We are living in the age of grace, not the age of law. We are living under the new covenant, not the old covenant. We have a new high priest---one who lives forever---and this means we have a new and better hope than we ever had before.
Yesterday the author spoke of how Abraham gave a tithe to the priest Melchizedek. He reminded us that under the law the Levites were to collect a tithe of the people. He says today, "In one case, the tenth is collected by people who die; but in the other case, by him who is declared to be living. One might even say that Levi, who collects the tenth, paid the tenth through Abraham, because when Melchizedek met Abraham, Levi was still in the body of his ancestor." (Hebrews 7:8-10) None of the priests of the tribe of Levi lived forever, so the author says that men who die collected the tithe. But Abraham didn't know when or where Melchizedek died, so in Abraham's mind this man was still living, and in that sense he is a symbol of Christ who lives forever and whose priesthood endures forever. We have already seen that Melchizedek was greater in honor and authority than Abraham, since Abraham gave him a tenth of the spoils he took from the wicked kings. Now we see that the priesthood of Melchizedek was greater than the priesthood than the Levites, for the Levites tithed to Melchizedek through Abraham because they were the descendants of Abraham. In this same way, the priesthood of Christ is greater than the priesthood of the Levites, for He is worthy of greater honor and He has greater authority.
"If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood---and indeed the law given to the people established that priesthood---why was there still need for another priest to come, one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron?" (Hebrews 7:11) Aaron, the brother of Moses, was the first to perform the office of priest for the nation of Israel. If the job he did as priest had been able to make the people clean of sin forever, there would have been no need to establish the Levitical priesthood to carry on the work of Aaron. If the duties performed by the Levitical priesthood could have atoned for the sins of the people forever, there would have been no need for another priest after the order of Melchizedek. We would not need Christ to be our great high priest if the animal sacrifices of atonement had been capable of saving us for eternity. We would not need Christ to be the mediator between us and God if we could perfectly keep the law. After all, if we could perfectly keep the law, we could achieve righteousness for ourselves. In that case, Christ would not have had to come and offer Himself as an atoning sacrifice.
"For when the priesthood is changed, the law must be changed also. He of whom these things are said belonged to a different tribe, and no one from that tribe has ever served at the altar. For it is clear that our Lord descended from Judah, and in regard to that tribe Moses said nothing about priests." (Hebrews 7:12-14) Under the law, no one but a man of the tribe of Levi could be a priest. But we are no longer under the law and therefore there is no longer a need for the Levitical priesthood. Since we have a new great high priest, one of the tribe of Judah, the law must be changed in order to allow a man not of the tribe of Levi to serve as priest. Christ freed us from bondage to the law by giving Himself in our place, and now our lives are governed by our relationship with Him, not by checking off a list of rules in an effort to obtain righteousness by works.
"And what we have said is all the more clear if another priest like Melchizedek appears, one who 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. For it is declared: 'You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.'" (Hebrews 7:15-17) Melchizedek lived before the law was given, before the nation of Israel had been born, and before the Levitical priesthood was established. The law didn't apply to him because the law didn't exist. Likewise, the law that says a priest must be a Levite doesn't apply to Christ either, for since the priesthood is changed the law is also changed. God is free to ordain whoever He wants to be high priest, and He has chosen His Son, and the proof of this is the oath He made to His Son by saying, "You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek."
We are so much better off living under grace than under law! We are so much better represented before God by Christ who lives forever than by weak and mortal men who are just like us! Because our great high priest lives forever and continually makes intercession for us, we have a hope that never fails! "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." (Hebrews 7:18-19) We couldn't keep the law no matter how hard we tried. We can't even make it through one day without sinning. This is why, under the law, a sacrifice of atonement had to be made every year by the high priest. But these sacrifices couldn't make anyone perfect. They only preserved the people from the wrath of God for one more year, and then the same sacrifice had to be repeated. But Christ, who perfectly kept the law, made a sacrifice of atonement that is good for all time. It doesn't have to be repeated. As the author of Hebrews will say later on, "For by one sacrifice He has made perfect forever those who are being made holy." (Hebrews 10:14) Can you see why grace is better than law? Can you see why Christ has given us a better hope than we ever had before?
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