Jesus, Our Eternal Savior

“Because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.” – Hebrews 7:24-25

Because Jesus is our eternal high priest, he is also our eternal savior. The church of the Hebrews was tempted to return to Judaism, with its Aaronic priesthood, law, and sacrificial system, probably to avoid persecution and suffering. The author tells them that to do so would be to go back to the shadow, having seen the reality of Jesus Christ. They needed to consider the reality of the priesthood of Christ, which made the old sacrificial system and law obsolete.

Having already demonstrated that Jesus is superior to angels and Moses (Hebrews 1-3), the author now presents Jesus as superior to Aaron and the Aaronic priesthood. He acknowledges that this teaching, which is meat for spiritual adults, may be difficult to understand because these people had become slow of learning.

The author had touched on this subject of the priesthood of Christ before: “For this reason, he had to be made like his brothers in every way in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God . . . Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess.” (Heb. 2:17; 3:1, italics added; cf. Heb. 4:14-15; 5:5, 10; 6:20). He has become a high priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.

To solve their spiritual problem, the author is saying these people must meditate earnestly on the high priesthood of Christ, which he deals with in detail in Heb. 7:1-10:18. The superiority of the priesthood of Christ is the heart of this epistle. This exposition of this doctrine is meant to cure the church’s serious problem of backsliding, for when it is clearly understood, the people of God can derive infinite comfort from it.

The Historical Melchizedek

First, we want to look at the historical Melchizedek, whom we read about, not only in Hebrews, but also in Genesis 14 and Psalm 110. First appearing in Genesis 14, Melchizedek, whose name means “king of righteousness,” was king of Jerusalem (Ps. 76:2). Called the priest of God Most High, he was both king and priest, ruling in righteousness and peace. Both Melchizedek and Abraham, as descendants of Shem, served the true God of glory.

This Melchizedek appears suddenly, without any warning. There is no genealogical background given for him. Yet this is not a supernatural appearance of the pre-incarnate Christ, as some would suppose. The text says Melchizedek was made like the Son of God (Heb. 7:3). He met Abraham as he returned from defeating the four eastern kings and rescuing Lot. After Melchizedek refreshed Abraham with wine and bread, he blessed Abraham, and Abraham gave him a tenth of all the choicest plunder in the name of the Lord.

The Great Melchizedek

This Melchizedek, priest of the Most High God, was great. The author treats him as a type of Jesus Christ who has a superior priesthood than Aaron. We are not given any genealogical information about him, even though it was important for the Aaronic priests to have a clear record of their ancestry. The author treats this silence of Scripture concerning Melchizedek as inspired, teaching the following lessons.

The author sees a divine purpose in the silence and concludes that Melchizedek’s priesthood is of a different order from that of Aaron. His priesthood is to be likened to that of the eternal Son of God, who was also “without beginning of days or end of life” (Heb. 7:3). This does not mean Melchizedek was a biological anomaly. As a historical person, Melchizedek lived and died just like any other human. Yet God presents him in Genesis 14 without genealogical record of his birth or death, that he may function as a type of the Son of God who truly has no beginning or end. So the priesthood of Jesus is after the order of Melchizedek (Ps. 110:4).

Melchizedek was superior to Abraham. As the patriarch of the Jewish nation and greatly revered in Jewish history, Abraham received promises from God and is called a prince and friend of God. The Savior of the world was to come through the line of Abraham. Yet Abraham himself recognized Melchizedek as royal priest of the Most High God and spontaneously paid him the tithe of the plunder (Gen. 14:20). In this act Abraham acknowledged Melchizedek’s superiority because he who receives the tithe is superior to him who gives it. Then Melchizedek blessed Abraham, and we are told the lesser receives blessing from the greater (Heb. 7:7). The greater always blesses the lesser: Isaac blessed Jacob (Gen. 27), the Lord blessed Jacob (Gen. 32), Jacob blessed his twelve children (Gen. 48-49), and Moses blessed the people of Israel (Deut. 33).

The author also says that in some way Levi paid Melchizedek the tithe because Levi was a great-grandson of Abraham (Heb. 7:9-10). As the one who was to collect the tithe from his brothers, Levi was considered superior to them. Yet through Abraham, Levi also paid tithes to this superior priest. So the Melchizedekean priesthood is greater than the Aaronic priesthood, because Melchizedek blessed Abraham and Melchizedek received tithes from Abraham and his descendant Levi.

Jesus Christ, Greater than Aaron and Melchizedek

Then the author speaks about the One who is greater than Aaron and Melchizedek-Jesus Christ, our eternal Savior and eternal High Priest. Calling him our Lord Jesus (Heb. 7:14, 22-23), he pictures him as superior not only to Aaron and his priesthood, but also to Melchizedek, as the original is superior to the copy, as the antitype is superior to the type, and as reality is superior to shadow.

Melchizedek’s priesthood without genealogy was pointing to the eternal priesthood of the eternal Son. Jesus did have an earthly genealogy (Matt.1, Luke 3), but the author is speaking about the eternal Son, who is without beginning or end. Melchizedek’s priesthood was a living-forever priesthood (Heb. 7:3, 8). Because there was no genealogy telling us when he was born or died, for all practical purposes the author sees Melchizedek as practicing a living priesthood.

This is in contrast to the Levitical priesthood, which was a dying priesthood. History says more than eighty high priests served in the sanctuary from the time of Aaron to the destruction of the temple. Because they were weak and sinful, they died. The Aaronic priesthood was temporary, preparatory, partial, and provisional, to be made obsolete in due time. God’s eternal decree was that a superior priesthood would, in time, set aside and replace the Aaronic priesthood, as he revealed even while the Aaronic priesthood was functioning (Ps. 110:4).

The Hebrews author refers to this decree at least five times, quoting from Psalm 110. For instance, in Hebrews 7:21 he writes that God said to his Son in eternity, “The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind: ‘You are a priest forever.'” God’s eternal purpose was to save his people through the ministry of his Son and through his eternal priesthood.

As God promised Abraham salvation and established it with an oath for his greater encouragement, he also made an oath to his Son that he would be a priest forever for our eternal comfort. He gave his oath that the Son would fulfill the eternal covenant we read about in Hebrews 13:20 by means of his eternal priesthood.

We are chosen in Jesus Christ “before the creation of the world” (Eph. 1:4). Likewise, “In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will” (Eph. 1:11). Here we see God’s eternal covenant fulfilled through an eternal priesthood.

What was the priesthood of God’s Son to accomplish? The eternal priest would become incarnate and live a perfectly obedient life, offer himself to God in behalf of our sins, be raised from the dead, ascend into the presence of God, and continuously make intercession for all those who draw near to God through Jesus. The Father made this oath from eternity, that he might be just and the justifier of all who come to him through the priesthood of Christ.

The Aaronic priesthood had to be annulled and replaced by the priesthood of Christ because it was a shadow, not reality: “[The Aaronic priests] serve at a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven . . . The law is only a shadow of good things that are coming-not the realities themselves” (Heb. 8:5, 10:1). The law and the Aaronic priesthood could never make anyone acceptable enough to approach God in worship. They never brought forgiveness of sins nor could they justify anyone before God. They could not cleanse the human conscience or make purification for sins. They prevented people from coming to God’s presence in the Holy of Holies beyond the veil, requiring them instead to worship God from a distance (Ex. 24:1). So the author tells us, “If perfection could have been obtained through the Levitical priesthood, why was there still need for another priest to come? . . . The former regulation is set aside because it was weak and useless. For the law made nothing perfect and a better hope is introduced by which we draw near to God” (Heb. 7:11, 18).

That better hope is Jesus Christ and the better covenant and promises that he brings. When Christ sacrificed himself on the cross and rose again from the dead, the Aaronic priesthood was superseded. It disappeared completely with the destruction of the temple in A.D. 70.

The shadow now is replaced by the gospel of Jesus Christ, the reality of salvation based on the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. But were those who lived before Jesus saved? Were their sins forgiven? Undoubtedly! Consider Abraham, David and all the people in Hebrews 11 (which is only a partial list). God regenerated them by the Holy Spirit and granted them faith to believe in the coming Messiah, to whom the sacrificial system and law pointed. So their sins were forgiven and they were saved just as we are: there is no other way of salvation. They trusted in the Messiah who was to come; we trust in the Messiah who did come and died on the cross in our place. Hebrews 11 asserts that all these people lived by faith.

If the law and Aaronic priesthood could not save anyone, why did God give them to his people? Galatians 3:21 tells us what the purpose was not: “For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law.” The law was not given to impart life. Romans 8:3 concurs: “For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his Son, Jesus Christ.” The law is holy, spiritual, and good; the problem is our inability to keep it. Elsewhere Paul writes that the law brought death and condemnation (2 Cor. 3:7, 9). The law gives power to sin, so sinful people sin more when the law is spoken.

Romans 3:20 reveals why the law was given: “Therefore, no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law. Rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.” Our rottenness and the pervasiveness of sin is revealed through God’s law. And Romans 4:15 says the “law brings wrath.” So it was not meant to impart life, but brings consciousness of sin and points to the wrath of God. Romans 5:20 says, “The law was added so that the trespass might increase.”

The author tells us, “Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins” (Heb. 10:11). So the law was given, not to save us, but to lead us to Christ: “The law was put in charge to lead us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith” (Gal. 3:24). Galatians 2:15-16 says, “We who are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners know that a man is not justified by observing the law but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we too have put our faith in Christ Jesus so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing because by observing the law, no one will be justified.” Romans 10:4 tells us, “Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.”

Aaron himself was sinful and dying. He sacrificed animals as substitutes for sinners, but no animal’s blood can cleanse us from our sins. We needed a priest who is perfect God and perfect man-a priest, not after the order of Aaron, but after the order of Melchizedek. Such a priest came in the fullness of time, “born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights as sons” (Gal. 4:4-5). He was perfect and made perfect through sufferings. “Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him” (Heb. 5:8-9). He took away our sins once for all by making atonement for them, which was impossible for the Aaronic priesthood to do.

Hebrews 10 tells us that the priesthood of Jesus is absolutely superior because he is our eternal Savior: “Because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sin. . . by that will [the will of God, which Jesus fulfilled] we have been made holy [or we have been perfected] through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus once for all . . . because by one sacrifice Jesus Christ has made perfect forever those who are being made holy” (vv. 4, 10, 14). Jesus is greater than angels, Moses, Aaron, the Aaronic priesthood, and even Melchizedek because Jesus alone makes us perfect.

The Superiority of Jesus Christ

Let us now examine seven ways in which the author argues in this passage that Jesus Christ is superior to Aaronic priesthood.

1. An Indestructible Life

Jesus Christ is characterized by indestructible life. He “has become a priest, not on the basis of a regulation as to his ancestry, but on the basis of the power of an indestructible life” (Heb. 7:16). Aaron was sinful, weak, and dying. But now we have a high priest who is powerful because of his indestructible life, because he is the Son of God.

2. A Divine Oath

Second, Jesus is a high priest through a divine oath. The priesthood of Aaron was based on an ordinance, not on an oath. (PGM) The priesthood of Jesus Christ was not provisional but eternal, given by divine oath: “And it was not without an oath! Others became priests without any oath, but he became a priest with an oath when God said to him: ‘The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind: You are a priest forever” (Heb. 7:20).

3. A Perfect High Priest

“For the law appoints as high priest men who are weak; but the oath, which came after the law, appointed the Son, who has been made perfect forever” (Heb. 7:28). The Aaronic priests were weak and died because of sin. We now have a high priest, the Father-appointed Son of God, who is perfect and perfected forever to perfect us.

4. A Guarantee for Eternal Salvation

This high priest is our guarantee for eternal salvation: “Because of this oath, Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant” (Heb. 7:22). Another word for guarantor is mediator: “But the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator . . . For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance” (Heb. 8:6; 9:15). Jesus Christ is our guarantee, our mediator; therefore, we receive an eternal inheritance.

There was no guarantee with the priesthood of Aaron, but Jesus, who fulfilled the law perfectly in our behalf, is the mediator between God and us. As man, he represents us to God; as God, he represents God to us. Thus, he can guarantee our full and final salvation.

5. A Permanent Priesthood

The priesthood of Christ is not transferable, as was the priesthood of Aaron. Because of human frailty, the Aaronic priesthood was transferred to more than eighty high priests as each man grew old and died. But the Melchizedekean priesthood of Jesus Christ needs no transference because Christ is the living one who never dies (Rev. 1:18). Therefore, his priesthood is permanent: “Now there have been many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office; but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood” (Heb. 7:23-24).

6. Our Able High Priest

Hebrews 7:25 is a key verse that summarizes the argument of this chapter: “Therefore, he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.” In the Greek, the word for “able” is dunatai, mighty. It can be contrasted with adunaton, “not capable” or “impossible,” which is used in Hebrews 10:4 to refer to the sacrifices offered by the Aaronic priesthood.

-1. Mighty to Save

The Aaronic priesthood and its sacrifices did not have the power to save anyone. But verse 25 tells us our Lord Jesus Christ is mighty, and the first thing our Lord is mighty to do is save us. From what are we being saved? The author is not speaking about salvation from marriage troubles or work troubles; no, fundamentally, we need to be saved from God, especially from his wrath: “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men” (Rom. 1:18). God is against us, and only Jesus Christ is able to save us from God’s wrath.

-2. Saving Us Totally

This high priest saves us totally. The Greek phrase means he saves us completely and forever. What eternal security! He is mighty to save both body and soul forever. Not only does he save us now, but also at death we will go to him, and at his second coming, we shall come with him to be clothed with a physical, spiritual body like unto the glorious body of Christ.

This high priest saves us from God’s wrath that we may fellowship with God forevermore. He not only justifies and sanctifies us, but he also helps us in all life’s problems. This is comprehensive salvation of spirit and body. The Hebrews writer uses the word “save” in the present tense. Elsewhere, the Bible speaks about salvation in three tenses: He saved us (Titus 2:11), is saving us (1 Cor. 1:18), and will save us (Acts 15:11). This all-encompassing salvation depends on our great high priest after the order of Melchizedek, the Lord Jesus Christ, who is mighty to save.

-3. Saving All Who Draw Near

Next, verse 25 tells us this high priest saves every person who draws near to God. Throughout this book we are encouraged to draw near to God (Heb. 4:16, 10:22). How often do we draw near to everything else but God! We must draw near to the Mighty One-in worship, in prayer, in reading the word, in fellowship, and in the sacraments. We must draw near to receive mercy and to find grace for all our needs. Draw near! It is in the present tense. That means we may come, and come again. God’s door is open and he wants to see us.

– 4. Draw Near to God the Father

To whom do we draw near? To God the Father. Our great high priest, Jesus Christ, removed the barrier of sin. The veil has been torn from top to bottom, and nothing prevents us from coming to God our Father in him.

– 5. Come through Jesus Christ

Hebrews 7:25 tells us this high priest is mighty to save us when we draw near to God “through him,” meaning through Jesus. Jesus is the only way to the Father, as Christ himself declared: “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). There is no other mediator, no other high priest, and no other savior. Peter proclaimed, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). There is no self-salvation. All other religions are false in their claims to bring us to the true and living God. All worship outside of worshiping our heavenly Father in the name of Jesus Christ is the worship of demons.

– 6. He Always Lives to Intercede

This high priest always lives in heaven to intercede for his people. This aspect of the ministry of Jesus is often forgotten by the church. Jesus is always interceding to the Father in our behalf, especially when we stumble and sin.

Because Jesus prays to the Father on the basis of his atonement, his intercession is always effectual and we can enjoy great comfort. Our great high priest intercedes for us when we sleep and when we wake, when we work and when we come home, when we give birth and raise children, when we are sick and old, and, when we face death.

This heavenly intercession is a continuation of what Jesus did on earth. He told Simon Peter, “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers” (Luke 22:31-32). The entire seventeenth chapter of John is an intercessory prayer of our Lord for his church. For instance, in verse 9, Jesus said, “I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours.” And in verse 15 he says, “My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.”

Thank God, we have all been tempted to do many wrong things, but have not done them. I believe it is because the Lord has been praying for us and has kept us from all kinds of troubles. We are a blessed people of God because this great high priest is continuously interceding for us.

7. A Qualified High Priest

The seventh way the Lord Jesus Christ is superior to Aaron is in verse 26: “Such a high priest meets our need-one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens.” Because we were sinners under God’s wrath, we needed a qualified high priest, one who is holy God and holy man.

Aaron did not meet our need. No man can. But in the fullness of time, God sent his Son-holy, guileless, undefiled, separate from sinners, exalted into the heavens, our great high priest after the order of Melchizedek, who was characterized by an indestructible life.

He was without sin: “Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins and then for the sins of the people” (v. 27). Therefore, “he sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself” (v. 28). The cross speaks about Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins. Not only was he the priest making the offering, but he was also the victim-not a dumb, brute, unconscious animal, but the sinless Son of God. All the blood shed in the Old Testament was pointing forward to the bloodshedding of this great high priest, not for himself, but on our behalf.

He offered himself to God once for all. This word ephapax appears again and again in the Greek. By Christ’s one sacrifice, he satisfied the demand of the Father for justice by suffering God’s wrath on the cross for our sakes. No further sacrifice is necessary: all our sins-past, present, and future-are paid for in the once-for-all sacrifice of Jesus Christ. This means no work on our part is required to effect our salvation. Salvation is by grace alone through faith alone. In fact, any work on our part is an insult to Christ and his sacrifice, as well as to God the Father. Only believe in this one and his once-for-all offered sacrifice.

Truly Jesus Christ is our king of righteousness and king of peace. He is our righteousness and peace. Having been justified by faith, we have peace with God (cf. Rom. 5:1). See the relationship between righteousness and peace.

We must understand that we are all sinners, and our sin is pervasive. The essence of sin, as John Murray said, is enmity against God. We must not flatter ourselves and say otherwise. All are sinners, enemies of God, and under God’s wrath. The law and the Aaronic priesthood cannot save us, but they can point us to Christ, who fulfilled the law in our place. He made us perfect so that we can have fellowship with God. We are justified by God the Father on the basis of the high priestly work of his Son; thus, we are saved from God’s wrath, which was endured by Jesus Christ alone in our place. Having gone to hell for us on the cross, he now calls us to draw near to God through him, which simply means to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. He calls us to draw near to him and be saved. Praise God for the eternal priesthood of our eternal Savior!