Good morning. In accordance with the Law God handed down to His people through Moses the person of extreme importance for the spiritual health of God’s people was the High Priest. He was to be chosen from among the decendants of Aaron, specifically those of the Levitical priesthood, and was subject to certain rules regarding marriage and lifestyle. His duties were important year-round, but it was on the Day of Atonement that the High Priest was most valued. It was on that day that he would enter the Holy of Holies to offer prayers and sacrifice before God on behalf of the people. His prayer would be that God would “set aside” their sin until the Messiah would come and win the ultimate victory over sin and death.
But when the Messiah came His work went beyond the expectations of the faithful. It would not be enough to offer a blood sacrifice of a bull and a goat. It would not be enough to burn the incense in prayer. It would not be enough to go through the rituals of cleansing. To accomplish the mission that God’s great High Priest had been called to accomplish, the Messiah would need to be more and to do more. He would need to not only offer a blood sacrifice, He would need to be that sacrifice. He would not only be required to light incense and pray to God, He would need to ascend to heaven and resume His place with God the Father, as only God the Son could do.
Beyond all of that, God’s Great and perfect High Priest would need to relate to his own and show us the way of righteousness. We read in Hebrews 4:14-16 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
For all of us who have been born on this side of the cross of Calvary, we may not think about Jesus, the great High Priest as we ought. Take the time today to give praise to God for all that Jesus is in your life. For Jesus, the great and perfect High Priest, for Jesus the great and perfect blood sacrifice, for Jesus who suffered all that we suffer and has proven that victory is possible.
Thank you Father God for our Messiah Jesus, our perfect and great High Priest!
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