Thursday, December 15, 2011

Sermon preview--Jesus our Priest

We’re in a series right now for Christmastime called Jesus: Prophet, Priest and King. The idea here is that in order to prepare the way for Christ, God in the Old Testament created three kinds of people: Prophets, priests and kings. Those people existed to help God’s people know God and experience all of His blessings. When the Messiah came, He would fulfill the function of all three. He would be the ultimate prophet, the perfect priest, the King of Kings. An Israelite would have understood that perfectly, but we’ve lost that idea, and so in many ways we’ve lost an understanding of who Jesus is and what He can do for us. Two weeks ago, we talked about the idea of Jesus as our prophet. He is the reason we know who God is and how God wants us to live. To conform our lives to His teachings and His example is the only way to become all we were made to be as human beings. But if Jesus was simply a prophet and nothing more, we are lost. We need more than a teacher, more than an example. We need a priest. Now that may sound strange to you, especially coming from the mouth of a Baptist preacher. But I am not talking about the kind of priesthood you see in many Christian churches. Long before any church existed, there were priests of God.

This Sunday, we'll talk about what priesthood was in Old Testament Israel, and why God created this institution. We'll look at several Scriptures in Hebrews that explain how Jesus is our ultimate High Priest, focusing on Hebrews 10:19-22. And we'll explain why we need Jesus to serve as priest in our lives. If this is a new concept for you, perhaps you are missing something very important that Christ wants to be in your life. If you've heard all this before, come and worship Him for making a way for you and I to get to the Father. Either way, I hope I see you this Sunday.

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