REDEMPTION OBTAINED

"When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption." Hebrews 9:11-12

The uniqueness, greatness and complete sufficiency of the work of Christ as Savior and Lord is seen in the shedding of his own blood on the cross. No other high priest, no other Savior could offer his own blood as payment for our sins. 

The work of Christ in our lives, his redemption of us, is eternal. No other sacrifice is needed. There is no time when the accuser can point and say that Christ's redemption of us was not or will not be in affect. Our redemption is eternal...

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for being our perfect High Priest! Thank you for our eternal redemption! Praise be to you in us today!

THE POINT: CHRIST IS

"The point of what we are saying is this: We do have a high priest, who sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, and who serves in the sanctuary, the true tabernacle set up by the Lord, not by man." Hebrews 8:1-2 

You have a need. I have a need. We need someone to represent us to God Almighty. We need our sins forgiven. We need someone to be interceding on our behalf. 

Christ died for our sins; past, present and future. Christ sits at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven. Do you realize what that means? It means where the battle is being decided, we have the advantage. Christ, is representing us. That doesn't mean everything is easy. It does mean that Christ will keep us in his will and his way. And in the end, he will give us victory. 

Remember Job. Satan had to ask permission to do him any harm. Job suffered great losses to learn that God alone is Creator and Ruler, Righteous and Holy. God blessed him more in the end of his life than before, but, he did go through quite a battle. 

So, remember whom you have in heaven. Humbly and thankfully call on him. 

Thank you Jesus for being our High Priest and meeting our needs in yourself! Praise be to you in us today!

ONCE AND FOR ALL, DONE!

"Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once and for all when he offered himself." Hebrews 7:27

Every now and then I'll notice an extra charge on my visa card and think, "I didn't buy anything, what's that for?" It's a renewal fee for my blog or something. High priests had to offer sacrifices for themselves and for the people. Because they themselves were sinners just like everyone else. Kind of like that renewal fee, they had to offer sacrifices day after day. The debt was never paid in full. 

Jesus, who being holy,blameless, pure, set apart from sinners and exalted above the heavens, does not need to do that. He sacrificed himself, once and for all. Paid. That means, our sins are dealt with, once and for all. His death was for all our sins. That means our past, present and future. All our sins were in the future to Christ when he died upon the cross. From our perspective we our sins are in the past, present or future. Not to God. The sacrifice has been paid. Once for all. Done.

Father, thank you that you are my high priest. Thank you that you dealt with my sin, once for all. Done. Praise be to you in us today!

YOUR NEED IS MET!

"Such a high priest meets our need - one who is holy, blameless,  pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens."  

Hebrews 7:26

When my two oldest boys were teenagers we, for a while, had a mini-van. Their legs would stretch from the back to the front. Then, when our daughter was born, it was obvious that it no longer met our needs. We had to move up to a large urban assault vehicle, also known as a Yukon XL. We could fit the kids and our luggage in it without being too cramped. It met our need, space wise. 

Let me ask you a question (I sound like my friends from the south here). Does your faith meet your need? What I mean by that is: does your understanding of who Christ is allow you to rest in him? 

The truth is: Christ, the High Priest, meets your need. You need him to be God over your life and in your heart. You need your sins forgiven and path straightened. Christ does that. You need your conscience cleaned. Christ does that. You need to know the way and the truth and the life. Christ is all that. 

Thank you Lord Jesus Christ for being my High Priest! Praise be to you for being holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. Reveal your Priesthood in us today! Praise be to you in us today!

CHRIST'S INTERCESSION, EVERY WHEN

"but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them." Hebrews 7:24-25

One year, early in my teaching career, I was out ill three different days during the year. Each time, the day I came back, there was a new Assistant Principal! I waited to see if she was still there the next time I was out sick. She made it through. Sometimes things and people around us, come and go. But Jesus, he remains. 

That is the beauty, the confidence, the rock of our hope. Jesus is our permanent High Priest. He saves us perfectly and completely. That salvation is not just once in the past or once in the future. No, it is for every day, every moment of our lives!

Have you ever heard someone use the expression, "I live for this!" That's Jesus and interceding for us. One of the ways to interpret the word for ever in the Greek is "every when". When is Jesus interceding? Every when. He was, he is, and he will be interceding for you and me. When you are seeking to be faithful and when you are not. He's interceding. When you think he is, and when you feel like he's not. He's interceding. When you see him working and when you don't. He's interceding. Before you knew him and since you've known him. He's interceding. Every when, he's interceding. 

Lord Jesus Christ, thank you for being our High Priest, saving us completely, always living to intercede for us. Help us to rest in this truth. Praise be to you in us today!

FIRM, SECURE, ANCHORED

"We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf. He has become  a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek." Hebrews 6:19-20

There are at least two reasons for an anchor that I can think of. One, to keep the boat from just floating away. Two, to keep the boat in place during a storm. In the same way our faith in Christ keeps us from floating all over the place, pulled away by false hopes and firmly holding our faith on Christ when the storms of life seek to toss us against the shore and wreck our faith. 

Christ, is our high priest, anchoring us in him, forever. Remember, God, who is eternal, chose to send his Son to die on our behalf and to be our High Priest. He anchors us in him, keeping us firm and secure. His work, his intercession for us, is forever. 

Father, thank you for Jesus, that he is my High Priest. Help me to be anchored in him by faith. Praise be to you in us today!

OBEDIENCE, SUFFERING, PERFECTION

"Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designed by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek." Hebrews 5:10

Think about that, Christ learned obedience. He learned it from what he suffered. His obedience has brought us salvation. This perfection, this completeness of Christ's obedience and suffering results in our perfect salvation. 

Our obedience is our acceptance of his salvation. We obey because we do believe. We accept that we our sinners in need of forgiveness, mercy and grace. We look to him to intercede on our behalf. He does so perfectly. He is the source we continually look to for our salvation. He forever is our High Priest. 

Father, help us to obey. Thank you for our perfect Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Praise be to you in us today! 

DON'T LET GO! HE WON'T!

"Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess." Hebrews 4:14

Jesus, unlike some so-called prophets or gods, actually died and rose again. His life was to make God knowable. His death was in our place and his resurrection was to give us victory over death. Victory for the present not just the future! 

Jesus IS our High Priest. Not was. Not will be, but, is. That is why we hold firmly to the truth that Jesus died for us and that he ever lives to intercede for us. Right now he is on the job. At this moment he is interceding for you and me!

Hold on! He is working...

Father help us to hold on to the faith we profess.  Thank you that Jesus is our faithful High Priest who ever lives to intercede for us. Open our eyes to see you in our lives! Praise be to you in us today!

FALLING FORWARD

"Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess." Hebrews 3:1

Remember the the story of Peter walking on the water toward Jesus (Matthew 14)? I think that is a great reminder and encouragement to me to fix my eyes on Jesus. He's walking toward Jesus, looking at Jesus but gets distracted by the wind! Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught Peter! 

Do you ever do that? Take a step of faith then realize you took a step of faith and begin to falter?  Of course, we all do.  Don't be discouraged, take Jesus's hand and let him lift you up.

To me one of Peter's strengths was that he always seemed to fall forward, toward Christ. Even when he denied Christ, he had followed him into the garden when everyone else took off. He fell forward, toward Christ. That is why I find Peter so encouraging. He fell. We all fall. But, I want to fall forward with my eyes fixed on Christ so that even when I stumble I will look up for Jesus's hand and he will be there to lift me up.

Father, help us to fix our eyes upon Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest whom we confess. Thank you for being there to lift us up when we fall. Praise be to you in us today!