Hebrews 8:1-13

Too often we have the habit of preferring that which is good over that which is best.  The Hebrews were still giving preference to the traditions, laws and rituals revealed in the Old testament.  These were very good and served a vital purpose in the program of God.  However, they had been replaced by One who is far superior.  Christ must be the object of our adoration and our affection.
CHRIST IS THE PERFECT PRIEST: The Old Testament Priest was an imperfect man who did his best to represent man before God through the sacrifices and rituals that he offered in a temple that was built by man.  The tabernacle and temple were designed by God, passed through Moses and then executed by men.  It was a wonderful and important work, but it was imperfect.  Christ, on the other hand, is God made flesh.  He is the perfect Priest in that he is completely without sin but beyond that, He serves in the very throne room of God the Father in the heavens.  Heaven is a place that was not made by man to represent the presence of God but a place that is the very presence of God.  The tabernacle and temple were like looking at a well planned photograph; it was a spectacular representation.  Christ is the “real thing” in the “real place.”  There is not just a representation, Christ is the perfect Priest.
CHRIST IS THE COMPLETE COVENANT: God made several wonderful covenants with the children of Israel.  From the time of Abraham to the time of the prophets, God established these covenants that He promised to fulfill.  Some of them were conditional, dependant on their obedience while some of them were unconditional.  These covenants promised many different things from possession of land, posterity, prosperity to peace and protection.  The problem with these covenants is that they ended up being broken or delayed because of disobedience.  The New Covenant made through Christ is different from all of them for it was made as a means of proving God’s mercy and faithfulness despite the disobedience of His people.  It is a complete covenant because it does not merely promise a property or peace, it promises a complete transformation of the heart.  The reason the other covenants were not realized in their fullness was the disobedience of their hearts.  This covenant promises to change our hearts.  We must not be confused by past covenants or think that coming to Christ is a means of gaining prosperity.  We come to Christ in the New Covenant because Christ has promised to transform our lives.  This is the completed work of God in the lives of men, that we might be redeemed from sin and then transformed to the image of Christ that we might, in Christ be fully free from sin the curse of sin.  Christ’s work in us is complete.

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