Christ the True and Better
The True and Better High Priest
Hebrews 4:14-5:4 pt.1
READ: Hebrews 4:11-13
If Christ is our faithful High Priest and our sacrifice, should we shrink from being a faithful witness on His behalf? Keeping the faith is more than doing all the right things as a “Christian”. It’s carefully and faithfully professing Him who gave His life and rose again to give us Life.
Hebrews 4:14 - “Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through (dierchomai - come by the mean of, come through) the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast (krateo - to keep carefully and faithfully, not discard or let go) our confession (homologia - profession, the one whom we profess).”
We have a High Priest who has experienced our weaknesses and has given us the way to Him. He is our way to Him. Galatians 2:20
Hebrews 4:15 - “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.”
We can approach the Throne of Grace with full confidence, knowing He will do as He has promised. And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him. 1 John 5:14-15.
Hebrews 4:16 - “Let us then with confidence (parresia - freedom in speaking, without ambiguity, fearless confidence) draw near (proserchomai) to the throne of grace, that we may receive (lambano - to receive what is given, obtain) mercy and find (heurisko - to find, discover, to see, learn, understand) grace to help in time (timely, opportune) of need.”
- My transliteration of Hebrews 4:16 - Drawling near therefore without ambiguity and with fearless confidence to the throne of Grace that having received what is given mercy and grace, we discover, learn, and understand timely or opportune help in our struggle.
The responsibility of every High Priest is to offer the sacrifice to God on behalf of all mankind for the remission of sins. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. - Romans 3:22-26
Hebrews 5:1 - “For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins.”
- Christ is the Gift, the Sacrifice, and the High Priest who goes on our behalf!
Christ is our Intercessor and Advocate who can and fully, on our behalf, being our atoning sacrifice, fulfil all the obligations of the High Priest. Christ alone is our High Priest,
Hebrews 5:2-3 - “He can deal gently (be affected moderately, one who is not unduly disturbed but bears them gently) with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset with weakness. (Hebrews 4:15) 3 Because of this he is obligated (opheilo - to owe, that which is due) to offer sacrifice for his own sins just as he does for those of the people.”
- Christ is without sin Hebrews 4:15 but the obligation of the High Priest is still necessary on our behalf, 2 Corinthians 5:21 reads, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” So through Christ the sinless High Priest, the obligation of the High Priest to offer the sacrifice on our behalf and is the one who in every way experienced our weakness so that He is the advocate for us and can deal gently with us before Him who is Holy. That is the point of the advocate.
Christ was called by the Father to be our High Priest and so fulfilled the Plan set before Him. “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 8 which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight 9 making known[c] to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ 10 as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.” - Ephesians 1:7-10
Hebrews 5:4 - “And no one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, just as Aaron was.”
