“And no man takes this honor unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron. So also Christ glorified not Himself to be made a High Priest; but He that said unto Him, ‘You are My Son; today have I begotten You.’ As He said also in another place, ‘You are a Priest forever after the order of Melchizedek’.”
Hebrews 5:4-6
Chosen, called and commissioned—truly He was a “Man on a Mission” and so should we be.
Sent all the way from Heaven, in reality, Jesus was God’s first “foreign Missionary.” Even though we cannot understand the mystery of the Trinity, we do know Jesus knew for what Purpose He’d come (Lk. 19:10) and what it’d take to accomplish it (Lk. 9:51).
Even though He was/is both the Son of God and God Himself, the fact remains that He was both “anointed and appointed” by the Father (Is. 61:1-3). Just as the High Priest and kings were anointed with oil when assuming their position, so did God confirm Jesus’ selection by sending the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove at His baptism (Mt. 3:17). He also reaffirmed Him later on the Mount of Transfiguration (Mt. 17:5).
Yet, many—particularly the religious leaders in Jesus’ day—did not affirm Him as the promised Messiah or God’s High Priest, partly because He was not of the lineage of Aaron. He was from the tribe of Judah. That’s why the author of Hebrews said “Called of God a High Priest after the order of Melchezedek” (5:10) and “made a High Priest forever after the order of Melchizedek” (6:20).
He knew the Jews’ history and how Abraham paid tithes and offerings to Melchizedek, the priest-king from Salem, as he returned from rescuing Lot from his captors (Gen. 14:17-24). In so doing, Aaron—who was “still in Abraham’s loins” (Heb. 7:5, 9-21), i.e., still yet unborn—was also paying tithes to this “Priest of the Most High God” through Abraham.
Simply put, Jesus’ credentials and calling were of a Higher Order!
And, dear Pilgrim, so are ours (Mt. 28:18-20)! Glory!!
Yes, we, too, are “chosen, called and commissioned” by God even as Isaiah was (Is. 6:8). Truly, we are “apostles” (“those sent out on a mission with a message”) and “ambassadors for Christ, engaged in the Ministry of Reconciliation and entrusted with the Word of Reconciliation” (II Cor. 5:17-21).
The question is, “Are we being faithful in our Mission?”
When Jesus said, “Go into all the world and make disciples” (Mt. 28:18-20), He didn’t make it optional—for His command there implicitly understood, “As you are going. . .” Therefore, to truly be His disciple we must go where He sends and do what He says; otherwise, we can’t say we’re truly following Him.
How wonderful to know that we, like Christ, are also a “a chosen generation, kingdom of royal priests, a holy nation that is called to be ‘different’” (Ex. 19:6; I Pet. 2:9). And, like Jesus, we also have an “unction (Grk. ‘chrisma’—‘special endowment, anointing, smearing of holy oil, consecration, etc.’) of the Holy Spirit” (I Jn. 2:20), Who will guide and empower us.
By Tom Smith Morning Manna Dated January 27, 2011
