Sermon Text: Hebrews 7:11–24
Preacher: Pastor Brian Sauvé
Cosmic Regime Change
Please turn with me to Hebrews 7, and put a finger on verse 11, which is where we will pick up this morning. Our text this morning is something of a theological treatise on the changing of the priestly guard that Jesus has brought—basically the theological version of the transition of power.
The peaceful transition of power is actually one of the most difficult problems in the world of politics.
Maybe a king dies, as with the British King George VI in February of 1952, when the current British monarch, Queen Elizabeth the II, inherited the throne. When I was a young lad, we lived in England, and it was always my greatest dream to have tea with Elizabeth. Never did get the invite, though.
Whether you’re in a monarchy of kings and queens, a democracy of elected representatives, or even a tribal system with chiefs, it is a tense moment when power has to be transferred. Will the people follow the new leader? Will there be a split?
Think about a tense transition like we experience when an influential President is leaving the White House, to be replaced by a political rival, like what we just had in 2016 with the election of President Trump. The mantra “Not My President” became popular. What might have happened if the Republicans weren’t the ones with all the guns?
Now, the Lord Jesus said at one point in his earthly ministry, that he had come, not to bring peace, but a sword. And that utterance in Matthew 10:34 has many shades of meaning, but fundamentally, it means that he came to do just that: His coming and his mission was one that was going to draw battle lines across the world—from families to friends to nations—to bring sharp division; it was cosmic regime change on every level, heaven to earth.
Think about it: Jesus’ coming marked the beginning of a new monarchy, David’s line restored to the throne.
His coming marked the end of the old prophets; he is the very Word of God in flesh, the final Prophet.
And as we have seen, especially last week, his coming marked the end of one priesthood and the ascendance of another: The Levitical Priesthood was passing away, replaced by Jesus Christ, High Priest in the Order of Melchizedek.
This transition of power is the greatest the world has ever seen, and it did bring—indeed still brings—a sword across the cosmos. The Hebrew Christians were tempted to fail at this moment of tension, this transition of power, and shrink back to Old Covenant Jerusalem and her now rebellious, Christ-rejecting priesthood.
They were tempted to go back to their old and familiar loyalties, to the Levites—whose High Priest had condemned the Lord Jesus to execution—and trample underfoot the blood of the Son of God. And the message of the author of Hebrews is as plain as it has been so far in the book: Jesus is better. Never go back.
So in our text this morning, from Hebrews 7:11–24, the author of Hebrews will reason with the Hebrew Christians on the issue of this regime change, and why it would be folly to go back. Hebrews 7:11, this is the Word of the Living God:
“Now if perfection had been attainable through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need would there have been for another priest to arise after the order of Melchizedek, rather than one named after the order of Aaron? For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is necessarily a change in the law as well. For the one of whom these things are spoken belonged to another tribe, from which no one has ever served at the altar. For it is evident that our Lord was descended from Judah, and in connection with that tribe Moses said nothing about priests.
This becomes even more evident when another priest arises in the likeness of Melchizedek, who has become a priest, not on the basis of a legal requirement concerning bodily descent, but by the power of an indestructible life. For it is witnessed of him,
“You are a priest forever,
after the order of Melchizedek.”For on the one hand, a former commandment is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness (for the law made nothing perfect); but on the other hand, a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God.
And it was not without an oath. For those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath, but this one was made a priest with an oath by the one who said to him:
“The Lord has sworn
and will not change his mind,
‘You are a priest forever.’”This makes Jesus the guarantor of a better covenant.
The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever.“
-Hebrews 7:11–24
Inadequacy & Supremacy (11–24)
I know that this is one of those sections where it seems maybe dense or obscure, but I hope that you will see the glories here before we are done—because the conclusions that the author is building to by the end of the chapter are of profound and central importance.
So there are 3 pieces of this text that I’d like to pull out and take a look at—pieces that come together to show us the inadequacy of the Levitical Priesthood as an end in itself, and the superiority of the Melchizedek Priesthood of Christ.
1. The Levitical Priesthood was provisional, the Melchizedek Priesthood permanent.
Look at verse 11, if you would,
“Now if perfection had been attainable through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need would there have been for another priest to arise after the order of Melchizedek, rather than one named after the order of Aaron?”
-Hebrews 7:11
There’s more to this sentence than this, which we’ll see in just a moment, but the foundational point of this whole section of Hebrews is that the Levitical Priesthood was not, and was actually never intended to be, permanent. It was a provisional priesthood, pointing to a future permanent one.
The context of this argument is the author’s previous quotation of Psalm 110:4, and his point is actually very easy to understand: If the Levitical Priesthood was permanent, why did David prophesy another, forever kind of priesthood?
There was a coming Lord, a cosmic ruler to whom Yahweh would say, “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool.” And this Lord was to be a priest. “You are a priest forever,” he said, “after the order of Melchizedek.”
What this shows us is that the Levitical Priesthood was always to be provisional, not permanent. In fact, the entirety of the Old Testament and the Old Covenant demands the necessity of the New Testament and New Covenant. If you were to read the Old Testament, knowing nothing beforehand about Judaism, Christianity, or anything related, your first question would probably be something like, “Where’s the sequel?”
Without the New Testament and its Messiah, its inaugurated Kingdom, and its New Covenant, the Old Testament is like reading the The Lord of the Rings without The Return of the King—utterly incomplete.
But there’s more. The text is plain that, number two…
2. Not only is the Levitical Priesthood provisional—so is the entire system to which it belongs—the Melchizedek Priesthood comes with a whole new covenant.
The change in priesthood wasn’t just a change in priesthood, but a change in the whole order—from the Law on down. Let’s deal with a lengthy section, from verse 12 to verse 24, a bit at a time, and we’ll see this together. First, verses 12–14
“For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is necessarily a change in the law as well. For the one of whom these things are spoken belonged to another tribe, from which no one has ever served at the altar. For it is evident that our Lord was descended from Judah, and in connection with that tribe Moses said nothing about priests.”
-Hebrews 7:12–14
The new, permanent High Priesthood of Jesus after the Order of Melchizedek is not based on the Old Covenant Levitical Priesthood at all. We know this because Jesus is from the tribe of Judah, not of Levi. So whatever this priesthood is, it’s not a mere continuation or evolution of the Levitical system.
So there is a new basis for this priesthood. Then, in verses 15–17, we learn that there is also a different authority for this priesthood.
“This becomes even more evident when another priest arises in the likeness of Melchizedek, who has become a priest, not on the basis of a legal requirement concerning bodily descent, but by the power of an indestructible life. For it is witnessed of him,
‘You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek.’”
-Hebrews 7:15–17
The authority of the Levitical Priesthood came from outside itself, the Melchizedek Priesthood from within. The Levites got their authority from the Law—the Law’s requirement that they descend from Levi.
But the text tells us that this High Priest after the order of Melchizedek gets his authority from his endless life, his immortality. He is intrinsically rather than extrinsically qualified. And because of this, verses 23 and 24 tell us that his Priesthood never ends,
“The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever.“
-Hebrews 7:23–24
So this is a new, permanent Priesthood, and with it comes a whole new covenant system. Verse 12,
“For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is necessarily a change in the law as well.”
-Hebrews 7:12
And then, verses 18–22,
“For on the one hand, a former commandment is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness (for the law made nothing perfect); but on the other hand, a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God.
And it was not without an oath. For those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath, but this one was made a priest with an oath by the one who said to him:
“The Lord has sworn
and will not change his mind,
‘You are a priest forever.’”This makes Jesus the guarantor of a better covenant.”
-Hebrews 7:18–22
This is a total change in government, from Old Covenant shadow to New Covenant substance. All of the ceremonial law of the Old Covenant system is fulfilled and made obselete with the rise of this new Royal Priesthood. None of this is supposed to make us think that the Levitical Priesthood was meaningless!
The activity of the Levitical Priesthood was massively important, but for typological, not effectual, reasons. It didn’t, in itself, work as an end, if what you want from it is reconciliation with God, salvation. But that’s not what it was meant to do! The Levitical Priesthood did work, in that it did do what it was meant to do, but what it was meant to do was not to save, but to signify.
It pointed forward in its every respect to High Priest and a new Priesthood that does save. It points to Jesus, who actually accomplishes what the Old Covenant only promised. Let’s look at some examples to see what I mean:
The Temple of the Old Covenant was really just a building in its essence. It pointed to the fact that God would indeed dwell with us, pitch his tent in our camp, but it wasn’t the end goal of God dwelling with man. No, it pointed to Jesus, the God-Man, God tabernacling, templing, with us, and then making us a dwelling place for God on earth.
The priestly sacrifices of bulls and goats and lambs in the Old Covenant, they couldn’t actually remove sin, but they pointed to the Lamb of God who does take away the sins of the world.
The Law, written on tablets of stone in the Old Covenant, couldn’t make us holy, even though it was holy and righteous. That Law gave authority to earthly priests, but it didn’t give righteousness to men. Now, in the New Covenant, the Lord Jesus puts his Law in our very hearts! Not on stone tablets, but tablets of the human heart. And he gives us his Spirit and causes us to walk in his ways.
See, none of this is to say that the New Covenant minimizes the Old. No, the New Covenant fulfills and intensifies the old!
The Old Covenant, if I could speak in a very human way, isn’t sad that the New Covenant has made it obselete. No, it claps its hands! The New covenant was what the Old Covenant promised and pointed to!
Do you see how this doesn’t reduce our obligations to obey the moral law of the Old Testament one jot? You and I are 100% obligated to obey the Law of the Old Testament, provided we understand how that obedience works under the New Covenant paradigm. Let me explain, since that probably sounds wrong to most of you.
There are three basic types of laws in the Old Covenant Mosaic Law: Moral Law, Civil Law, and Ceremonial Law. We still walk hand in hand with each of these categories of law under the New Covenant, just not identically to how Israel did in every sense.
The Moral Law is unchanged, because they are the direct reflection of God’s unchanging moral character, his holiness. Why is it wrong to murder? Because man is made in God’s image, and he forbids it. It was a sin to murder before the Law was given to Moses—see Cain and Abel. We are still bound to these laws—which are crystallized in the Ten Commandments.
The Civil Laws of the Old Covenant were the laws of Israel as a nation. As such, they passed away with the passing away of Israel as a nation. So we are not bound to them in the sense that we are not citizens of national Israel.
However, we are bound to the moral principles that these laws are built on. The Westminster Confession and the London Confession call this the “general equity” of these laws. What that means is that the civil laws of Israel were basically case law, meaning they were applications of the unchanging moral law to specific situations in life in Israel.
Jesus teaches us that the whole of this law is summed up in loving the Lord God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and loving our neighbor as ourselves. So the Civil Law is basically the answer to the question: “What does love of God and neighbor look like in governing this nation?”
So the Civil Law required an Israelite to put a wall around their rooftop—why? Because they had flat roofs and spent a lot of time there, and it wouldn’t be loving to your neighbor if his toddler fell off and died when he visited you. These Civil Laws were case law applications of the Moral Law.
So are we bound to have a roof parapet today under the New Covenant? No. But we are free to legislate equivalent building codes.
So we are still bound to obey the moral foundations, the general equity, of the Civil Law as well. This has literally changed history. Have you ever wondered why, when a major earthquake hits the US, we talk of casualties in the hundreds as really, really bad, but when, for example, a major earthquake hit Turkey in 1999, something like 45,000 people were killed?
A Turkish official in that incident who investigated why so many died said it was because of poor civil engineering and construction standards.
Here’s what’s happening, there: The US legal system is built on the much older British system, which is itself just an expression of the case law legal system that resulted from the massive influence of Christian morality and norms on Western culture.
We are so used to the Christian cultural foundations of Western Civilization that we are numbed and blind to it—we just don’t see it anymore, and it is eroding rapidly, but these things are not random or religiously neutral. They are the result of the general equity of the Moral Law of Israel being written on the hearts of the Christians who built this civilization.
Finally, how about the Ceremonial Law? This category captures all of those laws that are built to point to Christ and his salvation, rather than as expressions of absolute and unchanging moral principles. It is not intrinsically, in the act, immoral to wear a shirt of mixed fibers, but that did signify the holiness of God’s people.
It is not intrinsically, in the act, sin-removing to sacrifice a lamb, but it did point to the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. So we obey the Ceremonial Law by trusting in and resting in Jesus Christ, who fulfilled it. He is the Substance that the Ceremonial Law signs signified.
The coming of Jesus as our great, immortal High Priest in the Order of Melchizedek brings a whole New Covenant world out of the shadows and into the light. And number three, this resolves the greatest weakness of the whole Levitical system:
3. Perfection wasn’t attainable through Levi’s Priesthood, but is through Christ’s (11).
See, and circling all the way back to the very first verse in this section, verse 11, all of this shows us that perfection was never possible through Levi. Verse 11 said,
“…if perfection had been attainable through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need would there have been for another priest to arise after the order of Melchizedek, rather than one named after the order of Aaron?”
-Hebrews 7:11
And then verse 19, we have this little parenthetical remark,
“(for the law made nothing perfect)”
-Hebrews 7:19a
The Law is perfect, but its perfection isn’t like the common cold: It’s not communicable to those who come in contact with it. That’s just not what the Law was for. It was made, not to create perfection, but to reveal the absence of it. The law, as Paul tells us in his letter to the Romans, came to actually increase the trespass of humanity, to bring everything into its custody like a prison warden.
And maybe you respond, “So what? Nobody’s perfect. I’m not perfect, but I’m not a bad person. I’ve done my best!”
Here is the adamantine response of the Lord Jesus: Your best is not good enough. You are, in fact, not good enough. Jesus is plain in his sermon on the mount, that if you would be in his Kingdom, you must be perfect as our Father in Heaven is perfect. The Law is a matter of “Yes” or “No” to the question, “Did you keep it all perfectly?”
What we need—and this is the point of the gospel, of the gift of Jesus’ active righteousness to the unrighteous, of his death on the cross for our sin and resurrection to new creational life—is an alien righteousness, meaning a righteousness from outside our sinful selves.
That needed perfection, that alien righteousness was never possible through Levi—it was never intended to be! But it is though Christ. He is a perfect and holy High Priest, one who can do what sinful Levi couldn’t.
We’ll see this point emphatically in verses 26–28 next week, Lord willing: Fallible priests can never make truly holy people. But an infallible, perfect, immortal High Priest? He can. Listen to Paul’s extended proof of this from Romans 3:19–26:
“Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.
But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”
-Romans 3:19–26
The Law couldn’t make perfect. Christ—the Law-fulfiller—can. And by grace and through faith, he does.
A Glance At The Consequences
Now, what I’ve done is to intentionally walk you right up to the very edge of a border that sits here between verse 24 and 25, a border between the doctrine and its application.
In the last few verses of the chapter, having told us what kind of priesthood Jesus holds in comparison to the one to which they are tempted to return, the author will tell them why it matters so deeply, tells them the consequences of following either the one or the other. Verse 25 captures it in a sentence,
“Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.”
-Hebrews 7:25
Here’s the application of all of this high theology, which we will take up at length next week: Don’t disobey Levi by trusting in Levi. He can’t save; he was provisional. He was only, ever supposed to promise and point to the One in whom you need trust, the One who can save you to the uttermost.
And though most of us are not Jewish, and are not tempted to return to the Old Covenant ceremonial law, we are made of the same stuff as them, and tempted in the very same directions: It is now, and has always been, a choice of which priest and priesthood you will follow, not whether or not you will follow a priest or a priesthood.
What is a priest and what is a priest for? A priest is your mediator between the self and the transcendent. Every human being is filled with a longing for the transcendent, the glorious, the numinous, the spiritual, the divine. Who is your god, and who gets you access to him?
That is the question we need consider, both now and next week. Because there is only one true and living High Priest, and only one God. And if we trust in any other, no matter how passionately or authentically, our trust will be a false trust, and we will perish.
Jesus Christ, he is the One who saves to the uttermost. Rest in him today.