Our Great High Priest

Watching a priest offer blood sacrifices is not an event familiar to most moderns living within the reach of Christianity. What’s more, we feel neither need or desire for it, but rather revulsion. Nevertheless, such things were once common features of life worldwide (and continue today through the dark arts and animistic religions). This lack of direct experience, perhaps, makes Jesus’ role as our High Priest a bit harder for us to grasp in terms of its full significance. This would not have been the case of the early believers, as the writer to the Hebrews demonstrates. He devoted half his long letter to this fascinating subject and powerful aid to faith.

Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of, let us hold fast our confession. Hebrews 4:14

All scripture citations are from the English Standard Version (ESV) unless otherwise noted.

Why Sacrifice Animals?

There seems to be something instinctive in the heart of humanity which led people all over the world in seeking to gain favor from or access to their gods through blood sacrifice. Biblical Christianity draws from the ancient roots of the Jewish people and the Hebrew scriptures, who lived in a part of the world that was saturated with animal, even human, sacrifice. God could have chosen to lead His chosen people by an entirely different path. That’s not what He did. Instead, the Lord took this impulse and purified it by bringing it under His own ordering and direction. For the Israelites, the sacrifices ordained by God provided the proper (holy) means of access to His presence and a pathway for receiving favor and blessing.

The father of our faith[i] and of the Jewish nation, Abraham, offered animal sacrifice when God established a covenant with him.[ii] God’s covenant with the Jewish nation, therefore, began with blood sacrifice and with Abraham functioning as a priest. Later, Abraham would also be instructed in circumcision as the sign of the covenant, a sign that included bloodshed.[iii] The Patriarchs continued these practices, but it was through Moses at Mount Sinai that God delivered what we know of as the Old Testament sacrificial system all in one piece. That system included a list and description for all required and voluntary sacrifices, the date or times for those sacrifices, instructions for the priesthood who would offer them (the tribe of Levi), and a detailed description for the tabernacle where all this would take place.

By the time Jesus entered Jerusalem, the Tabernacle of Moses had been replaced by the Tabernacle of David, then by the grand Temple of Solomon, then by the simpler Second Temple (constructed on the return from Babylon) and finally by the enormous temple complex built by Herod the Great. What had not changed through all these changes was the shedding of blood. In fact, it reached “industrial levels” as prosperity and the growing population put ever greater demands on the legion of priests to offer the necessary sacrifices.[iv] As we will see, all this was only a temporary measure, awaiting the one final sacrifice and the One everlasting priest. In the meantime, much blood was shed. Why?

Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. Hebrews 9:22

If we take the Lord’s Word on this (and we should), then the impulse to animal sacrifice is perfectly understandable, as are its limitations. The awareness of sin guilt and of separation from God because of it are the real engines driving this system. Sin is such a travesty of creation that it brings forth death.[v] Always. The only way to avert it or diminish its effects is if/when death takes place. God gave animal sacrifice as a means for passing the sin guilt to the animal, so it could be lifted off the person who sinned. Then, the animal would die instead. Obviously, an animal is not a person and certainly not the person who sinned, so the whole system – based upon the Law -- could never achieve perfection.

But in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Hebrews 10:3-4

Jesus Cleanses the Temple

This brief review of the history leads us now to Jesus. When He entered Jerusalem, the first thing He did, according to John’s gospel, was cleanse the Temple.[vi] The primary focus of the Temple and its priesthood was animal sacrifice. Therefore, the courts of the Temple were used to facilitate the necessary trade in animals, for the convenience of “worshippers” who were there to purchase animals for slaughter. It just so happened that this was also a convenience for the priests and a boon to the “money changers”, who profited from exchanging the people’s secular coins for those that the Temple treasury would accept. Jesus would have none of it. He wanted the focus within the Temple shifted from merchandizing animals to prayer! Here’s how He said it in Matthew’s account:

He said to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer,' but you make it a den of robbers." Matthew 21:13

Prayer, of course, is communication and communion with God. Through prayer we not only speak to God, we can be drawn closer to Him. That’s what Jesus wanted to see happening in the temple compound. That’s what the Temple was supposed to accomplish, as “worshippers” saw the chosen animal being sacrificed in place of themselves.[vii] Evidently, the system of sacrifice was failing to accomplish this primary purpose of the Temple, at least in Jesus’ eyes (and, as we know, He had 20/20 spiritual vision). Jesus was looking for people to worship the Father in Spirit and truth, with the Temple being a “house of prayer” facilitating that divine exchange, instead of exchanging money for animals. Here, we catch a glimpse, a preview, of the coming Great High Priest. He is about to change the whole sacrificial system and bring in an entirely new Law.

Both Victim and Priest

The average Christian hears countless sermons about Jesus’ death on the cross. This is perfectly correct and understandable. Our salvation hangs upon what Jesus did by dying for us as the atoning sacrifice that we needed. He became the Perfect Victim – the Lamb that was slain -- whose Blood can cleanse each and every sin ever sinned. Thank God for that! This is the objective side of the Atonement – the actual covering of our sins which satisfied God’s requirement of justice and accomplished our reconciliation. As we know, however, the work that Jesus objectively did at the cross needs to be received by faith for it to bear the fruit of salvation in anyone.

Faith is the subjective side of salvation. By faith, we receive within ourselves – subjectively – the benefits of confidence in God, a clear conscience and the joy of knowing we are saved. Ok, it’s a bit more complicated than that. It is also true that from the first moment that we believe, we “objectively” receive the forgiveness of our sins, reconciliation and justification with God, and the gift of the Holy Spirit just to name a few concrete spiritual realities that come to us through conversion. (For more on this see Saved by the Free Gift.) This is the “objective” side of saving faith which sets it apart from all other kinds of faith, since it is truly a God-given work of God. However, we all know within ourselves that our confidence, conscience and joy fluctuate day to day, even moment to moment.

The writer of Hebrews is concerned about this subjective side to our believing. He writes more than the other inspired authors about the need for believers to enter what he calls “the rest.” This rest is a confidence and trust so complete in God that there is a shedding of all sense of effort. Just as God rested from His work of creation, so believers can “rest” from all effort to save themselves or advance themselves. When faith is established, the believer enters God’s rest.[viii] Their work is finished. What is their work? We work at believing God until we perfectly trust what He is telling us about what He has done, is doing, or will do for us.[ix] Then, the peace of Christ floods our hearts and we are “at rest.”[x] Interestingly, the writer of Hebrews ties this faith-ability to Jesus’ role as our High Priest.

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. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Hebrews 4:15-16

Access to Grace through the Priest

Priests provide access to God’s grace. Because God appointed the Levitical priesthood and instituted the sacrificial rites, the people could have confidence that God would do what they needed Him to do, which was to forgive their sins and restore them to full fellowship. All they had to do was bring the animal to be sacrificed. The priests and God did the rest. Then, the people could rest – be at peace – once they saw the blood of the sacrifice being shed as a covering for their sins. The priest, however, had to pass through all manner of qualifications to fulfill his assigned task. He was himself fully human with sins of his own, but to function as a priest he had to fulfill all the righteous demands of the Law in the days of his service. This included offering specific sacrifices for his own sins. All of this gave the people confidence.

Confidence is what the writer of Hebrews wants us to have. He emphasizes that Jesus is our perfect High Priest who didn’t need to offer sacrifices for His own sins – He had none. So, we can have confidence that although He was “tempted as we are”, He was without sin and was qualified to function as a priest that day.[xi] Now, if the writer was speaking about Jesus as our Victim, His being without sin would have been presented differently. The emphasis would have been on the Blood shed by the sinless Victim: Jesus had to be the perfect, sinless sacrifice in order to atone for the rest of us. However, this is not the writer’s focus. He wants us to know that because Jesus was tempted as we are “in every respect”, He can sympathize with us. This is Jesus’ role as our Priest, not our Victim. We see this emphasis also in this passage:

But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. Hebrews 9:11-12

Why is this important? Because we all struggle at times with the subjective side of our faith. We all have weaknesses, in addition to sins. In fact, one of our weaknesses is not always having the confident, robust faith that we need to have. So, whether we have weaknesses at believing, or weaknesses that make us prone to sin, we need Someone who can sympathize with us. The sight of Jesus at the cross can (ironically) be intimidating to hearts weak at believing. Not everyone struggles with this, but plenty do. That Jesus suffered so much for our sins can become a condemning reproach to the believer who is already feeling weakened. (The enemy is both an accuser and a deceiver.) Where can one look for confidence? To our faithful High Priest who knows what it is to suffer temptation, not just suffer for sins. Look to Him, dear Christian, and know that He fully sympathizes with your every weakness!

Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. Hebrews 2:17

Our Priest Is Our Intercessor

Jesus as High Priest offers us a sympathetic, faith-encouraging means of access to God’s grace. According to the writer of Hebrews 4:15-16 quoted above, we can come boldly to the throne of grace in any moment and as soon as we get there “receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” This is fantastic! God is saying through this inspired author, “No matter what kind of trouble you’re in, no matter how badly you may be failing, come instantly to your very sympathetic High Priest, Jesus. He is on a throne of grace, not judgment. He will immediately give you mercy for any sin you need to confess and then, He will give you grace-based help for any problem you have.” Isn’t that just what we all need? In truth, we could use this kind of help many times a day. Imagine what it could do for your confidence level by getting really good at taking the “Hebrews 4:16 elevator.” But it gets even better.

As our High Priest, sitting on that throne of grace, Jesus isn’t just waiting for us to come to Him. No, among His many divine assignments is one that is of special importance for us. His loving eyes are constantly on our lives (now that He is “restored” to being fully Omniscient He can see everywhere at once). If He sees our need for help with our weaknesses, if He sees we are in trouble, what does He do? He prays! As both our human brother-priest and as our divine Friend, Jesus prays. There is no more sympathetic or effective intercession in the universe than that. Best of all, it never ends. Let your heart take firm hold of this tremendous boost to our confidence. Because He “always lives to make intercession” for us, Jesus can save us “to the uttermost.” In other words, He is not going to call it quits until everything about us looks and feels saved.

But he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever. Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them. Hebrews 7:24-25

Remember where we began with Jesus entering Jerusalem and cleansing the Temple because it wasn’t a “house of prayer”? This passage from Hebrews shows us that Jesus completely fulfilled that desire of His in one sense, by entering heaven and filling the tabernacle there with His own prayers. Just as the sanctuary of the tabernacle on earth contained a Mercy Seat, so does the tabernacle in heaven with this difference: heaven’s Mercy Seat is the original and the earthly one is the copy. Jesus is seated on heaven’s Mercy Seat at the right hand of the Father.[xii] His intercessions don’t have far to travel! The only temple remaining to become a fully functioning “house of prayer” is the one inside each believer.[xiii] Let Jesus be enthroned in your heart, and watch your life become flooded with prayer. In fact, it takes a good deal of prayer to yield our life and heart to Jesus and keep it yielded. Of course, He still knows how to cleanse a dirty temple…

Melchizedek and a Change of Law

There is simply too much about the priesthood of Jesus contained in the Book of Hebrews to put into one article. One more thing, however, must be mentioned. Reflecting that Jesus was not of the Levitical tribe, led the author into a fascinating comparison of Jesus with Melchizedek, king of Salem and priest of the Most High God.[xiv] The Levites were the tribal descendants of Jacob’s son Levi. They had been chosen by God and set apart as priests for Israel, appointed by the Law given at Sinai which delineated their rights and duties, along with the whole of the sacrificial system. Jesus came from the tribe of Jacob’s son Judah through the lineage of King David. He, therefore, had no need to follow Levitical procedures. But what gave Him the right as a priest to offer Himself? The answer lies in the mystery of Melchizedek.

Now if perfection had been attainable through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need would there have been for another priest to arise after the order of Melchizedek, rather than one named after the order of Aaron? Hebrews 7:11

This shadowy figure of whom very little is known plays a surprisingly large part in the understanding of the inspired author. Jesus is a priest in “the order of Melchizedek” who likewise carried the twin titles of “king of peace” and “king of righteousness.” Many other similarities are drawn out, proving that Jesus stands in the priestly line of one to whom Abraham paid tithes and received blessing from. Melchizedek, therefore, was priest to Abraham, the father of the faithful, as Jesus now is priest to all of Abraham’s faith descendants.[xv] The author conclusively demonstrates this by quoting from the prophetic word in the Psalms which applies to the Lord’s Messiah.

The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind, "You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek." Psalm 110:4

Some believe that the earthly priest-king Melchizedek, not only pre-figured Jesus, he was an appearance of the pre-incarnate Christ in the Old Testament. Unquestionably, Jesus, the Eternal Son, appeared at times within His own creation to assist the people of Israel, long before His coming to earth as Jesus of Nazareth. So, this is an intriguing possibility. What can be said with certainty is that this “change in the priesthood” from the Levitical order to that of Melchizedek necessitated a “change in the law.”

For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is necessarily a change in the law as well. Hebrews 7:13

Was the Law Changed or Annulled?

This thought truly carries us into a wide-ranging discussion! Just what is meant by change? Is it the Law concerning the priesthood that changes, or a change from the Sinai Law into something different? The writer of Hebrews seems to insist on the latter. He writes that the Law made nothing perfect and was, therefore, annulled because of its “weakness and unprofitableness.”[xvi] But his whole discussion of the law has been in connection to the sacrificial system established by the Law for enabling the Israelites to live with the Holy God who also gave them His moral law to live by. That law – the Levitical system of sacrifices – could never cleanse anyone’s conscience or give them true confidence. So, that law had to be annulled. In no way is he saying that the moral law had to be annulled!

What replaces the old law of Levitical sacrifices, is looking to the atoning sacrifice of Jesus, the priest after the order of Melchizedek, who enables us to draw near with confidence because of His once-and-for-all sacrifice and His sympathetic priestly nature. Why on earth do we still need a priest and a sacrifice to look to? Because the moral Law is still in place! Because He has gone before us, we can boldly go to where He is on the throne of grace getting His help living within the moral boundaries and receiving His mercy when we don’t. Therefore, we have great reason for confidence and a great means of having our conscience cleansed.

We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. Hebrews 6:19-20

Explore More about Jesus

The Ascension Gifts   When Jesus ascended, He went all out in the gifts He poured down upon us. Jesus told His disciples that it would be better for them if He went away. He wasn't kidding!

Free Downloads

pdf His Ascension, Our Inheritance (35-page eBook) (600 KB)

pdf Our Great High Priest (this article) (190 KB)

Scriptures on Jesus as Priest

And no one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, just as Aaron was. So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him, "You are my Son, today I have begotten you"; as he says also in another place, "You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek." In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek. Hebrews 5:4-10

For it is evident that our Lord was descended from Judah, and in connection with that tribe Moses said nothing about priests. This becomes even more evident when another priest arises in the likeness of Melchizedek, who has become a priest, not on the basis of a legal requirement concerning bodily descent, but by the power of an indestructible life. For it is witnessed of him, "You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek." Hebrews 7:14-17

For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily, first for his own sins and then for those of the people, since he did this once for all when he offered up himself. For the law appoints men in their weakness as high priests, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made perfect forever. Hebrews 7:26-28

Endnotes

[i] That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring—not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all. Romans 4:16

[ii] But he said, "O Lord GOD, how am I to know that I shall possess it?" He said to him, "Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon." And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half. Genesis 15:8-10

[iii] And God said to Abraham, "As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations. This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. Genesis 17:9-11

[iv] I am quoting here from Paul Johnson’s A History of Christianity (Macmillan Publishing Company, New York: 1987. Pages 13-14): Herod’s fabric was elegant, modern, sophisticated—he had, indeed, added some Hellenic decorative effects much resented by the fundamentalist Jews who constantly sought to destroy them—but nothing could hide the essential business of the Temple, which was the ritual slaughter, consumption, and combustion of sacrificial cattle on a gigantic scale. The place was as vast as a small city. There were literally thousands of priests, attendants, temple-soldiers and minions. To the unprepared visitor, the dignity and charity of Jewish Diaspora life, the thoughtful comments and homilies of the Alexandrian synagogue, was quite lost amid the smoke of the pyres, the bellows of terrified beasts, the sluices of blood, the abattoir stench, the unconcealed and un-concealable machinery of tribal religion inflated by modern wealth to an industrial scale.

[v] Behold, all souls are mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is mine: the soul who sins shall die. Ezekiel 18:4

[vi] In the temple he found those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers sitting there. And making a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. And he poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned. John 2:14-15

[vii] I’m putting worshippers in quotes, not because offering an animal for sacrifice was not Law-ordained worship, but because it seems like such a distant cousin to us. We’re schooled in the idea of worship as bringing our hearts to God.

[viii] Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. Hebrews 4:1, See also the whole of Hebrews Chapter 4.

[ix] For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened. Hebrews 4:2, See also John 6:27-28 for Jesus on the same subject.

[x] Paul’s way of describing this is by focusing on “the peace” of Christ: Col 3:15  And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Colossians 3:15

[xi] For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily, first for his own sins and then for those of the people, since he did this once for all when he offered up himself. Hebrews 7:26-27

[xii] Now the point in what we are saying is this: we have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, a minister in the holy places, in the true tent that the Lord set up, not man. Hebrews 8:1-2

[xiii] Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own. 1 Corinthians 6:19

[xiv] For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, and to him Abraham apportioned a tenth part of everything. He is first, by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace. Hebrews 7:1-2

[xv] That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring—not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all. Romans 4:16

[xvi] For on the one hand, a former commandment is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness (for the law made nothing perfect); but on the other hand, a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God. Hebrews 7:18-19