Lesson 13 24 January, 2016 Jesus, Our Compassionate High Priest Lesson Scope: Hebrews 4:14-5:10 Unless otherwise stated references in brackets are from Hebrews 4&5 Lesson Focus God has stamped every man with the awareness of personal sin, the consciousness of estrangement from God, and the sense of impending judgment. From deep within every human heart rises the cry for a "daysman betwixt us [the holy Lord God and sinful man], that might lay his hand upon us both" (Job 9:33). Man's universal propensity to offer sacrifices that may appease some deity and to establish elaborate systems of priesthood vividly demonstrate this truth. Man, however, can never reach high enough to lay hold upon God. Only as God provides a means of redemption can that cry be answered. And in His great mercy and grace, God has done exactly that. For Old Testament Israel, He provided the Mosaic Law with its high priest and sacrificial system. Although sufficient "for the time then present," those "gifts and sacrifices... could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience." Only the "one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus" (1 Timothy 2:5), could provide perfect cleansing and eternal salvation. Aaron and Jesus were both appointed high priest by God the Father. Christ's priesthood is far superior because of its efficacy and endurance. "Oh, the love that drew salvation's plan! Oh, the grace that brought it down to man! Oh, the mighty gulf that God did span at Calvary!" Our Lord Jesus Christ is still spanning that gulf, "seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for" us (Hebrews 7:25). Jesus could not serve in that capacity worthily (Revelation 5:9) unless He became flesh and dwelt among us. He became acquainted with the weakness of the flesh (our body's limitations, not our sin nature). Keep this difference before the class (Hebrews 4:15). Lesson Aim: To see the qualifications and work of Jesus as the great High Priest.
Theme Verses: Hebrews 7:23-24 And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death: but this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. Lesson Text "Jesus the Son of God" Hebrews 4:14-16 14 Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. 15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. "Taken From Among Men" Hebrews 5:1-6 1 For every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins: 2 Who can have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way; for that he himself also is compassed with infirmity. 3 And by reason hereof he ought, as for the people, so also for himself, to offer for sins. 4 And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron. 5 So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee. 6 As he saith also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec "The Author of Eternal Salvation" Hebrews 5:7-10 7 Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared; 8 Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; 9 And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him; 10 Called of God an high priest after the order of Melchisedec.
Questions for Study "Jesus the Son of God" 1. Explain the significance of having a High Priest who "is passed into the heavens." 2. How does 4:15 encourage us in the battle against sin? 3. Give illustrations of times when we may "come boldly unto the throne of grace." "Taken From Among Men" 4. How does Jesus meet the qualifications of the Old Testament priesthood? How does Jesus differ from those priests? 5. Why did the Saviour need to be both human and divine? 6. Explain the significance of Jesus being "a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec." "The Author of Eternal Salvation" 7. In what sense did Jesus need to learn obedience and be made perfect? How do those concepts relate to His becoming "the author of eternal salvation"? Analyzing the Passage The writer had declared that we are part of Christ's house "if we hold fast... unto the end" (3:6). Now, in this third "let us" of the book (4:14), he urges us to meet that condition. The compound negative in 4:15 declares that our High Priest assuredly sympathizes with every human infirmity. He too lived as a man in a fallen world (without the fallen nature) and faced every category of temptation "common to man." That He remained "without sin" is central to the message of this book: He provides eternal redemption because He is the sinless God-man. The fourth "let us" of the book (4:16) calls us to come confidently "unto the throne of grace." Therefore links this come to the previous descriptions of our High Priest. In 5:1-4, the writer details four qualifications for an Old Testament priest: identify with his people, be compassionate, bring a sacrifice, and be called of God. Verses 5 and 6 emphasize that Jesus Christ meets these qualifications perfectly. Unlike the Aaronic priests, however, He was not "compassed with infirmity," nor did He need to offer first "for himself."
Jesus' authority is based on His being the only begotten Son of the Father. "The order of Melchisedec" emphasizes the supernatural and eternal nature of His high priesthood. The atmosphere of Gethsemane permeates 5:7. In His humanity, Jesus shrank from the cruel suffering that, in His divinity, He knew lay ahead. The Son feared (revered) and the Father heard. The Father heard the Son's urgent plea for strength and comradeship and sent an angel to comfort Him. The Father heard the Son's commitment to endure the cross and allowed the forces of evil to do their worst so that He could do His best for man's redemption. That Jesus learned obedience (4:8) means that He chose to submit to the experiences of obedience in human flesh. That He was "made perfect" (4:9) means that He completed without failure all that He had come to accomplish. Verse 8 was an ongoing reality throughout His earthly life; verse 9 became reality only upon the completion of His high-priestly work. Principles and Applications "Jesus the Son of God" 1. Jesus is our great High Priest because He is the Son of God (4:14). "Without shedding of blood is no remission." But the blood of every mere man is tainted with sin, so to offer that would be both worthless and abhorrent to God. The blood of innocent animals sufficed merely to cover sin year by year till the perfect sacrifice should come. "What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus." 2. Jesus, our great High Priest, has completed His work of redemption (4:14). Every Levitical high priest died and passed his unfinished work to a successor. Jesus triumphantly "passed into the heavens" because He "finished the work" the Father had given Him to do (John 17:4; 19:30). What an incentive to "hold fast our profession"! 3. Jesus is our great High Priest because He met and resisted temptation as a man (4:15). His victory illustrates how to resist temptation, inspires us to overcome as He did, and actually infuses us with the power to overcome. 4. Our High Priest provides perpetual access to the Father (4:16). Old Testament high priests were sinful humans, just like the people they represented. They were unable to forgive even one sin! Jesus has au-
thority to extend mercy for forgiveness and to supply grace for holy living to all who meet the conditions. "Taken From Among Men" 5. Jesus possesses all the qualifications for being a priest (5:1-6). He took on human flesh so that He might fill the priestly role "for men in things pertaining to God." Having lived as a man among men, He has compassion both on those who ignore the truth and on those who wander from it. He offered, not merely a sacrifice, but the only adequate sacrifice. And He was indeed "foreordained before the foundation of the world" by the Father for this role. 6. Jesus' priesthood will never be superseded (5:6). He was not a priest of the Aaronic order, unable "to continue by reason of death"; rather, after the order of Melchisedec, Jesus is made a priest "after the power of an endless life" and "because he continueth ever, hash an unchangeable priesthood." Nothing will ever add to or improve on Jesus' finished work. 8. In light of all that obedience involved for Jesus, what does it involve for us? "The Author of Eternal Salvation" 7. Jesus became our perfect High Priest by submitting fully to the Father's will (5:7, 8). His identity as a man became complete when He suffered and died. He understands us thoroughly because He too faced temptations and struggles. His perfect cooperation through it all means that His sacrificial death perfectly accomplished the Father's purpose. 8. Jesus is both author and administrator of salvation (5:9). He did not merely approve the concept of salvation and then leave others to work it out. The whole responsibility for it fell upon Him. He "washed us from our sins in his own blood" (Revelation 1:5). Throughout eternity we will love and praise Him for it. 9. Jesus' high-priestly work benefits only those who obey Him (5:9). The provision of His shed blood is available for all. (And it saves all in their innocence.) The receiving of redemption, however, is reality only to those who follow Jesus' example of full surrender and obedience. Important Teachings 1. Jesus is our great High Priest because He is the Son of God (4:14). 2. Jesus, our great High Priest, has completed His work of redemption
(4:14). 3. Jesus is our great High Priest because He met and resisted temptation as a man (4:15). 4. Our High Priest provides perpetual access to the Father (4:16). 5. Jesus possesses all the qualifications for being a priest (5:1-6). 6. Jesus' priesthood will never be superseded (5:6). 7. Jesus became our perfect High Priest by submitting fully to the Father's will (5:7-8). 8. Jesus is both author and administrator of salvation (5:9). 9. Jesus' high-priestly work benefits only those who obey Him (5:9). Answers to Questions 1. Explain the significance of having a High Priest who "is passed into the heavens." Jesus has "passed into the heavens" because His work on earth is finished. He presented to the Father His own blood as the perfect offering that secures perfect redemption for all mankind. 2. How does 4:15 encourage us in the battle against sin? Knowing that Jesus sympathizes fully with us in our struggles assures us that we can overcome sin, as He did. 3. Give illustrations of times when we may "come boldly unto the throne of grace." We need to come "in time of need" daily and hourly through every circumstance of life. We come in repentance every time we recognize we have failed to do the Father's will. We come to seek wisdom and strength to face the daily stresses, temptations, and responsibilities of life. We come to intercede for others. 4. How does Jesus meet the qualifications of the Old Testament priesthood? How does Jesus differ from those priests? Through the incarnation, Jesus took on human flesh so that He might fully identify with man as the perfect Son of Man. Because He lived with human limitations and faced temptation as a man, He can have compassion on all men. He brought as an offering His own blood into the heavenly holy place to procure fullness of redemption for all men. He was "foreordained before the foundation of the world" by the Father to fill this high-priestly role. Unlike the Old Testament priests, Jesus was not tainted with the fallen
nature, nor did He ever sin. Therefore, He did not need to offer a sacrifice for Himself. 5. Why did the Saviour need to be both human and divine? To be the Saviour, Jesus needed to be human so that He could identify with humanity and divine so that He could identify with God. Only the perfect God-man could bridge the gap between fallen man and the holy God. 6. Explain the significance of Jesus being "a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec." "The order of Melchisedec" emphasizes the supernatural and eternal nature of Jesus' high priesthood. Melchisedec in type had "neither beginning of days, nor end of life"; Jesus in reality is the eternal Son of God. As chapter 7 further develops, the mention of Melchisedec is a key point in the writer's argument that the Levitical priesthood was never intended to be God's ultimate plan for dealing with man's sin. 7. In what sense did Jesus need to learn obedience and be made perfect? How do those concepts relate to His becoming "the author of eternal salvation"? Jesus learned obedience only in the sense that He chose to submit to the experiences of obedience in His human flesh. He did not need to learn how to obey or in any sense to change from disobedience to obedience. Perfection refers to completion. Jesus completed without any trace of failure all that He had come to accomplish. In His nature and character, He was never less than perfect, but He was "made perfect" as High Priest only when His high-priestly work was completed. Jesus' perfect cooperation with the Father through the agony of offering Himself for man's redemption means that His sacrificial death is perfectly efficacious in obtaining eternal salvation for all mankind. 8. In light of all that obedience involved for Jesus, what does it involve for us? Obedience involves our total commitment to Jesus, His Word, and His church. Sometimes this involves "Gethsemane" experiences of our own. But in the end, it brings "eternal salvation unto all them that obey him." Summarizing the Lesson God had not designed the Levitical priesthood to bring perfection. The Law was a "schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ." Always, the Old Tes-
tament pointed forward to something better. Jesus is the better High Priest, who offered the better sacrifice, which provides the better redemption and holds forth better promises. "Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which he hash consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; and having an high priest over the house of God; let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith" (Hebrews 10:19-22). Research Guide 1. Read the account of Melchisedec in Genesis 14:18-20. 2. Study the qualifications and the work of the Old Testament priesthood, especially the high priests. 3. Read Hebrews 6-10 to broaden your understanding of the highpriestly role of Jesus. All these chapters relate closely together, so you will need to plan to avoid teaching subsequent lessons from Hebrews.