HEBREWS: THE INFINITE SUPREMACY AND SUFFICIENCY OF JESUS CHRIST

XII. The Superiority Of Christ's High Priestly Service

(Hebrews 9:1-14)

I. Introduction

A. We live in an era of great need for an encouraging word amid man's discouraging spiritual failure, so a word from God on the infinite supremacy and sufficiency of His Son Jesus Christ is both desirable and fitting.

B. The Epistle of Hebrews offers it, and Hebrews 9:1-14 clarifies the superiority of Christ's High Priestly service in contrast to that of the Aaronic priests, so we view the passage for our insight and edification:

II. The Superiority Of Christ's High Priestly Service, Hebrews 9:1-14.

A. The readers of the epistle were being pressured to return to dead Judaism by false guilt for their failure to stay with the rituals of the Old Testament tabernacle in becoming Christians. (Bible Know. Com., N. T., p. 779)

B. To free them from this false guilt, the author contrasted the Old Covenant with Christ's ministry, Heb. 9:1-14:

1. The author first highlighted major aspects of the high priestly ministry of the Old Testament tabernacle and ministry, setting the stage to contrast them with Christ's superior ministry, Hebrews 9:1-10:

a. The old Mosaic Covenant contained ordinances and priestly service in an earthly sanctuary, Hebrews 9:1.

b. It provided for a tabernacle with its candlestick and table of shewbread in the Holy Place, Hebrews 9:2.

c. It also provided for the Holiest of Holies with the golden altar that stood just outside it in the Holy Place but pertained to the ministry of the Holiest of Holies, Hebrews 9:3-4a.

d. Inside the Holiest of Holies was the ark of the covenant overlaid with gold, and it contained the golden pot of manna, Aaron's rod that budded and the tables of the Ten Commandments, Hebrews 9:4b,c.

e. Above the ark were the cherubim that overshadowed the mercy seat, and the author added that though he could speak much on the typology of these things, he hastened to deal with his main theme, Heb. 9:5a,b.

f. When these furnishings were ordained for divine service, the priests would enter the tabernacle, going into the Holy Place while the Holiest of Holies was left for the high priest to enter only once each year after having offered a sacrifice first for his own sins and later for the sins of the people, Hebrews 9:6-7.

g. By this ritual that was repeated every year, the Holy Spirit signified that the way into the Holiest of Holies, God's actual presence, had not yet been manifested, and would not be manifested while the first tabernacle still stood as the tabernacle established by God for Israel's use, Hebrews 9:8.

h. Indeed, the fact that this old tabernacle's services had to be repeated annually indicated that "the Old-Covenant sacrificial system did not meet human need at its deepest level. It could not clear the conscience of the worshiper," so those who worshipped under this old system "were chiefly concerned with externals which were only meant to apply until the time of the new order," Hebrews 9:9-10; Ibid., p. 801.

2. However, Christ's High Priestly ministry in the heavenly tabernacle fulfilled the spiritual requirements needed to purge the believer from dead, ritualistic works that he might serve the living God, Heb. 9:11-14:

a. Christ appeared as a High Priest of the good things that have come through the greater, more perfect heavenly tabernacle that was made by God, not by man from the things of this earth, Hebrews 9:11.

b. Also, not by the blood of animals, but by His own blood, Christ entered "once-for-all" (ephapax, Arndt & Gingrich, A Grk.-Eng. Lex. of the N. T., 1967, p. 330) into the Holiest of Holies, having obtained eternal redemption for us, Hebrews 9:12.

c. If the blood of sacrificial animals in the Old Covenant and the ashes of a sacrificed heifer used for sprinkling the unclean could purify the flesh in the Old Testament, how much more would the blood of Christ, Who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot in striking contrast to the Old Covenant high priest who had to offer a sacrifice even for his own sins to God purge the conscience of the author's readers from dead, ritualistic works under Judaism to serve the living God as Christians, Hebrews 9:13-14!

Lesson: Since the Old Mosaic Covenant with its tabernacle and priesthood by its own practices indicated that it was inadequate fully to address the issue of conscience contrasts so greatly with Christ's All-Sufficient High Priestly ministry in the heavenly tabernacle, we Christians can afford to purge our consciences from false guilt by living free of the Old Covenant and serving the living God through our All-Sufficient Lord Jesus Christ!

Application: May we live free of false guilt for not heeding earthly priesthoods, for our heavenly High Priest in Christ has an infinitely superior ministry in a far better heavenly tabernacle that equips us to purge our conscience from dead legalistic works of this world's religions to serve the living God.