PRIESTHOOD OF CHRIST - OUR REDEMPTION

Exodus 28:35-36,38

Aaron will wear this robe whenever he ministers before the lord, and the bells will tinkle as he goes in and out of the Lord’s presence in the Holy Place. If he wears it, he will not die.

“Next make a medallion of pure gold, and engrave it like a seal with these words: holy to the lord.

Aaron must wear it on his forehead so he may take on himself any guilt of the people of Israel when they consecrate their sacred offerings. He must always wear it on his forehead so the Lord will accept the people.

Aaron and his sons were the first priesthood for the people of Israel, the lineage continued along that bloodline.

However, just as scripture records, it was a shadow of things to come.

Christ, our great High priest was to be revealed at a later time. He was not a priest to Israel alone, but for the whole world.

Luke 4:14,18-19,21

Then Jesus returned to Galilee, filled with the Holy Spirit’s power. Reports about him spread quickly through the whole region.

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. 

He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.”

Then he began to speak to them. “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!”

Hebrews 4:14-16

So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe.

This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin.

So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.

Just as God assigned to Aaron:

Exodus 28:38a

Aaron must wear it on his forehead so he may take on himself any guilt of the people of Israel . . . 

Hebrews 9:15

That is why he is the one who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant.

So Christ is the only High priest after the order of Melchizedek. He did not have to offer sacrifice again and again, but He offered Himself once and for all.

Not restricted to an earthly temple (copy of the Heavenly holy of holies) but into heaven itself, that is why He died and rose:

Hebrews 9:6-8,11-12

When these things were all in place, the priests regularly entered the first room as they performed their religious duties.

But only the high priest ever entered the Most Holy Place, and only once a year. And he always offered blood for his own sins and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance.

By these regulations the Holy Spirit revealed that the entrance to the Most Holy Place was not freely open as long as the Tabernacle and the system it represented were still in use.

So Christ has now become the High Priest over all the good things that have come. He has entered that greater, more perfect Tabernacle in heaven, which was not made by human hands and is not part of this created world.

With his own blood—not the blood of goats and calves—he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever.

Glory to God.

We receive this redemption even as we remember His sacrifice this season. We take full advantage as we take our place as priests called under this new order.

Just as Aaron had the bells to remind him of where He was, we will also be cautious not to take for granted the fact that we are in the presence of the Mighty God.

We will remain in His presence.

Thank You Glorious Lord.

He calls us blessed.

Love

@the watcher