The Intercession of Christ

Q: What does the Bible say about the priesthood of Christ?

The Bible teaches that Christ is our eternal high priest, who represents us before God and has made the ultimate sacrifice for our sins. The priesthood of Christ is established in Hebrews 7, where it is revealed that Jesus, unlike the Old Testament priests who served temporarily and imperfectly, was appointed by God with an oath, making Him a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. This means that Christ's priesthood is superior, as He does not need to offer sacrifices repeatedly. Instead, He offered Himself once for all, ensuring that His sacrifice is sufficient for the forgiveness of sins. His priesthood guarantees not only atonement but also continual intercession for those He represents before the Father.

Q: How do we know Christ's intercession is effective?

Christ's intercession is effective because it is based on His perfect sacrifice and continual representation before the Father. The effectiveness of Christ's intercession is rooted in His nature as both our great high priest and His perfect sacrifice. As Hebrews 7:25 states, He is able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him because He always lives to make intercession for them. This means that His intercession is perpetual; He does not grow weary or forgetful in praying for us. Furthermore, because He is our representative in heaven, our names are on His heart and shoulders, assuring us of His advocacy on our behalf. His intercession aligns perfectly with God's will, ensuring that He only asks for what is rightfully ours as His redeemed.

Q: Why is Christ's role as our intercessor important for Christians?

Christ's intercession is vital as it assures us of our salvation and continual acceptance before God. The role of Christ as our intercessor is foundational for the Christian faith because it confirms our relationship with God. Through His sacrifice, we are accepted in the beloved, and His ongoing intercession means that we can draw near to God with confidence. According to Hebrews 10:19-22, we now have boldness to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, thanks to His work as our high priest. He not only represents us but continually upholds us in prayer, ensuring that we remain in communion with God. This gives believers the assurance of their salvation and the confidence to approach God despite our frailty and shortcomings.

Q: How does Christ secure our salvation?

Christ secures our salvation through His perfect sacrifice and His role as our eternal high priest. Christ secures our salvation by providing the ultimate and effective sacrifice for our sins. Unlike the sacrificial system of the Old Covenant, which involved continual offerings that could never take away sin, Christ's single offering of Himself was sufficient. Hebrews 10:14 emphasizes that by one offering, He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified. Additionally, His status as our high priest after the order of Melchizedek ensures that His intercession before the Father is ongoing and effective (Hebrews 7:24-25). Because He lives forever, we can be assured that our salvation is secure in Him, and He will never lose any of those given to Him by the Father.

Now the Word of God makes much of the offices of
Christ. Our Lord, the three main offices
of Christ, prophet, priest, and king. Now Moses was God's prophet. Moses was not a priest. Moses
was not a king. He was God's prophet. And Moses
made much of that prophet who was to come. In fact, he said
in Deuteronomy, if you care to read this and mark it, Deuteronomy
18, he said, The Lord thy God, Deuteronomy 18, 15, will raise
up unto thee a prophet, a prophet from the midst of thee, of thy
brethren, like unto me, him unto him you shall hearken. God's
going to raise up a prophet. And then he continued down here
in verse 17, and said, The Lord said to me, they've well spoken
that which they have spoken. I will raise them up a prophet
from among their brethren like unto thee. I'll put my words
in his mouth. He shall speak unto them all
that I command him. And it shall come to pass that
whosoever will not hearken unto my words, which that prophet
shall speak in my name, I will require it of him." That's Christ. God spake to our fathers by the
prophets. He hath in these last days spoken
to us by that prophet, that prophet. In fact, the Jews, when they
talked about the Messiah, They talked about the Messiah, they
talked about the Christ, but they also talked about that prophet. Ask John the Baptist, are you
that prophet? So Moses made much of the prophet, and then David
was God's king. Turn to Psalm 2. David was God's
king. You remember, Israel wanted a
king, and God gave them a king of their choice, Saul, who brought
them much heartache and misery. And then God gave him his king.
He raised up David, a man after my own height. And David in the
Psalm speaks often, even talking about himself, but he's talking
about that king, that king whom God will raise up. In Psalm 2,
he says, verse 2, the kings of the Ordinary, common kings set
themselves, and the rulers take counsel to gather against the
Lord and against his anointed, his anointed. Let us break their
bands asunder and cast away their cords from us. He that sitteth
in the heavens shall live. The Lord shall have them in derision,
and then shall he speak unto them in his wrath and vex them
in his sore displeasure. Yet have I set my King, anointed
my King, ordained my King upon my holy hill of Zion." He has
a name written across his vesture, King of Kings, Lord of Lords. He's God's King. That's Christ. David was a king, but David was
never a priest. There's no man ever held all
three of these offices. One may be a prophet, one may
be a king, one may be a priest, but as a type of Christ. But
no man ever held all these offices. As great as David was, David
had to have a priest. He was never a king. And then
the priesthood. Now that's what I want to talk
about a little bit tonight. The priesthood of the Old Testament
was a picture of Christ, our great high priest. The whole
book of Hebrews has to do with the priesthood, the priesthood.
The Lord raised up these priests. There were many of them, many
high priests. And the Lord even gave a most
special revelation of Christ's priesthood in the appearance
of Melchizedek, and I'll get to that later. But these offices,
our prophet, you know, Paul said, of God are you in Christ. who
is made unto us wisdom, our prophet. Sanctification and righteousness,
our priest. Redemption, our king, the captain
of our salvation. The offices of Christ are the
foundation of our hope. He is all of these things to
us. The well and spring of our comfort
and assurance is Christ, our prophet, priest, and king. But
let's look at the priesthood. Now, Hebrews 5. Hebrews 5, a
priest, a priest, the particular office of priest, and especially
the priesthood of Christ, the priest has a two-fold principal
acts, two things. Number one, the priest must offer
sacrifice and make satisfaction for sinners. The priest must
represent the sinner by intercession. Now look at Hebrews 5 verse 1,
and that's what this says in these two verses. For every priest
taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining
to God. Two things pertaining to God.
Number one, that he might offer both gifts and sacrifices for
sin. There's got to be a sacrifice.
There's got to be an offering. There's got to be sin has got
to be put away. It's got to be atoned for. There's
got to be blood. There's got to be a sacrifice.
And secondly, here's the second part. And a priest who can have
compassion on the ignorant and on them out of the way. for that
he himself is compassed with infirmity. He's acquainted with
their infirmities. He's acquainted with their afflictions. He's acquainted with the weakness
of their flesh. And that's the twofold work of
Christ our Lord in his priesthood, to make an atonement and to make
intercession. And he's acquainted with our
infirmities, for he was tipped in all points as we are, yet
without sin. Now, Hebrews 7. Hebrews 7. Now, notice what Paul says. This
is my text here, Hebrews chapter 7. But that's what we're looking
at tonight, the priesthood of our Lord Jesus Christ, and particularly
his intercession. Now, there are two principal
acts of the priest, to make a sacrifice for sin and to make intercession. who can have compassion, who
can represent us to God, who can pray for us, who can intercede
for us. Now, Hebrews 7, 19. For the law
made nothing perfect. What are we talking about the
law? We're talking about the priesthood. We're talking about
the sacrifices of the Old Testament. We're talking about the tabernacle
and the mercy seat and the ark and all these different holy
days. And we're talking about the Levitical
law. When God gave Moses the dimensions and the plans for
the tabernacle and the priesthood and all the sacrifices and the
making of the ark and the mercy seat and the hyssop and the sprinkling
of the blood and all these things, he said, see that you do it exactly
according to pattern. And they went through all of
these ceremonies and sacrifices and days of atonement, but this
law made nothing perfect. This law satisfied nothing. It accomplished nothing as far
as our relationship with God is concerned. That's what he
says in Hebrews 10. Turn over there a moment. Hebrews
10. For the law, the Levitical law,
the sacrifices, Avon, the sons of Levi, having a shadow of good
things to come, and not the very image of those things, can never
with those sacrifices which they offered year by year by year
continually make the comers there and do perfect. Can't do it.
For then would they not have ceased to be offered? Because
the worshippers once purged would have no more conscience of sin.
But in those sacrifices is a remembrance again made of sins every year.
And here's the key verse. It's not possible. It's not possible
for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sin. So that's what
he's saying. Hebrews 7, 19, the law made nothing
perfect. Our Lord said in burnt offerings
and sacrifices for sins, O God, thou hast had no pleasure. These
things only served as a picture, only served as a type, only served
as shadows and patterns. When Abel brought his sacrifice,
when Abraham brought their sacrifices, when Aaron brought the atoning
sacrifice, he's simply saying We're doing this because we believe
the Lamb of God will offer his blood as a sacrifice. It ain't
nothing perfect. Now watch the next line. But
the bringing in of a better hope did. The bringing in of a better
hope did. What is this better hope? Well,
look at Hebrews 10. Hebrews 10. Now he said in verse
4, it's not possible for the blood of bulls and goats to take
away sin. Wherefore, verse 5, when he cometh into the world
Who's that? That's Christ. He said, Sacrifice
and offering, thou wouldst not, but a body hast thou prepared
me. He said, Lo, I come in the volume of the book, it is written
of me, to do thy will, O God. There's the bringing in of a
better hope. There it is. Look at verse 11. Hebrews 10. Every priest standeth daily ministering,
offering, offering, oftentimes the same sacrifices which can
never take away sin. Here's the better hope, but this
man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sin forever, forever
sat down at the right hand of God, from his foes expecting
till his enemies be made a footstool, for by one offering he perfected
forever them that are sanctified. That's the better hope. Back
to Hebrews 7, our text. The law made nothing perfect.
all of the ceremonies and sacrifices and all that the priest did,
and think how many of them there were, how many lambs were slain,
rivers of blood, offerings and sacrifices and feast days and
holy days and Sabbath days and doing, but they had to do it,
God commanded it. And God commanded it till the
coming of Christ. These things were pictures, but
it made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of Christ did,
and what's the next line? By the witch we draw nigh to
God. By what? Well, back to Hebrews
10. Hebrews 10, verse 19. Having therefore, brethren, boldness
to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new
and living way which he hath consecrated for us through the
veil. Who was allowed through the veil?
No one but the high priest. not without blood, once a year.
But he's rent the veil in two, and brought us through the veil,
and having a high priest over the house of God, let us what?
Draw nigh. Let us draw nigh, with a true
heart, in full confidence and assurance of faith. Now back
to the text, Hebrews 7, verse 19. The law made nothing perfect.
There's never been a law given that could make anything perfect.
And the weakness is not in the law, it's in the fellow to whom
he gave it. It's not the weakness of the
law, the law's still true, do this and live. But no use giving
you that law. What the law could not do, and
it was weak through the flesh, God sending his only son in the
likeness of sinful flesh, condemned sin in the flesh. So what the
law, the law couldn't make anything perfect. Nobody's ever been saved
by doing anything but believing on Christ. That's right. Nobody's ever been saved, forgiven
of sins, redeemed by doing anything, anything. I don't care what it
is, God commanded or not, except by looking to Christ. The Lord
made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope
made some things perfect. By the which we draw nigh to
God. Now, verse 20, look at this.
And inasmuch as not without an oath, he was made a priest. Now
here's the difference in our high priest and those priests. Here's the difference in our
high priest and those Old Testament priests. Those priests back there
were made priests without an oath. God never took an oath. He anointed them, but he never
took an oath when he made them priests. Why? Because he's going
to change this. When God takes an oath and swears
by himself, it's unchangeable. See what he's saying to us? Now
look at verse 21. But those priests were made priests
without an oath. But this one, this high priest,
Jesus Christ, was made a priest with an oath, that said unto
him, the Lord sware and won't change. Now when Aaron was made
a priest, he was anointed and ordained of God to represent
the people in things pertaining to God by bringing a sacrifice,
an atonement, and praying for the people. You remember Aaron
ran one time and took the censer. You remember when God's going
to kill Ezra, going to wipe out the whole outfit? And he went
out there and stood between the bed and the living and waved
the censer. You remember? That's right. And
God stayed. God stayed his hand. But everything
Avon and the sons of Levi and all those priests did, they did
on a temporary basis. God never made them a priest
with another. Never. But this man, but this
man with an oath, verse 21, that said unto him, The Lord swear
and will not repent, you are a priest forever. After the order
of Melchizedek. Look over at Hebrews 6, the previous
chapter, verse 16. Men, for men barely swear by
the greater. And an oath for confirmation
is to them in the end of all strife, if here are two fellows
disagreeing on something, or agreeing on something. And this
man promises something, and he swears. He swears by something
greater than himself. He'll swear by the Bible, he'll
swear by God in heaven. And when we take an oath to tell
the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth, so help you God,
put your hand on the Bible, you're swearing by something greater.
And you're ending all strife when you say, I swear by the
name of God. And Paul almost swore one time,
he said, God's my witness. He said that truth right there,
God's my witness, I'm telling the truth. So men swear by the
greater, all right, what's God going to swear by? There's none greater. Verse 17,
wherein God, willing more abundantly to show unto the heirs of promise
the immutability, that means the unchangeableness of his counsel,
of his promise, confirmed it with an oath. God took an oath. That by truth, and what was the
oath? He swore by himself. There's none greater, so God
said I swear by myself. That by two immutable, unchangeable
things in which it's impossible for God to lie, we might have
a strong consolation. What's your strong consolation?
Why are you so confident? And I am, in Christ. I have no
confidence in this place, but I'm confident in you. Why? Right here. These two immutable
things, what are they? God's promise and God's oath.
That's the two things. We might have a strong consolation
who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before
us, Christ Jesus, which hope we have as an anchor of our souls,
sure and steadfast, and which entereth in within the veil,
whether the forerunner for us is entered in. Even Jesus made
a high priest, not like Abraham, not like Levi, but after the
order of Melchizedek. Is there anybody here who's not
acquainted with Melchizedek? Well, I'm not acquainted with
him either in that sense, but I know what happened. In other
words, Aaron and his sons, pretty good types of Christ, but got
a lot of weaknesses. There were many of them, he was
one. They served on earth, he served in heaven. They offered
animal blood, he offered his own blood. They served in a tabernacle,
he in his own body. They lived and died, he lives
forever. They brought sacrifices, couldn't put away any sin. He
brought one, put away all sin. That's too many differences.
But Abraham, you see chapter 7, verse 1, look at this. Abraham,
this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God,
met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed
him. Abraham was coming back from
the slaughter of the kings, and this This Melchizedek appeared
out of nowhere. Melchizedek. And he blessed Abraham. Abraham paid tithes to him. He
blessed him. But he was never heard from before
or after. Melchizedek. And he didn't bless
him, he didn't sacrifice a lamb, he brought bread and wine. And
blessed him. I tell you who that was, it's
Christ. It's a pre-incarnation appearance of Christ. For you
read what he said. To whom Abraham, whom also Abraham
gave a tenth part of all, first being, by interpretation, king
of righteousness, that's Christ. And after that, king of Salem,
which is king of peace, that's Christ. Without father, that's
human father, without mother, without descent, that is pedigree,
ancestry, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but
made like unto the Son of God, a priest continually, Now consider
how great this man was, under whom even the patriarch Abraham
paid the tenth of the spoils. I know who that man is. That's
Christ Jesus. And God gave us a look in, go
back to our text now, Hebrews 7 verse 20. These Old Testament
priests were made without an oath. But this man, this man,
verse 21, with an oath by God who said, I swear, I won't change. You're a priest forever, after
the order of Melchizedek." Just one like him. One like him. All right, now verse 23. And so by so much, Jesus was
made a surety of a better covenant, a better testament. Now, verse
23. The priesthood of the Old Testament had many priests who
were but men. They lived and they died. They
were truly many priests. because they were not suffered
to continue it by reason of death. They heard that Avan was born
and Avan died. All the rest of them were born
and died. They passed the man alone down to their son. Verse
24, and here's a phrase that occurs in Hebrews often, but
this man. But this man. And that's the
subject matter of the whole book of Hebrews to show the superiority
and excellency of the Lord Jesus Christ over angels. over Moses,
over Abraham, over the tabernacle, over the sacrifice, and over
the priesthood, and over everything. Christ is exalted. He is excellent. But this man, because he continueth
forever, having neither beginning of days nor end of days, hath
an unchangeable priesthood. He needs no partner, he needs
no successor, he's sufficient forever. Wherefore? Now, that word means so much
there. I try to get folks all the time
to quit reading the Bible in bits and pieces, reading verses. You see, there's no way you can
understand verse 25 without reading those previous verses. You just cannot do it. What's
the job of a priest to offer sacrifice for sin and intercede
for the people? The law couldn't make anything
perfect, but Christ did. He was made a priest by the Father
with an oath. God will not change. This is
it. This is it. Christ is that priest. There's
nothing to follow. And I tell you, when preachers
come along, I've got a new thought, a new revelation, a new... Forget it. Forget it. Christ
is the priest. And if this gospel is the same,
from the day our Lord Jesus, from eternity past, but the revelation
of Christ is the same from the first century when he came and
preached this gospel. You can't improve on it. Wherefore? Wherefore? Because of who he
is. Wherefore? Because of what he's done. Wherefore? Because of where he is. He is
able to save them to the uttermost and evermore. He's able. He's
able. He's not only willing, my friends,
He's able. He's able to save you completely. He's able to take away all your
sins. He's able to present you faultless,
holy, unblameable, unreprovable in the Father's sight. He's able.
He's able to save to the uttermost them that come to God by Him.
That's what I preached on this morning. Coming to God by Christ. There's no coming to God like
Charlie prayed in his prayer. There's no coming any other way.
There's no coming any other way. Wherefore, because of who he
is, wherefore, because of what he's done, wherefore, because
of where he is, he is able to save to the uttermost them that
come to God by him. Seeing, now here's the twofold.
Remember I told you there were two things the priest did? Number
one, satisfaction for all sins. Number two, to intercede. So wherefore, two things, he
is able to save them to the uttermost that come to God by him, see
he ever liveth to make intercession for them. We don't need any successor,
we don't need any other priest, we don't need any other person.
Christ is sufficient. You see these two things first
in Hebrews 9. Turn over there just a moment.
Hebrews 9, 11, and 12. Hebrews 9, 11, and 12. Listen
to this. But Christ being come, a high priest of good things
to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made
with hands, that is to say, not this building, neither by the
blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood, he entered
in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption
for us. Our high priest Christ Jesus
has done that. We are redeemed, we are reconciled,
we are washed, we're sprinkled with the blood, we're sanctified,
we're perfect in Christ. Now what does he do? Well, look
down here at verse 24. And Christ is not entered into
the holy place made with hands, which are figures of the But
in the heaven itself, now to do what? To appear in the presence
of God for us, our representative. What did I say a priest did?
Two principal acts, make an atonement and plead for sinners. Pray for
sinners, intercede for sinners, represent sinners. That's what
he does. He's made the atonement, the effectual atonement. He put
away the sin. Now he appears in the presence
of God for us. You men, in your unions, in your carpenters'
union or your steelworkers' union, who do you send up to represent
you? One of your own. One of your
own. One who understands you, who
knows you, who knows your needs. And I tell you, the Lord Jesus
Christ is at the right hand of God in the body of a man. That's
right. A man, there's a man in glory.
Turn to Hebrews 10. Back to what I read a moment
ago, verse 5. Wherefore, when he cometh into
the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not,
but of what? A body. You prepared me. A body? That's right. In a body,
in the body of a man, he came to this earth. In the body of
a man, he was tempted and tried in all points as you are. You've
never been down a road that he didn't walk. You've never felt
a sorrow that he didn't feel. You've never felt a temptation
that he didn't feel. That's what the Bible says. He
was tempted in all points as we are. Isn't that right? All
points. You never felt a trial that he didn't already feel as
a man. That's right. Not a woman. You never met an obstacle he
hadn't already met. I'm telling you, he was a man
of sorrows, he was acquainted with grief in a body as a man. And in a body as a man, he died
on a cross. And he knows pain and agony and
suffering. He knows all these things. As
a body, in the body of a man, he arose. And in that same body,
he ascended to heaven and sat down at the right hand of God,
and he's my representative. in this body. Now, his flesh
is glorified flesh, but it's flesh. He's a man. Isn't that right, John? Am I
telling the truth? He's a man. Our forerunner within the veil
in the presence of God, our high priest, our representative, is
a man who can have compassion on the ignorant, who can feel
our infirmities, who doesn't need to read about them or hear
about them. He experiences. Now, I couldn't
have a better representative. He remembereth our frame, he
knoweth it with us. You know, when you think about
Christ interceding, you try to think of the, and I know we are
just, our thoughts are so dumb, I don't know how to explain it,
but God, I don't know how to visualize God, God's everywhere.
But Christ at his right hand, Christ in his presence, Christ
seated on the right hand of the majesty in heaven, my representative,
my high priest, My advocate, my mediator, is not unacquainted
with me. He's right there in this same
flesh, glorified, but he's a man. Now if that doesn't help us out,
turn to 1 Corinthians 15 a minute. 1 Corinthians 15, listen to this. Verse 47, 1 Corinthians 15, verse
47, the first man is of the earth earthy. It's not too hard for you to
think of Adam as being a man like you and me, is it, Adam?
Second man, the second what? Man, is the Lord from heaven,
1 Corinthians 15, 47. The first man is of the earth,
the second man is the Lord from heaven. As is the earthy, such
are they that are earthy, and as is the heavenless, such are
they that are heavenless. Born again, they're acquainted
with him. They're in union with him. Isn't
that something? I just gave me a lot of confidence
and hope when I sat down and realized that my mediator is
no stranger to my needs. He's no stranger to my afflictions
and infirmities. He's no stranger to my walk.
He's a man. Secondly, and he appears there
as our mediator. He's our advocate. He represents
us. He presents us. He represents
us and carries our persons, you and me, before the Father. Now, when the high priest, let
me ask you this, when the high priest went into the Holy of
Holies, he didn't go there in his own name. He didn't go there
only for himself. He did offer sacrifices for himself,
but not only for himself, what did he have on his shoulders?
Does anybody know what he had on his shoulders? the names of
the Israelites. You know what he had on his breastplate?
Names of the Israelites. And when he went unto the holy
of holies with the atonement, to offer sacrifice and to intercede,
he's representing everybody out there. On his shoulders to bear
them into the presence of God, on his heart to plead for And
my Lord Jesus Christ, when he stands or sits at the right hand
of God, he wears our names on his shoulders. The government
will be on his shoulders, his kingdom on his shoulders. He'll
uphold us, and he bears our names on his breastplate. He loves
us. Isn't that something? That ought
to give us a little bit of hope, shouldn't it? He presents you. Hebrews 2, listen, let me just
read it to you. Hebrews 2 verse 10, it became
him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in
bringing many sons unto glory. Bringing what? Many sons unto
glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through
suffering. My intercessor is a man. My intercessor, if I've come
to him, I believe on him, got my name on his heart. and on
his shoulders, my name. You're nothing, preacher, I know
that. Not to me or to you, but I'm something to him. He loved
me enough to die for me. Son of God loved me enough to
die for me. All right, here's the third thing.
And when he goes there as our intercessor, he doesn't go empty-handed. What a horrible, horrible thing
it would be, Cecil, if that high priest had gone into the Holy
of Holies, empty-handed. Oh, you can't describe the horror,
could you? You couldn't describe how God
would deal with it. If he went in there with those
names on his breast and his shoulders, and he went in empty-handed just
to impose upon maybe the goodness of God or to help somebody. I'm
just going to trust the love of God. You're in a mess if you
do. Well, I just believe God will
show mercy, and so you just go on in there and see. Why, God
had annihilated him. He wouldn't have made it under
the veil. Not without blood, God said. Without the shedding
of blood, there's no remission. Well, what about our priest?
Hebrews 8.3, listen. He says here, Hebrews 8.3, every
high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices. Therefore
it's of necessity that this man, who we talking about, but this
man, it's necessary that he has somewhat to offer. Does he? Oh, bless your heart, he did.
He went into the Holy of Holies with his own blood. Now, he's got something to offer.
His blood speaks better things than that of Abel, or of Abel's
sacrifice. Law honored, justice satisfied,
our great high priest does not go into the presence of an angry
God, of a just God, of a holy God, without the blood that maketh
atonement. The high priest came into the
Holy of Holies with two things. When he brought the blood, came
under the veil, and stood before the Ark to sprinkle the Ark. He had two things in his hand.
You know what they are? He had the blood. What do you have in
the other hand? The incense. He stopped outside that veil
and filled his censer with that coal off the altar of incense,
and when he came into the Holy of Holies, that whole place was
filled with the smoke from that incense, the fragrance and odor
of that incense. What does that represent? The
prayers of Christ, the intercession. He had the blood. sacrifice. He had the incense intercession. That's what a priest does. You
got a priest? Thank God we do. You better have one. Don't you
wiggle in there without one. You got to have a priest and
he's got to have something to offer. He's got to have, even
Christ has got to have these things. What does he have? He has his blood and his prayers. That's right. Here's another
thing about Christ, this man, this intercessor, he makes intercession
according to the will of the Father. That's right, according
to the will of the Father. When you think of the intercession
of Christ, now don't you think of it for a moment, don't you
even let this enter your mind, that he asked for anything he
doesn't deserve. I do, I ask for a lot of things
I don't deserve. But I'll tell you, when Christ
said to Peter, I prayed for you, that prayer has to be answered,
because he deserves whatever he asks. He bought it. Worthy
is the Lamb. He always, he said, I always
do the will of my Father. And secondly, he doesn't ask
anything that he won't get. I know you always hear me. He prays according to the will
of God. And thirdly, he doesn't make
any And he cries and tears in passionate appeal. He did that
on earth. He was a man of sorrows and acquainted
with grief, and he wept. But right now he sits. He doesn't
kneel, stand, he doesn't plead. He sits. Because as our representative,
his being there is the guarantee of our coming there. See what
I'm saying? If he's got your name on his
shoulders and on his heart, you'll be there. You know, I heard this
preacher on television, and you've heard this yourself, because
he's real famous and real popular, and he's so stereotyped, he always
just says the same thing. At the end of all his sermons,
he says this. And I knew there was something
wrong with it, until this afternoon, I was sitting out on the patio
looking at this scripture, And it suddenly dawned on me what's
wrong with what he's been saying. He said, if you're here tonight
and as sure for heaven as if he was already there, raise your
hand. Have you heard him say that? You heard that preacher?
You know what's wrong with that? I knew there was something wrong
with it. I'm not sure for heaven as if I was already there. I'm
sure for heaven because he's already there. That's the difference. That's
where he's missing it. My forerunner has entered within
the veil. My intercessor, and he's there
seated. And if I'm in him and of him
and redeemed by him, I've got to show up. Got to, or he'd be incomplete. Without me, he is incomplete. That's not blasphemy now. No,
sirree, his kingdom's incomplete if he loses one son, one sheep. I'm telling you, I'm completing
him. And I tell you, his work and
his mission and his task is complete when the last sheep's brought
home and not until. He gonna lose one? You think
for a moment he's gonna lose one? His honor's engaged to keep
the weakest of his sheep. So he prays according to the
will of God. And then fifthly, his intercession
is perpetual. You know, he keeps talking about
you're a priest forever like Melchizedek, after the order
of Melchizedek. He's a priest forever, forever. He ever lives to make intercession. His intercession is perpetual.
It's not when I have a trial that he intercedes for me. He
intercedes for me every moment of every second of every day.
It's a perpetual intercession. I'm spasmodic in my prayers,
aren't you? I pray hard sometimes. Other
times I don't pray so hard. I pray most when I'm in need.
I'm like that fella, three fellas talking, one of them said, well
I think the best way to pray is on your knees. The other one
says the best way to pray is standing with your arms outstretched
to God. Another says, best way to pray is prostrate on the ground.
Another fellow says, well I'll tell you boys. He said, I went
out to draw a bucket of water. And he said my foot caught in
the rope when I dropped the big bucket. And it wrapped around
my leg and threw me right in the well. And there I was hanging
upside down by that rope. And the best prayer I ever prayed
was hanging by my feet from a rope upside down in a well. Don't
try that. But you can pray then. Yeah, he said you can pray then.
But our Lord doesn't pray spasmodically. He doesn't intercede spasmodically,
he intercedes perpetually. He appears in the presence of
God for us. There's never been a time when
he wasn't my surety, there's never been a time he wasn't my
savior, and there's never been a time that I wasn't in him,
and there's never been a time he didn't call my name. And he
calls it now. That's confidence. You can have
sure for heaven as if I was already there? No, sir. I'm sure for
heaven because he's there. And if I'm in him, that's the
whole thing. Give diligence to make your calling and election
sure. You don't need to seek heaven. Seek Christ and you got
heaven. That's right. You don't need to come to a doctrine.
You come to Christ and you'll know the doctrine. You don't
need to come down and get right with God. You come to Christ
and you're right with God. Only in Christ. That's right.
It's in him. Come to me. Come to me. All right. Sixth place. His intercession
guarantees four things. It guarantees the pardon of my
sins. He that spared not his own son, how shall he not with
him freely give us all things? It guarantees the acceptance
of my person. I'm accepted in the beloved.
No other way. It guarantees acceptance of my
worship. We were talking in there. Turn
to 1 Peter 2. We need to read this right here. Everybody here, me, you, everybody,
I don't care who you are, I guarantee you what I'm about to say is
true. You don't feel like you worship
right. You don't feel like you pray
right. You just feel so carnal. You feel so human. You feel so
unspiritual. Is this not true? You feel like,
how can Almighty, Eternal, Omnipotent God? How can I pray? How can I sing praises? What
are my praises? How can I say thank Him? How
can I talk to God? You can't. And if you're coming
on your own, forget it. But if you're in Christ, the
feeblest prayer is accepted. The feeblest worship is accepted. Let me show you 1 Peter 2, 5.
You also, as living stones, are built of a spiritual house, a
holy priesthood yourself, to offer up spiritual sacrifices. What's that? Praise? Worship,
prayer, acceptable to God. Do you believe it? By Jesus Christ. There's the key. Keep praying. He hears you. If that intercessor
is your intercessor. Keep worshiping. I don't care
how fumbling and stumbling. I'm going to keep preaching.
I go home sometimes. I wish I'd have said that better.
What in the world is wrong with me? Why do I say what I say?
Do you feel that way? That's post-pulpit something. But it was all right, because
it's acceptable to God. I've had people say, well, I
give and help people, but I get embarrassed because I feel kind
of proud. That's human nature. It's still acceptable to God,
because Christ takes the sin out of it. Christ takes the you
out of him. Christ takes the weakness out
of him. That's what our intercessor does. And that's perpetual because
it ain't nothing we do right, is it? It has to be perpetual. And then it guarantees the pardon
of my sin, the acceptance of my person, the acceptance of
my worship and prayers and gifts. Acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. You're a holy priesthood. you
offer spiritual sacrifice. Fourthly, it guarantees the perseverance
of all the elect. Father, he said, I will that
all those that you give me, you gave me, be with me where I am. Brother, let me tell you something,
if I'm in on that, isn't that something Richard? Father, I
will that those that you gave me, Down there in Ashland, Kentucky,
in that little 13th Street Baptist church, those people that know
themselves to be so fumbling and faulty and failing and sweet
and sinful and flesh and all full of doubts and fears and
ups and downs and all these things, I want every one of them to be
with me where I am. They'll be there. They'll be there. Ever-blessed
one of them. You got any other hope? That's
my hope. that I have a high priest. That's
my, that's a rock right there. Let me read you this. Firm as
the heaven, his gospel stands. My Lord, my hope, my trust. If
I'm found in Jesus' hands, my soul can never be lost. His honor
is engaged to keep the weakest of his sheep. All that the heavenly
father gave, his son will surely keep. Nor death nor hell shall
ever remove his children from his breast. In the dear bosom
of his love they shall forever rest. Though many foes beset
your road, and it's a long road yet, and feeble is your arm,
your life is hid with Christ in God beyond the reach of harm. And the precious blood of God's
dear Son shall never be shed in vain. The soul on Christ believing
must, must with Christ forever reign. Isn't it wonderful to
have an intercessor? You don't have to prove anything
to anybody. Not a thing. You don't have to
defend anything. Just look to him. God will take
you in.

The Intercession of Christ

What does the Bible say about the priesthood of Christ?

How do we know Christ's intercession is effective?

Why is Christ's role as our intercessor important for Christians?

How does Christ secure our salvation?

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The Intercession of Christ

What does the Bible say about the priesthood of Christ?

How do we know Christ's intercession is effective?

Why is Christ's role as our intercessor important for Christians?

How does Christ secure our salvation?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

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