The Great High Priest

Hebrews 7: 28, ESV.

For the law appoints men in their weakness as high priests, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made perfect forever. 

For our final biblical ‘lens’ of salvation, we turn to the book of Hebrews. 

Everyone loves an upgrade, right? Sometimes we’re able to get upgrades which we don’t really need, but sometimes they are essential – at times like these, upgrades are a total gamechanger. In my opinion, the human capacity to have relationship with God through the atonement of our sin is a matter where it's pretty essential to have the latest upgrade.

Atoning for sin is important, because sin makes things unholy, and nothing unholy can come into direct contact with God. God and unholiness simply do not compute.

So… in the old covenant, who was responsible for undertaking this important atonement process with God? Human beings – specifically, high priests. Once a year, on Yom Kippur (‘the Day of Atonement’), the high priest in office was allowed to enter the temple’s ‘Holy of Holies’ to give an offering of incense and sacrificial animal blood. By doing so, they made yearly, vital atonement for the sin of God’s people.

In Jesus, though, the ‘high priest’ role got an essential upgrade. He became the Great High Priest. As such, Jesus goes into the Holy Place, not of a human-made temple, but of heaven itself. Jesus is our mediator with the Father not just on Yom Kippur once a year, but perpetually and in eternity. The sacrifice which Jesus makes for our atonement is not with animals’ blood, nor must his sacrifice be repeated yearly… but he brought his own blood, and his sacrifice was once and for all. 

Because of Jesus being our Great High Priest, the atonement for our sin is divinely simple. Through Christ we are made holy, so that we too will one day, like Jesus and with Jesus, see the Holy Place of heaven.

Now that is an upgrade.

Prayer — Thank you, Jesus, for making atonement for my sin. You are the Great High Priest and I worship you today.