Thursday, November 3

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2016

“During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries a nd tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.” (Hebrews 5:7–10)

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In today’s reading from Hebrews, the author notes the concurrent Sonship and Priesthood of the Lord Jesus Christ. While He enjoyed all the benefits of being God’s only Son, He also willingly served on behalf of people, representing them before God as the great High Priest. In particular, He served as a perfect mediator between God and man “because of his reverent submission” and perfect “obedience.” Indeed, His faithful service to His Father involved suffering, transforming into the “perfect” substitute for sinful man.

The author describes the Lord Jesus as a “high priest in the order of Melchizedek.” This figure appears in Genesis 15, where the patriarch Abraham encounters Melchizedek, who served jointly as king of Salem (Jerusalem) and a great high priest. Later, the writer of Hebrews mentions that we might consider that Abraham had given his offering to this Melchizedek after receiving a blessing from him. As Hebrews 7 notes, the lesser receives the blessings from the greater. Therefore, many commentators perceive that the earthly Melchizedek may have been a prefiguration of the coming Lord Jesus Christ.

This passage suggests that Jesus’s suffering on earth made him fit and ready to become the perfect sacrifice for us: a heavenly Son taking the penalty for our human sin. God’s justice demanded the fullness of this payment, but His mercy caused it to fall to His Son rather than to His children. Given the depth of this sacrifice, giving my life to His calling appears right and relatively small.

Lastly, the verses talk about the effectiveness of Jesus’s prayer because of His “reverent submission.” This tie between righteousness and power emerges again in James 5:16: “… The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” How we need to see this power released on a hurting and broken world!

Lord Jesus, we give thanks for Your perfect obedience and sacrificial humility. You took the Cross that we rightly deserved and freed us from slavery to sin to become Your righteous servants. We give You our hearts today, that we might be transformed more into Your likeness and that the power of the Holy Spirit might overcome our human weaknesses. Grant us the grace to love others as You would love them. Turn our hearts fully back to You so that we will grasp Your beauty and Your goodness in a fresh way today. In Your Name, amen.