I have a confession to make. It’s not easy for me to say this. This is difficult for me to admit. But, I used to watch professional wrestling. I know, I know, that’s hard to believe. That was back in the days when Hulk Hogan was in his prime. It was cool to watch professional wrestling. There was this one particular wrestler who called himself “Mr. Perfect.” That was his name because, well, I guess he thought he was perfect. He was handsome, I guess. He was muscular. He was the right height and weight. He was “perfect,” or so he thought. He was also arrogant and pompous. He was one of the bad guys. Everyone booed him when he came into the ring. Nobody liked him because he thought so much of himself.
The truth is that we all strive for perfection. We don’t want to make mistakes. Whether it’s on the job or raising the kids or whatever, we strive to be Mr. or Miss Perfect. We try so hard to do the absolute best we can. We work hard. We worry about it. We do all we can to be the best we can. We put in extra hours. The problem is that we just can’t seem to reach our ideal perfection. We just can’t measure up.
Why can’t we measure up? Why can’t we be what we want to be? We have limitations. We are limited by time and space. We can’t be everywhere at once. We can’t be at the kids’ soccer game and at work at the same time. We also have physical limitations. We get tired. We get sick. Eventually we’ll die. We won’t be there for the kids forever. We are limited creatures. As much as we like to think that we can do it all, we simply cannot. We just can’t ever live up to our own ideal of who we think we should be.
Turn with to Hebrews 7.
Read Hebrews 7:23-28
This is a passage of contrasts. It contrasts the “former priests” of the Jewish system with the new High Priest, Jesus Christ. The imperfections of the “former priests” are contrasted with the perfection of Jesus.
Mankind needs a priest in order to come to God. Under the old system, men were appointed as priests. The priests ministered to the people of Israel. They offered the sacrifices to atone for the sins of the people. It was their job to represent the people of God before God.
There was a problem though. As mere men, they could never measure up to God’s standards. There was a constant turnover in the priestly office. As men, the priests died and were prevented from continuing in the office. Generation after generation, there was a new priest. As a member of a corrupt human race, the priests first had to atone for their own sins before they deal with the sins of the people. Sacrifice upon sacrifice had to be offered over and over.
Standing in sharp contrast to this temporary, ineffective human priesthood is Jesus. Verse 24 says, “But he [meaning Jesus] holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever.” Jesus’ priesthood lasts forever because he is alive and well today. The consequence of Jesus’ priesthood is that he can save those who come near to God. When it says that he can “save to the uttermost” it entails both time and quality. He salvation is forever. He is able to save forever because he lives forever. His salvation is also complete. Salvation through Jesus is all we need to make it to heaven. Jesus has none of the limitations that affect us.
Verses 26 through 28 outline three reasons Jesus is all we need to get to God. They all relate to his perfection. The first is…
I. He is perfect in his CHARACTER.
There are five attributes of Jesus listed in verse 26. The first four deal with his character.
Character is an issue of much public debate these days. Does character matter? That question gets bandied about each time someone discovers a skeleton in the closet of a politician or other public figure. What character attributes do we want to see in our leaders?
When we look at the character of Jesus, we find something unusual. We find nothing wrong with his character. Jesus would stand the test of character. We all have things that we’ve done that we aren’t proud of. Like I mentioned earlier, I used to watch professional wrestling. I’m not real proud of that. Jesus character was spotless. Jesus never did anything that he was later ashamed of. The first attribute listed is…
A. Holy
What does it mean to be holy? The Church of the Nazarene is a church in what is often referred to as the holiness tradition. What does it mean to be holy?
One scholar put it this way; Holiness is “perfect fulfillment of all that God is and all he requires.” Jesus fulfilled all the requirements of God. In order to fulfill all that God required, Jesus had to be holy.
There is also an element of holiness that means to be set apart. When we talk about something being holy, there is the notion that it is dedicated to the service of God. In that sense, this building is holy, in that it has been set apart from other buildings to be used for the service of God. Jesus was set apart for the special work he had to do in bringing us the opportunity of salvation.
The second thing listed is…
B. Innocent
Some translations use the word “blameless” or “harmless.”
When someone is accused of a crime, they are either guilty or innocent. We are all guilty of something. We have, in one way or another, broken God’s law. We cannot perfectly keep God’s law. No one has been able to, except for Jesus. That’s why the priests were required to offer sacrifices for their own sins, and the sins of the people. We all have something bad in us. William Barclay wrote, of Jesus, “There is nothing left in him but good.”
As it stands, we are all guilty, and Jesus is innocent.
The third part of his character is that he is…
C. Unstained
Some translations use the word “pure” or “undefiled.”
Stains are contaminations. Food, dirt and other things stain our clothes. When our clothes are stained, we throw them into the rag pile or trash, or we wear them to do “dirty work” around the house.
To say that Jesus is unstained is to say that he is pure, undefiled, unpolluted, unblemished, and uncontaminated. It is this unstained state that allows him into the very presence of God.
As Professor Gareth Cockerill put it, “These first three words [holy, innocent, and unstained]…emphasize that our high priest has been completely obedient to the Father and that His character is untouched by sin.” That leads us to the fourth thing. He was…
D. Separated from sinners
When Jesus was walking the earth, he was in the presence of sinners, as all mankind are sinners.
This phrase kind of sums up the previous three words. While he was among humanity, he was free from sin. This is a moral separation rather than a physical separation. Jesus was tempted as anyone else is tempted, but he did not sin. As Pastor Warren Wiersbe put it, “There was contact without contamination.” Jesus lived among sinners, but he was never contaminated by sin.
We now see how he was perfect in his character. We will now look at how…
II. He is perfect in his POSITION.
Isn’t it cool to have well-connected friends and relatives? When you know the right person, you can go along way. Knowing the right person can help you land a job, or get in the right school. Knowing a person in a position of power or influence can get us a lot of things. Well, we have the best-connected friend in the universe. We have Jesus, the Son of God on our side. Verse 25 says that he is makes intercession for us. He offers us the avenue to God. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Jesus is well connected. This is what it means when the author says in verse 26 that he is “exalted above the heavens.”
In the study of American history, there is a phenomenon that has surrounded the presidency over the last generation or so, and that is the position of chief-of-staff. Each president appoints a chief-of-staff. This person is a kind of gatekeeper to the president. If you want to see the president, you have to go through the chief-of-staff. Some presidents have really used their chief-of-staff to limit access.
Jesus is the way we get to God. We cannot get to God any other way than through Jesus. Ryan Dobson, the son of James Dobson, writes, “No other name but Jesus gets you to heaven. Not Buddha, not Muhammad, not Joseph Smith, not Mary Baker Eddy, not Krishna, not L. Ron Hubbard, not Gandhi, not Abraham, not the pope, not Mother Mary, not Confucius, and not the Dalai Lama.”
No one, but Jesus can get us to the Father. This is true because of his…
A. Place of AUTHORITY.
The very first sentence of Jesus’ Great Commission to his disciple is, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” Jesus has the authority granted by God the Father.
His ministry for us is in the throne room of heaven. He is connected because of his position. He is our perpetual, permanent High Priest.
He has the authority to give us salvation when we approach God. Jesus ushers us into the presence of God.
Despite his place of authority he is…
B. Still in touch with his PEOPLE.
Jesus hasn’t forgotten the little guy. So often we see people ascend to positions of authority, and they forget where they came from. They forget their old friends. They forget the community where they grew up.
Jesus doesn’t forget us just because of his position. Jesus is making intercession with God for us. He is pleading our case before the Father. Jesus went through the temptations that we face. He faced hunger. He faced thirst. He faced pain and agony. He hurt. He bled. He grieved. He knew what it was to lose a friend. He faced rejection. He was mocked. He was cursed. He was laughed at. He was persecuted. He was made fun of. He was bullied. He was tired. He faced death. All the junk that we face in our daily lives, he faced while he was on earth. He understands what we have to deal with. He knows the struggles that we go through. He hasn’t forgotten what the grind of daily life was like for him. He hasn’t forgotten the anguish caused by the executioner’s nails. There is a song that goes something like, “The only scars in heaven will be Jesus’ hands, feet and side.”
Despite all he went through, he didn’t sin, not even once. He didn’t sin in word, thought or deed. While he understands the pressures that we face, he doesn’t excuse or wink at sin. Our condition here is no excuse to live a life of sin.
Jesus’ position gives him authority while still maintaining contact with us. No human could ever accomplish that.
Verse 26 describes the perfect high priest, and that is only found in the Person of Jesus Christ. Professor H. Orton Wiley observes, “There are five statements here concerning the perfection of Jesus, our Great High Priest.” No person could fulfill these five things that are attributed to Jesus. He is our perfect High Priest, and he provides all we need. He is “holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.”
He is perfect in character and position. Also…
III. He is perfect in his SACRIFICE.
His sacrifice was perfect to provide for our forgiveness and salvation. The sacrifices offered by the priests under the old covenant had to be repeated. Once a year, on the Day of Atonement, the priests offered sacrifices for the sins of the nation. Before they could offer sacrifices for others, they first had to offer sacrifices for their own sins. This wasn’t necessarily a daily occurrence, as the text suggests. What the author is saying is that the sacrifices were continual. They were repeated over and over again. It was an ongoing thing. If not for Jesus’ sacrifice, we would be bound by the same code. We would have to offer continual sacrifices.
The sacrifices were not perfect. They were not offered by perfect people. Therefore they had to be offered over and over.
There are two things that make his offering perfect. The first is…
A. The VALUE of his offering.
Verse 27 says, “He offered up himself.” Jesus was the perfect sacrifice. He, himself, became the sacrifice for our sins. He suffered for us and our sins that we might experience forgiveness.
The law required that a perfect, unblemished animal be used in a sacrifice. It had to be without defect. It had to be just right. That still wasn’t good enough.
Jesus was good enough. As a human, he could offer up himself. As God, he could be perfect for the sacrifice.
On top of all that, he didn’t have to offer a sacrifice for his own sins. Warren Wiersbe observes, “Another proof of His sinlessness is the fact that our Lord never had to offer sacrifices for His own cleansing, as did the priests.”
Jesus was the perfect, holy, innocent, unstained, unblemished, pure Lamb of God that suffered death for our sins. When he died on that cross, he became the most valuable sacrifice for our sins. The value of what he did is beyond limit.
In addition to the value of his offering is…
B. The FINALITY of his offering.
The writer of Hebrews states, later, “But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God.” A single sacrifice means just that, a single sacrifice. Our passage today says, “He did this once for all.” It was a one-time deal. The value of his sacrifice made in necessary only one time. It doesn’t need to be repeated. It can’ be repeated.
Let’s take a look at those two thought. First…
1. Repetition is not NECESSARY.
Under the old system, sacrifices were offered over and over. Repetition was necessary because the sacrifices were not of enough value, nor the priests holy enough to affect a permanent solution to the sin issue.
The fact also that Jesus’ priesthood is permanent also means that his sacrifice does not need to be repeated. The old priesthood was in constant turnover, so the sacrifices had to be repeated.
Repetition of Jesus’ sacrifice for sin is not necessary.
The second is that…
2. Repetition is not POSSIBLE.
It is not possible to duplicate Jesus’ sacrifice. The first time Jesus appeared on earth was to do exactly what he did. He came as the suffering servant. He was born in a stable. He had a humble life growing up. He was rejected and killed. His death paid the price.
He is coming again, but it will not be as a suffering servant. He will come again as Conquering King.
Conclusion
Each month we celebrate the Lord’s Supper. Jesus instructed his disciples to take part in the commemoration of his death and resurrection. It also reminds us that he is coming again.
Jesus died once for all. He died for my sins and your sins. Is he Lord of your life today? It really does us no good to remember what he did for us, if he is not Lord of our life. If he is not Lord of your life, it’s just juice and crackers. If he is Lord of your life, the Lord’s Supper is a powerful reminder of what he has done, and is still doing, for us.
As we approach the Lord’s Table, let’s pause for a few moments and reflect on what we have read and heard this morning. Jesus is our High Priest. He is the only avenue to God.
Let’s take a few minutes to meditate on these thoughts. If need be, confess any unconfessed sin. Take time to than him for what he has done.
Pause for a few minutes.
Read 1 Corinthians 11:24-26.
