High Priest

Jesus in the General Epistles (2)

Pray Psalm 16.10, 11.
For You will not leave my soul in Sheol,
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.
You will show me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Sing Psalm 16.10, 11.
(All to Christ: Jesus Paid It All)
Soon Your glory I shall see, for as Jesus rose again,
You will come to gather me to my home with You in heav’n.
Refrain v. 11
Make me know life’s way! Pleasures fill Your hand.
Fill my life with joy each day! Before Your face I stand.

Read Heb. 4.14-16; 5.5-11; 1 Jn. 2.1-6; meditate on 1 John 2.3-6.

Preparation
1. What does God expect of those who know Him?

2. How did Jesus, our great High Priest, “walk” before the Father?

Meditation
John uses the word “Advocate” to describe what Jesus, our great High Priest, is doing as He rules from the Father’s right hand. He is advocating for us. The writer of Hebrews says that Jesus ever lives to make intercession for us (Heb. 7.25). He sympathizes with our weakness (Heb. 4.15) and has grace at the ready to help us for whatever we need. He has compassion on us, even when we go astray (Heb. 5.2), because He Himself “learned obedience by the things which He suffered” (Heb. 5.8).

So Jesus advocates and intercedes for us so that we should “obey Him” and know more of His great salvation (Heb. 5.9). And this is where our text in 1 John 2.3-6 comes in. Our High Priest intends that we should be like Him. Not just when we finally see Him face to face, but now, in every moment of our lives. We who know Him should strive to be like Him.

Note how many ideas are associated here in 1 John 2.3-6: knowing the Lord, keeping His commandments, having truth in oneself, keeping God’s Word, being perfected in the love of God, being in God, abiding in the Lord, walking in the Lord. Obviously, we cannot talk meaningfully about any one of these ideas without including them all. All these ideas together to define what it means to have eternal life (Jn. 17.3). Delete or omit any of these and the whole cloth unravels.

Thus our High Priest advocates and intercedes for us, because He knows—from experience—that this is a difficult path to walk. But He expects us to walk it, “just as He walked”, and He ever lives to intercede for us on our journey. Rejoice in Him, and give thanks for His help. 

Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
If the salvation story only includes forgiveness of sins, and then a strenuous holding on to the truth of “I’m going to heaven when I die”, then why did Jesus come to earth and live here for thirty-three sinless years, in the face of much persecution, suffering, pain, and separation from God? 
Why is it so important for us to understand that He can sympathize with us? 
Why did He speak so often of living in the Kingdom, on earth as it is in heaven?Why did our precious Savior have to learn obedience through the things He suffered? Could it be that there is more to do than just waiting for His return?
That we have much work to do “while it is day”? (Jn. 9.4)
Is it possible that He has placed us here to learn to be like Him through the things we suffer?
And to bring others to Jesus through our obedience to Him?

What were all those Old Testament characters doing?
Why did the prophets work so hard for so little reward?
To whom were they all pointing?
Who were they anticipating?“Behold, the Man Whose Name is the BRANCH!
From His place He shall branch out, and
He shall build the temple of the LORD;
Yes, He shall build the temple of the LORD.He shall bear the glory, and
shall sit and rule on His throne;
so He shall be a Priest on His throne…” (Zech. 6.12, 13).

Our calling is to be like Him. Here and now, and there and then.
But we have work to do now; mainly in striving to “walk just as He walked” (1 Jn. 2.6).
So, how will we do that, and what guidelines should we follow?
Happily, John has a very succinct answer for us.
“Now by this we know that we know Him,
if we keep His commandments.
He who says, ‘I know Him,’
and does not keep His commandments, is a liar,
and the truth is not in Him.
But whoever keeps His word,
truly the love of God is perfected in him.
By this we know that we are in Him.He who says he abides in Him
ought himself also to walk
just as He walked” (1 Jn. 2.3-6).

And that sounds a lot like something we do—on a daily basis—all the days of our lives.
Our great High Priest Jesus did it; thus, we ought also to do the same.“…though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered” (Heb. 5.8).
“And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, 
called by God as High Priest…” (Heb. 5.9, 10).

Reflection
1. How do you prepare each day to walk the path that Jesus walked?

2. How do you expect to suffer for the Lord Jesus? How should you prepare for that possibility?

3. Whom will you encourage and help to walk the Jesus path today?

The love of God is perfected in him that keeps his commandments. God’s grace in him attains its true mark, and produces its sovereign effect as far as may be in this world, and this is man’s regeneration; though never absolutely perfect here. Yet this observing Christ’s commands, has holiness and excellency which, if universal, would make the earth resemble heaven itself.  Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on 1 John 2.3-11

Pray Psalm 16.5-9.
Pray that the Lord will guide and provide for you every step of your way. Thank Him Who, though He advocates for you at the Father’s right hand, is ever with you to help you abide in Him. Commit the details of your day to Him.

Sing Psalm 16.5-9, 11.
(All to Christ: Jesus Paid It All)
My portion and my cup are You, my Savior dear;
You help and hold me up and ever keep me near.
Refrain v. 11
Make me know life’s way! Pleasures fill Your hand.
Fill my life with joy each day! Before Your face I stand.

I bless Your Name, O LORD; my mind instructs each night;
You teach me by Your Word and guide me in the right.
Refrain

You are ever with me, LORD; in You I shall not fall.
But rejoicing in Your Word, I abide within Your call.
Refrain

If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).

Other columns of interest this week: Our ReVision series on “The Kingdom Economy” wraps up our study of time and how to use it and turns next to consider the work we’ve been given to do. In our Read Moore column, we continue working through the book, Understanding the Times. And I encourage you to follow our Corsfigell series on Brendan of Clonfert, nicknamed “The Navigator.” Join us and find out why. Click the Articles tab on the home page to see all the selections available to you.

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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.