Hebrews 4:14 – 5:10 “Christ our High Priest”

Hebrews 4:14 – 5:10 “Christ our High Priest”

About the next six chapters of Hebrews are spent developing the theme of Christ our High
Priest.


Why? Think of it the audience it was intended to reach. The book of Romans was to a secular
and reasoned world. In Romans God’s actions are defended through the action of Jesus.
Hebrews makes that connection between Jesus and the fulfillment of the Law. To do this, the
writer of Hebrews (Paul) uses the images from the Old Testament to make his point. The
strongest one is Jesus who is both King and Priest.


The High priest possessed two qualifications.


First, the High Priest was one of the people. This made sure that he was sympathetic to the
weaknesses of the people. [v 2]


Second, the High Priest was appointed by God. [v 4 – 5] This made sure that nobody ever
claimed the right. Since it traveled through family lines and God reserved the right to change
High Priests every Day of Atonement (through the serving one dying)… It also meant nobody
actually wanted to be High Priest.


It was the most humble of jobs, it was the most dangerous of jobs, it was the most important of
jobs.


Jesus possessed a THIRD qualification: Jesus was also the sacrifice. Jesus’ sacrifice was the
foundation of the authority He now exercises in heaven. Jesus was made “perfect” though
suffering. [v 9]


“For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to
glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering.” [Hebrews 2:10]
The word translated “perfect” is the word “teleos.” The word does not mean “flawless.” Jesus
was already flawless. “Teleos” means “the bringing of the person to a fixed goal” (Vincent). In
this case is the completion of the process. (Robertson)


I. Here’s the problem (two of them)


A. First, Jesus was not of the line of Levi (not from Aaron).


1. How could Jesus be a High Priest if He was from the “wrong” family?

2. The whole nation was called to be priests.

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession,
that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous
light.” [1 Peter 2:9]

“But you shall be called the priests of the LORD; they shall speak of you as the ministers of our
God…” [Isaiah 61:6a]


B. Second, what happened to the priesthood that already existed?


1. It failed because the priests were as sinful as the people.

a. How often is the strength the major weakness?

b. It was because of sin that the people needed a mediator.

c. Aaron and others were officially “holy” but not actually spotless and pure.

2. It failed because the priests served in a copy of the original.

a. They served in an earthly copy of the heavenly reality.

b. Because they were not divine, they did not have the access necessary to function on a level above a crude, imperfect, and flawed copy.

Jesus, being the spotless and pure lamb of God was able to enter the real “holy of holies”
through His sacrifice for us.


II. Here’s the paradox:


A. One would expect the sinless one to be the severest, stickiest, and saintly judge
of those who sin.


1. Yes, Jesus as the Holy one of God will eventually judge.

2. However, Jesus (in perfect holiness) is the most merciful, compassionate,
and considerate Judge…

3. Our sins make us impatient and severe with others BECAUSE we see our
flaws in others!

4. Irony: the holier the character the more loving and sympathetic they are
toward others.


B. Possibly God’s guiding principle: He is not willing that ANY should perish but ALL
should reach repentance.


“The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you,
not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” [2 Peter 3:9]

1. Jesus made it a point to forgive those who crucified Him.

“And Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." And they cast lots to
divide his garments.” [Luke 23:24]

2. Forgiveness is so important, Jesus made it a point to tell us if we do not
forgive we will not be forgiven.

“And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” [Matthew 6:12]

“But if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your
trespasses.” [Mathew 6:15]


III. Here’s the possibility: victory over death.


A. Jesus “became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him” [v 9]


1. Physical death is the “organic connection with divine wrath.”

a. No wonder Jesus cried out “let this cup pass from me.” [Matthew
26:39]

b. God the Father charged all our sin to Jesus’ account as He tasted
that cup of physical death for us.

2. Jesus’ obedience became the example for our obedience…

“For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example,
so that you might follow in his steps.” [1 Peter 2:21]


B. His obedience earned him the title and position of High Priest “in the order of
Melchizedek” (King of Salem and High Priest of God Most High… see Genesis 14:18 – 20)


1. Melchizedek was a King and a priest… nothing known outside Genesis 14
and the book of Hebrews.

2. Abraham paid a tithe to Melchizedek… (More in the weeks to come on
Melchizedek.)


IV. Here’s the prize.


A. Perfect peace.


1. “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God
through our Lord Jesus Christ.” [Romans 5:1]

2. “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he
trusts in you.” [Isaiah 26:3]

Kicker: the only time perfect peace is clear is in the storm.

“Everyone is either heading into a storm, in a storm, or just coming out of a storm.” [American
Proverb]

3. This perfect peace is found only in right relationship to God the Father
through Jesus.


B. The God who cares…


1. Jesus extended tenderness towards the sinner in need. (Woman caught
in adultery John 8]

2. Jesus demonstrated compassion on those who were “without a
shepherd.”

3. Jesus perfectly sympathizes with us in our time of need… under the
pressure and pain of temptation and failure.

4. BECAUSE of all this Jesus knows the sorrow and brokenness that is too
deep for any human ministry.

a. Jesus is able to understand and heal that sorrow and brokenness in our soul.

b. Jesus intends to restore our spirit to a right standing before God the Father.

c. Jesus, the friend of sinners, calls us to engage the bottomless ocean of God’s love by doing away with sin and its burden, guilt, and future consequences.

Three tools for Success (Hebrews 4:11 - 16)

Hebrews 4:11 – 16
Three tools for Success

Verse 11 starts with a warning… “Let us strive… so
that no one may fall…” Israel did not enter the rest
because of disobedience (“unbelief”).
In this chapter we have seen a promise coupled
with a warning. Whether we like it or not, God’s
promises are conditional. God takes the initiative
but expects us to respond. God gives grace but we
must react in faith. God does the heavy lifting but
we are expected to invest ourselves in obedience.
Why the warning? Because of the very real
possibility of failure… but we are given three very
powerful tools to achieve our goal.


I. Tool #1: We are given the Word of God.

A. What is the “Word of God?”

1. The Bible

“But he answered, It is written, Man shall not live by
bread alone, but by every word that comes from the
mouth of God.” [Matthew 4:4]

2. Jesus Christ

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was
with God, and the Word was God.” [John 1:1]

B. What makes the “Word of God” special?

1. It is “living.” [v 12]

a. It is not a “dead language.” (It is
not unchanging.)

b. Jesus came to give us “abundant
life.”

“The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill,
and to destroy: I am come that they might have life,
and that they might have it more abundantly.”
[John 10:10]

1.) Jesus as the “Word of God”
reveals God the Father, His
expressions, thoughts, and
passions.

2.) In the Bible we hear, find, and
receive Jesus.

2. It is active. (It is the word we get
“energy” from) [v 12]

a. This power is not necessarily what
we think or want it to be!

b. 1 Kings 19:9 – 13

C. How does the “Word of God” work?

1. In the “Word of God” we find identity,
power, and purpose.

a. It exposes us for who we really
are… (“discerns” is the image of the
head pulled back to expose the
neck.)

1.) Thoughts (MIND)

2.) Intentions (HEART)

b. It has the healing power of the
surgeon’s scalpel.

1.) The word “sharper” conveys
the image of one clean cut (as
opposed to “hacking.” It was
the advantage Roman soldiers
had over their opponents…
steel that remained sharp.)

2.) It is the power of the spoken
word that the word that
created and chaos is turned to
cosmos at the cross.

“By faith we understand that the universe was
created by the word of God, so that what is seen
was not made out of things that are visible.”
[Hebrews 11:3]

2. In the “Word of God” we are
confronted with a choice: live or death.

a. The image of the sword either kills
are guards…

b. It is the image of sacrifice… we will
see this again in Hebrews.

c. Which side of the sword do you
want to be on?

II. Tool #2: A sympathetic High Priest

A. Jesus has gone before us… What?

1. Explain the “day of atonement.” (The
one time of the year anyone, and only
the High Priest, could enter the “holy of
holies” behind the veil.)

“Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering that is
for the people and bring its blood inside the veil and
do with its blood as he did with the blood of the bull,
sprinkling it over the mercy seat and in front of the
mercy seat.” [Leviticus 16:15]

2. God eliminated that wall of separation
between Him and us when Jesus died.

“And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and
yielded up his spirit. [51] And behold, the curtain of
the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.
And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.”
[Matthew 27:50 – 51]

B. That is what we call a “game changer.”

1. Because of Jesus, everything changes…

a. God sympathizes with our
weaknesses.

b. While Jesus is God in every way, He
was also human in every way… His
humanity AND sinlessness adds up
to the perfect sacrifice AND perfect
representative.

2. God has become not only our judge but
also our advocate.

a. Even though Jesus was not a sinner,
God treated Him like one.

b. Jesus took our place, took our
whipping, took our death sentence,
took our damnation to hell… THAT
IS LOVE (and believe it or not it
offends people).

“My little children, I am writing these things to you
so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we
have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the
righteous.” [1 John 2:1]

a. Once we were against God… now
God shown Himself to be for us.

b. Once we were separated by a veil
that represented our uncleanness…
now God has exchanged Jesus
righteousness for our uncleanness.

“For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no
sin, so that in him we might become the
righteousness of God.” [2 Corinthians 5:21]

C. What difference does this make?

1. We have our identity in Jesus.

a. He is our King.

b. We are co-heirs with Jesus.

"So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son,
then an heir through God.” [Galatians 4:7]

[Roman law of adoption: A person was privately
adopted… eventually there was a public ceremony
before the civil authorities. It was not uncommon
to have many years in between the private and the
public ceremony. It was not legal until the public
ceremony.]

“For the creation waits with eager longing for the
revealing of the sons of God.” [Romans 8:19]

Here is the “already but not yet” principle we see
throughout Scripture.

2. We have power through the shed blood
of Jesus.

a. One way to understand this is what
Jesus gave us:

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has
come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in
Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the
end of the earth.” [Acts 1:8]

b. Another way to understand this:

“And they have conquered him by the blood of the
Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they
loved not their lives even unto death.” [Revelation
12:11]

III. Tool #3: Our confession [v 14] and confidence
[v 16]

A. What confession?

“Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus
is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised
him from the dead, you will be saved. [10] For with
the heart one believes and is justified, and with the
mouth one confesses and is saved.” [Romans 10:9 –
10]

1. “Confess” means to tell others… (new
fangled word “witness.”)

2. Faith is expressed by the content of our
words.

B. What confidence:

1. If we need mercy, what do we do?
[RUN]

“The man answered, I was naked, and when I heard
you walking through the garden, I was frightened
and hid!” [Genesis 3:10 CEV]

“People who do evil hate the light and won't come
to the light, because it clearly shows what they have
done.” [John 3:20 CEV]

a. Think about it: when do you need
mercy and grace?

b. When you have sinned…

2. Repentance depends on God’s loving-
kindness.

a. Do you really think that God does
NOT want anyone to perish?

“The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some
count slowness, but is patient toward you, not
wishing that any should perish, but that all should
reach repentance.” [2 Peter 3:9]

b. If God really does not want anyone
to perish (go to hell) then why do
we act like God is the mean bully?

3. Mercy is for the past, grace is for the
now, hope rules tomorrow.

a. This is all give WHEN it is needed.
(“in our time of need.”)

b. Without doubt or fear, you can
approach God in repentance.

C. What does this mean?

1. We have free access to God…

2. We have right relationship with God…

3. We have the responsibility to “strive”
(with all diligence and effort).

4. We are not working FOR our salvation…
we are acting like we are saved.

Jesus Christ our Sanctifier

Hebrews 2:11 – 18

Jesus Christ our Sanctifier

I. Jesus became our “brother.” [v 11]

A. Jesus Christ is the source and power of our sanctification.

1. BEFORE we became a Christian:

a. We are condemned under sin to physical and eternal death.

b. We lived in sin, alienated from God.

c. We were without God’s light and life.

d. We were outside the benefits of God’s love and blessing.

e. We were in a “continuous, active, self-developing state of misery and corruption” that theologically is called “death.” (As opposed to the “death” that is end of physical existence.)

2. If we are to be brought to glory [v 10] then we must be delivered and separated from sin’s guilt, pollution, and death.

a. The process is called “sanctification.”

b. The idea is that we are brought to holiness.

B. (As brother) Jesus Christ is our sanctification.

Sanctify – “separate to God for holy use.”

1. How it works:

a. God the Father planned it, authored it, and invites us to be holy.

b. God the Son paid for the ways and means for us to be holy.

c. God the Holy Spirit provides the power for our cleansing and purification.

2. How do we attain this holiness?

a. Through EXERCISING faith. *Faith is an action verb.*

b. By the Word of God. *Obedience is key.*

c. By the indwelling Holy Spirit. *Surrender, trust, and rest.*

***** As our brother Jesus is standing with us in our time of need. *****

II. Jesus became flesh and blood. [v 14]

A. Jesus shared our humanity...

1. Jesus became “weak” (flesh)

“But made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. [8] And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” [Philippians 2:7 – 8]

2. Jesus became like us in every way. [v 17] (Jesus had to grow up like us.)

(Describing Jesus growing up:) “And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.” [Luke 2:52]

Other things the Bible describes about Jesus’ earthly existence: hungry, thirsty, tired, sleep, loved, astonished, angry, and grieved.

3. Jesus needed to exercise faith: read Scripture, prayed.

4. Jesus suffered when tempted. [v 18]

a. This means that temptation was a reality with the real possibility of failure.

b. This means Jesus felt the weight and pressure of the temptation.

c. This means Jesus felt the real pain and torment of resisting temptation.

“And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” [Luke 22:44]

5. Jesus never yielded to temptation... Jesus never sinned!

“Jesus understands every weakness of ours, because he was tempted in every way that we are. But he did not sin!” [Hebrews 4:15 CEV]

B. This was all for the ability to “help” us [v 16]

1. Jesus did not appropriate the nature of angels... He became fully human (while being fully God).

2. Remember humans were created in the “image of God.”

a. We were supposed to reflect God, be like God.

b. Jesus humbled Himself and left all the “God-things” to share in our weakness.

***** As our fellow human, Jesus is helping us in our time of need. *****

III. Jesus became our “merciful and faithful high priest.” [v 17]

***** Hebrews is the only place the image of “high priest” is used of Jesus. *****

“The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind, "You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.” [Psalm 110:4]

A. The High Priest did two things:

1. Presents us to the Father.

a. Holy and without blemish.

“So that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.” [Ephesians 5:17]

b. However, we have a responsibility to be blameless.

“Do all things without grumbling or questioning, [15] that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world.” [Philippines 2:14 – 15]

2. Presents the Father to us.

a. Blessing, grace, and strength.

b. Jesus showed us the Father.

“I and the Father are one.” [John 10:30]

Wesley explained “one” in will, power, and nature. “Therefore is he was not God he must have been the vilest of men.” [The word for “one” here is similar to the word used in Deuteronomy 6:4. It does NOT mean “one” as singular rather than as plural.]

B. Notice that as High Priest (God-Man) that Jesus is able to sympathize with us and not just pity us.

“Jesus understands every weakness of ours, because he was tempted in every way that we are. But he did not sin!” [Hebrews 4:15 CEV]

1. Think about it this way:

a. He knows what is in us. Knows the icy grip of sin.

b. He fully understands our sorrows in resisting the strength of our temptations.

c. He died so we can have victory and suffer no more injury from sin.

2. In other words, Jesus is working FOR us.

***** [Summary] *****

1. As our brother, Jesus is standing with us.

2. As our fellow human, Jesus is helping us.

3. As our High Priest, Jesus is fighting for us.

Key: Christ is in us and for us!

IV. Now what?

A. Consider Him (Jesus).

1. Think...

2. Ponder...

B. Humble yourself before Him.

1. Give Jesus glory for what has happened in your life.

2. Admit when you yield to temptation. (Confessing sin has a way of shattering our distrust, disappointment, and our despondency.)

3. Remember you stand by grace through the blood of Jesus shed for sinners.

C. Rest in Him.

1. You stand only in Jesus righteousness... you cannot add to it.

“For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” [2 Corinthians 5:21]

“And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption.” [1 Corinthians 1:30]

2. Put “no confidence in the flesh” (see Philippians 3:3)

3. “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” [Philippians 1:6]

D. This is going to mean yielding to the indwelling control of the Holy Spirit.

“You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.” [Romans 8:9]