About a decade ago, I found a biological dentist who practiced in Southern California who was uniquely able to help me with some dental work that I needed done in relationship to the fatigue and the cancer I had acquired. I made a point of going down to Southern California, having made an appointment with her, hoping that somehow, some way I would be able to afford something that was way beyond the amount of money I had to spend.
I was delighted when I got there to find out that she was a born again Christian, saved out of Catholicism, and by trading favors, she was willing to do the work that I needed at a fraction of what she would have charged a normal patient.
However, as I returned to have the dental work done and inquired further about her faith, I discovered that she had returned to the Catholic Church. So I asked her what had happened, how she had, after years of attending a Bible-teaching church, returned to Catholicism.
She said that she had met a Catholic priest who challenged her desire to live the Christian life according to the Bible. He had said, so if you want Bible study, I’ll provide it for you. And then he challenged her with the meaning of the Greek word trogein, which means to chew, or masticate, as it is found in John 6:54 where Jesus figuratively, at least in my view, made this statement, “He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” So based on that definition of the Greek word for “eat” in that passage, and a literal rather than figurative interpretation of Christ’s words, she and her husband returned to the Catholic Church in order to partake of the sacrament of Holy Eucharist, in which, according to Roman Catholic Dogma, those who eat the consecrated bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper literally eat, or chew on, the physical body of the Lord Jesus Christ and drink His physical blood.
Well, of course, I take a different view of that verse—that as Jesus later clearly explains throughout the passage, and clarifies in verse 63, that His statement was meant to be taken figuratively or symbolically of partaking of his death and resurrection through saving faith.
However, that departure from biblical faith would never have occurred, I’m certain, if my dentist friend had been discerning about spiritual matters in the very way and on the very topic the Book of Hebrews encourages us to be--if she, and literally millions of others, had fully understood the meaty New Testament teaching regarding the fact that Jesus Christ is a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. For that teaching, once understood, once and for all eliminates and destroys the need for there ever to be any other priest but Jesus who is able to provide us with access to God and salvation through His sacrifices.
It is a challenging teaching, one that most people don’t have the patience for. And yet it is clearly stated enough, once considered, if people only took the Bible seriously to prevent such defections and to destroy the false teachings behind them. Due to a lack of understanding and attention to Hebrews 7-10, where the teaching is uniquely explained in the New Testament, hundreds of millions of people have been deceived into following false gospels and false religious practices as a result of their involvement in the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints, Eastern Orthodox Churches, and especially in the 1.3 billion or so practitioners of the Roman Catholic Church in the world today.
Now as we approach the subject, I have the same concern that the writer of the Book of Hebrews had for his readers. It is a difficult and a challenging teaching, one that takes great attention and patience to understand, and my fear is that some of your eyes will glaze over as we delve into it. That’s why it’s so important for you all to understand exactly why it is so necessary for you to move beyond the milk of the word, as the writer to the Hebrews puts it, so that you can partake of the solid food that it also presents, with the result that your senses are trained to discern good from evil.
The message from Hebrews 7:1-19 today is much the same as it will be for the next several weeks: Don’t be fooled! You only need one priest to access God and forgiveness—the great eternal high priest, Jesus Christ. Don’t be fooled. You will only need one priest to access God and forgiveness—your great eternal high priest, Jesus Christ.
Now it’s very important again this morning to remember the people to whom this letter is written. It is written to first century Jewish Christians who because of decades-long persecution were contemplating abandoning Christ and returning to Judaism. They would be, in the course of doing so, abandoning the high priestly work of Jesus Christ, who alone made peace between them and God the Father through the sacrifice of Himself on the cross as the only valid payment for their sins. And in so doing they would be returning to a now obsolete system of multiple, mortal and sinful high priests who would be offering sacrifices that could never take away their sin. In other words, they would be trading in trust in the only High Priest whose work could be effective in granting them a right relationship with God for an obsolete religion whose sacrifices had no effectiveness in saving them from their sins.
And in Hebrews 7, the writer begins to lay the groundwork for understanding that Jesus’ great High Priestly ministry was both foreshadowed, predicted and anticipated by the Word of God, even the Old Testament itself—a very important issue to these Jewish Christians.
So his first point in verses 1-3 is to convince us that Jesus’ eternal high priestly ministry was foreshadowed and modeled by one Melchizedek—an Old Testament High Priest.
Now Melchizedek makes a single cameo appearance in the Old Testament. He is introduced to us as both the King of Salem, which is present day Jerusalem, and as the High Priest from Salem in the days of Abraham nearly 4,000 years ago. In Genesis 14:18-20, Abraham returns from defeating the kings allied with Chedorlaomer. The King of Sodom, of all places, and the King of Salem, who was priest of God Most High, go out to meet and congratulate him on his victory. And Abraham, in recognition of God’s protection and the victory he gained in this battle, is blessed by Melchizedek, and Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils from the battle to Melchizedek, in other words he tithed by giving to Melchizedek, thus acknowledging God’s part in the victory, giving thanks to God and acknowledge that Melchizedek was indeed a true priest of the Most High God.
Now the writer to the Hebrews is going to make the point that Melchizedek was a type of priest that foreshadowed and modelled the kind of priest that Jesus the Messiah was. And he’s going to build the case the Jesus was the kind of priest that Melchizedek was and thus has superseded the priests of the Law in accord with both Melchizedek’s example and a prediction made in the one other place in the Old Testament that mentions Melchizedek, Psalm 110:4, which predicts that the Messiah would be appointed a priest forever after the order or type of Melchizedek.
He tells us that Melchizedek foreshadowed and foretold the kind of priest Jesus would be in at last five different ways. First, Melchizedek was the King of Salem and the King of righteousness. The name Melchizedek in Hebrew literally means My King of Righteousness. Jesus, of course, we know will be the King of Kings who will rule from Jerusalem, the same city, ultimately, and according to Isaiah 9:6-7 will be the Prince of Peace. There’s a clear parallel between the two, and thus truly Melchizedek foreshadowed this great King of Righteousness and Salem.
Second, He’s like Melchizedek in this sense also—He shares in two official capacities. He will be both King and Priest. Just as Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of the Most High God, so Jesus shares in both of these titles.
We see these things as we read Hebrews 7:1: “For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham as he was returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed Him, to whom also Abraham apportioned a tenth part of all the spoils, was first of all, by the translation of his name, king of righteousness and then also king of Salem, which is King of peace.
And then we’re going to be told, like Jesus, in some respects at least, this Melchizedek, was truly a great, great man, greater than even the forefather of the Jews, Abraham, who was held in highest respect by all Jews and Christians. It’s an argument he begins to make in verse two, but an argument which is not completed until later in the passage, when he says that Melchizedek blessed Abraham, and to whom Abraham apportioned a tenth of the spoils. What he’s shortly going to say is that clearly since Abraham tithed to Melchizedek and was blessed by Melchizedek, that was an acknowledgement that Melchizedek was greater than Abraham even as Jesus Himself claimed to be greater than Abraham before the Jews in John 8. Now right there was a grand statement, a grand statement to make about Melchizedek, one which would likely surprise these Jewish Christians, to even think that Melchizedek was greater than Abraham.
And then we get into a comparison that will seem much stranger to us than it did to those who were accustomed to Jewish and rabbinic interpretations common in the first century. Based on what was recorded and especially what wasn’t recorded about Melchizedek in the Scriptural record, parallels are going to be drawn between Jesus and Melchizedek. Now it’s important to remember here that Melchizedek literally did have a father and a mother and a genealogy and a beginning and end in life in reality, but in Scripture, none of those things is ever mentioned. Thus, in Rabbinic thinking, this qualifies him all the more as a type of Christ, since Christ literally has no genealogy that qualifies him as a priest, and Christ literally has no beginning and no end because He is eternal.
Verse 3: “Without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God he remains a priest perpetually.” Here I would probably prefer the translation be something like “he remains like a priest perpetually” since no doubt Melchizedek died, but remember we’re talking about how he is described in Scripture, and since his death is never recorded, he is left as though he’s a priest perpetually. And in that way, in that typology he foreshadows and parallels the literal career of Jesus Christ whose occupation of the office of High Priest is perpetual—it is a key characteristic of Christ’s ministry as a high priest that his ministry never ends. Therefore, there is never a need for another high priest, or priest of any kind.
So, the conclusion is here that Melchizedek was a type of Christ, he prefigured and foreshadowed Christ in the Scriptural record in many vital ways. All these things have and will characterize Christ—this is what it means to be a priest after the order of Melchizedek.
What the writer is driving at is this: since Jesus is a priest forever after the order or kind of Melchizedek, don’t even think about going back to the old and obsolete kind of priests that are called priests after the order of Aaron, the brother of Moses, a descendant of Levi. They were not only inferior priests, they are obsolete as priests now that the great eternal high priest has come, who alone can make mankind right before God on account of His unique sacrifice of Himself.
In verses 4-10, the writer makes it clear that the Melchizedek type of priest is far, far superior to the Aaronic type of priest—the very kind of priest and priestly order of ministry that they were about to return to.
How is He greater? The writer mentions that he is greater in four ways. First, he received tithes from Abraham. Second, he blessed Abraham. And in both of these actions, there is an acknowledgement by Abraham in giving and receiving these things that Melchizedek was greater than Abraham.
Verses 4-7: “Now observe how great this man was to whom Abraham, the patriarch (the father of the Jews and all who believe) gave a tenth of the choicest spoils. And those indeed of the sons of Levi who receive the priestly office have commandment in the Law to collect a tenth from the people, that is from their brethren, although these are descended from Abraham. But the one whose genealogy is not traced from them collected a tenth from Abraham and blessed the one who had the promises. But without any dispute the lesser is blessed by the greater.”
So the writer makes reference that in Jewish law, tithes were paid by Jews to the priests that were of Levitical ancestry, that is those who were of the tribe of Levi, noting that this was an acknowledgement of their very important role in their relationship with God. But in this case a pagan, one whose ancestry was not traced from Abraham in any way, who was not Jewish, received tithes from Abraham himself, and also was blessed by Abraham, thus demonstrating that this Melchizedek was no insignificant fellow. He was great, greatly honored by Abraham, a legitimate priest of the Most High God by Abraham’s own profession and actions, and thus is certified by God as a priest that was greater than all the priests that descended from Abraham. Those would be the Levitical priests, the priests according to the order of Aaron.
So this Melchizedek was greater than the Aaronic priests has been established in two ways—Father Abraham gave tithes to Him and was blessed by Him. And more than that, this man’s death, Melchizedek’s death, was not recorded in Scripture, but the fact that priests according to the order of Aaron died was a well-known fact. It’s the reason there were many of them because death prevented them from continuing. Verse 8: “In this case, (the case of the Aaronic priests) mortal men receive tithes, but in that case one receives them, of whom it is witnessed that he lives on. How is it witnessed—by what is not recorded in Scripture, Melchizedek’s death. Yes, hard for us to follow, but for the Jew reading this what is important is the typology exhibited by Scripture, not whether Melchizedek actually died or not. We know that he died, but the important point for the Jewish Christian or any Jew reading this is that since his death was not recorded in Scripture, the Word of God left him living, so in that since he foreshadows and prefigures the ever living eternal High Priest, Jesus Christ.
And then we encounter another interesting line of reasoning. Again, it’s a line of reasoning that makes more sense in a culture accustomed to seeing people in solidarity as a group rather than as individuals, or individualistic, like our culture. The fourth reason Melchizedek was greater than the Levitical priests is that the Levitical priests themselves, since they were in the loins of Abraham, not yet born, virtually paid tithes to Melchizedek when Abraham paid tithes to Melchizedek.
Verses 9-10: “And, so to speak, through Abraham, even Levi, who received tithes, paid tithes, for he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him.” Thus, the conclusion, that Melchizedek was indeed a priest of the Most High God, despite not being Jewish, or even a Levite, and was even greater than the priests of the Levitical order, the Aaronic priesthood.
Again, the point that the writer is driving at is this, why in the world, would you want to return to these inferior priests when, as we shall see, Jesus Christ Himself was designated, by oath from God, to be a much superior priest according to the order, or the kind of priest, that Melchizedek Himself was--a priest forever, whose priesthood is non-transferable and unchangeable.
Now we begin to get to the point of the whole discussion. Trust in Jesus alone—the new, unchangeable, eternal High Priest who alone can perfect believers. Trust in Jesus alone—the new, unchangeable, eternal High Priest who alone can perfect believers!
Now the writer makes at least eight points toward this end. In verses 10 and 11, two points are made. First, perfection, or a right-standing with God, could never come through the Levitical priesthood. Now the writer doesn’t explain why. But there are at least two reasons that are evident from other Scriptures. First, men because of sin, simply cannot keep the law perfectly. It’s a standard that reveals our sin rather than defeats our sin. And second, the sacrifices that the Levitical priests offered, the blood of bulls and goats, since they were not human, divine, or perfect themselves, could never take away sin. The best they could do according to the Old Testament was atone for, or cover, our sins temporarily, according to the meaning of the Hebrew word kaphar, which means both to atone for and cover. So, point one, the Levitical priesthood could never perfect us, and since it couldn’t, point two is made, the priesthood needed to change to the kind of priest who could perfect us, a priest after the order of Melchizedek, namely Jesus.
So, verse 11, “Now if perfection as through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the people received the Law) what further need was there for another priest to arise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be designated according to the order of Aaron?” So, obviously, perfection, a right standing before God, was never achieved by the Levitical priesthood.
So a change was needed. A change of priesthood, but also of the law which was the basis for the priesthood. Verse 12: “For when the priesthood is changed, of necessity there takes place a change of law also.” Thus, the change from Old Covenant to New Covenant, from the Law to Grace, from the Old Testament to the New Testament. So this is the third point, the change of priesthood demanded a change in Law, and based on other Scriptures, we know that change was affected through the blood of Jesus Christ and is the New Covenant.
Fourth point: Evidence of that change is that Jesus was not from the tribe of Levi, which the Old Covenant indicated was the only tribe from which priests according to the order of Aaron could come from. Instead, he was from the royal tribe of Judah. Verse 13: “For the one concerning whom these things are spoken” (namely Jesus) “belongs to another tribe, from which no one has officiated at the altar—no priest under the Old Covenant who descended from Judah ministered at the altar in the Temple. Verse 14 confirms this: “For it is evident that our Lord (Jesus) was descended from Judah, a tribe with reference to which Moses spoke nothing concerning priests.”
Therefore, next the fact that a change has occurred in that another priest has arisen, not according to the order of Aaron, not from the tribe of Levi, but now from the tribe of Judah. Verse 15: “And this is clearer still, if another priest arises according to the likeness of Melchizedek, who has become such not on the basis of the law of physical requirement, but according to the power of an indestructible life.”
Now what has qualified Jesus to become a greater high priest than all the other priests according to Aaron is this one major fact. His life is indestructible. He will live on eternally. Though He died, He lives again and therefore can serve eternally as a High Priest. This distinguishes and exalts His priesthood above the mortal men who were priests under the Old Covenant. They could not continue as priests because they died. Jesus, because of His indestructible life, now serves as High Priest forever, eternally, a point now supported by the Old Testament itself in verse 17, where the author quotes Psalm 110:4. The Psalm is clearly a Messianic Psalm. It speaks of Messiah. Jesus Himself quoted it to indicate He was the Son of David, but David’s Lord, and therefore Messiah. And in verse 4 God authorizes this change in the Old Testament itself, thereby authenticating and predicting in advance that this change would occur, and that the Messiah Himself would be the new High Priest forever after the order, or the likeness of Melchizedek: Verse 17: “For it is attested of Him (the Messiah), ‘You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.’”
Now this is a huge point. It demonstrates that all along God planned a change in priesthood, it was predicted and authorized by Him a thousand years before Christ came, and the major difference between this priesthood and the priesthood of Aaron is that the one who would become priest under it would be a priest forever, permanently, never to be changed again, and He would be the Messiah. Therefore, now that Messiah has come, he is the only priest that matters, the only priest that you will ever need for eternity.
Why was this change needed? Still two more powerful points are made in verses 18 and 19. First, the former commandment, with regard to the Aaronic Priesthood, was weak while it lasted and is now absolutely useless, having been made obsolete by Jesus’ coming. And now the better commandment, one that accomplishes the goal of perfecting men, that is making them right before God judicially, has been enacted, thus nullifying the former commandment and the former priesthood.
Verses 18 and 19: “For, on the one hand, there is a setting aside of a former commandment because of its weakness and uselessness.” Remember, it could never take away sin, it could never deliver men from either the experience or ultimate consequence of sin. So it has been superseded by a better commandment, and a better priesthood, which it itself predicted and anticipated. Verse 19: (For the law made nothing perfect) and on the other hand there is a bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God. This better hope, available now because of a better covenant and a much better eternal priest, actually does bring us near to God by taking away our sins.
Conclusion: Jesus is the only high priest, the only priest of any kind, that you will ever need. You need not return to or join some kind of religious system that tells you that you need their priests, their religious system or their church to intercede on behalf of you for a right standing with God. They are not authorized to do so, those kinds of priests are now obsolete and they have been replaced by Jesus Christ, the great high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek for eternity. So what in the world are you doing pursuing these things that have the appearance of righteousness, but at heart do nothing to deliver mankind from their sins? They have been declared useless and obsolete, by this, the Word of God, and will leave you hopeless in your pursuit of God.
As I Timothy 2:5 puts it: “There is one mediator (one priest) between man and God, the man Christ Jesus, who offered himself as a ransom at the proper time.”
So, let me ask you, what are you going to do, what are you going to say, when someone tries to tell you that you need their priests, their church, their sacrifice to be able to approach God?
I hope what you will say is: “Baloney! Jesus is the only high priest I’ll ever need. He made peace between me and God once and for all and for eternity by His sacrifice on the cross 2,000 years ago. “
Remember this vital teaching which will help you discern good from evil. Jesus is the only priest you will ever need. For He himself said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6).
