2000-03-27 - Priest According to the Order of Melchizedek

The Prophecy Fulfilled Series, Part 7
The Prophecy

Psalm 110:4, “The Lord has sworn and will not change His mind, ‘Thou art a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.’”

The Fulfillment

Hebrews 5:5,6, “So also Christ did not glorify Himself so as to become a high priest, but He who said to Him, ‘Thou art My Son, today I have begotten Thee’; just as He says also in another passage, ‘Thou art a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.’”

You may remember the passage in Genesis 14:18-20 when Abram (Abraham before his name change) meets the King of Salem, who was also a Priest of God. Melchizedek brings out bread and wine, and then blesses Abram. Abram in turn gives Melchizedek a tenth of all he had.

The Bible often looks back on this event as something that was very significant. Christ is said to be a priest according to the order of Melchizedek. How is this so? And what kind of a Priest was Melchizedek?

Christ has long been said to hold three offices, Prophet, Priest, and King. The reason these three verses are so significant rests in the fact that Melchizedek also held these very same three offices. He alone in Scripture, besides Christ, holds all three offices in one person. This is why he is an important forerunner to Christ. And the Bible understands this time and again.

Melchizedek was king of Salem, a priest of God most high, and undertook a prophetic role when he offered Abram the bread and wine. Christ holds the office of king in His ruling over all the earth through His sovereignty, priest in offering Himself as a sacrifice for sin, and prophet in His declaring God’s word during His earthly ministry.

Once again, we see that the Bible is a complete unit. It is amazing to see how complete and how unified the presentation of the entire Scripture message is. Seeing the unity of small aspects (three verses) of the Biblical message can help us gain encouragement and strength in all areas of Biblical truth. May the Lord give us the wisdom and understanding to understand God’s truth in all areas of our lives.

“The truths of the Bible are like gold in the soil. Whole generations walk over it, and know not what treasures are hidden beneath. So centuries of men pass over the Scriptures, and know not what riches lie under the feet of their interpretation. Sometimes, when they discover them, they call them new truths. One might as well call gold newly dug, new gold.” --Beecher

Soli Deo Gloria,
T-

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