Hebrews 2:17 - Christ Our Priest

Hebrews 2:17

Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 

Message: Christ Our Priest

Time: The authorship of this book is shrouded in mystery, though its Jewish composition can still nail down its authorship to AD 64-69, as the book does not mention the destruction of the temple in AD 70. It has references to Jewish customs and the Old Testament, so most likely was sent to a Jewish community.  

What the Lord is Saying: 

Charles Swindoll states that "Hebrews clearly lays out the present priestly ministry of Christ in the life of the believer. Jesus is both the divine Son of God and completely human, and in His priestly role He clears the way for human beings to approach the Father in heaven through prayer."

Only chapter 1, 10, 11, and 13 do not mention this role of priest of Jesus in Hebrews. 

My study so far has been of Christ Alone as the one who saves us. I've looked at His attributes, His work or obedience, and now have shifted to His titles - as our Prophet and now our Priest. The priest is a title that meant a great deal to the Jewish community for a high priest acted as a representative on earth of God. They brought sacrifices to cover sin and it is interesting the Catholic Church carried on this role in similar ways. The Day of Atonement was one of the most significant days as annually it represented the cleansing of people - to maintain the covenant relationship between the Israelites and the Lord. 

Even up to the time of the Reformation this office of Priest was one of the stark identifiers in what Martin Luther saw as a problem with the Roman Catholic church - that man needed a go-between to get to God or be absolved of sin. What is a mystery is how the priests role continues to institute or give the idea that the priest must receive penance and be the intercessor between God and Man. For me, God remains a mystery in many people's lives so they are looking for any type of authority to help them understand God and so the Priest becomes that authority and what we do then is listen to whatever the person has to say. 

The Westminster Shorter Catechism written in 1646 and 1647 states, "Christ executeth the office of a priest, in his once offering up of himself a sacrifice to satisfy divine justice, and reconcile us to God; and in making continual intercession for us (WSC 25)." In today's text, Jesus is made like his brothers in all things, so God becomes a man and lives as a man. So that he might become a merciful and high priest - the problem with the continuous role of priest is the priest offers something temporary. Old covenant priests repeated their sacrifices annually, by replacing the penalty of sin with the blood of an animal. The practice was to retrieve an unblemished animal, so to find an animal that is as perfect as possible and this blood atoned for sin. The Messiah is one that releases people from captivity. Man is captive to his flesh and because of this will always be imperfect. Jesus as Messiah releases man by offering Himself and offers a perfect version of man - one without sin. Thus, Jesus is our High Priest. I'm not sure people think that the priest today is meant to replace Jesus, but it gives that impression. Why would we continue to use someone like a priest that is not all sufficient?  

Promise: Jesus cannot fail to save the elect. He offers true atonement for sin. Jesus through His sacrifice regained for men and women a relationship with God. 

Prayer: Lord, it saddens me to see how you are misunderstood in our world, but I suppose this is what happens when eyes are blinded to the truth and it is apparent. It is hard to be part of a remnant at times for the majority is what we often want to be about. But the reality is, as we work and live in our world, we as Christians are a minority and what we think and believe about life and living and salvation is somewhat unique. I pray that the message of the Gospel would penetrate people's lives and for those you place in my place, you would help me be a conduit of information for the truth of who You are. Thank you for using me in the way you have, for even using this blog to help communicate to others. Help me to continue to be a light to those in need. Be glorified always. 

Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional, though I am a little behind and working through 2017 devotionals. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines celebrating the 500th year of the Reformation. The month of May is about solus Christus - Christ Alone; April was about salvation by grace alone; March about the sovereign providence of God; February was about the doctrine of revelation and the various aspects of the doctrine of Scripture that sola Scriptura seeks to preserve; January was about the doctrine of God.

- The Divine Nature of Christ, The Human Nature of Christ, Jesus the Last Adam, Jesus the True Israel, Jesus the Messiah, Obedience in Childhood, Obedience in Baptism, Obedience in Temptation, Obedience under the Law, Obedience in Suffering, Christ Our Prophet, Christ the Priest