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Melchizedek was a priest of the Bible's God who lived in Abraham's day prior to the birth of Levi, Moses, and Aaron; and subsequently prior to the Aaronic priesthood (Gen 14:17-20). Aaron's priesthood— along with its attendant retinue of under-priests —is the priesthood for people whose religion consists of The Commandments.
†. Heb 8:4 . . For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to The Commandments;
Aaron's priesthood then, is an earthly religion, while Christ's priesthood is an heavenly religion; and The Commandments are definitely an earthly religion because the Bible says that the man who does them shall live by them; viz: they are a code to live by but not a code to go to Heaven by.
†. Lev 18:4-5 . .You shall observe My judgments and keep My ordinances, to walk in them: I am Yhvh your God. You shall therefore keep My statutes and My judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them
†. Rom 10:5 . . For Moses writes about the righteousness which is of The Commandments: The man who does those things shall live by them.
†. Gal 3:11-12 . . But that no one is righteous by The Commandments in the sight of God is evident, for: The just shall live by faith. Yet The Commandments are not of faith, but: The man who does them shall live by them.
In contrast, Melchizedek's priesthood had no connection to The Commandments whatsoever; therefore, his constituents (which included Abraham) were not required to obey The Commandments because they didn't become law till a few hundred years later (Gal 3:17). So then it was, and still is, impossible for a Melchizedekian priest's constituents to be prosecuted for breaking The Commandments.
†. Rom 4:15 . .Where no commandments exist; there is no transgression.
†. Rom 5:13 . . For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law.
So then, what does this mean in practical terms?
Jesus is clearly stated to be a priest whose order is patterned after Melchizedek's.
†. Heb 5:4-6 . . So also Christ did not glorify Himself so as to become a high priest, but He who said to him: Thou art My Son, Today I have begotten Thee; and also: Thou art a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.
ergo: People trying to earn salvation points via The Commandments, are mixed up with the wrong priesthood because Melchizedek's order doesn't mediate for people whose religion consists of The Commandments. They are inadvertently relying upon the now-obsolete Aaronic order rather than Melchizedek's; viz: Jesus is of no use to them whatsoever; and they are in grave danger of the wrath of God.
†. Gal 3:10 . . For as many as are dedicated to The Commandments are under a curse; for it is written: Cursed is everyone who does not continually abide by all things written in the book of the law, to perform them. (Deut 27:26)
The Desperate Necessity Of A Melchizedekian Priesthood.
†. Heb 7:11 . . Now if perfection was through the Aaronic priesthood (for on the basis of it the people received The Commandments), 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?
The answer to that question is quite simple. No flesh will be made righteous in God's sight by keeping The Commandments simply because no flesh can obey them consistently; and consistence is essential if one is to obtain eternal life by means of The Commandments (Deut 27:26, Rom 3:19-20, Gal 3:10). Therefore, a Melchizedekian priesthood is mankind's only hope of escape from retribution because Aaron's religion has never been designated a means of eternal salvation; while Christ's is.
†. John 5:24 . . I assure you, those who heed my message, and trust in God who sent me, have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from Death into Life.
†. Heb 5:8-10 . . He became, to all those who heed him, the source of eternal salvation, being designated by God as a High Priest according to the order of Melchizedek.
†. Heb 6:19-20 . .This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil, where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.
Religions that require their adherents to comply with The Commandments in order to be worthy to escape eternal suffering rather than depending entirely upon Jesus' priesthood; are religions that doom their members to a status that the Bible calls: fallen from grace and alienated from Christ.
†. Gal 5:3-5 . . For if you are trying to make yourselves righteous with God by keeping The Commandments, then you have been severed from Christ! You have fallen from grace.
†. Gal 2:21 . . I am not one of those who treats the kindness of God as meaningless. For if we could be spared by keeping The Commandments, then there was no need for Christ to die.
†. Gal 3:21-22 . . If The Commandments could have given us new life, then we could have been made right with God by obeying them. But the Scriptures have declared that we are all prisoners of sin, so the only way to receive God's promise is to rely upon Jesus Christ.
Rome's priesthood is actually an unholy amalgam of Aaron's and Melchizedek's because it attempts to mediate for people whose salvation depends upon obedience to The Commandments and upon trust in Christ's blood both at the same time; which is a man-made hybrid priesthood that cannot be found recommended anywhere in the New Testament.
PS: so why am I putting such an emphasis on the Melchizedekian priesthood? Because an understanding of that priesthood is an essential prerequisite to interpreting a difficult legal principle like Heb 10:26. But unfortunately, much of what I've posted typically results in a ping on internet forums because a comprehensive study of the Melchizedekian order is pretty much limited to Christians whose spiritual digestion is a cut above the average rank and file pew warmer. (Heb 5:9-14, Heb 6:1-9)
C.L.I.F.F.
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