Law (and in Hebrews he is speaking of the sacrificial, Levitical system) were only a shadow. They reflected something of reality, but were not reality itself. The problem the Jews had was that they thought it was a the real thing, but when you try and grab hold of a shadow you find you have nothing at all. Now the Law had been part of Jewish heritage, part of everyday life for over a thousand years of history, and every single day of their life. It had completely defined the nation. So when a Jew came to Christ there was still an incredibly deep emotional, intellectual,spiritual tie to the Law. It was not easy to fully appreciate the new reality. All of us have to learn to live in the new reality of the kingdom of God, of the gospel. Even if we have been Christians for years there is still much unlearning and learning to do.

What was it a shadow of? The “good things to come”. The Law was not “wrong”, it was the Jews perception of the Law that was wrong. The Law was pointing to good things.  Used properly, it can help us to find more of the good things in the gospel. And when God is working in us to let go of something, to change our ways, it is often painful, it seems to take us into a place of uncertainty, and few of us like that. But we should be glad that the new place God is taking us to is a place of good things. God’s plans are always to take us somewhere better, the route may be difficult, but the destination is always wonderful. Just as God took Israel out of Egypt to the Promised Land.

Hebrews 9:27,28 - Dying once

9:27

There is a stark declaration of reality, and then an interesting parallel drawn between this and what Christ has done. We are all destined to die once and then to face judgement. We would all do well to remember that, and the world as a whole would do well to remember that. We will all die. We may try to put off the day, and there are some nutters who through things like cryogenics seek to avoid it altogether, but virtually everyone accepts the truth of this. However, with our modern world view, many in the West may think, or perhaps hope, that death is the end. Death is not the end, there will be an account to give afterwards for how we have lived. Now we are saved by grace, and justified through Christ’s death on the cross, but the New Testament is also clear that what we do with this life matters. So any (mis)understanding of the gospel that effectively says we will not have to give an account is seriously in error.

9:28

The parallel with Christ is then drawn. He died once, sacrificing Himself. We die once, there is one sacrifice. He died to deal with our sins. Jesus will return, but this time not to bear sins. There are some who think that people who refuse to believe will be given a second chance in some form. We need to recognise that there is no support for such a view in the Bible. He will return to bring salvation to those who believe, those who are waiting for Him. It has often been said that we are saved, we are being saved, and we will be saved. We were justified the moment we believed, we were born again of the Holy Spirit, we became a new creation, we were adopted into God’s family. We are being saved. The Holy Spirit is at work in our lives cleaning out the rubbish, replacing it with good stuff, changing us from one degree of glory to the next. When Christ returns this work will be completed, and we will be given new bodies.

Hebrews 9:23-26 - Offering sacrifices

9:23

The writer continues to contrast the old with the new, and along the same lines. The Law had all sorts of items and they all needed to be purified with sacrifices. These things were just copies or shadows of the real thing. So the heavenly things, which are so much better than the copies, need better sacrifices to purify them.

9:24

The tabernacle, and later the temples, were all made by human hands. How could they possibly be God’s true dwelling place. Indeed, Solomon recognised as much when he dedicated the temple (2 Chron 6:18). Christ did not enter a mere copy He entered heaven itself, and He appears in the very presence of God.  See what the writer is doing. He is paralleling the Law. What the Law contained was good, but it was only a copy, it pointed forwards to what the real thing would be like.

9:25,26

Priests had to repeatedly offer sacrifices, none of the Levitical sacrifices truly purified a man. But Jesus needed to offer Himself only once. He was the perfect, once for all sacrifice. Jesus just suffered once upon the cross, and then it was finished, completed. He dealt with sin once and for all.

Hebrews 9:16-22 - Will and covenant

9:16,17

The same Greek word is used for “will” and “covenant”. This has two implications. One is that it is difficult to be absolutely certain when the writer is using the word to mean will, and when he is using it to mean covenant. The second is that it explains the use of covenant and will in the same section. We may wonder why on earth the writer is talking about covenants, and then suddenly starts talking about wills. The reason is that it is exactly the same Greek word, so it is a natural progression of thought. The writer’s mind may have moved over from covenant to will, then realising that a will though it was obviously written before the person’s death only came into force once he died. So the new covenant had always been God’s intention, but it only came into effect once Christ had died.

9:18-22

The need for death was very much a feature of the old covenant. The writer makes reference to various aspects of the Law, eg Ex 24:4-8; Lev 8:10, 17:11, 19:30. Most of us probably wonder at times why there was such an emphasis on blood in the Law, wondering if it was really necessary. The Law was pointing forward to the fact that Christ’s blood would provide purification for all things.

Hebrews 9:15 - The mediator

Christ is the mediator, and He is the mediator of a new covenant. The old covenant has been superseded. The reason why the old was superseded was that it did not enable anyone to receive the eternal promises. The Bible is full of promises of the blessings of God, it speaks of a truly wonderful life, yet Israel never experienced this. True she had periods of blessing, but these were short-lived, and never actually reached anywhere near the full blessing of God. The full blessing of God is a life that is completely devoted to Him, lived in perfect fellowship with Him, knowing Him completely. The old covenant could not provide this because of our sin, just as Paul argues that the Law could not make anyone righteous.

Now this does not mean the Law failed. It is not a case of God trying one method, the Law, this failing, so He tries something else. The Law fulfilled the function for which it was sent. It reveals much of the heart of God, restrained Israel to a degree, showed our inherent sinfulness, and pointed towards the new covenant, to Christ.

Christ died as a ransom, and so we have been set free from our sins. We are no longer enemies of God under judgement. We have been justified.

Equipped for a Purpose - Sermon

A sermon on Ephesians 2:1-10 with background from Ephesians 1

Hebrews 9:13,14 - A clean conscience

A contrast is drawn between the Old Testament sacrifices and the blood of Christ. Under the Law the blood of goats and bulls was used, along with the ashes of a heifer (Number 19:1-22). These sacrifices made the priest, and then the people, outwardly clean. Ie it affected no inward change or effect. The priest was made clean for the purposes of the Law.

Jesus offered His own blood, the blood of the Son of God, the blood of a man who lived His life in perfect and complete obedience to the Father. He was the perfect sacrifice. Jesus did all this walking in step with the Holy Spirit.

The effect of Christ’s sacrifice is to cleanse our consciences, ie it affects an inward change. “Acts that lead to death” are “dead works”. This could be referring to sinful acts, or to the dead works of the Law, ie from the uselessness of the Old Testament sacrifices. There was a deep attachment to the works of the Law, and there would be a tendency on the part of the Jews to feel guilty if they no longer followed them. But in Christ they have been completely obliterated. There is no need whatsoever for the works of the Law. We are now free to serve the living God! Note that the acts of the Law enabled the old testament Jews to serve the Lord. Part of the purpose of the gospel is to enable us to serve the Lord, it is not just about self-fulfilment!

Hebrews 9:11,12 - The more perfect tabernacle

9:11

“The good things that are now already here”. There is more to come, but there are significant “good things” that are already here, and it is Christ who has given them to us, and it is His priesthood that enables us to have them. There can be times when we are tempted to look for something else, or to ponder if we need something else. The Hebrews were wondering if they still needed parts of the Jewish religion. The Galatians were wondering if they needed to be circumcised. In such times we should consider what we already have, and why we have it. And the reason we have it is purely because of Christ.

And what did Christ do to enable us to receive these benefits? He went through the perfect tabernacle. That is not part of this creation. There is a fundamental dividing line between godly and earthly thinking. Earthly thinking, which is what Judaism was doing, looked at a man-made tabernacle. Godly thinking looks at the tabernacle that exists in heaven. We see the same thing with the differing worldviews of theism and materialism. The material worldview looks at things from a purely earthly perspective and so is badly mistaken.

9:12

The Levitical priests entered the earthly sanctuary by means of the blood of goats and calves. Jesus enter the Most Holy Place, the real tabernacle, the true presence of God, by His own blood, offered once and for all. He did not need to offer blood for His own sins, for He had none. It was offered for us, and so has redeemed us. We have eternal redemption.

Hebrews 9:9,10 - Only a matter of food and drink

9:9

The writer re emphasises the point that the sacrifices and gifts of the Law could not actually achieve anything concrete. They could not clear our conscience. Why does our conscience need clearing? It is because we are guilty.  But the good news is that through the cross our conscience is actually cleared. I guess that few, if any, of us fully appreciate the full extent to which the cross cleanses us. Now this absolutely does not mean we can do what we like and get away with it. That is not forgiveness, it is not what the cross is about. It means that if we repent we receive complete forgiveness.

9:10

These words remind me of a couple of sections of Scripture. One is Mark 7:1-20 where Jesus speaks of what really defiles a man, and the other is Romans 14:17 where Paul says the kingdom of God is not a matter of food and drink, but righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. The gospel is concerned with deep meaningful change in people.

Hebrews 9:6-8 - Never without blood

9:6,7

The description now turns to what the priests did. After everything was set up in the prescribed manner the priests entered regularly into the outer room. Only the high priest was allowed to enter the inner room, and he only did this once a year, on the day of atonement. When he did so he had to offer blood as atonement for his own sins and those of the people.

9:8

“The Holy Spirit was showing ...” Note the implicit assumption that the Holy Spirit inspired the Old Testament. His purpose was to point towards the new covenant. It should have been obvious that under the old covenant men could not really approach God fully. The emphasis is on barriers. In the garden of Eden God had fellowship with Adam and Eve, through sin that fellowship was broken. In Christ God restores that fellowship. The goal and fruit of the gospel is nothing less than full fellowship with the Lord.

Hebrews 9:1-5 - An earthly sanctuary

9:1

The writer continues his theme of how the gospel has superseded all that went before, and how all that went before was merely pointing forwards to the real thing. The first covenant is the covenant at Sinai, the Law. There are, of course, several covenants in the Old Testament, the one with Noah, the one with Abraham etc, but the Law is the main Old Testament covenant. A covenant is an agreement and a relationship between two parties, in this case between God and the nation of Israel for the Law, and between God and believers for the gospel.

At the time of writing this (18 June 2016) we are in the wake of the Orlando massacre, and there is an inordinate amount of rubbish in the media, especially about what the Bible says about homosexuality. Critics like to point out that the Law had the death penalty for homosexual acts (as it did for many things, by the way), so they then argue that Christians who uphold Biblical teaching on sexual morality are, or at least should be if they are to be consistent, think that homosexuals should be killed. We need to understand the difference between the old and new covenant. The old covenant, the Law, was between God and Israel, the precise details applied to the nation of Israel. The old covenant pointed towards the true covenant that God would make between Himself and all of humanity, the gospel. The Law expressed the heart of God, sexual sins are of all sorts (and where homosexuality is mentioned you will see that it is one in a very long list) are wrong, and they are still wrong. Under the new covenant, the gospel, these things are still wrong, but under the gospel the command is to repent and believe. If we do so we receive forgiveness and new life.

9:2-5

The writer is recounting some of the details from Exodus 25, 37 and 40. It is interesting that he refers back to the tabernacle, the tent, rather than the temple. Maybe it is because the details were given to Moses after the exodus, or maybe to stress the temporary nature of the tabernacle. The point is that God gave precise instructions on how the tabernacle was to be set up. Now He has called us to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Sometimes we say “Well, I think that ....” There are times when what you or I think is of absolutely no consequence, importance or value at all, it is what God thinks that counts.

Hebrews 8:10-13 - I will forgive

8:10-12

This failure is actually good news, as is God’s plan for a new covenant. For God knows that we are sinful, unable in our own right to change ourselves, or save ourselves in any way. Yet instead of giving us the judgement we deserve, He has provided a means of salvation, the cross of Jesus Christ. A means that involves cleansing us of our sins, forgiving us, and putting a new heart within us. He puts His law on our hearts and minds. We will all know the Lord, not just a select few.

8:13

The Hebrews needed to realise that the old covenant was no longer of any use, it was now obsolete. It had pointed the way forward, pointed to the solution that was going to arrive. Now that the real thing has arrived we no longer need the signpost. Now as I said earlier, this most definitely does not mean the Old Testament is of no value. Look at how much Jesus and all the New Testament writers referred to it! But when we look at it we look to see how it points to Jesus. Moreover, note that the writer says the old covenant. He is specifically saying that the ritual aspects of the old covenant are no longer of any validity.

Hebrews 8:7-9 - A new covenant

8:7,8

All of the Old Testament is pointing forwards, and in Jer 31:31-34 God explicitly states that He is going to make a new covenant. The old covenant did not fail in its purposes, put the Jews thought it had a different purpose than the one God gave it, they thought it could actually provide salvation.

Moreover this new covenant would be made with the people of Israel and Judah. Some Jews might have been tempted to think that the new covenant was the way that the Gentiles would be saved, but that Jews needed to stick with the old covenant. This is slightly better than the error made by the people in Galatia (ie that the Gentiles needed to follow the Law), but is still badly mistaken. The Jews needed a new covenant just as much as the Gentiles did.

8:9

The Old Testament can fairly be described as a record of the sins of Israel and God’s judgement upon them. I know it is more than that, but it sums up much of it. The Jews should have realised that the Law could not make them righteous, and the reason was that they were sinful. They did not, indeed could not, remain faithful to it.

Hebrews 8:5,6 - The real thing

8:5

The old covenant was not without value, but its value lay in pointing forwards to the real thing. The sanctuary that the Levitical priests served at was just a copy and shadow of the heavenly sanctuary. Moses was instructed to do everything precisely according to the instructions given to him by God. The reason for this was that the tabernacle was a mere copy, it had no intrinsic worth other than being a copy of something much greater. It derived all its value from the thing it was a copy of.

8:6

In Christ we have the real thing. His ministry is infinitely greater than that of the Levitical priests. They pointed forward to the way in which we could be made acceptable to God, Jesus has actually provided the necessary cleansing and forgiveness. He is the mediator of a new covenant, and this covenant is infinitely superior to the old covenant.

Hebrews 8:3,4 - Offering gifts

8:3

The Levitical priests offered gifts and sacrifices. They offered sacrifices to cover both their own sins and those of the people, and they offered the gifts of the people. This was pointing forward to what the real high priest would do. He offered Himself as a sacrifice, and He makes our gifts to the Lord acceptable in His sight.

8:4

Some may have objected that if Jesus was really a high priest He would have offered gifts in the temple. This sort of thinking doesn’t resonate much with us, but would have meant more to the Jews of the time. The writer’s point is that Jesus supersedes the old priesthood, He is more than a continuation of it. There were already priests to serve in the earthly temple, there was no need for anything new here. Jesus is serving as the central focus of a far superior covenant.

Hebrews 8:1,2 - Serving in the heavenly sanctuary

8:1

The whole of Hebrews is a carefully crafted argument, and the writer now proceeds to build the argument about the supremacy and all sufficiency of Christ. He is aiming at an audience with a Jewish background, or at least a deep knowledge of Judaism. He argues that the new covenant is infinitely superior to the old, and has completely superseded it. Now we need to realise that he is not saying the old was useless, far from it. The old was a shadow of the new, a shadow of the real thing. All its details and features point towards the new. So we can learn from the old, but now that Christ has fulfilled the Law and the prophets we would be fools to go back to the old. Think of it like this. Suppose a new mobile phone, or some other gadget, is coming out soon. While waiting for the device to come out you may read about it on the web and enjoy doing so, reading of it what its features will be, what it can do. Then the device actually comes out and is delivered to your house. What are you going to do then? Continue just looking at the web articles, or start to use the device itself? So it is with Christ. All that was promised has arrived. The old covenant tells us what to expect, and it is worth going back to read it to see what the real thing can actually do, but Christ is the real thing, He is the fulfilment.

The Levitical priesthood was about approaching God, about being in His presence. Christ has actually sat down at the right hand of God, no Levitical priest ever did that. So who do you want as your priest? A man who just went into a tent or temple, or the one who is actually seated at the right hand of God?

8:2

Now see that Jesus is active as a priest. He does not offer sacrifices, for He has no need to do so. He offered Himself, the perfect sacrifice, once and for all. But He is not inactive. Jesus is serving as a high priest now. He is interceding on our behalf. And He is serving in the real tabernacle, the one set up by God, not by man.

Hebrews 7:27,28 - Made perfect forever

7:27

The fundamental difference between Jesus and other high priests is that He did not need to offer sacrifices for His own sin, because He was without sin. The high priest had to offer sacrifices for his own sins first, he needed cleansing before he could cleanse the people. Jesus is not like that.  Moreover, He offered Himself as the once for all sacrifice, no one else could dream of doing that. Note that the difference between Jesus and us is not that we are human and He is not, we are both fully human. It is that He is without sin and we are not. When we look at ourselves, or other people, we see fallen human beings, people who are corrupted by sin. When we look at Jesus we see humanity totally untainted by sin. We might look at Jesus and think it is impossible for a man to do that, or be like that. But what we really mean is that it is impossible for a sinful man to do that, or be like that. We do not appreciate just how great an effect sin has on us. The good news is that we are redeemed and are being sanctified, restored. And the work of the Holy Spirit in our life can enable us to be and do things that we think impossible.

7:28

The chapter closes with a summary of the contrast between the old and new covenants. The Law, the Old Covenant, appointed high priests who were weak and sinful, just like all the rest of humanity. In the gospel our high priest is the Son of God, and He is perfect forever. “made perfect” does not in anyway imply He was ever imperfect. Rather it means He was made complete. He was born as a human, lived as a child, then as a man. Lived in perfect obedience to the Father, even to the point of death, so He became the perfect, complete high priest. We need not, and must not, look any further.

Hebrews 7:25,26 - One who truly meets our needs

7:25

Jesus is able to save us completely. Just let that thought sink in. We need to be saved in so many ways. Above all else, we need to be saved from our guilt, we need forgiveness. We need to be set free from the things that bind us, we need to be set free from the fear of death. He saves us from the failings and weaknesses that reside within us. A priest was a means of approaching God, we approach God through Jesus Christ. Now Jesus said we would pray to the Father directly, but why do we have the right to do this? How can we sinners possibly imagine that we can approach the Father? It is because of what Jesus has done, He has given us His righteousness. And Jesus is continually interceding for us. Whatever we are facing today, Jesus is at the right hand of the Father interceding for us (Rom 8:34).

7:26

The Hebrews were looking for alternative priests, but why do this? The Levitical priests were highly imperfect, Jesus is the perfect high priest, who fully meets our needs. We can all be tempted to do the same sort of thing. We may not go looking for someone we call a “priest”, but we look for someone or something other than relying purely on Jesus. Jesus truly meets our need. Why does He do this? He is holy, blameless, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. What more could we want? When we look to individuals we generally look for someone who is better than us, someone whom we think is somehow closer to God than we are, better equipped than we are. Jesus more than fulfils all these requirements, and a million times better than any normal human being. Now this does not mean we don’t receive help from each other, but everything is done through Jesus.

Hebrews 7:20-24 - A better covenant

7:20,21

The Law just said that the Levites were priests, no oath was given. Conversely, Psalm 110 says that “The Lord has sworn...” What is the difference? The oath means that God is personally committed to the declaration. The Melchizedek priesthood is the permanent plan, not the temporary staging post that was the Law. The priesthood of Jesus is the fulfilment of a promise.

7:22

People look to a priest to somehow validate them, to act as a mediator between them and God to cover up their sin. Jesus is the only one who can truly do this. He is our righteousness, He is the one who has justified us. He is the one who validates us, He is the guarantor of the new covenant, and God Himself has declared that Jesus is the “priest forever”.

7:23

There were numerous Levitical priests, even numerous high priests, because of the simple fact that they all died! Jesus died, only to rise again. He lives forever, He is a priest forever. We have no need to look for anyone else. Now we may think, well in my church we don’t have priests (in the formal sense), yet all of us can be prone to the same error. We can look to church leaders, or to great (or not so great!) preachers thinking that they will somehow bring us closer to God. Jesus is the only guarantor of the new covenant, the only guarantor of our relationship and acceptability to God.

7:24

The resurrection of Jesus is central to everything. It proves that His sacrifice was sufficient. It proves that He is the Son of God (Rom 1:4), it means He is alive today, seated at the right hand of the Father. It means His priesthood lasts forever, there is never any need for a replacement! Jesus’ priesthood is everlasting.