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This is the sermon for the Seventh Sunday of Easter. The sermon text is: Hebrews 7:11-27. The sermon theme is: We Need A Priest Like Jesus. Here is the Written Sermon.

We Need A Priest Like Jesus

It just won’t work. There are times when that has to be our final assessment. It just won’t work. When we were in Colorado we lived right across the street from a Home Depot. And on any given week you could look in their parking lot and see situation that you knew just weren’t going to work out. You’d see a guy carrying out a long board 15 or 20’ long. He’d carry it all the way out to his car. And then he’d spend a half an hour trying to somehow get that board to fit in his car. Then you’d see him driving his car out of the parking lot. And it looked like one of those appetizers with the meatball on one end and a long toothpick sticking out the other end.

You could take just one look at it and realize that it wasn’t going to work. It was not going to work because that’s not what it was made for. You don’t use sub-compact cars for carrying long boards. You don’t use spoons for cutting meat. That’s not what it’s made for. In the words we look at this morning we have the same thought. Only, in these words the Writer to the Hebrews is not talking about boards or spoons. He tells us: “If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the law was given to the people), why was there still need for another priest to come” (Hebrews 7:11 NIV)

The Old Testament priesthood was good. It had a God-given point and purpose. But just as a sub-compact car wasn’t meant to haul long, heavy boards, so also the Old Testament priesthood was not meant to be the solution to our sin. As the Writer says here, it cannot bring perfection.¹

Then, right after he makes this point he proves it. How do we know that the Old Testament Levitical priesthood could not take us to our goal of perfection in heaven? The bible mentions another, different priesthood: “¹⁷ For it is declared: “You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.” ¹⁸ The former regulation is set aside because it was weak and useless” (Hebrews 7:17–18 NIV)

Who is Melchizedek? As we read in our first lesson this morning, after Abraham rescued his nephew, Lot, Melchizedek appears seemingly out of nowhere. And not only do we not know where he comes from, we also hear that he’s not just a priest—he’s a high priest. And as quickly as he enters into history, he vanishes. But the Holy Spirit wasn’t finished speaking about Melchizedek. As we learned in Psalm 110 a couple days ago on Ascension, through King David God, the Father says to his Son: ““You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.”” (Psalms 110:4 NIV)

So, notice the point the writer to the Hebrews makes. The Old Testament priesthood couldn’t do it all. It could not bring us to perfection. We know this because the Holy Spirit speaks of a different priesthood like this guy, Melchizedek had.

The writer says that the Old Testament priesthood couldn’t achieve perfection. He proves it by letting us know that there was a different priesthood in Melchizedek. Then he answers a very important question. He answers the question, why: “(for the law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God.” (Hebrews 7:19 NIV)

Why is it that the priesthood couldn’t bring perfection? Here’s the answer: Because the law made nothing perfect.² So the Lord commanded people to bring animals to the temple to be sacrificed because of their sin. Were the people perfect? Were the animals perfect? Were even the priests perfect? The answer to all of these questions is “no.” All of the commands the Lord gave to his priests and to his people did not make anything perfect. And that’s the price to get into heaven. You need to be perfect. The best the priesthood could do was to show them their sin and show them their Savior.

Now this is the part of the sermon where it’s very tempting to drift. It’s very tempting to say to yourself: “Melchizedek, Levitical priesthood—none of it means anything to me today.” But my brothers and sisters in Christ, what King Solomon said so long ago is true: “there is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9 NIV) The law did not bring perfection then. And it doesn’t today. Probably the clearest way we see this is in our Voter’s meetings and open forums. Just pick a problem in the church and there’s always the temptation to solve it with a law and a command. So if our church attendance isn’t good, then what’s the solution? It usually sounds like this: “pastor, you need to tell those people to get to church at least two-thirds of the time, or else they’re no longer members here.” If the problem is money, then the solution usually sounds like this: “pastor, the solution is very simple. Just find out how many families there are here in church. Then divide the church budget by that number. And if they don’t pay their fair share then they need to be kicked out.”

What’s the problem with these examples? We are trying to use the law to do what it cannot. The ten commandments cannot forgive sin. The ten commandment cannot move people to come to church and to give with joy. The ten commandments cannot give us a perfect record before God and a perfect and pure heart now. The ten commandments have a good and godly purpose. But that purpose is not to perfect us. And we sin when we use God’s law to do what his word says it cannot do. It cannot bring perfection.

My brothers and sisters in Christ, we need the law to show us our sin. But we do not need the law to bring us perfection because it cannot. Instead we need a high priest like Melchizedek. We need a different High priest. And that is exactly what we have: “²³ Now there have been many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office; ²⁴ but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. ²⁵ Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.” (Hebrews 7:22–25 NIV)

We need a high priest like Jesus. Jesus is our great High Priest because he intercedes for us forever. Just think about that: how often do you sin? Do you just sin some of the time? Are there some seasons of the year where you don’t really sin that much? Do you say to yourself, “I love summer because I sin so much less in the summertime?” No, obviously not. As Luther reminds us, we sin daily much.

And yet, what are you able to do? You are able to gather with your fellow, treasured believers and approach God the Father and say “take away my sin and give to me your perfection.” And even more amazing that that, the Father actually listens to you. He hears your prayer. He takes away your sin and gives to you his perfection. Why? He does so because Jesus, your High Priest is interceding for you. Jesus is there saying to the Father “listen to this sinner. Forgive this mom for the time she told her child that he was a sinner and then never spoke about me—the one who has taken away his sin. Forgive this Father who used the ten commands as path to perfection instead of a mirror for sin. Forgive them, my Father.” That’s why the Father listens to your prayers. That’s why Jesus is the real, true High Priest. He ascended into heaven to constantly and continually intercede for you.

And that reason would be good enough, wouldn’t it? We could say with all joy and contentment right now, we need Jesus as our High Priest because he intercedes for us forever. But the writer to the Hebrews give us yet another reason: “²⁶ Such a high priest meets our need — one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. ²⁷ 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. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself.” (Hebrews 7:26–27 NIV)

Jesus intercedes forever. And his sacrifice is final. The Old Testament priest kept killing animals to atone for their sins and also for the sins of the people. Year after year, decade after decade, century after century—all that work, all that blood showing them their sin and showing them a Savior to come. But what did Jesus do? Jesus sacrificed himself one time and one time only. His sacrifice was a final sacrifice to take away all sins.

This, my brothers and sisters, is good news. Day by day and week by week we approach our Father in prayer. And as often as we do Jesus intercedes for us so that the Father will hear our prayers and so that our sins will be forgiven. But what about the times we don’t pray? What about the times we don’t approach our Father? What about the many sins we commit which we don’t confess because we forget or don’t even know about? Jesus says to you that he has laid down his life as a one-time, final sacrifice. So, even before you pray your sins are forgiven.

So rejoice. For the sort of high priest that we need, we have. Jesus’ intercession for us is forever. Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins is final. Amen.

¹ τελείωσις διὰ τῆς Λευιτικῆς ἱερωσύνης ἦν

² οὐδὲν γὰρ ἐτελείωσεν ὁ νόμος