6/17/19
Tom Lowe
Lesson #8: TO BECOME A MERCIFUL AND FAITHFUL HIGH PRIEST (HEBREWS 2:17-18)
Scripture: Hebrews 2:17-18 (NIV)
17 For this reason he had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement{1] for the sins of the people. 18 Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.
Introduction:
The final purpose of the incarnation, as set forth by the writer, is described in verses 17 and 18. Jesus had to be made like His brothers and sisters so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God and be to us all that we need. We need Someone to intercede for us compassionately. The portrayal of Jesus as champion leads directly into the body of the sermon where Jesus will be presented as our high priest. The concept of champion and high priest share two elements in common which may explain this development.
The element of representation: the champion represents the people in battle; the high priest represents the people in their coming before God.
The element of solidarity: the champion emerges out of the people; he can represent them only because he is one of them. Similarly, the high priest is chosen from among the people; he can represent them effectively only because He enjoys solidarity with the people. Representation and solidarity with the people are the thoughts which bring together in verses 10-18 the presentation of Jesus as champion and as high priest. This is, of course, the first time in the sermon that the preacher has applied to Jesus the title of the office, “high priest.” That his ministry was priestly in nature was implied as early as the opening lines of the sermon, with the reference to the Son “having made purification for sins” (1:3). But now, what had only been implied is made explicit: Jesus is a high priest in the service of God.
Commentary:
17 For this reason, he had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people.
In the days of the Old Testament, the high priest led in a special time of worship on the Day of Atonement. During the service, the high priest would enter the holy of holies, a restricted area of the temple or tabernacle. Only the high priest could enter, and only on the Day of Atonement (see Lev. 16:34, 23:27-28). Once inside the holy of holies, he would offer a blood sacrifice to cleanse his people of their sin.
Christ became high priest when He offered His sacrifice {5] which He did by His death on a cross. To ‘purge sins’ and to make propitiation {3] describe the same act from different points of view. In the former case what is in view is the removal of uncleanness; in the latter, it is the alienation from God caused by sin.
Jesus serves as the perfect high priest because He presented Himself to God in order to atone for our sin. He also provided what was necessary for our atonement. By dying for us, Jesus made propitiation {3] for our sins. In other words, His death on the cross for our sins turned away God’s wrath so we can be at peace with God. His death on the cross for us demonstrates that He is altogether trustworthy in His service to God on our behalf.
Jesus came not only to save us but to sympathize with us. He can be depended on to represent us adequately and continuously before the Heavenly Father. He is Trustworthy.
When considering the character of Jesus Christ it is well to ask, “In what ways is He like His brethren and how is He unlike them?” (1) He was unlike them in that He was God as well as man; inasmuch as he was not represented in Adam, and so He could not be charged with original sin; in as much as he was born with original righteousness, and never committed any sin, never had a vile thought, never yielded to a temptation, never felt a sense of guilt and never in anything displeased His Father. Moreover, He was always destined to an infinitely higher position and an unspeakably richer crown than any they shall wear. But (2) He is like them in having a true human body and a reasonable soul capable of increasing in knowledge and happiness. He was really a man (fully human, v. 17). He had all the many innocent infirmities of our common nature; He was exposed to all sorts of temptations and miseries, which does not imply personal sinfulness. Like His brethren, He did suffer and die. He knew what it was to be hungry, and thirsty, and weary, and sad, and grieved. He was familiar with contradiction, and slander, and insults, and mockery, and contempt. As much as human suffering consists in pain from the nerves, Jesus Christ died a death, the theory of which was to extinguish life by nervous distress. Since the world began, there never was on earth a more approachable being. He is just as full of tenderness today as He was when He wept at the grave of Lazarus. “He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young” (Isa. 40:11).
Jesus has been where we are. He knows what we are going through. The writer is reminding us that, wherever you may go, He has been there before you. You can get down on your knees when the going gets tough and you can pray, “Lord, you know what I am going through,” and He will say, “Yes, I know.” Jesus came to identify with us, to experience what we experience. “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet he did not sin” (Heb. 4:15).
18 Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help {4] those who are being tempted.
The writer of Hebrews pointed directly at the full extent of Jesus’ humanity. Jesus didn’t get special treatment because He was the Son of God. In fact, He got the opposite. In the wilderness, Satan confronted Jesus with an assortment of attractive temptations (see Matt. 4:1-11). Jesus overcame the enemy’s attack by quoting God’s Word. Although the Devil left Jesus for a while, he repeatedly returned with relentless attacks. No one can say that Jesus didn’t know what it was like to be tempted and tried. Truth is, not everyone suffers when they are tempted. Some rather enjoy temptation. There can be something enticing and tantalizing about temptation. “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet he did not sin” (Heb. 4:15).
Christ’s temptations arose out of suffering (not conversely as some versions of the Bible seem to suggest); hence He is able to comfort and help the Hebrews who are tempted by their hardships: see 12:3. As high priest, Christ, therefore, not only effects reconciliation between God and man but brings men safely through all hardships to the inheritances appointed for them.
Jesus also suffered in unimaginable ways. Throughout His ministry, He lived under extreme pressures. He was the daily target of religious zealots, misguided relatives, needy disciples, and cruel critics. But nothing compared with the suffering He endured on the cross. He faced the spiritual, physical, and emotional anguish of it all without backing down one step. People who have themselves suffered are best able to help and comfort others who are suffering. If today we are suffering for Christ, let us remember that He Himself first suffered for us. And He is with us now; He will help us stand firm. He will strengthen us. And He will give us inner joy and peace. (see 2 Cor. 1:3-5).
Because of the temptations, Jesus faced, and the agony He suffered, He can emphasize with any situation we may face? He understands us. But as God, He is a faithful high priest. He understands God. Christ-followers who struggle with persecution or the pains of life can lean on Him. Christ stands ready to help when we are tested by all kinds of painful dilemmas. In addition, He enables us to experience victory over the enemies attempt to defeat us. Indeed, Jesus Christ is our merciful and faithful high priest.
Summary
Jesus came to earth as a human being; therefore He understands our weaknesses and shows us mercy. Because He was fully human, Jesus Himself has gone through suffering and temptation. The suffering refers not only to the cross but also to the temptations Jesus experienced throughout His life? from Satan’s temptations in the wilderness to the drops of blood He shed in prayer before His crucifixion. Having undergone all the tests and temptations of human life, Jesus is able to help us when we are being tempted.
Special notes and Scripture
[1} Atonement is closely associated with forgiveness, reconciliation, sorrow, remorse, repentance, reparation, and guilt. It is a necessary step on a path to redemption. Jesus made atonement for the sins of mankind by His death on a cross.
[2} The scapegoat, as defined in the Book of Leviticus, is a propitiation, an atoning sacrifice. The concept of propitiation {3], or atonement is central to the Gospel of Jesus Christ who covers our sin and restores us.
[3} Propitiation - to make reconciliation for the sins of the people; the atoning sacrifice. This involves satisfying the demands of the holy laws of God. It involves making payment for the broken law of God. Jesus paid the price on the cross. He made it possible for sinful man and Holy God to be reconciled. “He is the atoning sacrifice (propitiation) for our sins and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:2).
[4} To help? come to the rescue; to run to the cry of a child; to answer the call.
[5} The sacrifice that Jesus offered was not a goat or a buffalo, but his own body. It was a perfect sacrifice without spot, or blemish, or sin. It was fully acceptable to God. In this way, through His perfect sacrifice, Jesus was able to make full atonement for our sins. “And all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood--to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished” (Rom. 3:24-25).
