Who is our High Priest?

THEME: Compromise related to our advocate

This past Sunday, Pastor Dan taught us from the Book of Revelation, and particularly from Christ’s letter to the church in Pergamum. This church held fast to its roots in Jesus, not renouncing its faith in Christ despite the death of one of its members, Antipas, and the fact that Jesus refers to this city as the place “where Satan has his throne”.

Yet, it has allowed compromise to creep into the church from multiple directions. I can imagine this beginning very slowly, unnoticeably. As the numbers in the church grew, some viewed this as a harmless difference in doctrinal opinion or a sin that would correct itself over time. Possibly, in the business of life, no one really noticed. But God did and does.

In this blog post, I would like to explore why we often compromise. Most will never compromise to the point of those in Pergamum who held to the teachings of Balaam, and all that entailed, but, as humans, we are often enticed to compromise in small, mostly imperceptible ways. Why?

Do any of us really know what we look like? I know that is an odd question to ask at this point, but bear with me. Whether years or decades, we have spent lifetimes looking at ourselves in the mirror. The image we see is now a composite of memories and wishes, and we wonder to ourselves, “Is this what I look like to others?” And that is just the physical. Because we also walk around with carefully crafted personas that are also a composite of memories, traumas, shame, and what we have donned to fit into our world. Can any of us truly be confident of who we really are? The answer is a resounding no! As much as you try to say you can, human beings cannot live with only our own evaluation of ourselves. Impossible! So, we spend our entire lives trying to prove who we think we are, trying to prove our worth.

Even though I want to explore these woods more deeply, I don't want us to get lost, so I should begin to make my point. If we cannot have complete confidence in who we really are, and cannot live with only our evaluation of ourselves, who are we looking to for approval? Those who do not know Jesus Christ and who He truly is will spend their lives in the courtroom of life trying to convince the world they are worthy. To build a case, they must constantly add to their resume of degrees, money, accomplishments, power, romantic conquests, and physical beauty. Those of us who know Jesus as our Lord know that we have our perfect advocate, and our perfectly true reflection of who we are. He will correct us, mold us, and speak the truth to us. As the book of Hebrews tells us, “Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. For the law appoints as high priests men in all their weakness; but the oath, which came after the law, appointed the Son, who has been made perfect forever.” (Hebrews‬ ‭7‬:‭26‬-‭28‬ ‭NIV‬‬). What is a High Priest? The Priest was always the advocate of the people, the one who corrects, loves, sacrifices, and speaks the truth for our benefit. Jesus is our perfect High Priest, our perfect advocate. If He approves us, who else do we need? ‬‬‬‬

So why does the Church of Christ compromise? Why do we in Christ compromise? Because we lose sight of Jesus and choose to have the approval of those we see and touch. We enjoy the Siren songs of the material world over the actual love songs of our Lord.

Our churches will not compromise in direct relation to our vision of Jesus and who we need for our individual approval.

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SCRIPTURE: Job‬ ‭16‬:‭19‬-‭21 ‭(NIV)

‭‭“Even now my witness is in heaven; my advocate is on high. My intercessor is my friend as my eyes pour out tears to God; on behalf of a man, he pleads with God as

one pleads for a friend.”

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PRAYER:

Lord, I know how much easier this life would be if it was always, in every moment, only you I looked to for approval, for meaning. Sometimes, however, I cannot see you or sense your presence, and it is often when I have drifted into the woods and am lost. At these times I sometimes look to whomever can give me approval or bolster my weakened ego, even though the words may be false and misleading, and cause me to compromise due to the sweet taste of acceptance. Lord, I pray this moment that you can make it possible for me to look to only you for my worth and my approval. That you be my only advocate. Amen