Hebrews 7 | Our Great High Priest

It is the most important truth in the world: Who is Jesus and what has He done for us? Hebrews, Chapter 7, gives us a clear picture.

Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens; who does not need daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people, because this He did once for all when He offered up Himself. For the Law appoints men as high priests who are weak, but the word of the oath, which came after the Law, appoints a Son, made perfect forever. (Hebrews 7:25-28)

THE OLD TESTAMENT PROPHECY

During the Old Testament period, God developed a system that all foreshadowed the coming of the Messiah. He ordained a priestly line that was responsible for the keeping of the system of sacrifices for the people’s sins at the tabernacle and, later, the temple, that Solomon built. It is vital to realize that each sacrifice was a picture of the coming Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world. Believers in the Old Testament were saved by looking FORWARD to the coming Messiah and trusting in Him for the forgiveness of their sins.

This high priestly line began with Moses’ brother Aaron. But there was also a priest named Melchizedek that was ordained by God to be a picture of the coming Christ.

THE NEW TESTAMENT REALITY

In the New Testament era and beyond, Christ came as the fulfillment of all the prophecies and pictures and types of the Old Testament. He is now the High Priest—the only one we need to intercede before us to God. But He is different, as the fulfillment and perfection of the picture.

His Character.

Christ is “holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens.” He was not a High Priest who had to go through rituals to be cleansed and made holy. He was perfectly right before God.

His Sacrifice

… did not have to be repeated daily for the sins of people. For He WAS the sacrifice made “once for all when He offered up Himself. Because of this sacrifice He is “able to save forever those who draw near to God through Him.” Also, as our ultimate High Priest (of which the Old Testament high Priest was a shadowy picture) He now “always lives to make intercession” for His children who have believed in Him.

The work is finished! The perfect sacrifice was accomplished for everyone who would look to Christ for their salvation for all eternity.

Father, thank you for sending Jesus who is better than the High Priests of older days; better than the angels. Thank You that Jesus perfectly accomplished everything needed for my salvation and is all I need now for my life. Hallelujah for my great High Priest!