Fellowship Baptist Church Kilgore, Texas

UNDERSTAND THE CONTEXT of Hebrews 8:1-13 Jesus established a new covenant based upon God's good promises.

The writer of Hebrews spent a great deal of time in the middle section of his book explaining the ministry of Jesus as the believer's Great High Priest. In 8:1-6, the writer emphasized the main point of his effort. Jesus is now and forever seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven. He is in the true sanctuary of God, in the immediate presence of the Heavenly Father. His ministry of advocating for
believers is unending. For this reason, the new covenant in Christ is vastly better than the earthly priesthood and temple rituals. Those were never more than shadows of the salvation that comes in Christ.
In 8:7-13, the writer took his readers back into the Old Testament and to a Scripture in which God promised that a new covenant would one day be established. Through the prophet Jeremiah, God had declared that the old covenant made through Moses would one day pass off the scene. It had proved to be inadequate, not because of anything lacking in God but because of the Israelites' constant disobedience. The people needed more than rules to live by. They needed heart transformation. That trans-formation required a new and better covenant.
Come Sunday July 12th at 10:00 am, in Fellowship Baptist Church's fellowship hall and we will discuss this context in depth. Coffee and fellowship in abundance.

FELLOWSHIP BAPTIST CHURCH SENIOR ADULT'S SUNDAY SCHOO LESSON ON UNDERSTAND THE CONTEXT of Hebrews 7:23-28

For the writer of Hebrews, Abraham was a case study of one whose faith and actions in Old Testament times pointed to Jesus' superiority as the believer's High Priest. By reflecting on God's dealings with Abraham, the readers could gain fresh confidence that God always keeps His promises.
God made a promise of descendants to Abraham and guaranteed it with an oath. Abraham found that God kept His promise. Likewise, the fulfillment of God's promise of salvation in Christ gives hope to believers as they face tough times. God made a promise that Jesus' ministry as High Priest would be similar in type to that of the Old
Testament priest Melchizedek (see 6:13-20).
The writer went into rich detail as he explained the ways that the ministry of Melchizedek foreshadowed Jesus' ministry as High Priest for believers (see 7:1-10). Drawing from Genesis 14:18-20 and Psalm 110:4, the writer described Melchizedek as a priest of God Most High. He was also the king of Salem, a name meaning "peace."
The Scriptures provide no genealogy for Melchizedek, and for this reason he foreshadowed the eternal nature of Jesus the Son of God. In addition, Abraham gave a tithe offering to God through Melchizedek, an act that preceded the Levitical priesthood by hundreds of years. Thus Melchizedek represented a prior and superior priesthood to that represented in Judaism. He foreshadowed the ministry of Jesus as believers' Great High Priest. Thus for a believing Jew to return to Judaism was to go back to an inferior priesthood.
The writer then made a carefully reasoned argument concerning the uniqueness and superiority of Jesus' ministry as High Priest (see 7:11-28). He began by questioning why a new and greater High Priest would be needed if the Levitical priesthood established in the law provided eternal salvation. The fact that Jesus was born of the tribe of Judah and not of the tribe of Levi indicated that God was doing something new and better in Jesus. Similar to the ministry of Melchizedek, Jesus' ministry as High Priest wasn't based on the law of Moses but on the power of an indestructible life. Therefore, Jesus established in Himself a new and better covenant. He is the Great High Priest to which the law of Moses could only point.
Unlike the Levitical priests of Judaism, Jesus lives forever and is always able to save those who come to God through Him. Jesus doesn't have to offer sacrifices for Himself because He lived a sinless life. He doesn't have to offer sacrifices repeatedly because He gave Himself on the cross as the once-for-all sacrifice. This is the reason Christians proclaim that Jesus is the only One who can save us.
How is your life different because Jesus saved you? What would the world be like if Jesus didn't have the ability to save people who turned to Him in faith?
Join us next Sunday July 5 @ 10:00am for great fellowship and an in-depth discussion over Hebrews 7:23-28 written by Dr. David Jeremiah.