A More Excellent Ministry
The Levitical high priests could never complete the task of representing God to the people nor representing the people to God. Two things prevented them: Each high priest lived just long enough to represent a few people –those who lived while he was in office. More importantly, their sacrifices were incomplete. Innocent animals didn't cause creation's fall and sacrificing their lives couldn't restore that lost intimacy with God.
Now the main point in what has been said is this: we have such a high priest, who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a minister in the sanctuary and in the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, not man. For every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices; so it is necessary that this high priest also have something to offer. (Hebrews 8:1-3)
Ending the cycle of sin and death, and then restoring life –once and for all– required the sacrifice of an innocent –sinless– man's life. In order to represent every man, he would have to be familiar with harshest difficulties of life. And to fully represent God, he would need to have an intimate knowlege of the Creator. Being both the Son of Man and the Son of God supremely qualified Jesus to fulfill the office of the new High Priest (John 1:1-5, 14).
The true tabernacle –the tent that God pitched– is the body in which Christ Jesus lived while here on earth. And it's where He lives now in heaven. It's the place where man and God are joined in restored perfect union.
Now if He were on earth, He would not be a priest at all, since there are those who offer the gifts according to the Law; who serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things, just as Moses was warned by God when he was about to erect the tabernacle; for, "SEE," He says, "THAT YOU MAKE all things ACCORDING TO THE PATTERN WHICH WAS SHOWN YOU ON THE MOUNTAIN." But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, by as much as He is also the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted on better promises. (Hebrews 8:4-6)
Priesthoods can not be uncoupled from their laws. That is the case for the old priesthood of the Levites with its Old Covenant Law –and also the case for the priesthood of Melchizedek with its New Covenant Law (Hebrews 7:11-16). Levitical high priests made earthly offerings using earthly utensils within an earthly tabernacle –all of which were a copy of the heavenly reality. They were a shadow –a symbol– of perfection that was yet to come.
If Jesus was an earthly priest then He would merely be continuing what the Levitical priests had repeated for generations. Under the Old Covenant, the people had to live up to their promise of keeping the Law in order for God to keep His promise to bless them (Exodus 24:3-4). The curses and blessings were based on people's obedience (Deuteronomy 27:26-28:2).
But Jesus is the minister of the New Covenant –which is one sided. Under the New Covenant Law, God provided His own Son as the required one-time, everlasting fellowship and sin offering. It's up to each person to decide which covenant he wants to live under –which way of life he wants to lead. God's judgment for granting the blessing or the curse is also everlasting. It's eternal life –for following Joshua (Yeshua, Jesus) into God's Sabbath Rest, or it's eternal death –for refusing to enter. That decision must made deep within each man's heart (Hebrews 4:12-13).
A New Covenant
For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion sought for a second. For finding fault with them, He says, "BEHOLD, DAYS ARE COMING, SAYS THE LORD, WHEN I WILL EFFECT A NEW COVENANT WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AND WITH THE HOUSE OF JUDAH; NOT LIKE THE COVENANT WHICH I MADE WITH THEIR FATHERS ON THE DAY WHEN I TOOK THEM BY THE HAND TO LEAD THEM OUT OF THE LAND OF EGYPT; FOR THEY DID NOT CONTINUE IN MY COVENANT, AND I DID NOT CARE FOR THEM, SAYS THE LORD. (Hebrews 8:7-9)
The Old Covenant Law didn't work. It didn't then and it doesn't now. It's not a problem with the commandments. It's the inability for mankind to do what the commandments require in order to have a pleasing and righteous fellowship with God. The Hebrews routinely offered gifts to gain His acceptance, and sacrifices to pay for their faults.
Those Ten Commandments were given to the Israelites because they were a prideful, unchanged people who needed to be constantly reminded that they were sinful –their hearts were always going astray. And the law required them to pass that reminder to future generations. They were to teach their children –to write on their minds– those condemning "Dos and Don'ts" (Deuteronomy 4:9-10).
"FOR THIS IS THE COVENANT THAT I WILL MAKE WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AFTER THOSE DAYS, SAYS THE LORD: I WILL PUT MY LAWS INTO THEIR MINDS, AND I WILL WRITE THEM ON THEIR HEARTS. AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE. "AND THEY SHALL NOT TEACH EVERYONE HIS FELLOW CITIZEN, AND EVERYONE HIS BROTHER, SAYING, 'KNOW THE LORD,' FOR ALL WILL KNOW ME, FROM THE LEAST TO THE GREATEST OF THEM. "FOR I WILL BE MERCIFUL TO THEIR INIQUITIES, AND I WILL REMEMBER THEIR SINS NO MORE." (Hebrews 8:10-12)
However, the emphasis of this passage –a quote from Jerimiah 31– is not on the Old Covenant; rather it's on the New Covenant that God will write on their minds. It's going to be their natural way of life. How could this be? He's going to give them His Spirit to lead them from within. Then their minds will be preoccupied with Him and His desires –instead of on with themselves and their distractions.
Under the Old Covenant, the Law directed their attention to their failures –their fallen nature– and their subsequent need for forgiveness. But under the New Covenant, their iniquities (lawless acts) would be forgiven and their sins would be remembered no more.
That phrase "remembered no more" stresses that God did bring all of those sins into His mind. The past, present and future sins of the entire world were painfully viewed by God. And then His Son was punished for each one and every of them. God will never bring those offenses to mind again –it will never happen!
When He said, "A new covenant," He has made the first obsolete But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear. (Hebrews 8:13)
As mentioned in the previous chapter, many sermons erroneously preached today say...
"Nearly all of the 613 commandments from the Old Testament are also found in the New Testament. They're basically the same –it's just that Jesus enables us to keep those commandments."
The Scriptures plainly state that the Old Covenant (or Testament) is becoming obsolete and it's ready to disappear. When does the Old Covenant disappear? It happens when the Law has done its work of convicting the person hearing it. It's then that he recognizes his hopeless condition –nothing but death awaiting him– and appeals to God for a new life –one that is not controlled by sin. The new life begins when a person enters into God's Promised Land of eternal rest from his own works.
Paul wrote about this in Romans...
What shall we say then? Is the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law; for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, "YOU SHALL NOT COVET." But sin, taking opportunity through the commandment, produced in me coveting of every kind; for apart from the Law sin is dead. I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died; and this commandment, which was to result in life, proved to result in death for me; for sin, taking an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me. (Romans 7:7-11)
Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin. Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. (Romans 7:24-8:2)
We read in chapter 6 that the entrance to His rest is only through Joshua –Yeshua –Jesus. That's why Jesus said, "I have not come to take the Law away but fulfill it." He provided the way for each and every person to enter eternal life. The Law –the Ten Commandments– becomes obsolete and disappears when it is replaced by the Holy Spirit who leads us into all truth.