"The Sinless Priest" Sermon: Hebrews 7:26-28

“The Sinless Priest” [Hebrews 7:26-28] October 21, 2012 Second Reformed Church We began chapter seven of Hebrews with an assumption: we are all born sinners and we cannot approach God – we cannot be right with God – without a high priest intervening. We began our discussion of chapter seven, with the assumption that we have sinned and broken the Covenant with God and that we cannot be right with God unless there is a high priest who mediates between us by offering up a blood sacrifice which is acceptable to God. Last week, we looked at the oath that God took in making Jesus, God the Son Incarnate, a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek, and we noted that, by God swearing by Himself – He was swearing that He would effectively self-destruct if He did not keep His Promise, but knowing God's Character – that God cannot lie and cannot change – the fact that God took an oath is an assurance and comfort to us. In knowing that God has taken this promise so seriously, we can be assured that heaven and earth will pass away, but not the Promise of God. We have a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek in the Person of Jesus, God the Son. And we saw the Jesus intercedes for us always, and we saw that He saves us to the outermost. Jesus, as Holy High Priest, merited salvation under the Law, and in offering up himself to be the Holy Sacrifice, He paid the debt for all of the sins of all of the people who would ever believe in Him Alone for salvation, and He credited us with that perfect keeping of the Law. He stands between us and God – even now – bringing our prayers to God, providing for our needs, sanctifying us, conforming us to His Image, sending God to indwell each one of us who believes, and so forth. “For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.” “Because, so, therefore, it makes sense, it is logical, that we should have such a high priest”– in order for Jesus to save us to the uttermost and to intercede for us constantly, it was necessary that the personal qualifications of the High Priest – that His State and Condition – should be holy, innocent, unstained, not a sinner, glorified – all of the Levitical priests were unqualified to make us right with God. There are many purposes of the Law, and much good that the high priests did, but the Law was never intended to save anyone – and it cannot save anyone – salvation is through faith alone. As Paul wrote, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9, ESV) The author of Hebrews uses a number of words to describe the Purity and Sinlessness of Jesus: Jesus, the Incarnate Son of God, is Holy – that is, He is utterly separate from sin – His Inherent Nature is one of Purity – He is Divine. He is Innocent – He is One Who has never done any evil. He is Unstained – He is Morally Pure. He is separated from sinners – He lived a life that opposes sinful living. He is exalted above the heavens – He dwells in perfect humility in the highest state of exultation. And we may ask, “Aren't all human beings born with a sin nature?” “Would Jesus really have been human if He was not a sinner?” The answer is found as we look back to the Creation: “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’ And God said, ‘Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.’ And it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day” (Genesis 1:27-31, ESV). The fact of the matter is that sin – original sin – having a sin nature – is not essential to being human. Adam and Eve were created good – without sin – and they were human – and we will be re-created – resurrected – without sin – and we will still be human. Sin is not necessary to be a human. In fact, sin is against how God created and what God is making us through Jesus. God in His Providence incarnated through the Virgin, born in the person of Jesus, but without original sin – without a sin nature – was created in His humanity as our first parents had been created. Jesus was – and always remains – a real, complete, sinless human being – just as we will be after the resurrection. And He is exactly what we needed, because the Levitical priests and Levitical Law were a failure as far as salvation is concerned. There is no hope of salvation through the Levitical Law. We can never do enough good to be right with God. And so my friend, who wrote on her Facebook page that she doesn't need Jesus because she has Yom Kippur, does not understand the depth and the horror and the affront to God that sin is. She also holds too highly the ability of sinful humans to offer up the sacrifice that would be acceptable to God. Not to mention the fact that they had offered up animals, not humans – so the system is utterly hopeless for salvation. I know so many people – and I'm sure you do to – who say in the end, God will judge us on our faithfulness, God will judge us on the good works that we have done – but how faithful have we really been? How many good works have we done? How pure is our motivation? Peter wrote, “Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy’” (1 Peter 1:13-16, ESV). Is anyone of us such a fool as to say we are holy in all that we do and say and think? Therefore, “it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens” because we are sinners and we cannot make things right with God on our own or through the Levitical Law or through the Levitical high priests – we are still left sinners. Therefore, we needed a high priest who had no sin nature and who is morally without sin or evil. Otherwise, there is no hope. The author of Hebrews continues: “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.” The Levitical priests had offered daily sacrifices for themselves and their family – so they were not always available or able to minister to the needs of the people – they were sinners and had to offer up sacrifices for their sins and for their families sins – so it was not possible for the Levitical priests to bring us to salvation to the uttermost and to intercede for us always. The Levitical Law even calls for a second high priest be at the ready, in case the high priest of the day could not serve because of his sin. What does this indicate, except that there must be a better high priest? If you and I are relying on our good works, we are doomed. With the Better High Priest, Jesus, we have the offering up of the One Sacrifice which covers all of the sins of all of His people throughout time and space. And there is no need for sacrifice ever to be offered again. Jesus, as our Sinless High Priest offered up Himself once, for everyone who would ever believe, and that Sacrificed paid for all sin because it is holy and the High Priest Who offered it is Holy. Jesus is the Only One Who is sinless and could offer up Himself to save us to the uttermost and make intercession for us always. Since the sacrifice He offered is Holy, it need not be repeated – God is satisfied with His Sacrifice – our debt has been paid, and we have been credited with His Righteousness, so we are now seen – through Jesus – as holy keepers of the Law. The Levitical sacrifices had to be repeated because they were never enough; Jesus's Sacrifice is once and for all, complete and finished. The final sentence of chapter seven is a summary of his argument: “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.” The Levitical Law appointed sinners to be priests, so their service as high priest and the offerings that they offered up were never enough. But God appointed Jesus – God the Son Incarnate – to be a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek – and God gave an oath against His Own Life – His Own Existence – that God the Son would be a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. The Levitical priests could do nothing except offer what was given, and that was only animals, and that was never enough. On the other hand, Jesus, as High Priest after the order of Melchizedek forever – Holy and Sinless – could function as the Priest and give Himself up as the Sacrifice for the sins of everyone who would ever believe, and it would be enough – it would be the Final, Perfect Sacrifice for all those who would ever believe – the Only Way of salvation. And so we have salvation through Jesus Alone – turning back to the Levitical sacrifices in the face of persecution is not an option, because they cannot save. But through Jesus, all we who believe throughout time and space, are saved eternally – to the uttermost – and He is interceding for us now and always that we might become like Him and that the Father might be glorified. And so Jesus is an example of how we should be – innocent, sinless, holy. That is what we are to strive for, by the working of the Holy Spirit in us. As Paul wrote, “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Philippians 2:12-13, ESV). Salvation is given to us by God the Son Incarnate in the Person of Jesus Christ, the One Holy High Priest after the order of Melchizedek forever. And now we are called to fight and strive, to work the power of the Holy Spirit Who lives in us, to become like Him. Let us not give up, until we find ourselves made into the Image of Jesus Christ. And let us not despair, but hold to the promise Paul reminds us of: “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6, ESV). Let us pray: Almighty God, we thank You that You made it clear that we are unable to save ourselves. You set the Levitical Law the Levitical priests before us to show us that we are sinners and unable to be right with you except through Jesus Christ Alone. Help us to understand that He is our High Priest – our Mediator – the One Sacrifice that makes us right with You. Change us by the Holy Spirit Who indwells us, that we might be Your sons and daughters and become like that Sinless Priest Who suffered and died for our sake. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.