March 1932
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Chiudi* lesin ike EPISTLE io i L HEBREWS . . . B y J ohn C. P age , L os Angeles, Calif. HEBREWS 8 T h e contrast arid comparison between
T h e N ew S anctuary Our Lord is now a minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle (8:2). The earthly tent in which1 the;Le- vitical priest ministered has given place to the heavenly tabernacle in which our great High Priest ministers. The true tabernacle is now in heaven. No man has even min istered there save the Man Christ Jesus. It was a great day when Aaron entered the earthly tabernacle, but who shall describe the glory and grandeur of that day when our High Priest sat down on the right hand of the Majesty in the heavens and began His Priestly service for us as a minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle which the Lord pitched ! The earthly ministry of Israel’s priests pales before the glorious light of the heavenly ministry of our Lord. The effort to perpetuate an earthly priesthood, a priestly class, during this present church age has turned thé eyes of the people from a Saviour in heaven to a religious system on earth. The heavenly ministry of Christ has set in operation heavenly powers which are now available to the Christian believer. We do not serve that which is a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. In some cases, however, where the doctrines of men have been substituted for the truth of God, the shadows still prevail. Priestly hierarchies ,and ecclesiasticism have fastened upon a multitude of souls a formal worship which keeps the worshiper occupied with the shadows. Many have trusted Christ and are saved, but they have never come to jcnow the freedom wherewith Christ has set them free. Like Lazarus, they have life but are bound by tradition. Spiritual emancipation is the por tion of those who, through the Spirit, are led into the truth as it is in Christ, the truth of salvation by grace through faith and that not of oneself. It is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast (cf. Eph. 2:8). The ritualistic practices carried over from the Jewish form of worship into the Christian church-, as in Rome and some parts of Protestantism, have deprived a multitude of souls of their Christian heritage. No greater tragedy has marked the Christian centuries than the substitution of a sacerdotal system for a simple saving faith in the Son of God. It is all part of that mystical Babylon which finds its ulti mate end in Revelation 17 and 18. T h e N ew C ovenant The new covenant unfolds four distinct features; namely, a -new\ method, ^ new, relationship, à new knowl edge, and a new ¡provision for sin. “I will,puf my laws' in their mind, and write them in -their hearts.” This indièates a new, method, and reminds us of the promise in Ezfekiel 36't26 and 27 : “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will Î put within you : . . . and I will put my spirit within ^ou, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.” This scripture is sometimes applied to the church and to individual be- lievers in.the present age. In an accommodated sense, this may be'permissible, but strictly interpreted, it applies to Israel. The promise immediately following in verse128 precludes any other interpretation. The promise is* “Ye shall dwell in-the land that I gave to your fathers^’, The
Christ and all others is now complete. He is greater than angels, greater than Moses, Joshua, or Aaron, and He is the great Antitype of Melchizedek. The writer of the book of Hebrews passes on to a comparison of Christ and the new order which he introduces in place of the old order which has passed away. We are now to consider the new Priest, the new sanctuary, and the new covenant. T h e N ew P riest The description of our High Priest, in the closing verses of chapter 7, is followed by an affirmation in the opening words of chapter 8: “We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the Majesty in the heavens.” If the closing verses, of chapter 7 have conveyed their message to the heart, the reader will linger with the two words, “we have.” These two words do not constitute a promise; they record a fact. Dare to assert this fact con tinually. You can do this if you really believe it. We have such a High Priest as is described in 7 :24 to 27. “He continueth ever,” and His priesthood is “unchangeable.” He is able, and His ministry is spiritual and eternal. In Himself, He is “holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners,” being no longer on earth, and is “higher than the heavens.” He made one sufficient sacrifice for sin, and then by the word of the oath, was inaugurated into His office (7:28). Such a High Priest became us, and better than that, we have such an one. He represents us •in heaven, and He is ceaselessly active on our behalf. Believe this and then repeat the words of 1 Peter 1 :8, “Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.” We have an unspeakably glorious High Priest to whom we may look, and in whom we may rejoice. Truly my soul shall make her boast in the Lord who, having finished the work on earth given Him to do, sat ¿own on the right hand of the Majesty in the heavens. We must not miss the import of that phrase, “he sat down.” It clearly implies and, in the light of other Scrip tures, explicitly teaches that His work on earth in dealing with sin is finished. He has nothing more to do in that capacity. All offerings for sin were abolished when He offered Himself once for all. The divine decree now is “no more sacrifice for sins,” and “no more offering for sin.” By virtue of the completion and perfection of that one offering, “he sat down.” The man of faith receives this, ceases from his own works, and enters into rest, the rest of dependence on the perfect Man in heaven. The present work of our Lord is unfinished and will re main so until the priestly prayer in John 17:24 is answered for every one of His own: “Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me.” In the little while between, we may find strength and com fort in knowing that He ever liveth to make intercession for them that come unto God by Him, and that He is able to save them to the uttermost.
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