“So if the priesthood of Levi, on which the law was based, could have achieved the perfection God intended, why did God need to establish a different priesthood, with a priest in the order of Melchizedek instead of the order of Levi and Aaron? And if the priesthood is changed, the law must also be changed to permit it. For the priest we are talking about belongs to a different tribe, whose members have never served at the altar as priests. What I mean is, our Lord came from the tribe of Judah, and Moses never mentioned priests coming from that tribe. This change has been made very clear since a different priest, who is like Melchizedek, has appeared. Jesus became a priest, not by meeting the physical requirement of belonging to the tribe of Levi, but by the power of a life that cannot be destroyed. And the psalmist pointed this out when he prophesied, “You are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.” Yes, the old requirement about the priesthood was set aside because it was weak and useless. For the law never made anything perfect. But now we have confidence in a better hope, through which we draw near to God. This new system was established with a solemn oath. Aaron’s descendants became priests without such an oath, but there was an oath regarding Jesus. For God said to him, “The Lord has taken an oath and will not break his vow: ‘You are a priest forever.’” Because of this oath, Jesus is the one who guarantees this better covenant with God. There were many priests under the old system, for death prevented them from remaining in office. But because Jesus lives forever, his priesthood lasts forever. Therefore he is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf. He is the kind of high priest we need because he is holy and blameless, unstained by sin. He has been set apart from sinners and has been given the highest place of honor in heaven. Unlike those other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices every day. They did this for their own sins first and then for the sins of the people. But Jesus did this once for all when he offered himself as the sacrifice for the people’s sins. The law appointed high priests who were limited by human weakness. But after the law was given, God appointed his Son with an oath, and his Son has been made the perfect High Priest forever.”
Hebrews 7:11-28 NLT
In ancient Jewish religion, the priest were intermediaries between God and man. They served to connect God to man whenever there was an aberrant disconnection. This was the purpose of their sacrifices. These priests were shepherded by a single figure, the high priest, who would be the intercession for the other priests, as they were also disconnected. This system worked, in the sense that it kept being used and was acceptable. However, it was wholly imperfect. Firstly, the high priest had to be cleansed and secondly, he would die. Lastly, his offerings were reactions to past sins, but carried no future weight. It was a broken system. Jesus flipped this on its head. He didn’t use the levitical system of finite and sinful priests and broken offerings. Instead he was a priest in the way Melchizedek presented in scripture. He was a pre levitical priest and had none of the same requirements. Instead, it was admiration, worship and submission, prompted by love that was offered and accepted. Jesus is this kind of high priest. By him, we no longer need the broken system of imperfect sacrifices to a imperfect man. This is part of our hope in Christ. In him our sacrifices mean something, because he released us of levitical sacrifices. He did this, not by disregarding them, but by giving his own perfect blood to pay for them. In this way he is the levitical lamb and Melchizedekian high priest. He fulfills both systems so we can come to God in both courts.
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