What? A Personal Priest for Free?
23 The others who became priests are numerous because death prevented them from continuing to serve. 24 In contrast, he holds the office of priest permanently because he continues to serve forever. 25 This is why he can completely save those who are approaching God through him, because he always lives to speak with God for them. (Hebrews 7:23-25 – CEB)
I have been impressed with those who workout being instructed by their "personal trainer." I take one look at their workout videos or the comments by the trainer on how hard their client works and I get all "envious" and think that since they probably pay the trainer so much, the client is going to put in the extra effort. If only I could afford a personal trainer, then I would be as fit as those clients!
Well, when I first joined the YMCA in Illinois, they were running this special for people to have a personal trainer...at no extra cost! I signed up as quickly as I could. Now was my chance to be all "six-packed" and "buffed."
We were given a chart with our workouts and kept a log of what we did. This went on for four weeks I believe, and then we were "set free" to continue our quest for "six-packedness." Oh, we kept our charts and would continue to write down our exercise regimen. We were even given a T-shirt commemorating our graduation. Funny thing, though. I was free to take care of my own fitness from then on. You might guess how that went. I spent less and less time working out. I was not seeing the results I had when my "free personal trainer" was watching over me encouraging me to reach my goals. I was set free to continue my quest, but I chose a different route.
What if you were told you had your own personal priest? What would be your expectations for that priest? Would you be willing adhere to their advice on how you live your life? Would there be an end date to your "contract" with him/her? How much time would you expect this priest to be "on-call?"
In our text for Sunday, we are introduced to the "Personal High Priest" of all high priests — Jesus. I must admit I hesitate to call Jesus, my personal priest. That adjective — personal — comes with baggage that we humans must set aside. This Sunday, we will talk about what the author of Hebrews defined as our "Personal High Priest" and what we sometimes envision that to mean or not mean.
Thanks to Deb Phillips and Barb Mugavero for helping with our skit last Sunday. If there any thespians out there, they will be more skits, choral readings, etc. coming!
Pastor Steve