In his book, The Weight of Glory, C. S. Lewis diagnosis one of our problems saying, “We are far too easily pleased.” ¹ In my short experience of life, this seems to be true. And in my experience in the church it seems to be true as well. I say this because for most of my life I failed to have someone aid me in laying out and explaining difficult texts of Scripture. Instead week-by-week, we would talk about some of the basic things regarding Jesus and his work on the cross (which is outstanding), but we were never willing to study more difficult texts.

And yet as I read difficult texts that were hard to understand and to explain, I would simply pass over them because I had grown accustomed to a pattern of not dealing with such texts. When I arrived at Union, however, things began to change. All of the sudden, I was surrounded by men who were paid to do the hard work of answering the questions of hard texts. Therefore, I came into my first classes ready to unload on these guys and receive answers to all my questions.

In many areas at Union, I did receive answers. Yet it did not prove to be a comforting time to me. For instead of thinking, “Yes, I think I can now rightly understand this text,” I thought, “Why didn’t we deal with these difficult texts in the church all my life?” That day, I had a longing rise up in my heart that begged no longer to be easily pleased with ignoring the difficult issues. I was going to preach and wrestle with texts in the church, should God ever grant me to the opportunity.

That story brings me to today with Hebrews 7 before us as our text this morning. This is one of those difficult texts. I remember the first time I read Hebrews, on vacation with my parents, I felt like I had accomplished something because there was a lot of difficult content in that book. And even though I would have struggled even more then than I do today to explain it, I knew that if I were ever to deal with the text until I could see the argument that I would see a truth over which to rejoice. I was right. For Hebrews 7 opens our eyes as to why Christ’s priesthood is superior to all before him, what that means for us, and why our hope of eternal salvation can be true.

Yet, don’t be deceived, it is a difficult text. And because it is a difficult text, I am going to spend a majority of our time this morning simply putting together the argument the author of Hebrews gives us in this chapter and I will then try to answer at the end of our time together what we should then do in response to this truth.

Now, first of all, so that we do not miss the forest because we are looking at the trees, the main point that the author of Hebrews is trying to get across in this chapter is that Christ’s priesthood is superior to the priesthood of the Levitical priests and the hope he brings is superior to that which came before him. This is a big deal, too, since the original recipients of the letter were tempted to go back and abandon Christ and the promises they might receive through him. Therefore, the author of Hebrews, in typical fashion, lays out a logical argument for why Christ’s priesthood and the hope he brings is superior by expositing two texts from the Old Testament (Gen. 14:17-20 and Psalm 110:4). It seems as if he is trying to say, “Even the Old Covenant that you want to return to told you the same thing I am telling you today.” So, let us now look to his specific argument.

The superiority of Melchizedek: laying groundwork for a superior priest (7:1-10)

As aforementioned, the author of Hebrews opens this chapter with an exposition of Genesis 14:17-20 concerning this individual named Melchizedek. Now, if you’ve read the letter to this point, you know why this figure is important. For more than once he has stated that Christ has been appointed a high priest by God “after the order of Melchizedek.” That is, in fact, the ending note of chapter six.

Now, there are only two places in the Old Testament where Melchizedek is mentioned. One of them is Psalm 110:4, in which David writes, “The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind, ‘You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.’ And this text has been used many times throughout this letter, while not giving us a lot of information about what’s going on here. Yet there is one other place where he is mentioned, and that is in Genesis 14:17-20.

In this text, Abraham has just returned from a battle in which he had to rescue his nephew who had been captured. And on his way back he has an encounter with this King-Priest named, Melchizedek. The text reads: “And after his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley). And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. (He was priest of God Most High). And he blessed him and said, ‘Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!’ And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.”

That’s it! Nothing more is given but this text and Psalm 110:4. However, the author of Hebrews wants us to see how this figure points us to Jesus Christ and the superiority of his priesthood and the hope that he brings as he exposits this text in the first ten verses of Hebrews 7.

He first gives a summary of the events that transpired, writing in 1-2a, “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.” Then, he begins to show how this individual is meant to typify and point us to Jesus Christ, for that was his very purpose.

He points out that Melchizedek’s name means “King of Righteousness, ” writing, “He is first, by translation of his name, king of rightouesness.” In Hebrew, melek means “king” while sedek means “righteousness. Therefore, as you put those two words together (i.e. Melek + sedek = Melchizedek) you form a construct that means “King of Righteousness.” He also points out that his is the king of peace, writing, “ … and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace.” Now, again, this is looking to Hebrew where shalom means “peace.” Thus, being the king of Salem (i.e. shalom), he is the king of peace. So he is the king of peace and his name means king of righteousness. But that is not where the similarities with Christ end. He also mentions, “He is without father or mother or genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest forever.”

This probably means the same thing we have witnessed as we read the Genesis account. For in a book where lineage is everything and everybody who is anybody has their heritage traced, this individual who seems to be quite important has no recorded genealogy, has no account of recorded account of his birth, and has no recorded account of his death. Therefore, the author of Hebrews wants us to see that he resembles Jesus Christ, for just as Melchizedek’s priesthood has no record of ending because of death, so Christ is our eternal high priest. Therefore, in these first few verses he shows us how this strange individual typifies and points us to Jesus Christ.

He then, shows us that this order of priesthood after Melchizedek is superior to the Levitical priesthood that would later follow. He does this mainly by picking up on the fact that Abraham offered a tithe to Melchizedek. Now, receiving a tithe an honor of responsibility of the Levites according to Numbers 18:21-32. For they did not inherit land, but received a tithe from the people. Thus, the author of Hebrews writes, “See how great this man was to whom Abraham the patriarch gave a tenth of the spoils! And those descendants of Levi who receive the priestly office have a commandment in the law to take tithes from the people, that is, from their brothers, though these also are descended from Abraham” (4-5). Now, pausing for a moment, we see that the Levites took tithes from their brothers, so they were in a position of honor among those who descended from Abraham. But he goes on to point out that Abraham himself tithed to one who was not even in the Levitical line, writing, “But this man who does not have his descent from them received tithes from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises” (6). He then focuses on the superiority of Melchizedek to the Levitical priests, writing, “It is beyond dispute that the inferior is blessed by the superior. In the one case tithes are received by mortal men, but in the other case, by one of whom it is testified that he lives. One might even say that Levi himself, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, for he was still in the loins of his ancestor when Melchizedek met him.” That is to say, Melchizedek is greater in that he is never said to have died, he blessed Abraham, and received tithes from him. And in receiving tithes from him, he received tithes from the father of the Levites. So in some way, even the Levites who received tithes were tithing to Melchizedek through Abraham, for they would eventually come from his seed.

Therefore, we are simply not told much about this man, Melchizedek, except that he was superior to the Levitical priests and pointed us much toward Jesus Christ. However, this lays the groundwork for showing the superiority of Christ’s priesthood, as he was appointed a high priest after the order of Melchizedek. And with that the author turns in verse 11 to now expositing Psalm 110:4, in which we read, “The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind, ‘You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.’

The weakness of the law: pointing us to a better hope (7:11-19)

Starting with verse 11, the author begins to point out the weakness of the Levitical priesthood. He writes, “Now if perfection (i.e. completion of God’s redemptive mission) 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 Aaron.” This is a good and pointed question to a people who thought they could simply return to living under the law, forgetting Christ, and still be okay. For the author is pointing out that if that were a real possibility, then there would have been no need for God to raise up another priest from a different order.

He then points out how this different order works, writing, “For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is necessarily a change is the law as well. For the one of whom these things are spoken belonged to another tribe, from which no one has ever served at the altar. For it is evident that our Lord was descended from Judah, and in connection with that tribe Moses said nothing about priests” (12-14). Do you see what he’s saying here? If Christ really is a priest, then something in the law has changed, for the law only allowed descendants from the tribe of Levi to be priests, while Christ is from the tribe of Judah.

He then adds to the argument that something must have changed concerning the law, writing, “This becomes even more evident when another priest arises in the likeness of Melchizedek, who has because 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’” (15-17). So, again we see more evidence for something concerning the law changing, for not only was one made a priest who was not from the tribe of Levi (as the law prescribed), but he was made a high priest not because of anything regarding his physical descent. He was made a high priest because he lives forever. That is why he is made a priest forever.

So, we see the author’s conclusion then in verses 18-19 as he shows us that the law then must have been set aside (not being able to produce a priest who could truly accomplish our eternal salvation), but we are not discouraged, for there must then be a better hope by which we can draw near to God. He writes, “On the one hand, a former commandment is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness (for the law made nothing perfect) [i.e. on the one hand we see the ineffectiveness of the law]; but on the other hand, a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God [i.e. on the other hand, we get to see that there is a better hope by which we can draw near to God].

The superiority of hope and our high priest: the means for eternal salvation (7:20-25)

So, the author of Hebrews has destroyed their hope in looking to the Old Covenant and the priesthood of the Levites, but he has pointed them to hope by pointing them to Christ and the New Covenant that he brings.

Next, he continues writing about Christ’s superior priesthood and answers that question, writing, “And it was not without an oath. For those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath, but this one was made a priest with an oath by the one who said to him, ‘The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, ‘You are a priest forever.” This makes Jesus the guarantor of a better covenant. The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, 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” (20-25).

Thus, because Jesus became a high priest because of an oath (i.e. God swearing – remember the hope from last week? – and God will not change his mind), there is no fear of Christ’s priesthood being insufficient and God changing his manner of bringing salvation to his people. Also, because Jesus lives forever, the hope and promises he offers will never pass away, unlike the former priests who died. Therefore, our salvation is sure and eternal if we hope in Christ, for our hope is in one who lives and intercedes for us forever.

A summary of Christ’s person and work (7:26-28)

The author then simply summarizes again the superiority of Christ to the levitical priesthood, writing, “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” (26-28).

Thus, Jesus’ character and status were greater than the levitical priests. Thus, he offered no sacrifice for his sin, but offered himself as a sacrifice for our sin. Also, whereas the priests’ ministry was here on earth, Christ’s priestly ministry has reached into the heavens. Next, whereas the priests had to offer sacrifices again and again, Christ offered himself once for all. And finally, while the law appointed men who could not ultimately accomplish what we need, God (by his word of oath) appointed a Son who has perfectly accomplished our salvation forever. And it came later, superceding the former. Thus, the law is good in that it anticipated, but it has been replaced, because it, by nature, was unable to produce what we needed – a high priest who could save us forever. That is indeed what Jesus has done.

How should we then live?

So, how did the author of Hebrews want the original hearers to respond and how should respond to this truth. I will simply list four things:

1) Meditate much on the superiority of Jesus Christ and the reality of the salvation that awaits us.

Just this week, as we laid the body of my aunt in the ground, I had an opportunity to think of what awaits us after this life. And I found myself thinking, “This is real.” That is, our hope is real. What I preach week-by-week is real. We are people who are filthy and utterly sinful on our own. And no one will die without others being able to say of them, “They committed great and disgusting sin.” Yet, Jesus has come and lived a perfect life and died, taking our sin upon himself, and giving his perfect righteousness to all those who repent of their sin and place their faith in him. So, my aunt, if she truly believed and was born again, she is standing before the Lord, as one who on her own is disgustingly sinful, as one who is perfectly righteous, clothed with the righteousness of Christ. It is true. It may sound too good to be true. But it is true. So, spend much time meditating on this reality and let it drive you to worship.

2) Pursue knowing God better than you know anything and delighting in him more than you do anything.

The reason why this is a fitting application is because the reason this exhortation is even possible to obey is because of what Christ has done as our high priest. He has made us able to see and understand God’s Word, to pray to God, to have love in our hearts for God, and to obey God. Apart from Christ’s priestly work, none of these things are possible. So, realize the opportunity you have to know and delight in God and pursue it passionately.

3) Continue to hold fast to your faith in Christ, for it will lead to eternal salvation.

This is the main application I think the original hearers were to heed. However, temptation is no less today and we need to hear this.

4) Tell others of the person and work of Christ – the gospel. And urge them to place their hope in him that they might know eternal salvation as well.

There is something about being so blessed as to understand what Christ has done that you’re heart mandates you to tell others. Therefore, let’s do it. Let us speak this gospel to our neighbors and around the world.

Glory to our great priest, after the order of Melchizedek, forever. Amen.

¹C. S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory and Other Addresses (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1965), 2.

ETERNAL SALVATION AND OUR SUPERIOR HIGH PRIEST

Listen to Audio