Sunday Morning: We began a series entitled, Jesus our Great High Priest, from Hebrews 4:14-10:18. This sermon dealt with the text of Hebrews 4:14-5:10. Entitled "Before the Throne of God Above", the sermon looked at the qualities of Jesus' priesthood, Jesus' qualifications as a priest, and the characteristics of his priestly ministry. By focusing on Jesus priestly ministry the author of Hebrews reminds us that we can "approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need" (4:16).
Chapter 4:14-16 states that Jesus was a "great high priest", that he "passed through the heavens", that he was "the Son of God", that he was able to "sympathize with our weaknesses", and that he was "without sin". These are the qualities of his ministry. His priesthood is greater than the Aaronic (Old Covenant) priesthood, because he is greater than Aaron. He has entered the heavenly tabernacle that was the pattern for the earthly tabernacle. He did not have to make sacrifice for his own sin first, nor does he make sacrifices daily. He was and is without sin and his sacrifice was once for all. All the sacrifices in the Old Testament point to Christ's sacrifice. Even the priesthood pointed to a greater priest.
His qualifications for priesthood are stated in chapter 5:1-6. The high priest is selected from among men, from the tribe of Levi and from the house of Aaron. The author knew that his audience would want to how Jesus could be a priest. The Old Testament is full of stories of those who took the priesthood upon themselves without God's approval. Aaron lost two sons who offered unauthorized fire (Lev. 10); Saul lost his kingdom (1 Sam. 15); Uzziah lost his health (2 Chr. 26). Jesus was not a son of Aaron nor was he a Levite. The author informs them that Jesus did not take this glory upon himself, but that God had appointed him.
Jesus was appointed to be a priest in the order of Melchizedek (see Gen 14:17ff). The expression "order of Melchizedek" does not mean that their was a continual line of priests from Melchizedek to Jesus. It means that Melchizedek's story is included into the biblical story because he foreshadowed Christ. He was a type of the coming priest, who represented the Most High God and was greater than Abram. We will explore Melchizedek and how he foreshadows Christ's in the weeks ahead. The author's point is that Jesus qualifies for priesthood, not by his genealogy, but through his divine appointment. An appointment that sets him above and beyond all other priests.
Finally, we looked at the characteristics of his earthy priestly ministry in 5:7-10. His ministry was (and is) prayerful ("he offered up prayers and petitions"). It was tearful ("with loud cries and tears"). It was effective ("and he was heard because of his reverent submission"). Christ's prayers in the garden of Gethsemane were answered. We often think of the petition, "If this cup can pass, let it pass" and we think that was Jesus' only will for the moment. However, we fail to realize that Jesus had one overarching will in his life, a will that drove him, a will that fed him, and that will was to do the will of his Father. Jesus did not just pray "Let this cup pass", he also prayed, "not my will, but yours be done." God answered his prayer and enabled him to drink the cup.
Jesus, even as the Son of God, had to walk in obedience. The author is not suggesting in verse 8 that Jesus was somehow disobedient before the cross. No, he has already stated that Jesus was without sin. I think he is expressing the experiential nature of Christ's obedience. From all eternity Jesus knew right, he defined it, but in the face of temptation, he had to choose right. Jesus knows all the weapons in Satan's arsenal, and just how powerful they are. And in spite of the attack on him, he remained true and faithful. Verse 9 tells us that "once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him." The expression "made perfect" refers to his resurrection. Once he was raised from the dead and ascended to heaven, Jesus forever secured our way to God. As long as we continue to trust in his work on the cross we continue to have an advocate before the throne of God above.
Sunday Night: We took a whirlwind tour of Church History. We looked at names like Constantine, Luther, John Smyth and Thomas Helwys. We looked at the Nicene Creed and the Chalcedonian Creed. We looked at some of the Christological errors in the early church. We also covered the Schism, the Reformation, and the development of Baptists in England and America. We concluded by exploring the development of Southern Baptists and Monticello's own history.
No comments:
Post a Comment