You turn your Bibles to Hebrews
chapter 7, Hebrews chapter 7. Jesus Christ, our eternal high
priest, the surety of a better testament. Lord willing, we'll see who this
man is, what he has done, what he is doing, and what he's going
to do. You look up in the heavens into
the holies of holies. There is a man sitting on his
throne, on his throne of grace. He is the God-man, the Lord Jesus Christ. And he can only be seen by faith
that he gives with spiritual eyes. He can only be worshiped by that
faith that he gives and in spirit, because he is spirit. And it can only be heard with
spiritual ears that he gives. If you have been given those
eyes to see him, that faith in those ears to hear
his word, then behold the Lamb of God,
your high priest. Behold your King. Behold your
God. If He has borne you again and
made you a new creation in Him, under that covenant of grace,
that surety of a better testament, then you're a chosen people of
God. out of Adam's fallen race. You're sanctified in the beloved
and the only begotten son of God. Before the foundation of the
world. You have a hope you have been
predestinated by God. To be conformed to the image
of his son. been chosen to be his children, join heirs with
Jesus Christ. He who is our high priest and
he who was made a better testimony. He was sworn in with an oath. So by so much was Jesus made
a surety of a better testament We have such an high priest who
is set on the right hand of the throne of the majesty in the
heavens, this Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. And it is by
the free and sovereign grace of God. Our eternal high priest. Chosen
of him in Psalms 110 verse four, we see this oath. The Lord has
sworn and will not repent. Thou art a priest forever after
the order of Melchizedek. I'm gonna briefly tell you a
little bit about this Melchizedek. If you'll look in chapter seven,
verse one, For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the
most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter
of the kings and blessed him, to whom also Abraham gave a tenth
part of all, first being by interpretation king of righteousness, and after
that also king of Salem, which is king of peace, without father,
without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days
nor end of life, but made like unto the Son of God, abideth the priest continually. Go on down to verse 18. For there is verily a disannulling
of the commandment going before for the weakness and the unprofitableness
thereof. For the law was made nothing
perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did, by the
which we draw near unto God. And in as much as not without
an oath, he was made priest. For those priests were made without
an oath, But this with an oath by him that said unto him, the
Lord swear and will not repent thou art a priest forever after
the order of Melchizedek. By so much was Jesus made a surety
of a better testament. That surety of a better testament. The will and the good pleasure
of God Almighty. the triune God, God the Father,
God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. That inheritance, that inheritance
that God gives to his elect children, confirmed by the death of the
testator, which is the Lord Jesus Christ. The covenant of grace,
the agreement between God the Father and his only begotten
Son, Jesus Christ, For he was our representative
head of all of God's elect. All the promises and all the
blessings of God are in Jesus Christ. The free and the sovereign electing
grace of God who chose a people in his son. And he chose him to be our surety.
of that covenant that he made with his son before the world
was made. A better covenant than that of
the law, which was given to Moses and to Aaron, those priests. For Christ is the end of that
law. He's the end of all that priesthood. before him, because he's the
final and eternal priest, after the order of Melchizedek. Into
the law for righteousness sake, for he came and redeemed God's
elect with his own blood, with his one time sacrifice of himself, for the atonement for all. of
God's elect sins. He's our high priest, the one
that draws us near, bids us come near to God through him. He was our substitute, our redeemer. He's the one that put away our
sins. He's the one that brought in
that perfect righteousness. That perfect obedience to God. He's the one and only one who
appeased God's holy justice. That Adam's fallen race we offended. He did it in our room instead
as our substitute. And he justified us by his faithfulness. by his righteousness, by his
grace, by his blood. And God was pleased with his
son's sacrifice for the atonement for our sins. He was pleased
with him, with his finished work that he gave him to do. This
Christ Jesus, Made peace by his blood. Made peace between God. The father. And his elect. As the God man. That's why he came. He made peace
by putting away our sins. And appeasing God's holy justice
in our place. The cross at Calvary. He nailed that law to the cross,
became a curse for us. Obedient unto death. Now we can draw near to God. In him. So let us learn more
of this eternal high priest. Here in verse 23. And they truly were many priests
because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death.
But this man, this man, because he continueth ever, hath 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. For such an high priest
became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners,
and made higher than the heavens. who need if not daily as those
other high priest to offer up sacrificed first for their own
sins and then for the people's. For
this he did once when he offered up himself. The Lord Jesus Christ is a sinless
and eternal High Priest. The others. The others were example. They were sinful men. They were chosen by God. Out of the tribe of Levi. They had to meet a strict criteria. Set down by God. But these men
were sinful, like you and I. These men were fallible. Some were good. Some were bad. Some were evil. Some God destroyed. But this man, he came in the
flesh In our sinful flesh, without sin, being born of a virgin,
that was prophesied of him. All things were prophesied of
him. He came and fulfilled those. Born of the Spirit of God. And
he took on our nature. Our sinful nature. He took it
on. And he never sinned. He humbled
himself. He poured himself out. Emptied
himself. This is God Almighty. This is
God. The sun. Come to this earth. Born. In a woman's womb. The very things he created. With Adam's nature, that nature that hated him and offended his holy justice, couldn't keep one commandment. He took on that nature, humbled
himself as a servant to the Father. And he came and he suffered. That alone, we can't even understand
how much suffering that is to humble yourself when you are
God the creator. And you come born with the flesh. But he loved us. He loved us
from the beginning. He came and he suffered. He was
tempted. And we're there in the wilderness.
Soon as he gave us the ordinance of baptism, that ordinance to
identify with our Savior in his death and his burial and his
resurrection, as soon as he came up out of the water, he was driven
into wilderness to be tempted of the devil. Forty days and
forty nights fasting, hungry in our flesh, in our nature,
never sin. Sin wasn't in him. He was bruised. Pleased the Lord
to bruise him, to put him to death. He was buried. And I'll thank God he rose again
on that third day, according to the scriptures. Because he was delivered for
our justification. He was raised again, or delivered
for our offenses, I'm sorry. And he was made sin for us who
knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God
in him. And he was raised again for our
justification, that righteousness that he brought in, that obedience
to God, that perfect holiness. He satisfied God's offended holy
justice in our stead put away our sins, and he was raised up
again. And that's why we live in him.
We died with him. We're alive because of him. We're
no longer our own. Don't think for one minute you
are your own. You belong to God. Not only did
he give us to his son before the world was, But Christ Jesus
came and he purchased you. It cost him his blood. It cost
him his life. But he willingly laid it down
for you. And he rose it up again that you might live in him. And
he conquered. He conquered when he rose again. Oh, how godly. He conquered Satan, he conquered
sin, and he conquered death. Our life is hid in him. God accepted
his one time offering of himself for the forgiveness of our sins. Every single one of God's elect,
every single one of their sins. All in one body, he bore on that
cross. And we were in him. You chosen
in him in the beginning, you were chosen in him and you were
in him and you've been in him ever since. And you always will
be. He has our only acceptance before
an almighty God. We have no righteousness, we
have no We couldn't atone for one single sin. In hell for eternity. And you never
pay for one. Not even one. But this man, he
came and he did it once. For all. One time. For all his elect. All that he
loved. All the father gave him. And
God highly exalted him above all his brethren. Luke 24, 44,
we read, and he said unto them, these are the words which I spake
unto you while I was yet with you, that all things must be
fulfilled which were written in the law of Moses and in the
prophets and in the Psalms. concerning me. He came and fulfilled
all the scriptures. It's all about him. And when
Christ came in the flesh as a man, he put an end to all these types,
all these ceremonies, all these pictures, the tabernacle, the
mercy seat, the altar, All the furnishings, the candlesticks,
the oil of gladness, the veil. These were all pointing to this
high priest, this Lord Jesus Christ. He's the end of it. Law was our
schoolmaster. Bring us to Christ until he comes. Because when he comes, there's
no more need for it. It's over. Don't need any more of those
symbols, those ceremonies. He is the Sabbath. He is the
mercy seat. He is the tabernacle built without
hands. For they were all pointing to
him, the true living Messiah. the true tabernacle made without
hands. He is the Lord Jesus Christ,
the true high priest, the true prophet, priest, and king over
all his creation and the head of his church, his kingdom. Those
that the Lord gave him from the foundation of the world. We belong to God. We belong to God. All those Old
Testament brothers and sisters were looking. They were looking
to him. Coming. By faith. By that same God given
faith. We look. To the one who came. By faith. There's only a select
few, only a few that saw him here on Earth. There were 12
witnesses that give their testimony. The Spirit of God's always been
with him. The Spirit of God is his witness. God is his testimony. He declared
himself. He don't have to prove himself.
He is God. But he did leave witnesses. And
by faith, That spirit of God witnesses with our spirit and
tells us these things are true. Gives us life, gives us faith
to see spiritual things. Because you can only serve this
God in spirit. You can only serve him in truth because he is spirit,
he is truth. Full of grace and truth. And
Christ purchased us and he ransomed us with his own blood on that
cursed tree. For we, we were ruined by the
fall of Adam, our first representative head. That's who we're all from. We can't get away from it. We were bound by Satan, sin,
and death. We were totally depraved. Wallowing in our own sin, trespasses,
filthy rags of righteousness, abominable works of our own hands. Having that nature of Adam, we
were at enmity, a mutual hatred. We hated God and all he stood
for. But God chose a people by his
grace in Christ Jesus, for the world was in these elect chosen
of God. Christ Jesus came and redeemed
with his blood. He bore our sins, put them away
in his body. That lamb slain before the foundation
of the world, Sacrifice for our sins to substitute
that surety of a better testimony. He is that mediator of that covenant. We have hope. We have hope. We have a good
hope that what he said he will do Look at verse 28. For the law maketh man high priests
which have infirmity, but the word of the oath, which was since
the law, maketh the son who is consecrated forevermore. He was that appointed, he is
that appointed, anointed one of God, that holy one, sworn
by an oath, Father said to his son, thou
art a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. He is eternal. The Lord said
unto my Lord, set thou at my right hand until I make thine
enemies thy footstool. Christ Jesus came and brought
an end to these types. He fulfilled all the prophecies,
all the scripture. He became a curse for us. Rehung
on that tree. He is the end of the law for
righteousness sake. He is the last and final high
priest. There's not going to be another.
He's the alpha. He is the omega. He is the beginning. He is the end of which there
is no end. He is on his throne right now. Right now, when he came and he
laid down his life for us, the one who loved us, he is raised again. He ascended
on high into the holies of holies and presented himself as that
perfect sacrifice for our sins and God accepted it. That's the
only hope and only acceptance we have before God is in him. That's it. That's all you have. It's all you have. He's on his
throne right now and he's ruling and he's reigning over all his
creation. He sits as the exalted prophet
and priest and king over all his kingdom. He sits because
his work is finished. All the other priests went in
and they did not sit down. This high priest, he went in
and he never left. He sits on his throne. It's done. So what did he accomplish? He put away the sins of his people.
That's what the Father sent him to do. Gave glory to God. by appeasing his holy justice
in our room instead with his sacrifice, with his blood shed.
That's what he done. He saved us to the uttermost. He appeased that holy justice
of God. He accomplished redemption. Peace
with his blood between God and his elect sheep. And by the word
of his power, he rules sovereign. He is a sovereign king, a sovereign
God. He knows all. He does as he pleases. And nobody
can ask him why, change his mind. He's a sovereign God. Oh, ain't you glad? Aren't you
glad? He has the power over all things,
heaven and hell, life and death. Satan's not his equal. There's
nobody his equal. Who's like him? There's none
like him. He's God. He gives eternal life. to as many as the Father gave
Him. He's already accomplished your
salvation. But there's brothers and sisters out there right now
that we don't know. We don't know. Don't know who they are. But He's ordained us in His Spirit,
in Christ Jesus, by His grace, He's given us He's given us that
ministry of reconciliation. The gospel of Jesus Christ is
to be preached, is to be spread. That's a commission he gave his
church, and that's what we are to do. We're to edify each other,
to comfort each other, lift each other up, be of one spirit and
one mind and one body. That body is Christ Jesus. He
is the head. There's your head. You're his body. We can't do
nothing without the head. So it's got to be him. That word's
got to be from him. It's got to be his word. He's
got to make it effectual. And he does. It don't go out
void. But he uses his means. Even sinful
creatures as we. Spread his gospel. It's the power
of God and salvation. We're talking about this high
priest. To the glory of God. The Lord
said, thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power and his
power, the day of his power is now. Right now. And he being exalted by God is
the basis of our assurance that all of God's elect shall and
will be saved. God said it. God purposed it. He will do it. He's on his throne
right now. He saved us to the uttermost.
Sinner saved by grace. There is nothing for you to do
except rest in your high priesthood. You rest in him and his accomplishments. That's all you got. He's risen. He forever lives and shall not
die. He can never be replaced. All
the ones before him were examples, pictures of him. He is the real thing. This God
man, he prays for you. He sits on His throne and prays
for you. He ever lives to intercede for
His people. You can't seek God. You can't
talk to God. Only through Christ. Only through
this high priest. There's nobody else. There's
no other between. He's it. He's God. He's the only way God will look
at us. The only way God will accept
us is in Him. And we are in Him. And He is
in us. He abides in us. We are called
by His gospel, preached by man, sent of God to declare His word. That's the means that God ordained
and uses. Why? We can't ask God why. It
pleased him to do it that way. Preach Christ crucified. We are
born again by God's grace, by God the Holy Spirit's inward
working, making us new creations in Christ Jesus. What mysteries? What mysteries? We don't understand them, but
by faith, That He gives us, we believe Him. We believe Him. Bourns us again. Reveals Christ
in you, the hope of glory. How can it be? Huh? You tell what Nicodemus said?
How do these things be? We ask the same question. How
can these things be? Cause it please God. Christ revealed in you the hope
of glory. We have hope in Him, Him alone,
the promises of God. He promised to keep us till He
comes again, to gather all His unto Himself. He is coming again,
and He is gonna gather all that are His in Himself. And then
the judgment. He's freed his elect from that
too. Wrath of God's not abiding on
our heads. He took that wrath away. For eternity, to be with him
for eternity without sin, because our life, because our life is
hid in him. We are his children. We were
predestinated to be conformed to his son's image, to be joint
heirs with him so that we could boldly go before his throne of
grace and we can cry, Abba, Father, because we are the sons of God
in him and he is our heavenly father. In Christ Jesus all the grace
of God He's made us sons he's made us one made us one with
God in him Look on down Hebrews 8 Look at verse 6 But now hath
he obtained a more excellent ministry By how much also he
is the mediator of a better covenant? which was established upon better
promises. Going down verse 10. For this
is the covenant. Here it is. Y'all probably know
it by heart and I hope and pray you we do. For this is the covenant
that I will make with the house of Israel. That's the true Israel,
his chosen. elect in Christ for the foundation
of the world. After those days, saith the Lord,
I will put my laws into their mind and write them in their
hearts. And I will be to them a God,
and they shall be to me a people. And they shall not teach every
man his neighbor and every man his brother, saying, know the
Lord. For all shall know me, for the least of them to the
greatest. For I will be merciful to their
unrighteousness. And their sins and their iniquities,
oh, listen to this, their sins and their iniquities will I remember
no more. And that he saith the new covenant,
he hath made the first old, now that which decayeth and waxeth
old is vanished, it's gone away. That law that he gave to Moses
and those Israelites, That law that said, we will do what you
say, oh God. Just talk through Moses. Because
we're scared of you. Christ came, he done away with
that law. He fulfilled that law. He made it honorable. Took the
curse away from it. We're no longer under that law,
we're under grace. in him to serve God. We have reverential awe to him
now. We love him. We can love him
and we can serve him because the conclusion to this whole
thing is we have a perfect high priest, ordained of God, sworn
by an oath an eternal high priest. We can only worship him in spirit. He borns you again. You are of
the spirit of God. You are born of the spirit of
God, not of the will of man, but you are a new creature. You
are a new creation in Christ Jesus. By the grace of God, by
that inward working of God, the Holy Spirit, you are a new creation
in Christ Jesus. You still have that old man hanging
around your neck and you're going to have him till God separates
you from him because he got to die. He's already nailed to the cross
with him. We died with him. But he's still
there. But one day we are going to be
rid of him. But right now we have his treasure
in earthen vessels. that God give us by His grace
in Christ Jesus, sealed with His Holy Spirit. And we can worship
Him. We can love Him. We can love
each other. We can't do that carnally. It's like we talked. What love is there? God is love. He's the only love. We don't
understand it. It's a mystery. We can't understand
love. We love our children, we love
each other, we love ourselves, we love this, we love that, we
love, love, love, love. But there ain't but one love
and that's God. And that's the love that he had for his people.
That's the love he had for his son. That is true love. And it's a
mystery. It's a mystery. But we can love
him. Cause he first loved us and he
gave his life for us to be a propitiation. And we are sealed with his spirit.
That's a promise God gave to all who believe in him. That he ordained to believe in
him. Born of the spirit of God, not by the will of man, but by
the will of God, we are made new creatures in him born again.
We are those who worship God in spirit and in truth. No confidence
in the flesh. We not only worship him publicly
like we're doing now in the spirit. That's the only way you can worship
is in the spirit. But our whole entire life is
consecrated to God. I don't understand that either,
but we believe it because it's true. He's in us. He abides in us. We're in him. Do you see it? Has he give you those spiritual
eyes and ears? Has he give you that faith to
believe it? That he abides in you? That you're
in him? All we do, we do for the glory
of God. Oh, how circumspectly we should
walk. Take off your shoes, brother,
we on holy ground. Christ is our life and we belong
to him, not ourselves. We are His workmanship, created
in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained
that we should walk in them. I'm holy, He said, be ye holy. I'm gracious, be you gracious. How can you do it? The Spirit of God is in you. Look up to the heavens. Look
to those things which are above. Because he sits on his throne.
He has set us in heavenly places with him. Oh, let it sink in. Let God please
reveal this to us more fully. He sits on his throne, that God-man,
the Lord Jesus Christ. And he is our king, and he is
our high priest. He is our God. Right now, right
now, he is in total sovereign control. Always has been, is
now, and for eternity always will be. He is that eternal high
priest. He is spirit. He is truth. He is eternal. He can't change. He can't lie. He sits, exalted
over all. And he bids us to draw near. Draw near to God, the Father. In your time of need, and if
we sin continually, if we know what we are, Our time of need's
all the time. And we can come boldly. We, sinful
creatures, can come boldly to the throne of grace where our
high priest sits and ever lives to intercede for us. And we can
ask in his name and God will give it to us according to his
will. Brothers and sisters, he's in
you. You're in him. You're a new creation.
This world, you don't belong to it. You're not of this world
anymore. Not if he's in you. Our eternal high priest, Lord
Jesus Christ, the surety of a better testimony. And oh, may God bless
his word to y'all. Because I just don't know of
anything else that's any better.