If you would, turn to Hebrews
chapter 7. Hebrews chapter 7. I want to read verses 23 to 25. Hebrews chapter 7, beginning
in verse 23. And they truly were many priests,
because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death. But this man, because he continueth
ever, has an unchangeable priesthood. 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. What I want to speak about today
is the unchangeable priesthood. The priesthood and the high priest
in particular are types of our Lord Jesus Christ
and types of his work also. Now, we have referenced and will
reference again We are priests now unto God. And as a form,
we can see that in the family of priests. They were all Levites.
They were all one family that serviced in the tabernacle. But
those priests back then, when they offered sacrifices for sin,
that's not us. That's Christ. We offer now the
sacrifice of praise unto our God, whom we know. But here,
priests, and especially the high priest, are pictures in type
of Christ and His work, not our work. This chapter actually starts
off with Melchizedek, King of Salem, priest of the Most High
God. He's the one to whom Abraham
paid tithes. It says, I'm a little bookmark in the
way in the last verse of chapter 6 verse 20 says whither the forerunner
is for us entered even Jesus made an high priest forever after
the order of Melchizedek Then it goes on in chapter 7 Jesus our forerunner is called
by God a high priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.
Then in chapter 7 he begins and gives us a little description
of Melchizedek. He was without mother, without
father. He was without descent. He had
neither beginning of days nor end of life. Now you can call this whatever
you want. You can call it a theophany. You can call it a Christophany.
But this, Melchizedek, was a visitation of our Lord to this earth at
one time. And that's why he is a high priest
forever after the order of Melchizedek. He's the reality that we have
now. But Melchizedek was a reality. The reality being Jesus Christ,
the eternal son, our great high priest. Starting in verse 24,
we have this statement, but this man, because he continueth ever,
hath an unchangeable priesthood. Okay, the first word is but.
That's denoting a separation from verse 23, which I read. And they were truly many priests
because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death.
There were many high priests. That office was appointed by
God. That office was set up by God in the Old Testament. But they were not allowed to
continue. Why? Because they died. And he stated,
and you'll find it in Leviticus and other places, a high priest
was to be a high priest for life. So afterlife, they had to get
another high priest. But this man is different. This man is entirely different.
This word is used to separate the anti-type, the reality, from
those types. All the priests, high priests
in particular, in the case of this chapter, were in verse 23. But there is one man, this man,
who is high priest forever. This man, our great high priest,
is a man. And it's singular. It was many
priests in verse 23, but there's only one in verse 24. The writer of Hebrews also very
plainly throughout this epistle emphasizes and reminds us totally
of the humanity and the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ. If
you look at that in verse 20 of chapter 6, whether the forerunner
for us is entered, what's it say? Even Jesus. It doesn't say
the Lord Jesus, although he is. It doesn't say Christ the Lord. although he is. Our high priest
is emphasized here as a man. And then he comes to this verse,
but this man, this is the man. There is no other man. There
is no other man. Hebrews 4 and verse 14 put it
this way, 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. Now, don't hold fast to your
profession. Hold fast your profession. There's a world of difference
there because the entire world around us, you've heard it. I
know I have. I can tell you the place and
take you there where I made my profession and I'm holding on
to that. No, you hold on to Him who is your profession. We have a great high priest and
his name is Jesus It's at the name of Jesus that every name
is going back He is Lord. He is Christ. He is God, but
he is man This man was the sacrifice for
sin and Guess what? There was only one sacrifice
Only one true sacrifice All those other sacrifices pointed toward
this sacrifice. Just like there's only one Passover. I said this a few weeks ago.
There's only one Passover. After the Passover, we have the
memorial of the Passover. But there was only one Passover.
And that Passover freed people from Egypt. God's people. This sacrifice, there's only
one. This man, but this man who was sacrificed for sin for us
once and only once. But this man was also the man
that was raised from the dead. It was not possible that death
could hold him. And yet it's this man. This man
who offered himself to the father, who brought his precious blood
as an offering for the sins of the people. That one sacrifice,
that one offering. He'll go into that in Hebrews
9 and 10. Great detail, wonderful detail. But it is his precious blood,
the blood of this man. that was offered to God. And
the father totally accepted that offering. And how did he offer
it up? He offered it up as our high
priest. Because this man, but this man,
is the man whom the father accepted totally and completely. In all
his offices, in all his works, and in his death, in his burial,
his resurrection, and his offering. But this man, this is the man whom the Father
accepted. It said, we have a great high
priest that is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God. But then it says, because he
continueth ever. I looked up the definition of
because, Walter, I liked it too. It's an English definition. A
primary preposition denoting the channel of an act. There's an act involved, this
is the cause of it. That's what the word because
means. It acts through this channel and only through this channel. Because this man is the first
cause of all things. This man, because he continueth
ever, everything continues. And the thing is that what it's
stating here, because he continues. It's not we that's continuing,
that's not what we're talking about here. Although we are to
continue. We're talking about him continuing. This man continues. That's what
it says in verse 23. The other many priests, they
were not suffered what? To continue. They weren't suffered
to continue because of death. But this man continues ever. I do want to stress this because
I do want to make sure I identify the cause. Here is where everything
is. It's in Him. Everything to do
with the high priest, everything to do with the sacrifice, everything
to do with the offering, everything to do with the results of that
offering. The results of His work is because
He continues ever. He is our hope, he is our life,
and he is all our salvation. Why? Because he continues. He is the high priest with God,
he made the offering, and he was the offering. He is the mercy
seat, and he is the one who sprinkled his own blood upon the mercy
seat. And he's the ark underneath the mercy seat. Why? Because he continueth ever. Because this word continue is
present active tense. He continues in his offices. Prophet, priest, and king, he
is all three and the only one who has ever been all three and
the one who still is all three. Here we're talking about his
priesthood. That's an office. Because he continues. Of his being the prophet, there
is no end. Of his high priesthood, there is no end. And of his kingdom,
there is no end. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday,
today, and forever. He is the eternal son, no beginning,
And no end. He continues. Now, I said it
before, I'll say it again. The offering was only made once.
The offering was only made once. The sacrifice was only made once. But he continues. Actually, it's
and he continues, not but he continues. And he continues. He continues in the office of
great high priest and the work of that priesthood continues
ever because he continues ever. He hath an unchangeable priesthood. It's never going to change. It
never has changed. This is what this whole book
from the beginning to the end is all about. It's all about
Jesus Christ and His work. His performing for the glory
of the Father. Because this word hath is present,
active, indicative. It's right now. He hath an unchangeable
priesthood. It's right now. And it's active. because he continues in his office,
the priesthood, his priesthood, continues. Unchangeable means
not passing away, perpetual, and it also means non-transferable. There is no other high priest.
There never will be another high priest. There is Christ. There is Jesus. This man In the Old Testament, there were
two types of priests. There was the priest, and then
there was a high priest. Priest plural, but only one high
priest at a time. But they were both types, like
I said, pointing toward Christ Jesus. He is the priest, and
he is the high priest. And right now, he continues ever. There is no more sacrifice for
sin. But he is performing the work.
that that sacrifice and that offering purchased. He's continuing on in his priesthood. Everything in and about and of
the Old Testament tabernacle is Jesus Christ. That goes for
the design, the materials, the construction, the furnishings,
the furniture, offerings, and the priesthood. All of it from
beginning to end points to the one who was to come And who did
come? Because all of those things point
toward His character, His appearance, His pureness, His life, His perfection,
His mercy, His love, fullness, His grace, His deity, His offering
of the perfection to the Father. His offering of His blood for
our redemption. His becoming our scapegoat. and
carrying away the sins of his people. The high priest was high
priest for as long as he lived. And this man ever lives. This man has an unchangeable
priesthood because he is not just a man. This man, this Jesus,
is God manifest in the flesh. This man did die, I said it before. But death could not hold him
who is life. And he was not forced to die,
he died voluntarily. I remember the movie Little Big
Man when that old Indian said that today's a good day to die
and he lays down, then he gets rained on and he wakes up. There have been myths where people
could do this, but this was the only man that could lay down
his life voluntarily. His death was a part of his priestly
office. I'll give you another piece of
an exercise in biblical logic if you want. If Jesus Christ is the same yesterday
and today and forever, when is he our great high priest. He always has been our great
high priest from beginning to end. He's king of kings and lord of
lords now. He was king of kings and lord of lords before the
foundation of the world. He's our great high priest now.
He's always been our great high priest. He came and he performed
the work of his office here on this earth and now in heaven
continues ever with his unchangeable priesthood. He is before seated,
I said it right that time, seated at the right hand of the Father,
acceptable. Jesus, this man, is high priest
forever. He was swore that by an oath.
The Lord said, I'd have it just a second The Lord has sworn and will not
repent thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek
It's psalm 110 in verse 4 Hebrews 6 and 20 quotes it thou art a
high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek What do
we know of Melchizedek? I'll tell you one thing I just
thought of the other day. He was a high priest of God until
he wasn't. He had no beginning of days,
no end of life. That's all we know. Without father,
without mother, without descent, without beginning of days, without
end of days, that's all we know about Melchizedek. But we know
more about the Lord Jesus Christ because of what is written in
this book. After that order, this man is high priest forever. 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. You want to know what the unchangeable
priesthood is? This is it right here. He is able to save them to the
uttermost that come unto God by him. And then it tells you
how. He ever liveth to make intercession
for them. That's the unchangeable priesthood
of Christ right now. Wherefore? What's there before
that? You look and see what it's there
for. You have an unchangeable priesthood. Wherefore, because
of this unchangeable priesthood, he is able to save them to the
uttermost that come to God by him. He is able. And that word able means power.
That's what it is. It's a variation of the word
dunamis, ability. He is capable. He is able. What? To save. Our high priest, our great high
priest is able to save. Now it does save them, and it
does give a description there. Walter said it on the radio last
week. If you don't fit the description,
the scripture's not talking about you. I'm not putting the qualifiers
in, The qualifiers are written down. This is what it says. He is able to save them, to the
uttermost, that come unto God by him. Now, to the uttermost is the
full end. That's what it means. It means
all complete. It means perfect. It's not talking
about Where you came from, it's talking about where you're going.
It's talking about the end of our salvation. Our salvation
is not through. Peter put it this way, we are
kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to
be revealed in the last time. There is more to this salvation
than this life. This is speaking of the completion
of salvation. Our salvation is complete in
Christ. There's nothing left to obtain
our salvation. But there is more to our salvation
than what we have here in this life. Paul said it, if in this
life only we have hope. We are of all men most miserable.
There is more to our salvation than this life. But it does include
our life, our being, what? Brought to God by Him in time. It's there. It's there. The word
come means, guess what? Come. Drawn here to attend. By figuratively mean, worship. And the word by him is actually
the same word that was used in the other verse and translated
because. It's a primary preposition denoting
the channel of an act. I like that definition, I do,
I do. If you don't come by him, you
don't come. If you don't come by him, he's not talking to you. And I can't make it any clearer
than that. You understand? He's not saving
to the uttermost all those that come unto God by their free will,
by their decision, by their profession, by their heritage, or anything
else. Excuse me. All those that come unto God
by Him. And guess what? We're still talking
about this man, this Jesus, this high priest. It's the same person. If you don't fit the criteria,
the writer's not talking about you. He is writing to those and
about those who have come to God by Him. This is in time. It's not talking about election.
It's not talking about reprobation. This is talking about those who
have come to him. He is able to the uttermost to
save all of them that come to him. Come to God by him. John 6, 44. No man can come unto me. No man
can come unto me except the father which has sent me draw him. And, and, I will raise him up
at the last day. He's able to save to the uttermost,
to the complete, full end, all them that come unto God by him. Isn't that what John just wrote? that Christ said 1 Corinthians 1 verse 30 says but
of him are ye in Christ Jesus who is made unto us wisdom and
righteousness and sanctification and redemption he's our great
high priest he is all but of him are ye in Christ Jesus
or ye are not in Christ Jesus. It's of Him. It's of God. He is able to save to the uttermost
all them that come unto God by Him. This is part of His high
priestly office, His unchangeable priesthood. This is His work. Seeing He ever liveth He is life. Therefore, he is
the source of all life. But he ever liveth, and it says,
to make intercession for them. Now, I do want to state one thing
clearly here, because I have heard people talk about this.
Our intercession, or the intercession of the high priest for his people
is not a fight. He's not pleading with God, don't
kill us. You understand? That's not the
kind of intercession we're talking about. He's seated at the right
hand of the Father. Okay? This is not that Christ
has to continually intercede, oh God's going to get you for
that. No, this, having this seal, the Lord knoweth
them that are his. Now, who is the Lord? Well, you
got God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit. They know,
he knows, them that are his. These three
are one. It's not that kind of intercession.
But that's the way the world wants to portray it. It's the
fact that, oh, you're so bad. No, no, no. Christ's blood is
sufficient. Christ's blood was complete.
Christ's offering was perfect. In Romans 3, you'll see a, well,
let me just turn there for just a second because I don't want
to get it backwards. At the end of Romans 3, you'll
find a wonderful statement. And I've heard people misuse
this one too. It's Romans 3 and verse 25. It says, whom God,
speaking of Christ, has set forth to be a propitiation through
faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission
of sins that are past through the forbearance of God. Now I've
heard people talk about that. right there and they'll sit there
and they'll tell you this that see God forgave all your sins
you did in the past before he saved you now you gotta take
care of the ones now no no no no no A you can't and B he's
got an unchangeable priesthood he ever liveth to make intercession
but it does say for sins that are past but I always draw their
attention down to right here at C Verse 8 of chapter 4, where
it says, blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute
sin. Because there's your past and
there's your future right there. And guess what? You've got a
great high priest who is in the heavens, whoever liveth to make intercession.
We are to confess our sins, and he is faithful just. He will
take care. It's not a struggle between the
son and the father to intercede for us. The son and the father
and the spirit are all of one mind. The Lord knoweth them that
are his. It's not that kind of deal. But
that's what everybody talks about. We have a high priest now. he ever lived. We have one who
has gone into the presence of God and has obtained eternal
redemption for us. He entered once into that holy
place not made with hands. There was a picture in the Old
Testament of the old holy place. He entered into the real thing
once, offered his blood for sin Those sacrifices in the Old Testament
went on and on, every day and every year. But this man has
made one offering for sin forever, and he has sat down, completely
accepted of the Father. Our great high priest is with
God now. He was made flesh and he dwelt
among us. He did die the death that we
couldn't die. He was raised from the dead and
he did ascend into heaven. And I remember, Walter, the first
time Earl said that, there is a man seated at the right hand
of the Father. It's this man. this Jesus our
great high priest and his unchangeable priesthood. 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. This man is our great high priest. He hath saved his people from
their sins, and he shall save us to the uttermost. That's an end time thing too.
Until the end of time, when time shall be no longer, it's going
to happen. He has promised And he is able
to perform. I'm looking for that day. To
be saved to the uttermost. To be saved to completion. To
be saved and raised up again at that day. That's what I'm looking for.
Our Heavenly Father, we're thankful again for this time and this
place. But most of all, thank you Lord. for everything you've
done for us. All you're doing with us, in
us, through us. Every good and perfect gift cometh
down from you, from the Father of Light. Thank you, Lord. Be with Walter as he comes to
bring the word to us today. And we ask everything. in your
son's name, our Lord Jesus Christ, amen.