Aaron and Jesus

In Exodus 28, God commands Moses to make Aaron and his sons priests. As priests, they represented God to the people and the people to God.

Aaron was the high priest. All the high priests that followed him were to come from his family. Aaron is the high priest of the Old Covenant.

In Hebrews 3:1, Jesus is called the apostle and high priest of our confession. Jesus is the high priest of the New Covenant.

Aaron and Jesus share some things in common.

Aaron exercised his position as high priest by carefully following the Lord’s commands – Leviticus 8:36. He was imperfect but faithful.

Jesus exercised His position as high priest by carefully yielding to His Father’s leadership – John 8:28-29.

Aaron served in such a way that God’s glory would appear to the people – Leviticus 9:6.

Jesus served in such a way that God and His glory where seen though Him. In John 1:18, Jesus says He had come so  that people could see God.  In John 14:9-11, Jesus says that if you have seen Him, you have seen the Father. In Colossians 1:15, Paul says that Jesus was the exact image of God.

Aaron and Jesus were different in several ways as they served as high priest.

Aaron was appointed as temporary mediator between the people and God. He and his successors were made obsolete by Jesus.

Jesus is the one and only mediator between God and man – 1 Timothy 2:5-6. Jesus is the eternal high priest and will never become obsolete.

He is the eternal high priest because of His work on the cross.

Because of Jesus’ work on the cross, we have been declared righteous and are invited to approach God based on Jesus’ work with confidence – Hebrews 4:16.

Aaron arranged for atonement for all of Israel – Leviticus 9:7

Jesus purchased atonement for the whole world. That atonement becomes applied to our lives the moment we surrender the authority of our lives to the authority of Jesus – 1 John 2:2. Jesus came to Israel as the promised Messiah., but salvation in His name is available for people of every nation. – Romans 3:29

Aaron needed to make atonement for his own sins – Leviticus 9:8

Jesus never sinned. He was and is perfect in word, thought, and deed. Jesus died on the cross as an unblemished substitute. His sinless perfection made Him the worthy sacrifice and makes him a worthy priest in heaven – Hebrews 7:26-27

Aaron was a priest over Israel because he was ordained and anointed by Moses – Leviticus 8:1-12.

Jesus the Son of God is our great high priest, unique and eternal, because                                                                God the Father designated Him for that honor – Hebrews 5:1-5.

Aaron stood before God and humbled himself under God’s authority.

Jesus is God – Colossians 1:15-17.

Through Jesus as our high priest, we have been made priests of the New Covenant to dispense the grace of God to others.

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is having Jesus as our High Priest and acting as priests of the New Covenant.

Hebrews 10:19-23

Therefore brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that He opened for us through the curtain, that is, through His flesh, and since we have a great high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.

We have Jesus as our high priest and we have confident assurance that we can come before Him and receive all that we need.

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is experiencing Jesus as all that we need.

With Jesus as Our High Priest, Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls,

                                                  Joe