EMULATING CHRIST’S PRIESTHOOD UNTO CHRISTIAN MATURITY

DIOCESAN THEME: “GOD IS OUR REFUGE AND STRENGTH” – PSALM 46:1a
TEXT: HEBREWS CHAPTER 5
THEME: EMULATING CHRIST’S PRIESTHOOD UNTO CHRISTIAN MATURITY

1 INTRODUCTION
It is expedient that we remind ourselves again of what necessitated the writing of the epistle to the Hebrews so that we do not loose sight of the import of this epistle vis-à-vis the need to make God our refuge and strength and to see Christ Jesus and indeed the Holy Scripture as the finality of all that we need to face the challenges of life.

In chapter five
The priesthood of the Lord Jesus Christ is in focus. Just as His name is the sweetest name we should know, His priesthood is indeed the sweetest for us to embrace. As Christ we must not be DULL nor live in spiritual ignorance. We must grow up especially as touching the mysteries of Christ –Acts 28:27; Ps. 82:5; Jh. 14:9; Eph. 4:18; Isaiah 59:8; Rom. 16:25; 1 Cor. 2:7; Eph. 1:9; Eph. 3:4, 9; Col. 1:27; 1 Tim. 3:16

2. THE GENERAL PERSPECTIVE OF PRIESTHOOD OR PRIESTLY OFFICE: 1-3;
(READ EZEKIEL 34:1-10)
A. This is about the Christian doctrine of THE HIGH PRIESTHOOD OF JESUS CHRIST
B. There are three great basic thoughts about the office of a Priest.
C. The three basic qualifications of priesthood are not LOCAL and TEMPORARY. They are for all AGES and any given generation and dispensation including ours in Nigeria and indeed the Anglican Communion. They are
1. A priest is appointed on men’s behalf to deal with the things concerning God.
2. The priest must be one with men
3. No man appoints himself to the priesthood, his appointment is of God. It is
not an office which man takes; it is a privilege and a glory to which he is called. It is neither a job nor a career; It is a vocation and a calling – Lev. 4; Num. 15:27-29; Lev. 8:2.
N.B The above explains why more often than not quite a number of men and people called into priesthood always exercise initial restraint before yielding to the call. They always have OPTIONS and ALTERNATIVES.

3. THE PLACE OF DIVINE CALLING IN PRIESTHOOD
Notwithstanding the priesthood of all believers, Divine call is still integral. This distinguishes between our general call as Christians – 1 Cor. 1:26 and the particular call into priesthood – Eph. 4:11; Jer. 35:15; 2 Cor. 5:20. The following are examples of divine call. Abraham – Gen. 12:1; Moses – Exod. 3:10; Gideon – Judges 6:14; Elisha – 1 Kings 19:19; Isaiah 6:8; Paul – Acts 26:16, etc.

Parishioners must observe their boundaries by not venturing into the exclusive ministry of the priest. Let us learn from Uzzah – 2 Samuel 6:6-7; King Saul – 1 Samuel 8:13-14; King Uzziah – 2 Chro. 26:16-23, etc God is a merciful God, yet a consuming fire.

4. AARON AND CHRIST PRIESTHOOD: A comparative Analysis: 5:1-4
A. Both were selected by God from among men
B. Both were appointed to represent people before God
C. Both were to pray and offer up sacrifices
D. Both were to demonstrate compassion – 5:2a
E. Both experienced infirmities of the flesh – 5:2b-3

5. THE CONTRASTS: 5:5-10
A. Only Christ is called God’s Son – 5:5
B. Only Christ was given an everlasting priesthood : 5:6a
C. Only Christ was made a priest after the order of MELCHIZEDEK: 5:6b, 9-10

WHO IS THIS MELCHIZEDEK?
1. King of righteousness or justice 2. The king of Salem and priest
3. He met Abraham and blessed him – Gen. 14:18; Ps. 110:4; Heb. 5:6, 10; 6:20; 7:6-21
4. His pedigree not recorded – Ezra 2:59, 62
5. The man who prefigured Christ’s priesthood
6. Although a mysterious figure, Mechizedek is yet a figure of great importance
7. His biography is SHORT – Gen. 14 has his History; Ps. 110 has his prophecy; Heb. 7 has his doctrine
8. As king of Righteousness and king of peace, cause and effect, since our righteousness is made possible only in Christ Jesus who doubles as the prince of peace – Isa. 32:17, then Mechizedek is a striking semblance of Christ.
9. He has no record of father, mother, birth or death; thus typifying the mystery of Christ’s birth.
10. The greatness of Mechizedek is seen in that Abraham gave him TITHES and was blessed – by him. Jesus Christ being a GREATER deserves and demands our ALL.

D. Jesus Christ has an unchallengeable priesthood because He was made PRIEST by the solemnity of a divine oath. Christ’s priesthood is an uninterrupted one because death could not hold Him captive. Christ’s priesthood is untransferable. Christ’s priesthood cannot be delegated to anyone on earth. Christ’s priesthood had no ancestor, no associate, no descendant. Christ’s priesthood is quite distinct from AARON’S or AARONIC PRIESTHOOD = WHAT A PRIVILEGE TO HAVE AND KNOW CHRIST AS OUR HIGH PRIEST.

AARONIC PRIESTHOD: Lev. 8:24-27
1. Aaron plays an important part in the inauguration and development of
Priestly functions as prescribed in Leviticus
2. He was a type of CHRIST as far as GREAT HIGH PRIEST is concerned
3. Chosen by God 4. Needed cleansing
5. Clothed 6. Crowned
7. Consecrated 8. Fed on bread of consecration
9. Blameless 10. Aaron’s children were type of the Christians

E. Only Christ cried out to God in Gethsemane: 5:7-8. Thus a unique difference from
Aarons.

F. THE PRIESTHOOD OF CHRIST
1. Human and Divine – Heb. 2:17 2. Sympathetic – Heb. 4:14-15
3. Divinely Appointed – Heb. 5:5 4. Eternal – Heb. 6:20
5. Sinless – Heb. 7:26 6. Exalted – Heb. 8:1

G. It is indeed therefore dangerous and disastrous to forsake Christ and seek refuge and
strength from other gods given all that He has done and is still doing for us as our great High priest. Such will be a WASTED EFFORT – Ps. 16:4.

6. THE REBUKE IN REGARD TO THE PEOPLE: Heb. 5:11-14
It is always discouraging for ministers to labour and preach to people who are not
receptive to the truth due to DULLNESS and lack of MATURITY.
A. Author has a lot to say but the readers are SLOW TO LEARN – 5:11
B. Still being taught when they should be teachers – 5:12a
C. We have more of baby believers still feeding on MILK – 5:12-13
D. There is a need to grow up to MATURITY and began to digest SOLID FOOD – 5:14

7. HOW TO IDENTIFY A MATURE CHRISTIAN
A. They are spiritually sensitive – 2 Sam. 5:12; 2 Kings 4:9
B. They have discerning spirit – 1 Kings 3:9; Isa. 11:3
C. They know what is GOOD D. They know what is EVIL
E. They are highly committed to the things of God and the Church of God
F. They are strong because they know their God thus making them a candidate for exploits
G. They do not yoke with the word of God. They hold it in high esteem they do not rationalize it nor subject it to ridiculous debates
I. They practice righteousness
J. They are profoundly committed to honouring God
K. They love righteousness through learning
L. They possess a renewed mind – Rom. 12:1-2
M. They always look out thing from the perspective of God
N. They do nothing outside the leading and the promptings of the Holy Spirit
O. They overcome temptations – 1 John 2:14
P. They are committed to Christ’s ideal and excellence – Eph. 4:3
Q. They put away childish things – Eph. 4:3; 1 Cor. 13:11
R. They seek and cultivating understanding – 1 Cor. 4:20
S. They partake actively in deeper truth of Gospel – Heb. 5:14
HOW MATURE ARE YOU IN CHRIST. NOTE THAT THERE IS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CHRONOLOGICAL AGE AND SPIRITUAL AGE. WE MUST GROW UP.

The following are some of the marks of immaturity
A. The immature is not receptive to strong doctrine – 1 Cor. 3:1-2
B. They are unstable in faith – Eph. 4:14
C. They still require tutelage – Gal. 4:1-3
D. They continue in primary department – Heb. 5:12, etc

9A. LET US ASSESS AND DISCUSS PRIESTHOOD TODAY IN THE LIGHT OF THE QUALIFICATIONS IN HEBREWS 5: 1-3. TO WHAT EXTENT CAN WE SAY ALL MEN OF GOD WERE CALLED. (READ EZEKIEL 34:1-10)

Moreso given the rate of joblessness, lack of commitment, love for recognition, lobby for priesthood, preferment, transfer, exploitation of parishioners, level of sympathy, empathy, patience and gentle disposition to those who go astray, etc – 1 Sam. 12:1-7.

9B. WHAT IS IN THIS CHAPTER FOR US
A. To assess priesthood in the clergy workforce in line with the demands of
Priesthood using Ezekiel 34:1-10, etc
B. To assess the level of spiritual maturity of members to ascertain that they are not ever learning and never coming to the knowledge of the truth.

10. CONCLUSION
Christ’s priesthood and the sacrifice He made is all that we need. He remains our sufficiency. We must come to the full knowledge of the truth and never allow any trial, tribulation, trouble and challenge of life to draw us back into rituals and sacrifices that amount to a wasted effort. We must grow unto MATURITY, telling others about Jesus Christ.