High Priest

God commanded Moses to put into the ark of the testimony the two stone tablets that were engraved with “The Ten Commandments”.  The tablets of stone contained “The Law” or ten rules that God commanded the Israelites to keep or uphold. Unfortunately, nobody to this day is able to follow the Ten Commandments.   Part of God’s temporary plan for Israel was to ordain a high priest who could intercede or make atonement for all the people. Once a year, the high priest would enter the inner most part of the Tabernacle and sprinkle the blood from a sacrifice on top of the “Mercy Seat”.

In Genesis 3:21, we find the key that unlocks the mystery of the why the blood sacrifice was necessary. The atonement, or covering for Adam and Eve that was designed by God to cover their sin, was a blood sacrifice. In the process of making garments of skin, God killed and slaughtered animals to make the coverings. In the book of Hebrews 9:20-22, it explains to us that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. The gruesome death and slaughter of these animals by God to make tunics of skin produced a vivid picture that choosing to disobey God comes at a very high and precious price. Remember, all the animals in the garden were personally named by Adam. To cover or atone for Adam’s mistake required the life of his beloved companions.

Being descended from Adam, we have inherited his seed and original sin. Even without this curse all humans would continue to sin. It requires little effort to go astray and be disobedient to God.  So as the Ten Commandments lay in the ark under the cover of the mercy seat God instructs Moses on the need for a high priest to intercede on the people’s behalf. Moses’ brother Aaron becomes the first high priest for the nation of Israel and ordains his sons to become priests. The high priest would intercede on behalf of the people to sprinkle the blood on the mercy seat. Now to enter the tabernacle and especially the holy of holies, God made it very clear that only the high priest could go in before the Ark of the Covenant. Only the high priest could stand before the mercy seat and God’s presence, or Shecaniah Glory, and only one day out of a year.

The problem for the high priest in the tabernacle was that he could die extremely quick in the presence of a holy and righteous God if he did not follow all procedures and the rules for ritual cleansing. To add to the priest’s anxiety, God instructed that gold bells be sewn around the bottom hem of the priestly garments. So if the other priests stopped hearing the bells, they assumed the worst had happened. It probably only took a couple of priests losing their lives retrieving the high priest that they started tying a long cord around his ankle.  The problem is that all of us as sinful people can’t exist in the presence of a pure, holy and righteous God. We desperately need a high priest to redeem us through a blood sacrifice.

In the book of Hebrews 9:11 “But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation.” You see, God set up a model on earth of things in heaven. The ritual of the high priest performing the blood sacrifice was a yearly reminder of what the cost of disobeying God requires.  The next sentence in Hebrews 9:12, explains everything: “Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.”

The blood of Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, is so precious and powerful that it took away all sin past present and future for eternity. Yes, your sins have been forgiven and you can one day stand in the presence of God because of your High Priest, your King and your friend Jesus. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end and all who call upon the name of Jesus Christ shall be saved. Hebrews 9:27 says “And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many.” I implore all of you reading this to be sure you have called upon the name of the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. God loves you so very much He was willing to become flesh and blood and redeem us through the precious blood of His own son. Praise the name of Jesus!