Hebrews 7:23-28
23 Also there were many priests, because they were prevented by death from continuing. 24 But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood. 25 Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. 26 For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens; 27 who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people's, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself. 28 For the law appoints as high priests men who have weakness, but the word of the oath, which came after the law, appoints the Son who has been perfected forever.
Jesus continues as our High Priest forever because He never dies as the Levitical priests, who were mere men, did. On one hand this is obvious, yet the deeper implications tell us that He is divine, and that His eternal priesthood allows Him to continually and eternally stand before God the Father to plead our case against sin by His own righteousness and perfect sacrifice. We are completely saved (to the “uttermost”), and completely secure, and so persevere to the end of time in Him who sits at the right hand of almighty power and authority. He is holy, untouched by sin, not sinful as we are, and dwells on high. Most importantly, Jesus has no need to continually offer more sacrifices; definitely not for Himself as sinless, but also not for us either, since His one perfect sacrifice of Himself atones eternally for us. He is not an earthly priest with sin or weakness, but is perfect and forever perfected by who He is and what He has done on earth. This never-ending Priest eliminates the need or requirement for any on earth to be called a priest, except we who are in Him (but we do not sacrifice for others’ sin as a high priest - Revelation 5:10, 1 Peter 2:5, 1 Peter 2:9). We minister praise to our God, He ministers grace by His sacrifice for salvation and its outworking of sanctification in and for us.
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