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5 In the same way, Christ did not take on himself the glory of becoming a high priest. But God said to him, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father.” 6 And he says in another place, “You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.” 7 During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. 8 Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered 9 and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him 10 and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek. ~ Hebrews 5:5-10
We return to our study of Hebrews 5, wherein, having explained the requirements of the Old Testament high priest, the writer of Hebrews introduces us to the only One who is truly qualified to be High Priest before God on the behalf of sinful man, the Lord Jesus Christ.
In v.5 of today's passage we read, "In the same way, Christ did not take on himself the glory of becoming a high priest. But God said to him, 'You are my Son; today I have become your Father.'"
The writer of Hebrews begins this verse with "In the same way," pointing us back to the previous verses where he established the three requirements for a high priest. Christ was selected by God from among the people. God, the Father, chose His Son to be the High Priest of all who would believe that His sacrifice on the cross paid the penalty of God's wrath for our sin in full.
Then, in v.5, the writer of Hebrews quotes Psalm 2:7, "You are my Son; today I have become your Father." The writer of Hebrews consistently quotes the Old Testament because he wrote to Jews who were well acquainted with the Old Testament and he was maximizing their understanding. By quoting Psalm 2:7, the writer showed the Lord Jesus fulfilled the first requirement as High Priest. The Lord Jesus was called and was appointed by God to come to earth to die for the hopeless.
In v.6 of today's passage we read, "You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek." The same God that said, "You are my Son," is the same God that said, "You are a priest." In fact, this verse is a quotation from Psalm 110:4, which reads, "The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind: 'You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.'"
God, Himself, ordained the Lord Jesus to be the High Priest, thus, fulfilling the first requirement of a priest. Now, Melchizedek is spoken of in Psalm 110 which provides a prophesy of the coming Messiah. And, Melchizedek was an Old Testament type of Christ. We were first introduced to him in Genesis 14:18 long before Aaron was ever made high priest. The priesthood of Melchizedek superseded the priesthood of Aaron in many ways, as we will see. Thus, Christ is greater than Aaron.
In Genesis 14:18 we read, "Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High."
Melchizedek was the king of Salem, the original name of Jerusalem. And, he brought out bread and wine in connection with his high priestly duties. The bread and wine was a slight pull back of the curtain, a hint of what was to come. Like Melchizedek, the Lord Jesus has always been the king priest. Melchizedek was a type of Christ's eternal priesthood. There is no record of his birth or death. It is as if he always existed, and, He has always existed. And, when we study Hebrews 7 we will learn just that.
In v.7 of today's passage we read, "During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission."
The Lord Jesus not only fit the first qualification of the high priest, this verse informs us He fulfilled the second, He is empathetic with mankind. The Lord Jesus offered up prayers and petitions. He also cried fervent cries, and tears. The Lord Jesus Christ could not have been a fully empathetic high priest if He had not have come to earth as a baby and grew up to be a man. He spent His days on earth feeling what we feel.
The Garden of Gethsemane was one of the greatest moments of the suffering of the Lord Jesus, for there He began to bear the sins of the world. There, He felt the crush of sin when He went into the Garden to pray. There, He agonized over the looming cross. "He prayed to the one who could save him from death."
The word translated "from" is the word "ek" in the Greek, which means "out from within." The Lord Jesus didn't pray, "God don't let me die," He prayed, "Father, once I get into this, get me out of it." Here, the Lord Jesus was praying for His resurrection. He prayed to Him who is able to save Him out of death. He did not pray to escape death, for that was why He was born. He prayed to be saved out of death. He knows anguish like we do not. We have and never will approach this type of pain.
In v.8-10 of today's passage we read, "8 Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered 9 and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him 10 and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek."
The Lord Jesus obviously struggled to obey the Father as He moved closer to His cross. He had to go through with the sacrifice. And, even though He was God's Son, He learned by suffering. That is the only way we truly learn, when we learn by experience. We can say something hurts us, but until we have experienced the pain, we really can't be empathetic with someone who has been hurt. Empathy comes from experiencing what someone else has experienced. This is how the Lord Jesus learned obedience, He endured the unwanted suffering and pain.
By the way, when we read, "once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him," it does not mean He was made perfect. It means the salvation He came to provide us was made perfect. And, by His death, the perfect Lord Jesus fulfilled the third requirement to be our High Priest, He sacrificed for the people. The Lord Jesus Christ opened the way of eternal salvation for all humble enough to believe. All the priests of all time couldn't provide eternal salvation, they could provide temporary forgiveness, one sacrifice at a time. But, only Christ was able to seal the deal for eternity. And, the death He died, He died once and for all for those who have believed in Him.
The Lord Jesus Christ became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him. It was the death, burial, and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ that justified us before God. And, once we have been justified, and, "born again," God begins His sanctification work in us. And, when we obey Him, we are yielding to His sanctification. Our obedience will be there if we know Him as our Father. It will never be perfect this side of heaven, but it will be there because He lives in us.