A Better Covenant, Priesthood and Hope

By A.W. Tozer

But the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, and it is founded on better promises. (Hebrews 8:6 NIV)

It was never in the mind of God that a privileged priesthood of sinful, imperfect men would attempt, following the death and triumphant resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, to repair the veil and continue their office of mediation between God and man. The letter to the Hebrews makes that fact very plain. When Jesus rose from the dead, the Levitical priesthood, which had served Israel under the Old Covenant, became redundant.

God's better plan for an eternal High Priest and a sinless Mediator is also made plain in the letter to the Hebrews. Jesus glorified at the right hand of the Majesty in the heavens is now our High Priest forever. His priesthood is not after the order of Aaron and Levi but after the enduring priesthood of Melchizedek.

Those are highlights in the Hebrews message concerning the better covenant, the better priesthood and the better hope resting upon the completed work of Jesus Christ for lost mankind. We read:

Jesus . . . Has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek. . . . When there is a change of the priesthood, there must also be a change of the law. . . . The former regulation is set aside because it was weak and useless (for the law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God. . . . If there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another (Hebrews 6:20; 7:12, 18–19; 8:7).

Prayer

You, O Lord, are my Savior, my Mediator, my Enabler. Thank You! Thank You! Thank You!

Thought

We are heirs of the new covenant (Jeremiah 31:31–34). Ours is an eternal high priest who always lives to intercede for us. And our hope is based on our crucified, risen, glorified Savior Lord!

Used with Permission

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