Mon, 16 Sep 2024 17:54:47 -0700WeeblyMon, 16 Sep 2024 21:01:19 GMThttp://southdakotatd.org/newsletters--pastors-corner/the-source-of-our-salvation     Have you ever read a passage of the Bible and was confused?  Not clear what is being talked about?  The book of Hebrews is a good example.  It was written to Jewish believers of Jesus not Gentile believers like most of us.  It is not that we cannot benefit from it, I quote it often.
    Those early disciples were all Jewish, so was Jesus.  Eventually too many Jews were coming to Christ and that was generating the ire of the Jewish leaders.  The were banned from the temple, where they taught and worshipped.  No more sacrifices or celebrations in the temple.  They could not participate in the day of atonement  nor use the temple as a place to teach.  The high priest would enter the holy of holies once a year and make atonement for the nation.  Hebrews 5:4, "And no one takes this honor for himself, only when called by God as Aaron was."  No one was allowed to be a priest unless he was of the lineage of Aaron, a Levite.
    Hebrews 5:5-6 "So Messiah 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 also said, "You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek." Mel who? Little is known about Melchizedek.  He was called a priest of the most high God.  Wait, this was long before Israel had become a nation, neither had the law been given.  He was not a son of Aaron.  Jesus was not from the line of Aaron, how could he have been a priest? The passage I just shared with you, shows that Jesus' priesthood was Divine, appointed by God (after the order of Melchizedek). How was Messiah our priest?  Hebrews 5:7 "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." Jesus prayed passionately not only for others but also for himself in the garden before his passion.  He offers you and I a model for prayer.  Hebrews 5:7 "he was heard because of his reverence."  His obedience was totally unto God.  He feared and served God all his days here on earth.  His life was one of sinless righteousness. Hebrews 5:8 "Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered." Jesus did not obtain his sonship by merely being born, he obtained it by his obedience. He took up the cross and carried it.  What does this say about us? Hebrews 5:9-10 "And being made perfect, he became the eternal source of salvation to all who obey him, being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek."  Jesus did not have some moral transformation that made him right.  He was made perfect by his resurrection, which transformed him from mortal to immortal. Because he is the eternal Son of God, obedient unto death, into the world to come (Not just heaven but the resurrection and the world to come.) He is our high priest who offered himself as atonement for the sins of all who come to him. 
by Jack Price, Community Spiritual Director, 9/15/24
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