And where Jesus, our Forerunner, has gone in before us. He is now and forever our Royal Priest like Melchizedek.
Abraham, Melchizedek and an Anchor – Part 6
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“And now we have run into his heart to hide ourselves in his faithfulness. This is where we find his strength and comfort, for he empowers us to seize what has already been established ahead of time — an unshakeable hope! We have this certain hope like a strong, unbreakable anchor holding our souls to God himself. Our anchor of hope is fastened to the mercy seat which sits in the heavenly realm beyond the sacred threshold, and where Jesus, our Forerunner, has gone in before us. He is now and forever our Royal Priest like Melchizedek.” Heb 6:18-20 (PT).
Melchiz-a-who?
After all the hope and anchors and faithfulness and Jesus, a guy named “Melchizedek” is compared to Christ, an eternal Royal Priest. Who is this guy?
We first meet Melchizedek in Genesis 14. Two chapters before that, God made Abraham a whole bunch of promises and told him that he would begin a new tribe, different to all others. Most tribes, back in the day, were inward focused, being all about themselves – protecting themselves, advancing themselves, taking from other tribes to grow their own. There were lots of wars and jostling for dominion. But Abraham was to begin a tribe that would BLESS, not attack; that would grow the world, not just their own little corner of it. “All the families of the earth will be blessed through you (Abraham).” Genesis 12:3.
In Genesis 14, Abraham is traveling after a battle against King Chedorlaomer when a man approaches him with bread and wine and calls himself “King Melchizedek of Salem.”
Genesis describes him as the “priest of God Most High.”
Hang on, wasn’t Abraham the only one onto something? Didn’t God single him out? Where did this Royal Priest come from? How did he know God? How was he a high priest and the bible hadn't mentioned him yet?
In the middle of God doing something new in the world through Abraham, he did something new to Abraham.
Things had been escalating pretty quickly up to this point. Violence and wars, people trying to build towers that reached the heavens to become like God. Confusion, mess… it was all there. And in the middle of it all, God birthed hope. God called Abraham to something new (SIDE NOTE: that's a recurring theme in the Bible. God leads us out of the old and into the new: struggle… hope… exodus…).
Right when Abraham had to deal with more war and violence, even after the promise of God, he meets Melchizedek, who prays over him and blesses him with wine and bread. Wine and bread: pictures and symbols of Jesus…
Hope is a function of struggle. And without sounding too morbid, life is a struggle. It’s wonderful, but also full of heartache. It’s beautiful, but also harsh and terrifying. It’s joyful, but also full of pain and sorrow. There’s much to explore, and more to endure. But in the midst of it all, Jesus is our hope. He anchors us to God's divine and infinite nature; a connection to all things, reminding us that in the muck and mess of life, he still makes all things new. Resurrection takes place all around us and within us if we would just open our eyes and see…
There’s speculation that Melchizedek was Christ. We may never know until we can ask God face to face. But for Abraham, and what he and Sarah were about to endure, this encounter would have been one of those rocks that their anchor of hope caught on to, holding them fast to the promise. And to the one who promised, and is himself the promise.
Hope on, dear friends. Don’t sit on the sidelines of life wondering and being fearful of what it would be like to dive in… drop your anchor, hold on tight, BREATHE (Y-H-V-H) and go for it… He who promised is faithful.
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