Bk – The New Priesthood Lasts Forever 7: 23-25

The New Priesthood Lasts Forever
7: 23-25

The new priesthood lasts forever DIG: What was the problem that the Levitical priests were faced with? Why did God make Aaron’s death totally public? Why is there no possibility that Jesus will ever be succeeded? Why does no one have an excuse for rejecting the LORD (Romans 1:20)? What are the three tenses of salvation? Explain what each tense is a deliverance from. Who are the only ones who are saved, according to verse 25?

REFLECT: Describe something in your life that you thought was permanent, only to be taken away? What did that do to your faith? What are some of the old ways in your life that tempt you to turn your back on Jesus and pursue after the world? How is Yeshua superior to those old ways? Describe the security you have in the fact that Christ will never die. In what sense is He the Rock (Psalm 18:2) in your life?

Another proof of the superiority of the new priesthood after the Order of Melchizedek is found in the permanency of Messiah’s priesthood opposed to the temporary priesthood after the Order of Aaron. Christ is able to make intercession for the believer forever; whereas the Levitical priests eventually died and had to be succeeded in order for the priesthood to continue. Moreover, the current priests (Hebrew: cohanim) are many in number, because they are prevented by death from continuing in office (7:23 CJB). So once again the Jewish readers were reminded of the limitations of the First Covenant.

As if to picture that the Levitical priesthood would never be able to bring salvation to them, ADONAI gave Isra’el a dramatic and significant demonstration, recorded in Numbers 20:23-29. When Aaron, brother of Moshe and first high priest, was about to die, YHVH commanded Moses to bring Aaron and his son and successor, Eleazar, to Mount Hor, in view of all the people. God reminded Moshe that Aaron, like Moses himself, would not be allowed to enter the Promised Land. The human giver of the Torah and the human forerunner of the priesthood would both die before Isra’el entered the Land. Aaron’s high priestly garments (see the commentary on Exodus, to see link click Gk – Aaron’s Sacred Garments Will Belong to His Descendants So They Can Be Ordained) were taken from him and placed on Eleazar. After Aaron died, the people mourned for him for thirty days. During that time the people’s attention was specifically focused on Aaron’s death, as God impressed on them that he represented a dying priesthood.¹⁸⁵

In this brief demonstration, along with Moshe’s own death shortly afterward, two things about the Levitical priesthood became abundantly clear. First, it was not permanent, and second, it could not bring the people into the Promised Land. It was temporary and could not save. Neither the Torah (represented by Moses), nor the Levitical sacrifices (represented by Aaron) could deliver from the wilderness of sin and bring them into the land of salvation.

But because Yeshua continues (Greek: menein) forever, He has a permanent (Greek: aparabaton) priesthood (7:24 CJB). The word continues means that Messiah’s priesthood didn’t stop at His death. If you read the B’rit Chadashah carefully, you will discover that when His body was dead on the cross, His Spirit was still alive. He was maintaining His eternal priesthood. He is still our Great High Priest today and will be so forever. The word permanent conveys the idea that it can never come to an end. It describes something that belongs to one person and can never be transferred to anyone else.¹⁸⁶ The basis of eternal security is that He can save forever because His Priesthood forever. He needs no successor. He is the last High Priest; no other will ever be needed (see the commentary on The Life of Christ Ms – The Eternal Security of the Believer).

Consequently, He is able to save completely those who come to God through Him (7:25a). The word completely has a double meaning. On the one hand it means that Jesus will bring us to full salvation – something the Levitical priests could never do. And on the other hand, it means that He will hold us there forever. His salvation is both perfect and complete. It is able to save completely and forever. He will not die; thus, this intercession is uninterrupted. The security of our salvation is guaranteed simply because salvation is not dependent upon us, but upon Him. He is the One who keeps us saved (see the commentary on The Life of Christ Bw – What God Does For Us at the Moment of Faith).

He lives forever to intercede for them (7:25b). Isaiah 53:12 prophesies that the Servant of ADONAI (see the commentary on Isaiah Im – The Mission of the Servant of the LORD) bore the sins of many, and made intercession for the transgressors (53:12e). Romans 8:34 states: Christ Jesus . . . is at the right hand of God . . . interceding for us. First John 2:1 says that the Righteous One is an advocate with the Father on our behalf. Other verses stress the universal necessity of approaching God on through Him are John 14:6; Acts 4:12; First John 2:22-23. Verse 25 is one of the most beautiful verses in the Bible. Like John 3:16, it contains the whole essence of the gospel. Salvation is the main theme of the Scriptures and salvation is what this verse is all about.

Now, you may know that salvation has three tenses: past, present, and future. The past tense has to do with deliverance form sin’s penalty; the present tense, with deliverance from sin’s power; and the future tense, with deliverance from sin’s presence. The first was accomplished at the cross; the second is being done at the throne as Jesus intercedes and continues to cleanse us; and the third will be accomplished when all believers become fully glorified in heaven. In fact Titus 2:11-13 lists all three tenses in the same passage. The Past: For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. The present: It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in his present age. The future: While we wait for the blessed hope – the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. So, the nature of complete salvation is far-reaching in all its dimensions.¹⁸⁷

This can be hard even for believers to grasp. To suggest that someone’s salvation is guaranteed and they are sure to say, “But then I can sin like crazy and go to heaven!” This kind of thinking shows a basic misunderstanding of the believer’s relationship with the Lord. What keeps us from sinning is not the fear of punishment, but the love for Yeshua.

But we’re still human and no matter what, we still sin. So how do we handle that? Yochanan has the answer for us: If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. However, if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and His Word is not in us. My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father – Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the world (First John 1:8 to 2:2).

It sure sounds like God wants us to stop sinning. But just how does He do that? Punishment? Exile? Shame? Holding a grudge? Withdrawal of love? Solitary confinement? These are the typical responses secular society has for those who break the rules. But ADONAI’s outrageous scheme to get us to stop sinning, however, is to forgive our sin and purify us from all unrighteousness which moved us to act as we did in the first place. YHVH expunges our record of sin as far as the east is from the west, that is how far He has removed our transgressions from us (Psalm 103:12). But just how far is the east from the west? It cannot be measured! So if we confesses our sins (agree with God about the sin and the wrongness of it), God forgives and accepts us without penalty.¹⁸⁸

Thank you, Jesus, for being my Great High Priest. Thank You that You live forever to intercede for me. I place my trust and hope in You, and I believe that You know what I need better than I do myself.¹⁸⁹