Jesus - The Merciful and Faithful High Priest

How does one approach God? On what basis do any of us have a standing before him? Can any of our good works or our best performance ever be adequate enough for God to rise up and open the doors of heaven for our entry? Even if by some farfetched means, one does enter, how do we approach Him? How do we talk to Him? Do we dare have the confidence to speak? Or bring our "offerings" to Him?

Humans innately know that we have inherent inadequacies and hence the long and sometimes bitter physical hardships one chooses to endure in seeking after God. The sincerity and the sacrifice are admirable but sadly inadequate. Contemplating the holiness of God, which sets Him profoundly apart and distinct from all creation, alongside our own inherent sinfulness, can make any effort to bridge this vast divide seem hopelessly futile.

Who will speak for us? Who will stand in that gap? Who will bring us to God and heal us of our own brokenness and the world of its own?

Once a rich young ruler approached Jesus asking how one can get this kind of life - eternal life. Having verbally self-attested to his own devout adherence to all the rules and rituals required by the Law of God, Jesus still asked him to give up all he had to the poor and come and follow him. This is where he found himself unable. Baffled, the disciples asked Jesus, "Who then can be saved?". Jesus answered their earnest inquiry by saying, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26

Like the rich young ruler in the scripture, I too find myself earnestly striving to perform well. It's a familiar situation for many of us: with a bit of thoughtful planning, it's quite possible to achieve a level of adequacy, especially when it feels like our future is on the line. This often involves some strategic time management and a willingness to make sacrifices. Yet, it's fascinating how adept we are as humans at identifying loopholes, always finding ways to fulfill the minimum requirements needed to consider ourselves devout followers or adherents.

To the same question, Isaiah in prayer says this:

But when we continued to sin against them, you were angry. How then can we be saved? All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away. No one calls on your name or strives to lay hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us and have given us over to our sins. Isaiah 64:5-7

God sees our heart. He sees through all of our sincere efforts to please him. He sees and weighs the motivations of our heart. Even if we somehow have all the reasons correct, our performance still falls short of his righteous standard.

A person may think their own ways are right,  but the LORD weighs the heart. Proverbs 21:2

In this day and age where we see all around us people calling out to God and hoping to catch a glimpse of him or receive some favor from him, the words of Jesus are a sober reminder - "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible".

In the arrival of Jesus, we witness a profound embodiment of God's presence, as the writer of Hebrews describes Him as the "exact representation of His (God's) being" (Hebrews 1:3). John portrays Jesus as the living "Temple/Tabernacle of God," actively engaging with the marginalized and broken sectors of society. Consider the story of Zacchaeus, who merely hoped to see Jesus; instead, Jesus called out to him and invited Himself over, breaking social norms. Similarly, when Jesus called Matthew, a tax collector ostracized as a traitor by Jewish society, He didn't just stop there; He attended a gathering filled with Matthew's friends, further embracing those shunned by society.

Jesus consistently advocated for the overlooked, the sinners, and the women of His time. He didn't wait for people to seek Him out; He reached out to the lonely, the broken, and the outcasts, making Himself accessible. His actions — feeding the masses, speaking with kindness, and humbling Himself even before His disciples — reveal the true nature of God. In a world aching for a glimpse of the divine and yearning for a sign of favor, here was God in flesh, making Himself available to all and proclaiming the year of God's favor. This wasn't a distant deity, but a God who walks among us, meeting us in our places of need and longing.

What, then, does God desire from us? Simply put, He desires our companionship, our presence. From the beginning, His longing has been for human beings to walk alongside Him. While we often seek God to fill a void in our lives, His pursuit of us is so that we might embrace the full, glorious life He envisioned for us. Yet, in our quest to draw near to Him, we are confronted by our own brokenness and a history of failures. How can we possibly approach a holy God in this state?

This dilemma highlights the very reason for Jesus' coming. He arrived not merely as a teacher or healer, but as the one who bridges the gap between humanity and God, restoring us to right relationship with our Creator. In His role as the high priest, Jesus does what no other priest can. What is the function of a priest? It is to stand between — representing humans to God and God to humans. We need someone to unlock the door, to grant us confidence in the presence of God, regardless of our status or wealth.

Earthly positions, achievements and riches fall short in bridging this divide. Only through God can this reconciliation be achieved. By sacrificing His sinless life, Jesus not only became the ultimate atonement for our sins but also assumed the role of our high priest, interceding on our behalf. In Him, we find both the sacrifice that redeems and the mediator who reconnects us with God.

The writer of Hebrews puts it like this:

For this reason, he had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. Hebrews 2:17-18

He lived like us; he's been where we are. He has faced pressures to perform, the betrayal of a friend, the struggle to choose to do the right thing at great personal cost, the temptation to take shortcuts to success, the pressure to compromise his call to accommodate the expectations of those around him. He knows what it's like to be human. And this is precisely why as our High Priest he is able to be merciful to us. This isn't to say God wasn't merciful before, but Jesus' life brings a tangible demonstration of God's mercy, in a way that gives hope to all who find themselves faraway from God. It means, when I find myself falling short of God's righteousness, I don't need to go any place or to any other god-person, but I can, in my own solitude, with both humility and assurance, reach out and pray to Him and be confident of receiving mercy in my time of need. He doesn't change. His thoughts towards us doesn't change. He is a merciful God. He is also faithful.

This eternal God took on human form, lived among us, and now eternally intercedes as our faithful high priest.

The writer calls Jesus the "pioneer and perfecter of our faith" (2:10; 12:2) and the "one who makes people holy" (2:11) - He is faithful. It is his faithfulness that led him to come to this earth and pay the ultimate price to bring us to God. It is his faithfulness that started this work within us, calling us to be his children, to experience the forgiveness of God and peace with God. And it is his faithfulness that will continue to lead us. As the writer says later:

“Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”  6 So we say with confidence,  “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.  What can mere mortals do to me? Hebrews 13:5-6

He is the faithful High Priest, bridging the gap and declaring God's favor upon us, encouraging us to approach God's presence boldly. As the faithful High Priest, He also nurtures us, shaping us into what we're meant to be. In every role we play in life, He is committed to our growth. "But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are His house," Hebrews 3:6.

what do we need to do when we find ourselves doubting, shaken, sinful and filthy, tempted and struggling, when we want to know him more, the writer in Hebrews says:

1 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest. Hebrews 3:1

"Fix our thoughts" means to consider Jesus. He is our faithful and merciful High Priest. Let his faithful mercy wash over our hearts and souls today and bring us near to our God. Let us pray and draw near with confidence knowing that He gives grace, mercy and he is faithful to finish and perfect the work He has started in you.