Ruth 4:14-15. Kinsman Redeemer, part 8.

Thursday July 19, 2018

 

Title: Ruth 4:14-15. Kinsman Redeemer, part 8.

 

 

Qualifications for a kinsman redeemer:

Near kinsman – The Son of God became a man.

Able to redeem –Jesus remained impeccable.

Willing to redeem – He wilfully laid down His life.

 

We are currently investigating the second qualification, the impeccability of our Lord that qualified Him as Redeemer and gave Him the coin of the realm, which was “the blood of Christ.”

 

Last time we noted that the scripture connects His sinless sacrifice with our own call to spiritual maturity. His Priesthood, according to the Order of Melchizedek does the same thing.

 

Scripture connects His sinless sacrifice with our own call to spiritual maturity:

 

1Jo 3:5-6

And you know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin. No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him.

 

1Pe 2:21-22

or you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin

 

Jesus was a perfect high priest, holy, innocent (without evil), undefiled (unstained, sinless), according to the order of Melchizedek.

 

Heb 7:1 For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham as he was returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him,

 

Heb 7:2 to whom also Abraham apportioned a tenth part of all the spoils, was first of all, by the translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then also king of Salem, which is king of peace.

 

Heb 7:3 Without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, he abides a priest perpetually.

 

Vv. 1-3 draw comparisons between Jesus and Melchizedek (like the Son of God): priest-king, blessed Abraham, received tithes, independent high-priest, timeless priesthood, ministered to all.

 

The one who blesses is greater than the one blessed. The one who receives tithes is greater than the one giving them. So then it is declared that Melchizedek is greater than Abraham. Of course, Jesus is greater than Abraham.

 

Joh 8:53

"Surely You are not greater than our father Abraham, who died? The prophets died too; whom do You make Yourself out to be?"

 

Also, Melchizedek was a king of Salem (meaning peace) and priest of the Most High God. Jesus is the Prince of Peace and the High Priest.

 

Although Melchizedek did have a mother, father, and genealogy, they are not mentioned, which emphasizes that he did not receive his priesthood through his father or birth right, as all the Levitical priests did. His ancestry was not important in establishing his claim to priesthood. It is independent of human relations. This was not true of the Aaronic Order in which every priest had to prove that he was a descendant of Aaron.

 

Jesus was appointed through an oath. He wilfully accepted the role of Redeemer, wilfully submitted to the plan of the Father though He Himself is God and God is one. Jesus was not appointed by birthright and was conceived by means of the Holy Spirit from a virgin.

 

The point of these similarities is that Melchizedek was “made like the Son of God” and so is a type of the Lord. He was not the Son of God. He was not a theophany (an appearance of the Angel of the Lord).  

 

The second comparison is between the Order of Melchizedek and the Order of Aaron. M, of which Jesus is after, is superior.

 

Heb 7:4 Now observe how great this man was to whom Abraham, the patriarch, gave a tenth of the choicest spoils.

 

Heb 7:5 And those indeed of the sons of Levi who receive the priest's office have commandment in the Law to collect a tenth from the people, that is, from their brethren, although these are descended from Abraham.

 

Heb 7:6 But the one whose genealogy is not traced from them collected a tenth from Abraham, and blessed the one who had the promises.

 

Heb 7:7 But without any dispute the lesser is blessed by the greater.

 

Heb 7:8 And in this case mortal men receive tithes, but in that case one receives them, of whom it is witnessed that he lives on.

 

Heb 7:9 And, so to speak, through Abraham even Levi, who received tithes, paid tithes,

 

Heb 7:10 for he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him.

 

The point made, which is theological, is that when Abraham gave his tithe to Melchizedek, so did Aaron since Aaron was yet in the loins of Abraham as was all of Israel. Abraham in this instance represents the entire Levitical priesthood, and Abraham, father to the Levites and greater than them, gave tithes to Melchizedek, making him a greater priest.

 

Melchizedek also blessed Abraham. The greater blesses the lesser.

 

The third superiority is that the Aaronic priests all died. Now although Melchizedek eventually died, being a man, there is no record of his death or his birth or his genealogy. He walks on the pages of scripture, gives Abraham bread and wine, blesses Abraham, receives Abraham’s tithe, and then walks off. So, Melchizedek “represents” a priesthood that lives on (vs. 8).

 

Now the writer compares the Levitical priesthood to the priesthood of Jesus.

 

Heb 7:11 Now if perfection was through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the people received the Law), what further need was there for another priest to arise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be designated according to the order of Aaron?

 

Heb 7:12 For when the priesthood is changed, of necessity there takes place a change of law also.

 

Heb 7:13 For the one concerning whom these things are spoken belongs to another tribe, from which no one has officiated at the altar.

 

Heb 7:14 For it is evident that our Lord was descended from Judah, a tribe with reference to which Moses spoke nothing concerning priests.

 

The old priesthood was transitory or changeable. There was no perfection in it; no spiritual completeness (Greek: teleiosis = perfect or complete). Perfection would not come through the old system.

 

Maturity is a relative term. I would not be comfortable saying that none in the OT were spiritually mature. Rather, I feel that it is more proper to say that certain ones mentioned were mature while the NT saint is more mature. It is relative. But completeness is not a relative term. The OT saint was not complete. The Law made no one perfect or complete. He had a shadow of the things to come. He was under a Law and a priesthood that was temporary. His sins were covered but not yet redeemed and so he had daily animal sacrifices to make. He was ceremonially clean if he followed the Law, but not completely clean until the Messiah would make him so at Calvary. Yet, all of these things are true about the NT saint who is in Christ and has a personal relationship with Christ.

 

The Levitical priesthood is under the Mosaic Law and neither could justify or perfect anyone (Heb 7:11). The priests only performed ceremonial cleansings. They sprinkled animal blood and water. The Mosaic Law was broken by every man and so led him to look for a Savior, Redeemer, which God repeatedly told them was only in Himself and that His act of redemption was to come in the future.

 

Would we call the NT saint “perfect?”

 

We understand that in position, the believer in the church age is perfect in the sense of being complete. God calls him holy, righteous, justified, blameless, and beloved. He has eternal life and in heaven he will be a sinless creature. But he is not perfect in practice on this side of heaven.

 

He is a sinner, but not in the same sense that he was as an unbeliever. He will not become sinless, but he has an abundance of power and wisdom that are both potentials for something that overcomes the life of sin and worldliness and walks a life of fruit unto God and righteousness and does so abundantly.

 

Though he fails, the NT saint is complete/full in Christ. If he learns and grows in grace and knowledge, he will walk in his gifted spiritual completeness.

 

Col 2:6 As [Greek: hos – in the same manner as] you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,

 

In the same manner that you appropriated Christ, so order your life in Him. We received Christ by faith and we also received the doctrines concerning Christ by faith – order your life by them.

 

We received Christ by faith through grace, without works, lest any man should boast. The Colossians had been overrun by Gnostic heresies and some of them had put their faith in false doctrines concerning Jesus.

 

We received Christ and we are to receive all the doctrines concerning Him and in them we must walk. Walking in the doctrines concerning Him and walking in Him is the same. The doctrines cannot be separated from the Person.

 

Col 2:7 having been firmly rooted [anchored] and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.

 

Col 2:8 See to it [beware] that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.

 

Col 2:9 For in Him all the fulness of Deity dwells in bodily form,

 

Col 2:10 and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority;

 

“Complete” is the verb pleroo – you have been made full. In Him is the pleroma (fulness vs. 9) and you have been make pleroo (full vs. 10).

 

The attack against Christ that He was not God in the flesh, which attack continues under the cults, which leads Paul to clearly communicate to the Colossians that all the pleroo of Deity dwelt in bodily form in Jesus. Paul used pleroo for the deity of Christ while the Gnostics used it for the world in general as it lay between man and God. In Gnosticism one had to climb, so to speak, through the many pleromas in order to get to God, but the truth is that the pleroma of deity is all in the person of Christ. And then, throwing the stupidity of Gnosticism aside, the truth continues, “you are pleroo in Him.” You are full. You are spiritually complete. And the truth continues:

 

Col 2:11 and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ;

 

Col 2:12 having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.

 

Same message as Rom 6. Set free from the flesh and alive is redemption.

 

Col 2:13 And when you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions,

 

Col 2:14 having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us and which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.

 

Col 2:15 When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.  

 

The church age believer has the power to be spiritually mature/complete like no OT saint could be.