JESUS PAID THE
PRICE FOR OUR SINS
Introduction: In January 2001,
Seiko Sakamoto, a Japanese plasterer in a Tokyo subway station, fell into the
path of an oncoming train. Lee Su Hyun, a Korean student in Japan, leaped down
on the tracks to save Sakamoto. Both Hyun and Sakamoto were killed.
This selfless act by the Korean
student on behalf of the Japanese laborer has caused many people in Japan to
reconsider their long-held prejudices against Koreans. Strong feelings of
distrust between the two countries go back to World War II atrocities that the
Japanese inflicted on Koreans. Many Japanese people, including the prime
minister of Japan, have openly expressed sorrow over their stereotypes of
Koreans and have begun to talk about reconciliation.
Nobuaki Fujioka, sixty-two, of
Japan, says, "I felt a kind of a shame. A young foreigner sacrificed his
life for a Japanese. This is not an easy thing to do." On Lee's website in
Korean, we find this statement of Lee, "I came to Japan to make a bridge
between Korea and Japan," he wrote. "I'm going to enjoy my life as
much as possible. Difficulties are also part of my life, and I'm ready to
accept anything."[1] This supreme act has
indeed laid a bridge of reconciliation.
For the past several weeks, we have
been studying about better things in the book of Hebrews. Today we will learn
about someone who made the supreme sacrifice that is far greater than what this
Korean student did in trying to save the life a stranger.
Let's begin our study by asking
ourselves these priceless questions. What is the worth of a human soul? How
much does it cost to obtain salvation? Who has paid the ultimate price for our
sins? Chapter seven begins with an Old Testament mysteriously nameless character
Melchizedek. What do we know about Melchizedek? The name was a combination of
two words, Melech means King, Zedak means righteousness.
So, he can be called "King of
righteousness." He was a King of Salem which means King of Peace. Was he a
real person or a fictional character? We are much in the dark about him. In
total, he appears 18 times out of which 13 times in the book of Hebrews. Here are
the three best considerations in regards to Melchizedek. 1. The Rabbis and most
of the Jewish writers think he was Shem, the son of Noah. 2. Many Christian
writers have thought him to be Jesus Christ himself. 3. Most people believe he
was a Canaanite king, who reigned in Salem at that time.
In the Dead Sea Scrolls, Melchizedek
has become the subject of much speculative interpretation. He is depicted as a
heavenly redeemer figure, a leader of the forces of light, who brings release
to the captives and reigns during the Messianic age. He is the heavenly high
priest. The writer of the Hebrews
compares Melchizedek to Jesus Christ in verses one to eight. Vs. 1 Melchizedek
was a king, so is the Lord Jesus. Vs. 2 He was king of righteousness: his name
means the righteous king. Jesus Christ is rightfully a righteous king.
Vs. 3 He was king of Salem, which
means king of peace. So is our Lord Jesus. He was a priest of God most High. So
is the Lord Jesus. In Genesis 14: 18, He
met Abraham returning from the defeat of the kings and gave him bread and wine
as a king and blessed him as a priest.
Our Lord Jesus meets his people,
refreshes them, renews their strength, and blesses them. In Vs. 2, we read, Then Abraham took a tenth
of all he had captured in battle and gave it to Melchizedek." Similarly,
we are obligated to make all possible returns of love and gratitude to the Lord
Jesus for all the favors we receive from him. Let me say a few words about
tithing here.
Whenever we read a particular
passage in the Bible, we need to pay close attention to the repeated words to
capture the essence of the message. We see the word tithes appearing eight
times in the first eight verses in Chapter 7. Is there something we need to
learn about tithing?
Some Christians say tithing came
after the law; therefore, we don't have to pay tithes, but is it? According to
Genesis 14:20, tithing was in practice way before God ever established it. For
Abraham giving ten percent from all the goods, he recovered to Melchizedek (who
represents God) was to say that I honor God with my tithes for giving me
victory over my enemies. Later on, God instituted it as a sustaining provision
for his priests and their families.
Numbers 18:26, "Give these
instructions to the Levites: When you receive from the people of Israel the
tithes I have assigned as your allotment, give a tenth of the tithes you
receive a tithe of the tithe to the Lord as a sacred offering." When Jesus
came, he did not abolish tithing; instead, he encouraged the practice to continue,
but in addition to religiously giving tithes, be also involved in social
justice matters of concern. (Matt 23:23).
We honor God when we tithe. In the
later part of chapter seven, the author introduces a different high priest who
is like Melchizedek and a better and more permanent way of obtaining salvation
for our sins. Before we talk about this high priest and his way of salvation,
let's look at what was in practice under the Aaronic priesthood and how the
shift has taken place.
I.
THE OLD CUSTOM OF PURGING SINS.
As we follow the journey of Israelites
from their bondage in Egypt to the Promised Land, we see one constant theme,
that was; God wanted to be worshipped and served by all people. To that extent,
He established covenants and commandments, appointed leaders, judges, and
priests to help people in following the ways of God. He also introduced various
offerings of sacrifices and festivals of celebrations. One such offering was
called "The Sin Offering." (Leviticus: 4-16)
The procedures of purging of sins
began with the unintentional sins to intentional sins. They started with the
high priests, leaders, community, and individuals. Various sins required animal
sacrifices, with the same intention that people must pay the penalty for their
sins.
Once a year on the day of atonement,
the High priest would offer his bull as a sin offering to purify himself and
his family, making them right with the Lord. (Lev 16:6). Then two goats were
brought, after selecting them by lots, one is offered to the Lord as a
sacrifice, and the other was set apart as a scapegoat to be sent away into the
wilderness carrying the sins of the Israelites.
Listen to what God said, Vs.34,
"This is a permanent law for you to purify the people of Israel from their
sins, making them right with the Lord once each year." This custom of purging
of sins was not effective in purging the sins of the Israelites and it was
temporary a cleansing.
Though God ordained it, human beings
were carrying it. Priests and people alike have failed to keep up with the
commandments of God, hence this process of purging of sins was carried out
every year. What could wash our sins permanently and give us an eternal Hope?
II.
JESUS IS LIKE MELCHIZEDEK (Vs 15-17)
"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."
Here the author is equating Jesus to
an eternal high priest in the order of Melchizedek. Jesus was unlike any
earthly high priests of all time. The high priests, however powerful they might
have been in their given position they were mere humans. They had their own
weaknesses. They lived on the earth only for a while and died after completing
their responsibilities.
Whereas Jesus though he was born to
human parents, his origin and appointment were from God. He was holy,
blameless, and unstained by sin. He has been set apart from sinners and has
been given the highest place of honor in heaven. With that confidence, we draw
near to Him to find mercy and grace. Let's see what costed Jesus to redeem us
from our sins.
III.
JESUS PAID FOR OUR SINS.
Vs. 27, "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."
This verse shows the contrast of the
old system of purging of sins and the change that God brought about in Jesus.
In the old system, all people, including priests and the high priests, had to
pay to have their sins purged. That purging could only last for one year. At
the end of the year, their guilt would return and they were to repeat that
ritual all over again and again.
To go back to the high priestly
practice of purging sins, Jesus became the sacrificial goat that was offered
for the sins of people. He became the scapegoat, which carried the sins of
people into the wilderness. In other words, Jesus paid for the sins of humanity
by His blood. He did that once for all. You may wonder why did Jesus have to
die on the cross?
The law required without the
shedding of the blood, there was no forgiveness of sins. Under the old system,
we saw it was the blood of goats and bulls.
But unfortunately, the blood of the animals does not give a person
enduring forgiveness of sins. God, in His mercy, sent His only Son Jesus into
this world to save us. Jesus, in His abundant love for us, died on the cross
paying for our sins through his blood. What does all this mean for us today?
We all have sinned and fallen short
of the glory of God. The wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is
eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. Are you weighed down by the guilt
and shame of sin in your life? Mark
8:36, reads, “What do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own
soul? By giving his one and only Son,
God took the initiative in healing our broken relationship with him. Jesus, paid
the ultimate price by dying on the cross for our sins. If you repent of your
sins you will be forgiven, healed and have eternal life. Amen!
