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Messiah's Divine Rights - Part 7

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• Psalm 110 verse 1, "The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. The Lord shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion. Rule thou in the midst of thine enemies. Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth. The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek. The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath."

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• "He shall judge among the heathen, he shall fill the places with the dead bodies; he shall wound the heads over many countries. He shall drink of the brook in the way: therefore shall he lift up the head."

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• Now we have been looking primarily at verses 1 through 3 in the last several weeks. We've seen in verse 1 that Christ has a right to royal honor. In verse 2, that Christ has the right to rule the heathen. In verse 3, that Christ also has the right to reverend homage. I told you last week that verse 4 began the priesthood of Christ, while the first three verses dealt basically with the kingship of Christ.

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• Now I indicated there must be a transition and that transition was the latter part of verse 3, "in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth," and I pointed out how that this refers basically to the offspring of Christ and especially to what we would call the soldier saints because the Bible tells us that he's made us kings and priests unto God and then we went back and looked at the warrior aspect of the priesthood in the Old Testament. I did not do so in the New Testament, however, it is there.

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• But today we're going to proceed and take up with verse 4 because there's so much in verse 4, it's going to take at least two messages to deal with it. But verse 4 says, "The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek." So verse 4 very clearly and emphatically teaches the priesthood of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ has a right to a perpetual priesthood. All through the Bible he's referred to as our great high priest. Now let me just point out from the very outset, and I will point this out more clearly next week, but from the outset it should be understood that our Lord is not an ordinary priest. Nor is He after the order of Levi.

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• If you will hold Psalm 110 and look in your Bibles first to the book of Hebrews chapter 7. Hebrews chapter 7. In fact, you might as well hold the book of Hebrews. There is so much in this book that we need to look at. So Hebrews chapter 7. And let's begin reading there with verse 11. Just to show you that our Lord is not an ordinary priest. Notice Hebrews 7 and verse 11. "If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of Melchizedek, and not be called after the order of Aaron? For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law."

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• "For he of whom these things are spoken pertaineth to another tribe, of which no man gave attendance at the altar. For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Juda; of which tribe Moses spake nothing concerning priesthood. And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another priest, Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life. For he testifieth, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec." Note, if you would, how Scripture is emphasizing the fact that Christ is not after the Levitical order.

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• Notice Hebrews chapter 8, if you would please, beginning with verse 4. "For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law: Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount. But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second." So the Bible is teaching us very clearly that Christ is not a priest after the order of Levi.

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• Now, the problem is this. Every one of us in here confess and believe the priesthood of Jesus Christ. But the problem is not that we just confess and believe. The problem is, we don't really understand what is involved in the priesthood of Jesus Christ. In fact, most of us don't really understand why a priest is even necessary. If you would turn in your Bibles, please, to the book of Job, chapter 9, and let me show you the cry of Job. Everyone is familiar with the fact that Job was suffering, and he did not know why he was suffering. It was a mystery. Job wanted to talk with God, but yet Job understood that he was incapable of talking with God. And I want you to notice what he said in Job 9 and verse 33. Job is offering a complaint, and I might say that it is a legitimate complaint. In fact, let's begin reading there in verse 32. Job says this concerning God, "For he is not a man, as I am, that I should answer him, and we should come together in judgment."

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• That's the problem. God is not a man. Then he said, "Neither is there any daysman betwixt us, that might lay his hand upon us both." So he says there is not a daysman betwixt or between us that might lay his hand upon both.

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• Now what is Job asking for when he's asking for a daysman? He's asking literally for what you and I would call a mediator. A go-between. Someone who is not only capable of representing man to God, but also capable of representing God to man. So Job then understood that God was infinite and eternal and holy. And yet he himself was finite, unholy, and temporal. And Job said, what I need is someone that can represent both man and God.

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• Now, if you will turn back in your Bibles to the book of Hebrews, chapter 5. I told you we were going to turn back there a good bit, not only this week, but next week. I want you to see why God initiated the Levitical priesthood. It is stated very clearly in Hebrews chapter 5 verse 1, "For every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins: Who can have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way; for that he himself also is compassed with infirmity."

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• "And by reason hereof he ought, as for the people, so also for himself, to offer for sins. And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron."

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• Now let's just stop there. The important verse is verse 1. Note, "For every high priest is taken from among men." Why? He is ordained for men, that is to be their representative, to be their mediator, their daysman, their go-between, to offer for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins. So the Bible is telling us that the Levitical priesthood, basically speaking, was a mediatorial priesthood. In other words, the Levitical priesthood was to represent man unto God, in that the priesthood offered the sacrifices and the offerings and the worship that God demanded. But then when the priest turned around and declared to the people the word and the will of God, they were representing God then to the people. Now, let me point out, and I want you to go back in your Bibles to Hebrews chapter 8, that although the Levitical priesthood was a mediatorial priesthood, it was also a temporary priesthood.

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• It was a mere shadow. It was a picture of that which was to come. There was no perfection in the Levitical priesthood. So you have in Hebrews chapter 8, beginning there with verse 5, what the Word of God says. "Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount."

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• "But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second. For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah." So very clearly he's talking about this new covenant.

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• Now notice chapter 9, verses 9 through 12. He's talking about the tabernacle, he's talking about the temple, he's talking about the Levitical priesthood, he says in verse 9, "Which was a figure for the time then present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience; Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation. But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us."

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• So very clearly then, Jesus Christ is the God-man, Theanthropos. He is perfect and he is capable then of representing God and man. He has the divine nature since he is God. He also has man's nature since he is man. Therefore he alone is the true and only Mediator. That's why the Bible says in 1 Timothy 2 and verse 5, "For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus." So that which Job cried out for in Job chapter 9 is now fulfilled and personified in Jesus Christ.

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• Now, there are three quick things I want you to see in Psalm 110. Go back there. There are three quick points, and then I'm going to make the applications and probably spend a great deal more time on the applications. First of all, I want you to look at verse 4. Psalm 110, verse 4. "The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek." The very first thing you have here is a holy asseveration.

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• A-S-S-E-V-E-R-A-T-I-O-N. Do you know what an asseveration is? Probably you do not, so I shall tell you. Look at this phrase, "The Lord hath sworn." An asseveration is a positive affirmation or assertion. It is a solemn declaration. It is a declaration accompanied with great solemnity. "The Lord hath sworn." That is a holy asseveration.

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• Now, I want you to note something, and I'll deal with this more next week. But the Levitical priesthood was not begun with an oath. But the priesthood of Christ was begun with an oath. "The Lord hath sworn." This is a different sermon, and I'm not going to preach it today, but I do want you to see this. There are two things that are very intimately connected, we never think about this. Swearing and worship. Swearing and worship are intimately connected.

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• In fact, as I was studying for this message, I came across another message I want to preach in the future entitled "Preaching Profanity." You say what? That's what most preachers are preaching, they're preaching profanity because we don't even know what profanity is. We think profanity is just simply using curse words. But that's not true. You can be profane and never ever utter a curse word. But now, let me show you what I'm talking about.

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• Swearing and worship are intimately connected. Look in your Bibles, first of all, to Deuteronomy, chapter 6 and verse 13. I could quote this, but I do want you to see it. Deuteronomy, chapter 6 and verse 13. And then we'll look in Deuteronomy, chapter 10. Deuteronomy 6 and verse 13. Look what the Bible says. "Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and serve him, and shalt swear by his name." Thou shalt swear by his name. Why? Because swearing and worship is intimately connected. Look in chapter 10 and verse 20. I could show you this in several passages. These are sufficient. Deuteronomy 10 verse 20. God says, "Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God; him shalt thou serve, and to him shalt thou cleave, and swear by his name."

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• Do you realize we are forbidden to swear by false gods? Why? Because we don't worship false gods. We worship the One True and the Living God.

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• Now, the Bible says, "The Lord hath sworn." God has given an oath. And when God gives an oath, He can only swear by Himself. Look in your Bibles to Isaiah 45 and verse 23. Isaiah 45, verse 23. We're going to be going to the book of Hebrews in just a moment too, but Isaiah 45, verse 23. Look what the Bible says. Isaiah 45, verse 23. God says, "I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear." What did God just say? "I have sworn by myself." Now, why did God swear by himself? Well, look in your Bibles to the book of Hebrews chapter 6. Hebrews chapter 6 and let's look at verse 13. Hebrews 6 and verse 13. Here's why God swore by himself. "For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself." Who's the greatest being? God. There's none greater than God. So God said, basically, "As I live, saith the Lord," which is an oath.

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• He swears by himself. So the Lord swore by himself. And by the way, the oath in the Bible put an end to all strife, all agitation, all disagreement. Look in your Bibles to Hebrews 6 and verse 17, "Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath:" Verse 16, "For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife." So God then confirmed the priesthood of Christ with an oath, just like he confirmed the promise to Abraham with an oath. So the Bible says that God has sworn. "The Lord hath sworn, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek."

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• Now we've got to ask a question. What are the implications of God's swearing? Have you ever thought about that? What are the implications of God's swearing? When God says, "As I live, saith the Lord," or "The Lord hath sworn," what does that imply? We read it in the Bible all the time. Let me give you a minimum of four things that are implied. First and foremost, when God swears, it implies His veracity, that is, His truthfulness. God will not and cannot lie.

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• If you're taking down the scriptures, you need to jot down Psalm 89 and verse 35. Listen to it. I'll quote it. If you want to turn there, fine. God says, "Once have I sworn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David." So when God swears, it is an indication of his veracity. He is telling the absolute truth. He cannot and he will not lie. You find the same thing in Psalm 132 and verse 11. Let me just turn there and read that very quickly. Psalm 132 and verse 11. Here the word of God says, "The Lord hath sworn in truth unto David; he will not turn from it." So when the Lord swears, first and foremost then, it implies His veracity. That is His truthfulness.

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• It is absolutely, totally, and completely true. Secondly, when the Lord swears, it implies the determination and the accomplishment of that which is sworn to.

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• Now God is not like man. You know, men swear a lot of times and they don't understand what they're doing even when they're swearing. But Derek could do me wrong and I could say, well, I swear I'll get you back. Well, I might have a plan to get him back, which would be evil and wicked in and of itself, but the truth is I do not necessarily have the power to accomplish that which I swear to. However, God does. So it implies not just the veracity and truthfulness, but it also implies the determination and the accomplishment of that which is sworn to. Write this scripture down.

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• Isaiah 14 and verse 24. Listen to what God says. Isaiah 14 verse 24, "The Lord of hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand." Isn't that clear? God says that I have sworn, it's going to come to pass. As I have thought, it's going to be accomplished. It's just that simple. So, first of all, when God swears, it implies his veracity and truthfulness. Secondly, it implies his determination and the accomplishment of that which is sworn to. Thirdly, it implies that that which God has sworn to is right, holy and just. Whatever God swears to is right, holy and just. Let me give you just several scriptures. Listen carefully. Here's Amos 4 in verse 2, and we're talking about rightness. We're talking about justice. We're talking about holiness. Amos 4, 2. "The Lord God hath sworn by his holiness, that, lo, the days shall come upon you, that he will take you away with hooks, and your posterity with fishhooks."

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• The Lord has sworn in his holiness. What is he saying? I want to judge you. God's going to do that which is just and right. Here it is in Amos 8 in verse 7. "The Lord hath sworn by the excellency of Jacob, Surely I will never forget any of their works." What is he swearing to? Justice. Judgment. That which is holy and right. In Psalm 60 and verse 6, "God hath spoken in his holiness; I will rejoice, I will divide Shechem, and mete out the valley of Succoth." What is he saying? I'm going to judge and destroy the wicked. So when God swears, it not only implies his veracity, it not only implies his determination and accomplishment of that which is sworn to, it also implies that there is righteous judgment and holiness involved, and then fourthly, it implies God's power and God's might in accomplishing that which He swears to. Look in your Bibles, in Jeremiah 44, and let's read verse 26 and 27. Jeremiah 44, 26 and 27. Now look carefully at what God says.

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• Jeremiah 44 verse 26. "Therefore hear ye the word of the Lord, all Judah that dwell in the land of Egypt; Behold, I have sworn by my great name, saith the Lord, that my name shall no more be named in the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt, saying, The Lord God liveth. Behold, I will watch over them for evil, and not for good: and all the men of Judah that are in the land of Egypt shall be consumed by the sword and by the famine, until there be an end of them." What is God saying? God says, I'm going to exercise my power and I'm going to kill every one of them that I said that I'm going to kill. Look in your Bibles, Isaiah 62 and verse 8. Once again, you'll see God's power. Isaiah 62 and verse 8. Isaiah 62 verse 8. "The Lord hath sworn by his right hand, and by the arm of his strength."

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• "Surely I will no more give thy corn to be meat for thine enemies; and the sons of the stranger shall not drink thy wine, for the which thou hast laboured." Note, "for the Lord hath sworn by his right hand, and by the arm of his strength."

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• Now, I want you to put these things together. Look in Psalm 110 in verse 4. Look how simple this is. Psalm 110 verse 4, "The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek." Thus, when God swears concerning the priesthood of Christ, what is he doing? He's giving an oath to the veracity and truthfulness of it, as well as to the rightness and holiness and the justice of establishing Christ in a perpetual priesthood. Moreover, He is dedicating His might and His power for the establishment and the accomplishment of that priesthood. In other words, God's oath was His pledge to bring His eternal power and Godhead for the fulfillment of and the establishing of the priesthood of Jesus Christ. Now, I want you to stop and think about this. Do you realize the only possible way for Christ to fail? The only possible way for the priesthood of Jesus Christ to fail is for God Himself to fail. What do you think the chances are for that? You know what God said in Psalm 138 verse 2?

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• Listen carefully. That He has glorified His Word above all His name. And when God said to Christ, "The Lord hath sworn, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek," in order for Christ to fail, God himself must fail, which is absolutely and totally impossible, which means this: The perpetual priesthood of Jesus Christ is guaranteed. The Lord has sworn.

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• Secondly, look in verse four of Psalm 110. You have a holy attitude. The Bible says, "The Lord hath sworn"—there's the holy asseveration—"and will not repent." There's the holy attitude.

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• Now, let me ask you a simple question, you know the answer. When is it right to fail to repent? The answer is when you haven't sinned. When you've only done that which is right and holy and just and true. So God the Father says there is no necessity to repent. Why should he repent? He's done that which was right concerning Jesus Christ. Repentance involves a change of mind which produces a change of conduct. And when scripture then affirms that God will not repent, all it is saying is that God is not going to change His mind concerning the establishment of the priesthood of Jesus Christ. The Word of God says in Numbers 23 and verse 19, "God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?" Well, of course He is going to make it good. The phrase, "and will not repent," indicates that God will never change His purpose concerning Christ. It is a done deal, so to speak. There's no contingencies. There's no conditions. There's no reservations. Nothing is left to the will of man. Nothing is left to man. Nothing is left to angels. It is an irreversible decree of God, and God will not change His mind.

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• Here is the holy attitude. Just stop and think for a moment what the alternative would be. If God repented, it would mean that God changed His mind. Now if God changed His mind, then that would be in denial of His omniscience. And if God changed his mind, he'd have to change his conduct, which, of course, would be a denial of God. God is immutable. God is unchangeable. God is the most perfect, holy being. He's omniscient. He's omnipotent. He's omnipresent. He is the one true and living God.

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• There is no need for him to repent. So here is a holy asseveration, "The Lord has sworn," a holy attitude, "and will not repent." And thirdly, a holy action. "Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek." Now, the word priest is a very interesting word. The Hebrew is the word Cohen, which literally means not only a priest, but a prince. So Jesus Christ is not only a priest, he's also a prince.

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• We've already seen the first three verses here refers to his kingship. So we know then that he's a prince and a priest as well.

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• Now in patriarchal times, that is during the time of Abraham and Job, men like that, the heads of families usually exercised a political and a sacerdotal or a priestly authority. Each head of the family or the head of the tribe was considered a priest. And he did basically three things. Number one, he was an instructor of the family and of the tribe. That is, he taught them what was right.

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• The second thing he did was he offered sacrifices for the sins of the people to reconcile them to God and give them access to his presence. Don't you remember how Job not only instructed his children, but he got up and sacrificed every day in case they had sinned. And then thirdly, of course, he was their mediator and he interceded and prayed for them. So Christ is the fulfillment of all of these Old Testament types.

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• What was true in patriarchal times was true in the Levitical times. And now we find that Jesus Christ, as the great high priest, is the grand and universal instructor of His Word through His Spirit. Moreover, He is the Lamb of God who has taken away the sin of the world. He is our Passover who has been sacrificed for us. And moreover, he is now our mediator. He is now our great high priest who sits upon the throne and intercedes for us.

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• Now, I don't want to get into this too much because I'm going to do so next week. But Melchizedek—"Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek." Melchizedek was a king and a priest. Jesus Christ is more. Jesus Christ is a prophet, priest, and king. There have been certain men in the Bible where you've seen some of these offices doubled up in their lives. For instance, Samuel was a priest and a prophet. David was a king and a prophet. But only Christ is prophet, priest, and king.

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• Now let me just lay out for you very quickly at least four simple truths. The first one is this. Our Lord Jesus Christ is a priest. That should be obvious. He was appointed to that office and he faithfully executes that office. The Bible said in Hebrews 5 and verse 1, which we read, that he was ordained of God to offer sacrifices in things pertaining to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sin.

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• That's exactly what he does. He is the one who made atonement for his people. He is our minister. He is our advocate. He is our mediator. So Jesus Christ is a priest. Secondly, he is a priest forever. He was designed a priest in God's eternal counsel. You know, we never think about this. But he was actually a priest in the Old Testament as well. You say, how can you say that? Because everyone in here can quote Hebrews 13 in verse eight, what does it say? "Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever." All of those Old Testament priests were nothing more than pictures and types and shadows and emblems of the one true priest, Jesus Christ. There will never ever be another priest. Jesus Christ now has been made the priest forever, so we need not look for any other to come.

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• I get so tickled at so many professing Christians who get so excited about everything that's happening over in the land of Israel, where people over there hate and despise Jesus Christ, and they say, "Oh, did you hear? Did you hear they're going to reestablish the priesthood? They've already got the Sanhedrin going now." Hogwash. There's never, ever going to be another priesthood because Jesus Christ is God's great High Priest. You're not going to replace Him. If you're going to get excited about a priesthood, get excited about the priesthood of Jesus Christ, because the fruits of his ministry and the fruits of his priesthood will continue forever. Thirdly, he was made a priest with an oath. "The Lord has sworn," and as we read in Hebrews 7 earlier, there the apostle urges and demonstrates and shows the superiority of the priesthood of Jesus Christ than to the priesthood of Aaron. "The Lord has sworn and will not repent. Jesus Christ is the priest forever."

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• This should be the comfort and the consolation of believers. And when you understand the ramifications, it ought to make you exceedingly happy. And fourthly, he's a priest, as I pointed out earlier, not after the order of Aaron, not after the order of Levi, but after the order of Melchizedek.

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• Now, you're going to ask me, what all does that mean? You have to wait till next week, OK? Because I can't develop all of that this week.

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• Now, it just means this: Melchizedek, the Melchizedek priesthood was prior to the Levitical priesthood. Therefore, it was superior. Melchizedek, of course, had no successor. And Jesus Christ is not going to have a successor. Jesus Christ is the Alpha and the Omega. He is the culmination of both the Old and the New Testament. God said, "The Lord has sworn, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek."

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• Now, I've just simply today established one real thought. Jesus Christ is our priest.

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• Now, I want to spend the rest of my time this morning on the applications. My first application, I'm just going to read, because it is a quote. It's a quote from Charles Haddon Spurgeon on verse four of Psalm 110, and I want you to listen to what Spurgeon said concerning the priesthood of Christ. Listen carefully. He said, "We have now reached the heart of the Psalm, which is also the very center and soul of our faith." Let me just stop there. Listen to what he said. I'm going to explain it in just a moment. "We have now reached the heart of the psalm, which is also the very center and soul of our faith."

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• "Our Lord Jesus is a priest king by the ancient oath of Jehovah. He glorified not himself to be made a high priest, but was ordained thereunto from of old and was called of God an high priest after the order of Melchizedek. It must be a solemn and sure matter which leads the eternal to swear, and with him an oath fixes and settles the decree forever. But in this case, as if to make assurance a thousand times sure, it is added, 'and will not repent.' It is done and done forever and ever. Jesus is sworn in to be the priest of His people, and He must abide so even to the end because His commission is sealed by the unchanging oath of the immutable Jehovah. If His priesthood could be revoked and His authority removed, it would be the end of all hope and life for the people whom He loves. But this sure rock is the basis of our security. The oath of God establishes our glorious Lord both in His priesthood and in His throne."

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• "It is the Lord who has constituted him a priest forever. He has done it by oath and that oath is without repentance and taking effect now and will stand throughout all ages. Hence, our security in Him is placed beyond all question."

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• Now Spurgeon said that verse 4, the priesthood of Christ, was the heart and soul of our faith. What he said was, if you understand the priesthood of Christ, it will give you the greatest assurance and the greatest security beyond imagination and beyond all question.

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• Now, how could Spurgeon make such a statement? Let me explain it. Because here is my second application, and it's basically explaining the first. Our salvation is intimately tied up in the priesthood of Jesus Christ. I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Hebrews chapter 7. Hebrews chapter 7 and notice how our salvation is intimately tied up in the priesthood of Jesus Christ. Notice if you would, let's begin reading there with verse 21. Hebrews 7 verse 21, "For those priests were made without an oath; but this with an oath by him that said unto him, The Lord sware and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec: By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament."

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• "And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death:" Let me stop there. What happened to Aaron? He died. What happened to Eleazar? He died. What happened to all of those priests? Every single one of them are dead. "But this man," talking about Christ, "but this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood." Do you see in the next verse the significance of the fact that Christ lives forever? That Christ has an unchangeable priesthood, look at it in verse 25, "Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them." He is able to save to the uttermost. Why? Because He ever liveth to make intercession for us. Jesus Christ can never die. Jesus Christ has a perpetual priesthood because Jesus Christ triumphed over and conquered death and he will never ever die again.

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• The priestly work of Christ has two parts. The priestly work of Christ has two parts. His priestly work entails his satisfaction and his intercession. Now, his satisfaction has two parts. His passive obedience and his active obedience, or his active obedience and his passive obedience. So when I say the satisfaction of Christ, I'm talking about the death of Christ, the suffering of Christ, the sacrifice of Christ. It has two parts, his active obedience and his passive obedience. What is meant by his active obedience? By his active obedience, that means how he kept the law of God personally, perfectly, and perpetually. That's why He could say in John 8 and verse 29, "I do always those things that please the Father." Jesus Christ actively obeyed God in every instance, in every detail.

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• He never sinned at all. That is called his active obedience. His passive obedience is when he hung upon the cross and our sins were imputed to him and he suffered there in our stead as our substitute. That's referred to as his passive obedience.

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• Now I told you that the priesthood of Christ included two parts. His satisfaction and his intercession. When you and I think of intercession, we normally think of someone just praying for another individual. Well, certainly the word intercede means to make requests on behalf of another. And it is true that Christ is indeed the great intercessor and the great master of requests in heaven. Now listen carefully. If you really genuinely believe that Jesus Christ is the Great High Priest and He is the one who makes intercession for us, you will not be praying to Mary or to any of the saints. You will only pray to Jesus Christ. The intercessory work of Jesus Christ involves at least three things.

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• Number one, he presents his blood or the merit of his blood to the Father in virtue of that price paid and he pleads for mercy. Without me turning you back to the book of Leviticus, do you not remember it was Aaron, the high priest, who sacrificed the offering. It was Aaron who carried the blood into the Holy of Holies. It was Aaron who sprinkled the blood on the mercy seat. But that blood that he sprinkled was the blood of bulls and goats. Look in Hebrews 9.

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• You should be right there. We read it earlier. But look in Hebrews 9. Look in verse 12. Now, in fact, let's go back to verse 11. "But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands," we're not talking about the fleshly one, the carnal one on earth, but the one in heaven, "that is to say, not of this building; Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place," that is in heaven, "having obtained eternal redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:" that's all it was, carnal, "How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?"

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• So Jesus Christ, then, as our intercessor, presents the merits of his blood to the Father.

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• Secondly, and I want you to see it, turn in your Bibles to Romans 8. Here's the second part of our Lord's intercessory work, and I love this part. Romans 8, look in verses 33 and 34. Christ, let me tell you what I'm going to say, Christ by His intercession answers all bills of indictments against us. Christ by His intercession answers all bills of indictments against His people. Romans 8, verse 33.

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• "Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us." What does that mean? Don't you remember how Satan is the accuser of the brethren? Do you not remember how Zechariah, I believe it's chapter 3, Joshua the high priest was praying and there stood Satan at his right hand to resist him? What happens when charges are laid against God's elect? What happens when Satan accuses us? What happens when the justice of God arises and demands an answer?

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• Christ handles all bills of indictments and pleads the merits of His blood and takes care of every legal judicial problem that might exist or ever come up. Let me tie that in with a third one. Look in your Bibles to 1 John 2 and verse 1. It is Christ who pleads our cause. Let me show you what the Bible says in 1 John 2 and verse 1. 1 John 2 verse 1. "My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins." Now wait. "And we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous." You know what the word advocate is? The Greek word is parakletos.

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• Para is a preposition which means alongside and kaleo is I call. Parakletos means literally one who is called alongside to help. This is also the title or one of the titles given to the Holy Spirit in the New Testament. He's called the divine Paraclete because he came in the place of Christ. He is one who's called alongside to help as well. But here the Bible tells us in this instance that Christ is our advocate.

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• He is the true lawyer, if you want to use that term. He's the one who knows the law. God's law. He authored it. He should know it. And so when Satan accuses the brethren and presents a bill of indictment, when we sin and the justice of God arises and demands judgment, our advocate stands and says, I acknowledge, yes, he did sin. Yes, there was wickedness. But Father, the law cannot demand payment twice. To exact payment twice for the same sin would be unjust. And Father, here is my blood.

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• Here are my sufferings that I suffered in His stead. And therefore, God's justice says, we're free. Why? Because Christ paid the penalty. And he continues to plead the merits of his blood. He answers all our indictments. He is our advocate. He intercedes for us. He prays for us. And you know, he's never lost a case.

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• Now, you can have confidence in that kind of a lawyer, can't you? One who knows the law perfectly. And one whose father is the judge. You know, you're bound to be a winner. One more quickly. I want you to see in this the constancy of Christ's love for his own, which is demonstrated in his priesthood. Go back in your Bible to John 13. And just look at verse one, John 13, just showing you the constancy of our Lord's love, which is even demonstrated in his priesthood, John 13, verse one. I love this passage.

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• "Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end." He loved them unto the end. When our Lord knew that it was time for Him to give His life a ransom for His people, He loved them to the very end.

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• That is, until He died. Now, let me tell you. It is true that our Lord graciously and marvelously loved us until the end of His life. But His love did not stop there. Are you listening? Christ has now done dying, never to die again, but he is not done loving. And the very fact that he intercedes for us demonstrates the constancy of his love. Do you remember in the Old Testament, the high priest

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• had on the breastplate twelve stones. And each stone was engraved with the name of the tribe in Israel. So the priest always carried the people on his breast. Jesus Christ carries more than the tribes. He carries us as individuals. Aaron was a man and finite, but our Lord is the God-man. And if he knows all the names of the stars, I can assure you, he knows the names of his people.

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• In fact, the Bible says very plainly in 2 Timothy, I think it's chapter 2, verse 19, "Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his." And he carries our names upon his heart. And he prays for us. He's done dying, but he's not done loving. And if you understand the priesthood of Christ, it will produce assurance and faith and comfort and consolation like nothing else. "The Lord hath sworn, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek."

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• "The Lord has sworn and will not repent." Nothing will ever change in relation to Jesus Christ. His kingship, his prophetship, his priesthood are settled and sure. And if we're in him, we have the utmost confidence because he is our salvation. Let's pray. Father, we thank you today for the greatness and mercy of Jesus Christ. We're so thankful that he is not only our king, but our priest.

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• And to think that He intercedes for each of us. He answers all bills of indictments against us. And He presents the merits of His blood. What greater confidence and consolation could we have? We bow to Him and worship Him and give Him honor and glory. For he is King of Kings, and Lord of Lords, and the Great High Priest. May we worship him in spirit and in truth.

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• In thy name we pray, Amen.

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• In thy name we pray, Amen.

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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-05T15:35:10Z