Quote for the Day
“…without beginning of days or end of life…”As we begin the New Year I would like to go back to Hebrews and examine how we are blessed by God’s mercy and favor. For the next few weeks we will see the move from the Old Testament sacrifice to the Ultimate Sacrifice, Jesus Christ.
Today's Prayer
This week pray for those that are traveling, asking God to show them His eternal promises.
Hebrews 7:1-10
Hebrews 7:1-10 (NIV)1 This Melchizedek was king of and priest of God Most High. He met Abraham returning from the defeat of the kings and blessed him, 2 and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, his name means “king of righteousness”; then also, “king of ” means “king of peace.” 3 Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, like the Son of God he remains a priest forever. 4 Just think how great he was: Even the patriarch Abraham gave him a tenth of the plunder! 5 Now the law requires the descendants of Levi who become priests to collect a tenth from the people—that is, their brothers—even though their brothers are descended from Abraham. 6 This man, however, did not trace his descent from Levi, yet he collected a tenth from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises. 7 And without doubt the lesser person is blessed by the greater. 8 In the one case, the tenth is collected by men who die; but in the other case, by him who is declared to be living. 9 One might even say that Levi, who collects the tenth, paid the tenth through Abraham, 10 because when Melchizedek met Abraham, Levi was still in the body of his ancestor.
Message
Melchizedek. It is a tough name to spell and even tougher to pronounce. To the Jewish audience when this book was written it would have been a very important issue and concept to discuss. The Jewish nation built by God had a very distinct culture and working order. The priests of the church were an important part of life. Everything in life: work, family, government, all were intertwined. The priest was a most important person who led the way to God, interceded on behalf of men to God, making the sacrifice to God for the people. The priest was the life support of the community. The theologians see Melchizedek as the foreshadow of Christ, which this passage seems to confirm. The name Melchizedek means “king of righteousness” and “king of peace”. The Jewish priests were all direct descendants of the tribe of Levi. Melchizedek had no genealogy and could not be traced to Levi, yet he was given “a tenth of everything” by Abraham. According to Jewish law, this meant he must be greater than Abraham. Just as we saw last week, God is in control, and I believe the priest Melchizedek is God continuing to show us not only does He hold the future, but He has planned it from the very beginning. It is the “sneak peeks” behind the scenes that give us hope and excitement about how God works!