God's Priest, Your Priest

Hebrews 5:6 And he says in another place, “You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.”
 
HEBREWS quotes Psalm 102:4 here as evidence God had appointed Jesus to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek. We learn about this mysterious man in Hebrews 7:1-3 This Melchizedek was king of the city of Salem and also a priest of God Most High. When Abraham was returning home after winning a great battle against the kings, Melchizedek met him and blessed him. 2 Then Abraham took a tenth of all he had captured in battle and gave it to Melchizedek. The name Melchizedek means “king of justice,” and king of Salem means “king of peace.” 3 There is no record of his father or mother or any of his ancestors, no beginning or end to his life. He remains a priest forever, resembling the Son of God.
  Note he was from Salem, which many think is the future Jerusalem. Abraham was returning from rescuing his nephew Lot. He carried the bounty of his victory. Under God’s authority Melchizedek had priestly powers to receive the tithe from God’s chosen father of Israel. Hebrews says that God set the form of Jesus’ priestly office through Melchizedek. Why does this matter? 
   One way the Jews could challenge Jesus’ role as High Priest is to say, “He was not a Levite. He was from the tribe of Judah. Only Levites could be priests.” But Hebrews defends Jesus’ priesthood as the fulfillment of God’s call on Jesus’ life. Just as God called Melchizedek to be a priest before Abraham long before the Levites became God’s priests, God chose Jesus to be the eternal High Priest.
   Hebrews further teaches that Jesus is one who has become a priest not on the basis of a regulation as to his ancestry but on the basis of the power of an indestructible life. (Hebrews 7:16) And in Hebrews 7:26 Jesus is the kind of high priest we need because he is holy and blameless, unstained by sin. He has been set apart from sinners and has been given the highest place of honor in heaven. 27 Unlike those other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices every day. They did this for their own sins first and then for the sins of the people. But Jesus did this once for all when he offered himself as the sacrifice for the people’s sins.
   Once more we have seen how Hebrews weaves God’s Word together into a specific lesson to teach us more about Jesus. Regardless of our background, we can understand our Sovereign Lord has been at work throughout the ages to reveal his Son to us.
           God is at work now through you. When he called you to faith, you became a vital unit of God’s eternal plan. What desires and passions has he given to you, so you can serve Jesus’ church? How might you serve your family and your community?