Let us turn again to God's Word. Our text tonight is found in
the Epistle of Paul to the Hebrews, chapter 4. Hebrews, chapter 4,
and we'll read verses 15 and 16, the last two verses in the
chapter. Hebrews 4, verses 15 and 16,
For we have not an High Priest which cannot be touched with
the feeling of our infirmities, It was in all points tempted
like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly
unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find
grace to help in time of need. And more especially verse 15,
the first of these two verses, concerning the priesthood of
the Lord Jesus Christ, for we have not and high priest which
cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities but was in
all points tempted like as we are yet without sin." Christ
is a priest of a different order than that of the priest of Aaron. The priestly family of course
The Aaronic priests belonged to the tribe of Levi, whereas
the Lord Jesus, as we read, came of the tribe of Judah. Here we have a different order
of priests, and Christ himself did not appoint himself, as we
are told here, chapter 5 Christ glorified not himself to be made
an high priest but he that said unto him thou art my son today
have I begotten thee as he said also in another place thou art
a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. Christ is a priest
then after that mysterious character of whom we We're reading in chapter
7 that one who met with Abraham after the slaughter of the kings
and blessed in those events recorded back in Genesis chapter 14. And what we see in Christ, Paul
says, is one who is a greater priest than any of the priests
of Aaron in chapter 7. 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
arise 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. Christ is a greater priest. There
was no perfection in the Aaronic priesthood, but Christ's priesthood
is that that is perfect and that that stands forever. There's no succession of priests
anymore. There's no more a priestly caste
and no The apostate Church of Rome speaks of the priesthood
and as the people in terms of the laity and even of course
in the established Church of England mention is often made
of priests But that is contrary to the word of God. I'm sure as Baptists we are those
who recognize what we would term the priesthood of all believers,
but we're not sacrificing priesthood believers. We offer the sacrifice
of praise and of thanksgiving. But Christ was a unique priesthood
that stands for all time. As I said, I want us to consider
something of that priesthood of the Lord Jesus Christ as we
have it set before us in this text, Hebrews 4.15. We have not a high priest which
cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but was in
all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. The first thing we observe with
regards to this particular priesthood is that Christ was and is a sinless
priest. How plainly is that stated here
at the end of the text, without sin. Again there in the portion
that we read At the end of Hebrews 7, such an high priest became
us, says Paul, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners,
and made higher than the heavens. It is plainly asserted time and
time again then, concerning this particular priest, that there
was nothing of sin in him. Now, the priests of Aaron were
sinful men. We see that, do we not, here,
in what follows at the beginning of chapter 5? 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.
and by reason hereof he ought, as for the people, so also for
himself to offer for sins. You see what the priests of Aaron
did? They offered sacrifices not only
for the sins of the people, but they had to offer sacrifices
also for their own sins. They were sinful men. But this
priest, The Lord Jesus Christ was a priest without any sin. How unique, then, is this man's
priesthood. But then, the second thing we
can observe with regards to Christ as the Great High Priest is that
he is also a suffering priest. Although sinless, how he suffered
sore temptations. Isn't that spoken of? here in
the text how he was in all points tempted like as we are yet without
sin. How he suffered those cruel temptations. The end of chapter 2 we read
in that he himself has suffered being tempted, He is able to
succour them that are tempted. Oh, how the Lord Jesus Christ
was tempted, tempted as no other man has ever been tempted. He only could say, the Prince
of this world cometh, and that nothing in man. When Satan comes
with his cruel temptations, when he would open his arsenal, as
it were, and fire all that he could at the Lord Jesus Christ. Yet Christ resisted his temptations. He was without sin, though he
suffered those cruel temptations. When Satan comes to us with his
temptations, alas, so soon we fall. Because He does find that
within us that He can take advantage of. He takes advantage of our
fallen natures. He gains the advantage over us. Not so with the Lord Jesus Christ. He was tempted. He suffered cruel
temptations. Now here, we have to observe,
of course, the necessity then of the incarnation. As God, He could never be tempted.
God, says James, cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he
any man. The Lord Jesus Christ, therefore,
must become a man, a real man. And isn't that the truth that
the Apostle declares here in his epistle in the second chapter,
verse 14, For as much as the children are partakers of flesh
and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same, that through
death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that
is the devil. How he comes, you see, to identify
himself with his people. They are flesh and blood, he
is flesh and blood. He is partaker of their human
nature. He took not on him the nature
of angels, but he took on him the seed of Abraham. He became a man. Why did he become
a man that he might be susceptible to sufferings? He could be tempted,
he could suffer temptations as a man. And he was willing to
endure those sufferings in order that he might sympathize with
his people, in order that he might minister to them and succor
his people. As we read there at the end of
chapter 2, he is able to succor them that are tempted. He who himself is true Almighty
God, how he humbled himself, how he was made low and little
as it were. Isn't that what the Apostle says
there in verse 9 of chapter 2, we see Jesus who was made a little
lower than the angels, for the suffering of death, crowned with
glory and honor, that he by the grace of God should taste death
for every man, or made lower than the angels." The humility of the Lord Jesus
Christ the gracious way in which he condescends not only to become
a man, but even when he's found in fashion as a man, he humbles
himself and becomes obedient unto death, even the death of
the cross. Paul can speak there in 2 Corinthians
13 of Christ as one crucified through weakness. It's amazing
really, this is none other than true Almighty God. The hymn writer says, the strength
of God is owned by all but who his weakness knows. All his weakness. Consider the Lord Jesus Christ
as a man. He didn't come into this world
as a full-grown man. Though he is spoken of as the
last Adam, and though the first man Adam is a wonderful type
of the Lord Jesus, there is that difference. when Adam comes from
the hand of his Creator he is full grown, he is a man but how
the Lord Jesus Christ is that one who comes as a babe into
the world how he is conceived of the Holy Ghost in the womb
of the Virgin Mary and there that little babe so
dependent like all babes upon his mother. Yet even then he's
true, Almighty God, never anything less than that. Even the babe
Christ, his shoulders held up heaven and earth when Mary held
up him. What a mystery we see in the
incarnation, how he grows. from a babe to a child, and then
a youth, and then a full-grown man. We're told how he increased
in wisdom and stature the reality of his human nature. He knew
what it was, you said, to endure those sinless infirmities that
belong to our human nature. We're told in the text, he's
touched, touched with the feeling of our infirmities, with our weaknesses, but they're
not sinful weaknesses, he is altogether without sin. This is the great mystery, is
it not, of the incarnation, how God contracted to a span incomprehensibly
made man or the necessity of the incarnation in order that
he might be this priest the great high priest of our profession
but not only the necessity of him becoming such a man as to
identify himself with our humanity But also here we see something
of the necessity of Christ being tempted. Because He is touched,
it says. Touched with the feeling of our
infirmities. He's tempted. Tempted in all
points, like as we are, yet without sin. Now the word that's used
here The verb to tempt does have a broad meaning. We're not simply
to think in terms of the activity of Satan. There's a broader meaning
to the word. It's the idea of trying, and
testing, and proving. We're to recognize that breadth
in the word. Certainly the Lord Jesus Christ
was one who was tried and tested by the Father Abraham was a man who experienced
the trying of his faith, did he not? and we read of that here
in the 11th chapter Abraham stands there amongst those faithful
men and women of the Old Testament those who were blessed with true
saving faith? By faith, we are told, Abraham,
when he was tried, offered up Isaac. Back in Genesis chapter
22, we have the record of that strange trying of Abraham that
God had appointed for his servant. He had received the son of promise. That was Isaac. It was a remarkable
birth. Abraham was 100 years old. Sarah
was well past the age of childbearing and yet she was to conceive this
son. And Isaac was born and then this
strange trial when God The word used in the authorised version
there at the beginning of Genesis 22 is that God tempted him. Now
God doesn't tempt, it was a trial, it was the trying of his faith. And what a trial it was. And
yet in that very trial he discerned the Lord Jesus Christ. He's willing
to obey God's commands to offer this son of promise as a sacrifice
to God. But that's not what God really
requires of him. Provision is made. There's a
ram there that's caught. In God's providence it's there
caught in the thicket. and the ram is offered in the
place and in the stead of Isaac and as the Apostle says here
in Hebrews 11 there's that sense in which Abram receives his son
from the dead. It's even a picture of the resurrection
of the Lord Jesus Christ as well as a picture of his great sacrifice
when in John chapter 8 Christ speaks of Abraham rejoicing to
see May Day and he saw it and was glad. It's that particular
incident of Genesis 22 that's being spoken of. By faith he
discerns the Lord Jesus Christ in all that is transpiring in
that mysterious chapter where God tries his faith. Abraham
knew what it was to be tried. And so too the Lord Jesus Christ
was tried. We see it here in chapter 5,
in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and
supplications with strong crying and tears unto Him that was able
to save Him from death, and was heard in that He feared, though
He were a Son, yet learned the obedience by the things which
he suffered. Or how he was tried, he offered
up prayers and supplication with strong crying and tears, there
in the garden of Gethsemane, anticipating all that is before
him, that great sacrifice for sins that he's about to make,
being in an agony, it seems. He prayed more earnestly and
his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. The Lord
Jesus was one who knew what it was to be tried. How he was tried
there upon the cross. The hiding of the Father's face
from him. My God, my God, why hast thou
forsaken me? He cries. God is the one who
at times does try his people, test the faith of his people. The Lord Jesus knew something
of that. He knew something of that. Touched, you see, with
the feeling of our infirmities. In all points, tempted, tried,
like as we are. But not only does God try his
people, we know also our men will tempt, and men will taunt,
and men will come with their false accusations. How the Lord
Jesus had to endure the temptations and the taunting of men. Think
of the woman taken in adultery, we have the record of it there
in the opening part of the 8th chapter of John's Gospel. Verse 3, we're told, the scribes
and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery. And
when they had set her in the midst, they say unto him, Master,
this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in
the law, commanded us that she should be stoned. But what sayest
thou? This they said, tempting him.
This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse
him. But Jesus stooped down, and with
his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not. And now Christ will silence them. He that is without sin, let him
cast the first stone. And now we see them all, one
by one, departing, till the woman is there left alone with the
Lord Jesus. Woman, where are those thine
accusers? Hath no man condemned thee? He
asks. She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither
do I condemn thee. Go, and sin no more. But how the Lord, you see, is
tempted. He's tempted by men, not only
on that occasion, but we're told, tempting Him they would come
and desire a sign of Him, always tempting Him, always trying to
catch Him out, in some way or other, that they might find something
to accuse Him of. God prizes people. Men are cruel
when they come with their temptations. But of course, it is Satan who
himself is the great tempter. But David assaults the Lord Jesus
right at the beginning of his public ministry. We see Christ
going to Jordan to be baptized of John. He will fulfill all
righteousness. John is preaching there his baptism
of repentance and Christ of course has no sin to repent of but he
will fulfill all righteousness, he will be identified with his
people he will come and sit where they sit, he will identify himself
all together with them, he submits to John's baptism and now he
is owned owned by God the Father, owned by God the Holy Spirit. Now the Father speaks at the
baptizing, this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. And the heavens open, and the
Spirit descends in the likeness of a dove, lights upon him, he's
anointed with the Spirit of God. And then immediately, immediately
the Spirit takes him into the wilderness. We have the record,
of course, there in the Gospels, turning to Luke's account at
the beginning of chapter 4. We're told, Jesus, being full
of the Holy Ghost, returned from Jordan and was led by the Spirit
into the wilderness, being 40 days tempted of the devil. And in those days he did eat
nothing. When they were ended, he afterward
hungered. And the devil said unto him,
If thou be the Son of God, command this stone that it be made bread. If thou be the Son of God. Oh, that temptation, that impious
oath, the beginning of the Lord's ministry. It's brought out, is
it not? In the hymn book, in the hymns
312, hearts him on temptation. If thou art the son of God, or
what an if was there, these stones he has speak'd them into food,
and make that sonship clear. And he says later that impious
if. He thus had God incarnate through, no wonder if He cast
at us and make us feel it too, if. Why, the Lord Jesus had just
been baptized, the Father had spoken, owned Him, acknowledged
Him, this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. And what
does the devil do? Immediately he comes and he questions
that if thou art the Son of God, how impious. Now we'll contradict
God, we see it there in the Garden of Eden, do we not? Now he contradicts
the commandment of God to eat when he comes through the serpent.
That's what God said. He questions what God had commanded.
Oh thou shalt not surely die, though God had said in the day
that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die. He questions
the Word of God. He contradicts the Word of God. This is that cruel tempter. And
now he comes at the Lord Jesus Christ. And friends, what a contrast. Or when we think of those two
men, the first Adam and the last Adam. There is Adam, set in the
paradise that was the Garden of Eden. Paradise of God. that place where God would come
and commune with his creature that wondrous place and there
he is tempted and there in paradise Adam falls the psalmist says
in psalm 49 verse 12 man being in honour abideth not Man being
in honour abides not." Some of the commentators say that that's
a reference to Adam's fall. And the wording there is such
that it means he doesn't lodge one night. Man being in honour
abides not. Doesn't lodge a night. He falls
on the very day of his creation, on the very day of his testing.
Though he be in the paradise of God. But what a contrast when
we look at Him who is the last Adam, the Lord Jesus Christ.
And He is tempted not in paradise, but here He is in the wilderness.
He's been fasting 40 days and 40 nights. And now the devil
comes with his fearful assault and Christ resisted him. Get
thee behind me, Satan. Get thee behind me, Satan, He
said. And then you know Satan only leaves him for a little
season. That's what it says there in Luke chapter 4. He only leaves
him for a little season. In fact, when Christ comes to
the end of his ministry, he says to his own disciples, He are
they which have continued with me in my temptation. There's
a sense there surely in which the whole scene of his earthly
life is a scene of temptation. how the devil would be assaulting
him and sometimes coming through those scribes and pharisees and
all that opposition that he meets from the people of the Jews.
And this is that high priest, you see, he's a suffering priest.
He's a suffering priest. We have not a high priest which
cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities but was in
all points tempted like as we are yet without sin is sinless
Oh, but how he suffers, how he suffers, and how he suffers cruel
temptations, and all in order that he might succour his people.
That's what it says there at the end of chapter 2. In that
he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour
them that are tempted. He can succour his people. The
word that we have there, it's an interesting word that's rendered
sucker. What does it mean? Well, it's
one of those compound words, really. It's two words that have
been joined together. And when we divide those two
parts, we find that one of the words means a cry, and the other
means to run. And that's the sucker. Christ
runs to the aid of those who cry to Him. Christ comes to help
them. He's able to do that. He's able
to meet them. There hath no temptation taken
you but such as is common with them. But God will not allow
that you be tempted above that you are able but will with the
temptation make a way of escape that you may be able to bear
it. There's one who's able to come to the aid and to the help
of those who are tempted, is the Lord Jesus Christ. How He has suffered Himself,
suffered cruel temptations, resisted the devil, overcome Satan. When He comes, says Christ, yet
nothing can burn Him. All He is, friends, I say, not
only a sinless priest, He is a suffering priest. And ultimately,
of course, we see him as that priest who makes the great sacrifice. He's a sacrificing priest. All
priests were to make sacrifices. But what was the sacrifice that
this priest made? Why, he himself is the sacrifice
as well as the priest. He is the Lamb of God that taketh
away the sin of the world. Christ our Passover, says Paul,
sacrificed for us. Oh, the Paschal Lamb there in
Exodus is a type of the Lord Jesus Christ and the shedding
of that precious blood and how those Israelites were able to
shelter under the blood. The blood of the Lamb was to
be taken, remember, and it was to be poured upon the doorposts
and the lintels and they were to remain in their houses. When the destroying angel came
over Egypt they were safe sheltering under the blood of sacrifice. And he directs us to that precious
blood of the Lord Jesus Christ when he poured out his soul unto
death. He is, friends, very much the
suffering priest. The one who makes the great sacrifice,
the one sacrificed for sins forever. How we see him then. We have
not a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of
our infirmities, but was in all points tempted, like as we are
yet, without sin. And so we see also here with
regards to this priest and remember what we said at the outset how
unique a priest he is and he is a sympathetic priest. He is
a sympathetic priest. We remarked on previous occasions
on the strength of the language, the construction of the grammar
as we have it at the beginning of this verse where we have these
two negatives. We have not which cannot. We have not, which cannot. John Brown, the Scots commentator
says, this double negation is a very strong assertion. This
double negation, these two negatives make a very strong positive.
That's what it's saying. This one is most certainly touch. with the feeling of our infirmities. That's what Paul is saying. He's
asserting with all his strength, inspired by the Holy Ghost, emphasizing
this great truth that Christ is touched. Touched with the
feeling of our infirmities. And again, it's interesting.
It is interesting sometimes to do some word study, is it not,
when we read the Word of God and seek to study the Word of
God, to examine the very words that are used? We profess a high
doctrine of Scripture. We believe in what is called
the verbal inspiration of the Word of God. So we say that what
we have in the Old Testament, in the Hebrew, in the New Testament,
in the Greek, that are words of God. It wasn't that the Holy
Ghost inspired men in their minds, in their thinking, and then that
inspiration they gave expression to by employing their own words. No, more than that. We say that
the very words that they employed were God-breathed. All Scripture
is given by inspiration of God. It's the breath of God. Those
holy men of God, they spake as they were moved. by the Spirit
of God, verbal inspiration. The great beauty, of course,
of the Authorized Version is it seeks to be so faithful to
those original words. So many of the modern translations
proceed under the idea that you've got to have what they, if I remember
right, call dynamic equivalent. That's the interim. You've got
the word there in the original, but when you're translating it
into some other language you don't have to trouble yourself
too much to be exact with regards to particular words, you give
it a dynamic equivalent. So it flows nice and freely and
so forth, whereas with our authorized version the great concern is
to be as literal as possible, hence as you know the use of
the italics where sometimes to bring out the sensei feel it
necessary to introduce additional words english words that aren't
a rendering of anything that's there in the origin but how important
it is if we really do believe that the words of scripture are
inspired that we take account of particular words, word studies
commend it to you sometimes it's a worthwhile and a profitable
exercise. Now again here we have this word
touched. Remember what we've said that
Paul is really asserting in certain terms that this high priest is
one who's touched, he sympathizes, he can empathize because he's
touched. Now the word again it's one of
those compound words made up of two parts the principal part
of the word is the verb to suffer that's the the main part of this
word it's the verb to suffer but then it's also joined with
the preposition which really means with so it's touched in
this way as to be able to suffer with he can suffer with that's
how it's done In all their affliction, He was afflicted. When He sees
His people suffering, how He suffers with them. All such is
the union between Christ and His Church, that Church that
was given to Him by the Father in the Eternal Covenant. What
does Paul say here in the second chapter? Christ must come, He
must be bone of their bone, flesh of their flesh. how he feels
a union to them how he suffers with them in all their sufferings
he also suffers in all their afflictions why he feels himself
to be afflicted you see the Lord Jesus Christ himself as an experimental
knowledge of sufferings he knew what it was to suffer why did
he have to suffer in order that he might really sympathize with
his people, understand them, feel for them. That's what it
says, is it not there in that portion in chapter 5, we've already
quoted it. Verse 7, who in the days of his
flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with
strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him
from death, and was heard in the defense, though he were a
son, oh the eternal Son of God, yet learn the obedience by the
things that he suffered." Now again we've made several references
also to what said previously at the end of chapter 2 concerning
his sufferings in that he himself has suffered being tempted he
is able to succor to run to the eye to come to the help of those
who are tempted but again look at the emphasis here in the repetition
of the pronoun it doesn't say in that he has suffered being
tempted does it? doesn't say that doesn't say
in that he has suffered being tempted it says more than that
it says in that he himself he himself have suffered being tempted. There is an emphasis and the
emphasis is brought out quite plainly there in the way in which
it is rendered here in our authorised version. Thank God for the sufferings
of the Lord Jesus Christ how He can sympathise with His suffering
people and yet He is never anything than God almighty never anything
less than that how easy spoken of here previously in verse 14
seeing then that we have a great high priest that is passed into
the heavens Jesus the son of God let us hold fast our profession
here he is you see he is never anything less than this is true
almighty God we see what he's what His person is, who He is.
He's Jesus, the Son of God, it says. And then also we're told
what His position is, where it is that He is to be found. He's passed into the heavens.
Oh, how this one is not only able to sympathize with His people
and to succor His people, but He's able to help His people.
He's able to help His people. He has gone to heaven and he's
gone there, is he not, on their account? In chapter 9 and verse
24, Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands,
which are the figures of the true, but into heaven itself,
now to appear in the presence of God for us, says Paul. Or this one who was a a sacrificing
priest here upon the earth who made the great sacrifice for
sins is now entered heaven itself and entered for us, he says again
in chapter 7 he says, 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 was a sacrificing priest here
upon the earth now he's in heaven And as a priest, he is an interceding
priest. Always very present. We say his
session there at the Father's right hand, his presence before
the Father is a constant plea, a constant prayer on behalf of
his people. This is the Great High Priest,
you see. This unique priest, so different to the Aaronic priests. The priest after the Order of
Melchizedek. a sinless priest thank God for that no sins of
his own a sinless priest a suffering priest who ultimately makes the
great sacrifice of himself and so we see him as a sympathetic
priest and Paul then having spoken of him in the words of our text,
draws his conclusion in verse 16. Let us, therefore, come boldly. Look at the words that he uses.
He makes a deduction. Therefore. He deduces something
from what he has been saying in the previous verse. Let us,
in the light of this high priest, let us come boldly, unto the
throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help
in every time of need. Oh God grant us grace so to come
so to come and to come and to come and to come again even to
the throne of grace and to come with all boldness Oh, this is
Emmanuel, sir. He receives sinners. And He'll
receive every sinner that calls upon His name. Well, God, bless
to us His own Word, for His name's sake. Amen.