TODAY IN THE WORD
For most of us, using a password to gain access to something is a daily reality. We use passwords to log on to computers, or to withdraw money from our bank accounts. Life can get a bit complicated when we forget these passwords!

In a certain sense, Jesus is like our password to gain access to God. He is the One who makes it possible for us to draw near to God and who brings our petitions before God. In the book of Hebrews, this role of Jesus is described in terms of the high priest of the Levitical order in the Old Testament (see Dec. 7).

In Hebrews, Jesus the high priest is likened to Melchizedek, whom we first meet in Genesis 14, when Abraham offered him tithes after defeating some foreign kings. Hebrews 7 mentions two very intriguing things about Melchizedek: first, he doesn’t have human genealogy, and second, he remains a priest forever. There’s much debate about this mysterious figure’s identity and nature, but the author of Hebrews mentions him to show us something about Jesus. In order to be a Levitical priest, a man had to descend from Levi. An unknown genealogy would prevent a person from the priesthood. In Jesus’ case, His genealogy traced back to Judah, not Levi (v. 14). So the author of Hebrews wants to show that, like Jesus, another high priest (Melchizedek) was without genealogy and still wasn’t disqualified from the priesthood.

Second, Jesus is like Melchizedek in that He also is a priest forever. One major problem with the Levitical priesthood was that the priests eventually died (v. 23). Jesus, in comparison, “has a permanent priesthood” (v. 24). Unlike these priests, Jesus is able to intercede continuously for those who come to God through Him.

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TODAY ALONG THE WAY
We need a priest like Jesus (v. 26)! We need One who offered the perfect sacrifice. We need One who intercedes for us. And we need One who leads us in worship.

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