Good morning,
Praise the Lord that He is able to save to the uttermost. He is more than wonderful. The people who have not known Him, are looking for life in wrong places. They are searching for answers from the wrong sources.
It was reported a couple of weeks ago that three people died tragically in a sweat lodge experience. People went to a retreat site for new age experiment, where they paid $9000 per person for a week of spiritual cleansing and renewal. One of those who died was a young woman in her thirties, in great physical condition. She was bright, yet she was deceived by Satan, who comes to steal and destroy.
One of the readings for yesterday was taken from Hebrews 7. Verse twenty-five says, “He is also able to save to the uttermost”, which says literally “He is always able.” The sacrifices, under the Old Testament, never did more than temporarily cover sin. They never even partiality or temporarily removed sin. Even though the High Priests down through the years may have wished to remove the people’s sin they were simply unable to do so. Jesus, however, is not only able, but He is the only one who is able to do so.
Bible-believing Christians are sometimes criticized as narrow-minded or intolerant for maintaining that Jesus is the only way to God. Yet, the reason that we make this claim is because that is what the Bible teaches. Jesus himself said in (John 14:6), “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Jesus is not only able to save; He is the only one able to save. He is the only one with the power of salvation. The Apostle Peter is quoted as saying in Acts 4:12, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
The last portion of Hebrews 7:25 says, “… He always lives to make intercession for them.” One of our struggles is wondering if we are praying for the right things and in the right way. Jesus hears out awkward, ill-worded prayers, and then goes before the Father to speak on our behalf.
Kent Hughes offers us help on this point. “How does he intercede for us? He, along with the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:26,27) takes our feeble prayers, cleans them up, ennobles them, and presents them to the Father. St. Chrysostom, the great fourth-century preacher, provided a helpful analogy. A young boy whose father was away on a trip wanted to present his father with something that would please him. His mother sent him to the garden to gather a bouquet of flowers. The little boy gathered a sorry bouquet of weeds as well as flowers. But when his father returned home, he was presented with a beautifully arranged bouquet, for the mother had intervened, removing all the weeds.
The prayers of the church, prevailing, acceptable, and fruitful as they are, are not a thing of beauty as they leave the lips of saints. As they start their way heavenward, they are a mixed bag of weeds with a few stray flowers. When they arrive, however, thanks to the intercession of Christ they are nothing but beautiful flowers. What blessed, comforting thoughts these are as we, amidst our frailties, pray [[R. Kent Hughes. Hebrews: An Anchor For the Soul. Vol 1 ( Wheaton: Crossway Books, 1993) page 208].
We have an example of the intercession of Jesus in his prayer for Peter when Satan wanted to destroy him (Luke 22:32) and his High Priestly prayer in John 17.
He is a better high priest because of His prayers, “For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens; who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people’s, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself. For the law appoints as high priests men who have weakness, but the word of the oath, which came after the law, appoints the Son who has been perfected forever.”
The problem of sinful men attempting to mediate for sinful men is that it leaves sinful men in their sin! John Philips portrayed an imaginative scene in which an unbelieving pagan (Moabite) was observing the annual Day of Atonement in Jerusalem. The man saw the high priest in his distinctive garments and asked who he was. He then noticed the large crowd of onlookers and asked if it was a special day. He was told yes, that it was the Day of Atonement, on which animals that have specially prepared are sacrificed for the sins of the people. The man looked around and said, “I see some animals tethered over there. …. There is a bullock and a couple of goats, as well as some rams. I suppose that they are going to be sacrificed.” His informant told him that he was correct, and then pointed to the Tabernacle where he pointed out the pillar of cloud above it that indicated the presence of God. He said, “The high priest will go over there. Then he will come out and he will take those two goats. He will slay one of them and then he will go back into the Holy of Holies with the blood, which he will sprinkle on the mercy seat. Then he will come back out again and take the remaining goat. He will confess all our sins over the head of that goat. Then he will be given into the hands of ritually clean man who will lead it out into the desert, bearing our sins, there to be abandoned and alone. Thus our sins are cleansed and carried away of another year.
That is very interesting, said the man, but what’s that big bullock for? He seems like a fine animal. It’s the biggest bullock I have ever seen. ‘Oh, I forgot to tell you about that. That bullock is for the priest. Before He can do anything about our sin, he has to do something about his own. That’s what the bullock is for.’
The visitor “looked astonished, ‘Two small goats take care of all the sins of the vast crowd…and a great bullock for the sins of the priest. Why is that?’
‘Well, you see,’ said his friend, ‘sin in us is bad enough but sin in him is far more serious. His sin looms larger in God’s sight than all of ours!” [John Philips. Exploring Hebrews. (Neptune, New Jersey: Loizeaux Brothers, 1992) pp. 84-85]
Unlike the priest who descended from Aaron, Jesus is “holy” – “blameless” –and “unstained” –
Jesus is indeed,the prophet, the priest an the King. We are blessed beyond belief to know Him as our Lord and Saviour.
In Him,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-zJHgaoVa4
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