                    [Times Square Church Pulpit Series]

             Blessings From Christ Our High Priest! (Part Two)

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By David Wilkerson
May 27, 1996
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          The Bible tells us that when Christ ascended to heaven,
          He took up the ministry of High Priest to all who come
          to Him by faith. "...this man [Jesus], because he
          continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood"
          (Hebrews 7:24).

          Jesus is unchangeable! He is the same yesterday, today
          and forever. As long as you live, He will be your High
          Priest in heaven, interceding on your behalf. And He
          will remain your High Priest until you go home to be
          with Him.

          Our High Priest Jesus is seated at the right hand of
          the Father, in the seat of authority: "...We have such
          an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the
          throne of the Majesty..." (8:1). Our High Priest has
          all power and authority at His command!

          Jesus is in the Father's presence right now,
          interceding for us. He confronts our accuser, the
          devil, and says, "I rebuke you, Satan! This one is mine
          because he is sprinkled in My blood. He is secure, his
          debt fully paid. He is set free!"

          Yet I believe there is even more for us to learn about
          our wonderful High Priest's ministry on our behalf.

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             Two Priesthoods Are Mentioned in the Old Testament
               -- the Aaronic Priesthood and the Melchizedek
                                Priesthood.

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          We know that Aaron, the high priest, was from the tribe
          of Levi. But Melchizedek -- introduced to us in Genesis
          14:18-19 -- was a most mysterious figure. Biblical
          scholars know very little about him, and there has been
          a lot of conjecture about who he was. Here is the
          setting into which the high priest Melchizedek is
          introduced:

          Genesis tells us that the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah,
          where Abram's nephew Lot lived, were attacked by a
          confederated army made up of several kingdoms. This
          army had plundered the cities' food and other supplies
          and taken captive many of the inhabitants, including
          Lot and his family.

          Abram, directed by God, took a small army of 318 men
          and defeated this plundering confederation: "And he
          brought back all the goods, and also brought again his
          brother Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and the
          people" (Genesis 14:16).

          Here is the picture: Abram had just won an incredible
          victory, bringing down this whole confederated army.
          Now he was returning home from battle. On the way he
          met the high priest, Melchizedek, King of Salem, who
          came out to meet Abram "...and brought forth bread and
          wine..." (verse 18).

          Hebrews tells us this about the high priest: "For this
          Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high
          God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of
          the kings, and blessed him; to whom also Abraham gave a
          tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King
          of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem,
          which is, King of peace; without father, without
          mother, without descent, having neither beginning of
          days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of
          God; abideth a priest continually" (Hebrews 7:1-3).

          This sounds like some super-human. He has no beginning
          or end -- and that means he would have had to be God!
          Yet I believe Melchizedek is a flesh-and-blood man who
          serves as a type of Christ.

          As the writer of Hebrews tells us, Melchizedek's name
          means "King of Righteousness," and his title, "King of
          Salem," means "King of Peace." Now, we call Los Angeles
          the "City of Angels" and New York the "Big Apple."
          Apparently, God put His hand upon this man and anointed
          him to be high priest of Salem, a city affectionately
          referred to as the "City of Peace."

          The phrase "without father or mother" means simply that
          Melchizedek had no lineage of priesthood, as did the
          Levitical priesthood. "Without descent" means "without
          a priestly genealogy." He was not of a "generations of
          priests," as Aaron was. Rather, he was divinely
          appointed a priest by God.

          The writer of Hebrews also tells us that Melchizedek
          was "made like unto the Son of God" -- meaning, he was
          like Jesus in that he had no priestly genealogy:
          "...our Lord sprang out of Juda; of which tribe Moses
          spake nothing concerning priesthood" (verse 14).

          Jesus' father, Joseph, was not a priest; he had no
          genealogical line out of Judah, from which the
          Levitical priests descended. So we see here that
          Melchizedek was a foreshadowing of Jesus' priesthood.
          This earthly high priest was meant as a type of our
          High Priest in glory -- Jesus, King of righteousness
          and King of peace!

          Abram paid tithes to Melchizedek from all the bounty he
          had taken from the defeated armies. Scripture tells us
          that, in turn, the high priest blessed him: "And he
          blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most
          high God..." (Genesis 14:19).

          Here is a beautiful picture of the very ministry of
          Jesus our High Priest. You see, it was the duty and
          privilege of the high priest to come forth from the
          Holy of Holies and bless the people. The Lord
          instructed Moses:

          "Speak unto Aaron and his sons, saying, On this wise ye
          shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them,
          The Lord bless thee, and keep thee: The Lord make his
          face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The
          Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee
          peace" (Numbers 6:23-26). In other words: After the
          high priest takes the blood into the Holy of Holies,
          sprinkles it on the mercy seat and waves the incense,
          then he is to come out, face the people and bless them.

          This was the final act in the sequence of the high
          priest's ministry. He was to emerge from the Holy of
          Holies, raise his hands and bless the people with the
          blessing God gave him: "...The Lord bless thee, and
          keep thee: The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and
          be gracious unto thee: The Lord lift up his countenance
          upon thee, and give thee peace" (same verse).

          This is the unchanging ministry of our High Priest, by
          God's prescription. Our High Priest Jesus says, "I will
          cover you with My blood. I will intercede for you
          before the Father. And I will come forth and bless
          you!"

          It is important to understand that these blessings
          Jesus bestows on us are not temporal but spiritual:
          "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus
          Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual
          blessings in heavenly places in Christ" (Ephesians
          1:3).

          In the Old Testament, the high priest's blessings were
          temporal. God promised to bless crops, livestock,
          cities and all the people's activities. It was all
          physical, with no spiritual dimension, such as we have
          today -- because the veil had not yet been rent in two.
          Yet because we walk in a spiritual realm today, the
          blessings we receive are spiritual in nature.

          You may ask, "Doesn't God bless us with outward,
          physical blessings?" Yes, at times God does bless us
          with material things -- but only as they produce a
          spiritual outcome! Any material blessings that draw our
          heart away from Jesus can quickly be withdrawn.

          Sadly, many believers think of God's blessings only in
          terms of material things. They pray, "Lord, lay Your
          blessings on me. Load me down with Your benefits!" Yet,
          inwardly they think, "I want a newer car, a nicer
          apartment, better furniture, more money in the bank."

          The Lord does take good care of His children. He told
          us to seek Him first, and that all our necessities for
          living would be provided. However, Christ's blessings
          to us are primarily spiritual!

          When the Old Testament priest spoke this blessing to
          the people, it was not just a wish for them. He didn't
          say, "I wish you peace. I wish the Lord to shine His
          face upon you..." No -- the blessing was backed by the
          full power of God!

          "And they shall put my name upon the children of
          Israel; and I will bless them" (Numbers 6:27). This
          means, "The priest will speak with the full authority
          of My name -- and I will honor it. This blessing will
          have the power of My Godhead behind it!"

          Likewise, when Jesus our High Priest blesses, He does
          not just wish us good. He pronounces His blessing with
          authority -- and it is done!

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                  You Must Understand That Our Lord Jesus
                     Delights in Blessing His People!

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          Many Christians think God delights only in chastising
          and correcting us. No! The Bible tells us He takes no
          pleasure in disciplining us. On the contrary, Jesus
          says, "Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's
          good pleasure to give you the kingdom" (Luke 12:32). He
          assures us, "I'll give you everything you need --
          because My heart is set on blessing!"

          Nowhere in the Bible do we ever find Jesus cursing
          anyone. (The only thing He cursed was a fig tree.) No
          preacher, apostle, prophet or shepherd in history ever
          blessed people more than Jesus did. He pronounced
          blessings everywhere He turned!

          Consider the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5. Jesus
          said, "Blessed are the poor in spirit. Blessed are you
          who mourn. Blessed are the meek. Blessed are you if you
          hunger and thirst after righteousness. Blessed are the
          merciful, the peacemakers, the persecuted, the
          reviled." Everywhere Jesus turned He pronounced,
          "Blessed...blessed...blessed..."

          He took children in His arms and blessed them. He
          blessed those who held feasts for the poor, crippled,
          lame and blind: "...thou shalt be blessed; for they
          cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed
          at the resurrection of the just" (14:14). "...he lifted
          up his hands, and blessed them" (24:50).

          It touches my heart deeply that Jesus' last words
          before He left His disciples were words of blessing.
          Luke says Christ "...opened their understanding, that
          they might understand the scriptures" (Luke 24:45) --
          and then "...he blessed them..." (verse 51).

          At this point you may be thinking, "I can understand
          how the Lord would bless children, or new converts, or
          even Christians in poor countries who need miracles
          just to have food on their table. I can see how He
          would bless imprisoned believers in foreign countries,
          miraculously providing them with glorious revelations
          of Himself.

          "Yet, I can't understand those kinds of blessings for
          myself. I just don't think I ever live up to the light
          I have received. I feel God is mostly displeased with
          me. I don't feel worthy of His blessings."

          Beloved, I hope you understand by now -- you'll never
          be worthy of God's blessings! No one earns His
          blessings. Rather, He comes out to us -- strictly in
          His mercy and grace -- and blesses us with spiritual
          blessings beyond our comprehension.

          I am a father of four children, all of whom are married
          and have children of their own. Whenever my children
          face any kind of difficulty, I do not get angry at
          them. On the contrary -- I am delighted when they call
          on me. Whether I can help them by providing prayer,
          counseling or financial blessings, I take great
          pleasure in reaching out to them and blessing them.

          How much more does our Lord Jesus delight in blessing
          His children in their time of need? He tells us, "You
          earthly fathers know how to give good gifts to your
          children. How much more does your heavenly Father want
          to bless you?" (see Matthew 7:11).

          Yet some of the most blessed people in God's house are
          blind to their blessings. They do not see or discern
          the great things the High Priest has given them -- and
          thus they don't enjoy them.

          For example -- you may look around in the body of
          Christ and see other Christians who seem more talented
          and blessed. Some can memorize and quote whole passages
          of Scripture. Others can can preach, teach or sing to
          God's glory. You say to yourself, "How blessed they are
          by God. But, poor me! I don't have the brainpower to
          memorize God's Word. I don't even have the ability to
          remember a sermon. I don't have any of the gifts my
          brothers and sisters have to serve God."

          Beloved, you don't know how blessed you are! Are you
          poor in spirit? Is it difficult for you to rejoice or
          even to smile? Do you mourn over your weaknesses? Do
          you lament over seeing no spiritual growth in your
          life? Do you grieve because you feel inadequate, left
          out, unneeded?

          Jesus says, "You are blessed! You have nothing to be
          proud about. And in that way, you serve Me best --
          because My strength rests in your weakness! I can use
          you more readily than all others."

          What a blessing this truly is! Jesus never said,
          "Blessed are the strong, the happy, the
          self-sufficient, the forceful." No! Our Lord blessed
          the weak, the reviled, the persecuted, the downcast --
          those who are considered nothing in the eyes of others.
          He is saying to you, "You know you have great need of
          Me -- and therefore you are blessed!"

                    ------------------------------------

                      Our High Priest Has Blessed You
                       With the Blessing of Abraham!

                    ------------------------------------

          Paul writes: "So then they which be of faith are
          blessed with faithful Abraham" (Galatians 3:9). What is
          this blessing of Abraham?

          James tells us, "...Abraham believed God, and it was
          imputed unto him for righteousness..." (James 2:23).
          Abraham believed that he was in right standing with
          God, even though he was still being sanctified.

          Beloved, this is the blessing of Abraham -- the
          knowledge that we are justified by faith! "That the
          blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through
          Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the
          Spirit through faith" (Galatians 3:14).

          This blessing is the knowledge that Jesus paid with His
          blood to blot out all our sins and iniquities. The
          Father credits Jesus' own righteousness to us, and we
          are made right in His eyes. We don't have to try to
          work to earn God's favor. Instead, we are to trust and
          believe in the finished work of Jesus on the Cross. And
          even though we still struggle -- even though we
          sometimes fall and fail Him -- we have right standing
          with Him as we continue in faith and repentance.

          David understood this and was able to enjoy the
          blessing of Abraham: "Even as David also describeth the
          blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputed
          righteousness without works, saying, Blessed are they
          whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are
          covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not
          impute sin" (Romans 4:6-8).

          As we are being blessed by God with the blessing of
          Abraham, our faith begins to expand. Soon we see and
          believe that the same Christ who justifies us gives us
          power to overcome sin. God says to us, "Now we're going
          to work on your holiness and sanctification. But you
          must understand that in the meantime, you are secure in
          Me. You are My child -- and I'm going to keep you from
          falling!"

          Has the blessing of Abraham fallen upon you yet? If you
          fully accept Christ's righteousness by faith, then you
          are blessed with faithful Abraham and David. Indeed,
          you are one of the most blessed people on earth!

          Yet, millions of Christians have neither heard nor
          believed this. As a result, they live their whole life
          in spiritual poverty and fear. They do not know what it
          is like to lay their head down at night with peace.
          They sin and confess, sin and confess, repeatedly. They
          have no security, no strength, no knowledge.

          God wants such Christians to lie down in His arms,
          knowing they are completely justified in His presence!
          Having the blessing of Abraham means having absolute
          confidence that Jesus is continually sprinkling His
          blood on us. It also means giving Him a constant,
          saving faith. We are to come to Him, saying, "Lord, I
          know I am Your child and that You will not cast me
          away. I know I've failed You and sinned against You.
          I've got dirt on my feet. But I come to You now to be
          cleansed. Cleanse me, Lord!"

          There is yet another aspect to this blessing of
          Abraham. It includes trusting in the Lord to be our
          shield. You see, God made a covenant with Abram: "After
          these things the word of the Lord came unto Abram in a
          vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and
          thy exceeding great reward" (Genesis 15:1).

          The Lord gave Abram this blessing as he was on his way
          back from battle. Some biblical scholars believe Abram
          was greatly fearful at this time. He may have thought
          the Asiatic kings would regroup and come against him
          while he had only 250 men. Or, he may have thought he
          would be attacked by the Canaanites, who had seen him
          grow strong while dwelling in their land.

          We have to remember also that Abram had been promised
          by God he would be the father of many nations. Here
          Abram might have been thinking, "Look at all the time
          that has passed, and still I have no son. Now I am
          surrounded by mad armies and by people who feel no
          mercy toward me. My family, my heritage, is in
          jeopardy. I don't see any evidence of God's promise
          being fulfilled."

          Have you ever been in this place? Perhaps you have been
          slandered on the job. Maybe your home life is
          miserable. Your prayers go unanswered. Or perhaps a
          close friend has betrayed you. You've prayed about it
          for days, weeks, months -- but nothing has happened.
          You say to yourself, "I don't see any evidence of God's
          blessing. On the contrary, I feel dejected and
          despairing. What can I do?"

          Numerous times I've gone to prayer and had it out with
          the Lord! I've cried, "Father, You know there are some
          very important things I haven't seen come to pass. When
          are You going to answer my cries? Why are You waiting?
          Don't You hear my prayers at all? I have no more tears
          left. I believe Your Word -- but I don't see any
          evidence of Your blessing. Lord, where are You?"

          Abram was in just such a fearful condition when the
          high priest Melchizedek came out to meet him. Scripture
          says: "After these things the word of the Lord came
          unto Abram..." (Genesis 15:1). This verse means, "After
          Abram looked around fearfully at the enemies
          surrounding him...after he felt dejected, that he
          hadn't made any progress...the Word of the Lord came to
          him...."

          The first thing God told Abram was, "Fear not, Abram: I
          am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward" (same
          verse).

          In this single verse, God has given us the secret to
          the greatest blessing any believer could ever have! You
          see, the first thing our High Priest Jesus says to us
          when He comes out to us from the Holy of Holies is,
          "Don't be afraid!" He sees our fearful condition and
          assures us, "No devil or demon in hell can touch you.
          You are under My blood -- and you are not to fear!"

          "...I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward"
          (Genesis 15:1). The actual meaning in Hebrew for shield
          here is "protector, defender." This verse means, "I
          will be your champion. I will fight for you!"

          The Lord is saying to Abram, "Go ahead and look at all
          those armies surrounding you. I will be your defense
          against them all! Nobody can touch you -- because I am
          your shield. Entrust your life and future into My
          hands. If you will turn to Me as your source of
          fulfillment, I will reward you with more peace, more
          joy, more completeness than you have ever known!"

          Indeed, this same verse tells us the Lord is much more
          than a shield to us. He is also our exceeding great
          reward! God says to Abram here, "You will have your
          son, and he will be a joy to you. You will rejoice for
          a season that I have fulfilled My promise to you, and
          that your seed has come. But I want to be your heart's
          reward, Abram! Even when you see My promises fulfilled,
          your son will not be your reward. No -- I will be the
          One who fulfills your deepest needs!"

          God knows all about human nature. He knew that Abraham
          would have a great measure of joy when he got his son.
          Abraham could then say, "God did it! He promised this
          to me, and He kept His Word." Yet God also knew that
          Abraham would not be totally fulfilled when the child
          came. He would still have an inner hunger, a
          restlessness, an unexplainable need that no human could
          touch.

          Isn't this what happens to us when we finally get the
          thing we've wanted so badly? All along we think, "If
          only I can get this one thing, I'll be happy. It will
          make my life wonderful. It will end all of my
          problems."

          No, it won't! And you need to settle it once and for
          all: There is no man, no woman, no pastor or evangelist
          who can touch that deep need in you. We all have this
          same need: It's the need for total dependency on the
          Lord! And it can't be met by a mate, a child or a
          friend. Only the Lord Himself can fully satisfy our
          deepest need.

          That is the spiritual blessing! Our High Priest says,
          "If you really want to know the secret of My blessing
          -- it's that I'm what you're looking for. I am your
          reward -- your answer, your blessing!"

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                    The Surest Evidence That the Lord's
                     Hand of Blessing Is On You Is That
                   Others Are Being Blessed Through You!

                    ------------------------------------

          God said to Abraham, "...in blessing I will bless
          thee...in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth
          be blessed..." (Genesis 22:17-18). He was saying, "The
          reason I'm blessing you, Abraham, is so that you can
          bless all the nations!"

          Obviously, very few of us are called to bless entire
          nations. But each of us has a circle of family,
          friends, colleagues and coworkers. How many in your
          circle are being blessed by what the Lord is doing in
          you? Is Jesus' glory in your relationship with Him
          overflowing to those around you? Are your friends and
          family being blessed by Christ in you? Whom have you
          blessed lately?

          When you start blessing others in the midst of your
          trials, you'll know that God's hand of blessing is on
          you. This is what happened with David. When his enemies
          showed him no mercy, he testified, "Let them curse, but
          bless thou: when they arise, let them be ashamed; but
          let thy servant rejoice" (Psalm 107:28). David cried
          out to God for help and blessing as his enemies cursed
          him.

          Jesus commands us: "But I say unto you, Love your
          enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them
          that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use
          you, and persecute you" (Matthew 5:44). If you can keep
          this word, you are surely blessed of the Lord!

          Finally, those who are being blessed are being drawn
          ever closer to the Lord. God never blesses without
          drawing that person closer to Himself, urging, "Come
          closer to Me." That is more of the blessing --
          increasing nearness to Him!

          Perhaps you're still wondering, "I see no evidence of
          God's blessing in my life. My life isn't marked by any
          of these things you've mentioned. How can I have God's
          blessing?"

          I ask you: Do you love His Word? Do you love coming to
          His house with other believers? Does your mind keep
          running to Jesus throughout the day? Do you talk to
          Him? If you can answer "yes" to any of these questions,
          you can rest assured: He is drawing you, blessing you!

          Rejoice, dear saint! If you find yourself lacking in
          the gifts you see in others...if you hunger and thirst
          for more of Him...if you are weak, broken,
          grief-stricken, mourning over your sin, you can rest
          assured -- your High Priest is blessing you with all
          spiritual blessings. Come to Him in faith. He delights
          in blessing you!

          ---
          Used with permission granted by World Challenge, P. O.
          Box 260, Lindale, TX 75771 USA.

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