Our Permanent High Priest — the Lord Jesus (A Brief Look at Hebrews 7)

My friends and I have been reading through the book of Hebrews. This week we’re reading Hebrews 7 together. I describe our Bible-reading covenant here and recommend that you consider doing the same with a few of your friends!

I think Hebrews 7 is one of the toughest chapters in all of the Bible! I don’t understand much of the material about Melchizedek, but that’s okay. The major point of the chapter, I believe, is about our great high priest, the Lord Jesus Christ. Here are some of my observations on verses 26-28 —

1. He is a high priest who meets our needs (v. 26). My primary need — and yours too I suspect — is for an intercessor with the Father. And the Lord Jesus is precisely that for His disciples. There is no greater need.

I have a bit of a confession to make.  My wife and I are avid Starbucks coffee drinkers. Every morning I get up about 5:30 and make myself a cup, freshly ground, in our Keurig. When Linda wakes up, I kiss her good morning and ask, “Would you like a cup of coffee?” She says, “Yes, as a matter of fact, I would.” And I make her a cup. We’re presently drinking an expresso flavor. I found it interesting that it is described as “BOLD” and “DECADENT.” I want to be bold in my life, but certainly not decadent!! And I’m so glad the Lord Jesus has taken care of my decadence.

2. His character is described in five ways. He is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens (v. 26). These qualities show that Jesus is our perfect high priest and is now exalted by the Father for His atoning work.

3. Unlike every other high priest, Jesus does not need to repeatedly offer sacrifices day after day. He had no need to offer sacrifices for His own sins for He had none. He has made the ultimate sacrifice — Himself — for our sins!

4.  The Son has been made perfect forever. This statement in verse 28 seems to relate to the Son of God’s humanity for He was always perfect as the Second Person of the Trinity.

Today’s Challenge:  Some of our previous posts have been about our need for a high priest. Thank the Lord today for your permanent, perfect high priest who intercedes for you and me before the Father!

 

Ruminating on ROMANS! (Some Thoughts on Paul’s Great Epistle) #30 “Critical Imperatives for the Christ-Follower” (A Study of Romans 12) Part 2

Many of you know that my New Jersey friend Frank and I are reading through God’s Word together (described here). We’re now in the book of Romans and are reading chapter 12 each day this week.

I count 24 injunctions or commands or imperatives for the believer here in Romans 12. I’m aware that the expression “critical imperative” is redundant, but I think it’s useful for what we see here in this great chapter. Let’s continue our multipart study with verses 1-2.

The first critical imperative that I suggested was —

1. The believer is to OFFER HIS BODY AS A LIVING SACRIFICE! (v. 1).

The second critical imperative that I see is —

2. The believer is NOT TO CONFORM TO THE PATTERN OF THIS WORLD (v. 1)

“World” can mean the planet, the people of the planet, or the pagan system opposing God and the things of God. We are not to adopt the pattern of the pagan system opposing God and the things of God. That means we have to recognize the lies of this world and of the Evil One — and turn away from them!

We choose not to conform. We recognize the sinful thoughts and actions and attitudes of this world and we make choices. I have found much help in the following C.S. Lewis quote:

“Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before. And taking your life as a whole, with all your innumerable choices, all your life long you are slowly turning this central thing into a heavenly creature or a hellish creature: either into a creature that is in harmony with God, and with other creatures, and with itself, or else into one that is in a state of war and hatred with God, and with its fellow creatures, and with itself. To be the one kind of creature is heaven: that is, it is joy and peace and knowledge and power. To be the other means madness, horror, idiocy, rage, impotence, and eternal loneliness. Each of us at each moment is progressing to the one state of the other.” (C.S. Lewis)

Today’s Challenge: What choice will you make today NOT to conform to the pattern of this world?

 

 

Ruminating on ROMANS! (Some Thoughts on Paul’s Great Epistle) #29 “Critical Imperatives for the Christ-Follower” (A Study of Romans 12) Part 1

Many of you know that my New Jersey friend Frank and I are reading through God’s Word together (described here). We’re now in the book of Romans and are reading chapter 12 each day this week.

I count 24 injunctions or commands or imperatives for the believer here in Romans 12. I’m aware that the expression “critical imperative” is redundant, but I think it’s useful for what we see here in this great chapter. Let’s begin our multipart study with verses 1-2.

As we go through these 24 imperatives, you will notice that I’m including some of my notes & observations in the passage. I’m all for actively reading Scripture, marking up your Bible, bolding and highlighting and underlining what you notice.

The first critical imperative that I see is —

1. The believer is to OFFER HIS BODY AS A LIVING SACRIFICE! (v. 1).

Now, I know very little about the whole sacrificial system. I’m glad I don’t live in a culture where the blood of goats and lambs and pigeons was required to make atonement for the people.  But the Apostle Paul uses this imagery for a Gentile audience!

God cares about our bodies — and He wants them — as living sacrifices! Notice that this sacrifice is to God “holy and pleasing.” God cares so much about our offering our bodies to Him that He calls such an act “your true and proper worship”!

May I ask you, dear friend, have you done that? Are you doing that?  Are you and I daily offering our bodies to God as living sacrifices? Someone has said that the problem with a living sacrifice is that it keeps jumping off the altar! Done any jumping lately?

Today’s challenge: Personally and privately give your physical being to the Lord, asking Him to use you today as a true and proper act of worship before a watching world.

 

Psalms of My Life (Psalm 50)

Psalm 50

A psalm of Asaph.

¹ The Mighty One, God, the Lord,
    speaks and summons the earth
    from the rising of the sun to where it sets.
² From Zion, perfect in beauty,
    God shines forth.
³ Our God comes
    and will not be silent;
a fire devours before him,
    and around him a tempest rages.
⁴ He summons the heavens above,
    and the earth, that he may judge his people:
⁵ “Gather to me this consecrated people,
    who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”
⁶ And the heavens proclaim his righteousness,
    for he is a God of justice.^[a][b]

⁷ “Listen, my people, and I will speak;
    I will testify against you, Israel:
    I am God, your God.
⁸ I bring no charges against you concerning your sacrifices
    or concerning your burnt offerings, which are ever before me.
⁹ I have no need of a bull from your stall
    or of goats from your pens,
¹⁰ for every animal of the forest is mine,
    and the cattle on a thousand hills.
¹¹ I know every bird in the mountains,
    and the insects in the fields are mine.
¹² If I were hungry I would not tell you,
    for the world is mine, and all that is in it.
¹³ Do I eat the flesh of bulls
    or drink the blood of goats?

¹⁴ “Sacrifice thank offerings to God,
    fulfill your vows to the Most High,
¹⁵ and call on me in the day of trouble;
    I will deliver you, and you will honor me.”

¹⁶ But to the wicked person, God says:

“What right have you to recite my laws
    or take my covenant on your lips?
¹⁷ You hate my instruction
    and cast my words behind you.
¹⁸ When you see a thief, you join with him;
    you throw in your lot with adulterers.
¹⁹ You use your mouth for evil
    and harness your tongue to deceit.
²⁰ You sit and testify against your brother
    and slander your own mother’s son.
²¹ When you did these things and I kept silent,
    you thought I was exactly^[c] like you.
But I now arraign you
    and set my accusations before you.

²² “Consider this, you who forget God,
    or I will tear you to pieces, with no one to rescue you:
²³ Those who sacrifice thank offerings honor me,
    and to the blameless^[d] I will show my salvation.”