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The perfect High Priest (Hebrews 8) December 12, 2015

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Scriptures

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Hebrews 8

Set – Hebrews 7-8

Go! – Hebrews 5-8

Hebrews 8
1 So let me sum up what we’ve covered so far, for there is much we have said: we have a High Priest, a perfect Priest who sits in the place of honor in the highest heavens, at the right hand of the throne of the Majestic One, 2 a Minister within the heavenly sanctuary set up by the Lord, not by human hands.
3 As I have said, it is the role of every high priest to offer gifts and sacrifices to God, so clearly this Priest of ours must have something to offer as well. 4 If He were on earth, then He would not be a priest at all because there are already priests who can offer gifts according to the law of Moses 5 in a sanctuary that is only a copy and shadow of the heavenly sanctuary. We know this because God admonished Moses as he set up the tent for the Lord’s sanctuary: “Be sure that you make everything according to the pattern I showed you on the mountain.” 6 But now Jesus has taken on a new and improved priestly ministry; and in that respect, He has been made the Mediator of a better covenant established on better promises. 7 Remember, if the first covenant had been able to reconcile everyone to God, there would be no reason for a second covenant. 8 God found fault with the priests when He said through the prophet Jeremiah,
“Look! The time is coming,” the Eternal Lord says,
“when I will bring about a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah.
9 It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors
when I took them by the hand
and led them out of slavery in the land of Egypt.
They did not remain faithful to that covenant,
so,” the Eternal One says, “I turned away from them.
10 But when those days are over,” the Eternal One says, “I will make
this kind of covenant with the people of Israel:
I will put My laws on their minds
and write them upon their hearts.
I will be their God,
and they will be My people.
11 In those days, they won’t need to teach each other My ways
or to say to each other, ‘Know the Eternal.’
In those days, all will know Me,
from the least to the greatest.
12 I will be merciful when they fail,
and I will erase their sins and wicked acts out of My memory
as though they had never existed.”
13 With the words “a new covenant,” God made the first covenant old, and what is old and no longer effective will soon fade away completely.

Today’s Devotional

From today’s background scripture God might say:

Have you ever thought why Jesus, the Son of God, is the perfect High Priest? Every religion since the beginning have had priests to act as intermediaries to the gods. People always thought their gods were too high and powerful to be approached by mere mortals. And so, communities, religions established priesthoods to act as their intermediaries. Individuals set apart by their special insight or intellect or behavior to act as one who would approach their god on their behalf.

I even did it for the Israelites as I established their worship of Me. I gave Moses the order of priests through Aaron and the tribe of Levi because of their unwillingness to face Me. The Israelites fear of Me caused Me to allow individuals to act as intermediaries on your behalf for a time because you were afraid to approach Me. And like all other religions, you wanted a special place to worship Me, so you build a Temple because you thought I needed a house to dwell in.

But think about Jesus, all God and all Man. Human priests fall short in their ability to approach Me because they still fall so short in their insight, intellect, or behavior compared to a holy God. But My Son, Me in the flesh, part of the triune Godhead. Perfect in insight, wisdom, and sinless. He needed no intermediary. Jesus could approach Me on your behalf because He was and is God Himself. Not just good, but God. Jesus could approach frail humans with all their faults because He was and is human.

Jesus. Son of God. Son of Man. The perfect High Priest. Eternal. Sinless. Approaches Me without hesitation because He is God. Approaches all humanity without hesitation because He is Man. He knows Me intimately. He knows you intimately. How could there be a better High Priest than Jesus? How could there be a better intercessor for you than Jesus? How could there be a better gift from heaven than the God-Man, Jesus?

So who do you want as your High Priest? Some human with his faults? Or Jesus, the perfect High Priest? Think about it, but it’s not a hard decision.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Who is Jesus to you? (Mark 6:30-56), Feb 27, 2015

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Today’s Podcast


Subscribe in: iTunes|Download

Today’s Scriptures

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Mark 6:30-56
Set – Numbers 23; Mark 6
Go! – Numbers 21-23; Mark 6

Mark 6:30-56
30 Now the twelve returned from their travels and told Him what they had done, whom they had seen, and how they had spread the news of God’s kingdom.

Jesus (to the disciples): 31 Let us go out into the wilderness for a while and rest ourselves.

The crowds gathered as always, and Jesus and the twelve couldn’t eat because so many people came and went. 32 They could get no peace until they boarded a boat and sailed toward a deserted place.

33 But the people would not be put off so easily. Those along the shore who recognized Jesus followed along the coast. People pushed out of all the cities and gathered ahead of Him 34 so that when Jesus came ashore and saw this crowd of people waiting for Him in a place that should have been relatively deserted, He was moved with compassion. They were like sheep without a shepherd.

He began to teach them many things 35 as the day passed; at last the disciples came to Jesus.

Disciples: It is getting late, and there is nothing around for miles. 36 Send these people to the surrounding villages so they can buy something to eat.

Jesus: 37 Why don’t you give them something to eat?

Disciples (looking at Him): What? It would cost a fortune[a] to buy bread for these people!

Jesus: 38 Does anyone have any bread? Go and see.

Disciples (returning from the crowd): There are five pieces of flatbread and two fish, if that makes any difference.

Jesus: 39-40 Listen, tell them to gather in smaller groups and sit on that green patch of grass.

And so the disciples gathered the people in groups of 100 or of 50, and they sat down.

41 Jesus took the five pieces of flatbread and the two fish, looked up to heaven, thanked God for the food, and broke it. He gave the pieces to the disciples to distribute, 42 and all of the people ate until no one was hungry. 43 Then they gathered twelve baskets full of leftovers.

44 That day, 5,000 men ate their fill of the bread when Jesus fed the hungry crowd.

45 Not long after, He sent His disciples out onto their boat to sail to Bethsaida on the other shore, and He sent the crowd away. 46 After everyone had gone, He slipped away to pray on a mountain overlooking the sea.

47 When evening came, the boat was out on the sea and He was alone on the land. 48 He saw that the disciples were making little progress because they were rowing against a stiff wind. Before daylight He came near them, walking on the water, and would have passed by them. 49 Some of them saw Him walking on the surface of the water, thought He was a ghost, and cried out. 50 When they all saw Him, they were terrified.

Jesus (immediately calling out): Don’t be frightened. Do you see? It is I.

51 He walked across the water to the boat; and as soon as He stepped aboard, the contrary wind ceased its blowing. They were greatly astonished; 52 although they had just witnessed the miracle of Jesus feeding 5,000 with bread and fish, and other signs besides, they didn’t understand what it all meant and their hearts remained hard.

53 When they finished their journey, they landed the boat in Gennesaret.54 People at once recognized Jesus as the Healer. 55 Immediately they hurried to collect the sick and infirm—bringing them to Him in beds if they had to— 56 laying them out in the markets of any village, city, or field where He might pass.

Gennesarites: Just let us touch the fringe of Your robe.

Even the people who touched only it were made whole again.

Today’s Devotional

From today’s background scripture God might say:

It was so hard for people to recognize Jesus for who He was, God incarnate. The disciples watched Him heal the sick with just the touch of His hand or the words He spoke. They watched Him feed crowds with just a handful of food. They watched Him share the scriptures with wisdom and authority that confounded the Pharisees and scribes, those who should have profound knowledge of the verse He made clear with His parables and simple language. The disciples should have easily understood who Jesus was if anyone did. They spent the most time with Him. But as Mark relates in his description of Jesus walking on the water to them. Their hearts were still hard. They didn’t understand Him or His power as God.

They saw a man. One who did incredible things. One who healed when no one else could. One who seemed to perform magic if not miracles, but God? They just had a hard time wrapping their minds around it. Their scriptures said He would come. But for the Messiah to come from Nazareth? How could that happen? For the Messiah to have such lowly beginnings instead of having a high position in the temple? Who could believe such a thing? To believe Jesus was God incarnate stretched their knowledge, their understanding, all the priests and leaders told them. It stretched their faith significantly.

What about today? Is it any easier to believe Jesus is the Son of God? That He lived as both man and God and performed the miracles recorded in scripture? Is it easy for you to believe He willingly gave Himself as a sacrifice for your sins? Who would do such a thing? Would you die so that others could find forgiveness? Do you know any other person who would willingly face the cruel torture Jesus suffered as punishment for someone else?

So today, we seem to set aside the man part of Jesus and focus on the God part. We forget He walked among us and suffered the same aches and pains we do. We forget He experienced the same emotions we experience. We set Him above man and forget He felt every hurt and temptation we feel. What was different about Him is He didn’t bow to the temptations. He remained sinless through the temptations. He instead went to the Father for strength to overcome.

During Lent, set aside time to meditate on who Jesus is to you. Is He just a man? Is He just God? He is both. He is God incarnate. God made flesh to live among men. God wrapped in human flesh to show you how to live each day. God come to live with you for a time to share life and experience everything you experience so He can act as the perfect sacrifice, as the perfect mediator for you. He is God, there from the beginning of creation. He is also man, born of a virgin, who walked with you and showed you how to live. He is who He said He is. You can trust Him. Put your faith in Him today.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.