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5 Lessons Learned from Hebrews 5

Writer's picture: Quin. AQuin. A

Hebrews 5 is only fourteen verses long but jam-packed with quality spiritual learning. Reading this text revealed five important takeaways that are worth sharing. Lend me a bit of your time as we dive into these attention-worthy lessons. Firstly, the Hebrew author addressed God calling Jesus to be our High Priest. Hebrews 5:4-5 reads, “And no man takes this honor to himself, but he who is called by God, just as Aaron was. So also Christ did not glorify Himself to become High Priest, but it was He who said to Him: “You are My Son, today I have begotten You.”


The first few verses of this text remind us that Jesus did not self-appoint Himself. Instead, He was called by God to be our High Priest, just as every other priest before Him was called. This is important to remember because just as Jesus and the former priests were not self-appointed, neither are we. We did not appoint ourselves to join Christ’s Kingdom. Rather, we are called by God to be a part of His kingdom.


1 Peter 2:9 states, “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” Notice the words ‘chosen’ and ‘called’ in this text. Also, note that we are a priesthood in the Kingdom of our High Priest. Being called into the royal priesthood today is no different than God’s former priests being called into their priesthood. So, the first lesson from Hebrews 5 is this:

 

1.      You are called and chosen by God.


You did not appoint yourself, and neither did anyone else. If you are in Christ, you are here because God called you here. If we believe this to be true, there is no room for self-righteousness. But there is room to be thankful. Be grateful that God predestined you to be a member of His Kingdom. It is a high honor and not to be taken lightly or for granted. We are blessed to be in the Kingdom of God.


 

 

Next, scripture tells us that Christ is ordained not only to be our High Priest but to be our High Priest forever. “As He also says in another place: ‘You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek” (Hebrews 5:6). The Bible does not give us much information on Melchizedek. He is mentioned in Genesis 14 and is not mentioned again until the New Testament.


In Genesis 14, Abraham goes to war to free his nephew, Lot, from captivity. God goes with Abraham, and Lot and other war captives are freed. Once the battle is over, Melchizedek is introduced. It is written that he was both the King of Salem and a Priest of the Most High God (Genesis 14:18). Melchizedek blesses Abraham with bread and wine, and in return, Abraham gives him a tenth of everything he has.


A few things need to be addressed about this short biblical account. Firstly, as stated in Hebrews 5:4, no man takes honor to himself, meaning no priest is self-appointed … they are called. So, Melchizedek was called by God to be a priest. Yet, he was a priest before God formally ordained priests through the Mosaic Law. The first priest ordained through the law was Aaron. Yet, here we see Melchizedek called a priest in Genesis 14 well before Aaron or the Mosaic Law existed.


This is important because Christ was also called to be our High Priest before the new covenant was formally introduced. Christ was ordained as High Priest before the foundations of the world, but this remained a mystery until after His resurrection. He was ordained before it was formally spoken—just like Melchizedek. Also, Melchizedek was a priest and a king like Jesus, who is, of course, both our King and Our High Priest.


Additionally, Melchizedek’s blessing of bread and wine may also be symbolic. God blessed us with Jesus, the Bread of Life, and His shed blood, which we remember when we partake in communion (1 Corinthians 11:23-26). Abraham then blessed Melchizedek in return for blessing him. We also should bless the Lord for giving us the broken bread (Christ’s body) and the wine (His blood). We should bless the Lord with our finances, worship, and obedience. So, the second lesson from Hebrews 5 is this:


2.) Jesus is our High Priest and King forever, chosen before time began in the order of Melchizedek


 

 The third lesson is derived from Hebrews 5:7. It reads, “who in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear”. The lesson here is simple: Christ understands, and God hears.


Christ cried out with vehement tears in prayer. Vehement means strong, forceful, passionate, loud, or intense. So, the cries of Christ were petitions filled with intensity. Others may not know of your intense cries. They may not see how you privately cry out to the Lord or understand the passion and pain behind your prayers.


But Christ not only sees your tears, but He understands them too. He cried out to God as well. The hope in this text is that it says Christ was “heard because of His godly fear." Fear in this text means reverence, which means to have deep respect for someone, to honor, to adore, or to stand in awe of someone. When we fear God in this capacity, with honor and adoration, He hears our prayers. We can trust God to save us just as Christ trusted Him. And so, the third lesson of Hebrews 5 is:


3.) Fear God. He understands and hears.


 

Next, the Hebrew author reveals an interesting fact about Jesus. Hebrews 5:8 states, “though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered.” If Christ learned to obey God through suffering, wouldn’t we do the same? Obedience is a learned behavior, and suffering is its teacher.


When we consider how children are raised, we realize this concept is true. Children are not automatically obedient to their parents. Often, parents have to enforce punishment for their children to learn to do what is right. No good parent loves to see their children endure punishment; however, every parent loves to see their children obey.


Likewise, although our Good Father does not enjoy watching the suffering inflicted on us, He loves the obedience that follows. Not all suffering is for obedience. Some suffering is brought upon us by wicked men, and some is self-inflicted. But at times, God will allow us to suffer so we can be perfected in Him. And so, lesson number four of Hebrews 5 is:


4. Suffering produces obedience


 

Verses twelve through fourteen conclude Hebrews 5. The author speaks on spiritual maturity and immaturity. He writes, “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food.” He ends the chapter by saying that solid food belongs to those who exercise their senses to discern good and evil.


Recently, my daughter said she did not want to advance to the 1st Grade. She loves her teacher and new-found friends. So, she became sad when I revealed to her that the goal for her and every other student is to advance in their learning. Therefore, she must graduate to the next level to mature in her knowledge.


We are not called to be babes in Christ forever. The elementary concepts of our Christian faith are found in the next chapter, but they are beliefs from which we should graduate. They are fundamental concepts one should know as a figurative kindergarten in the faith. They are exceedingly important, but they are elementary.


So, we should mature in our knowledge of God to greater wisdom beyond these basic concepts. Maturity in Christ only comes by reading and meditating on God’s Word. It also comes by prayer and, at times, fasting when prompted by the Holy Spirit. Therefore, the 5th lesson of Hebrews 5 is this:  


5. Mature in your knowledge of Christ


We need to know the God we serve, His Kingdom, and what He says in His Word. It just isn’t fitting for a follower of Christ to be ignorant of Him or what He commands. So, let us continue learning about Christ and the things of the kingdom.


Dear reader, these are the five lessons learned from Hebrews 5. I pray they have blessed you as they have blessed me. Remember these points, apply them to your life as necessary, and become perfected in Christ.


That’s all I have for you. Be blessed, take care, and have a wonderful day.


 

Quin Arrington here! Thank you for reading this week's Write On! Wednesday word. Browse the website for Christian Fiction & Nonfiction Books as well as Christian Apparel & Merchandise. The Now, That's A Word! YouTube Channel is here:

Have a blessed day!

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Thank God for blessings of Spiritual Maturity! Awesome Words!

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