The letter to the Hebrews: New Collegeville Bible Commentary analysis

Hebrews 5:1-6 explains why Jesus, who was not of a priestly caste, became endowed with the status of High Priest and serves humanity in this critical function. These readings explicate the underlying meanings of scripture as it pertains to Jesus’s qualifications, qualities, roles, and duties as High Priest. Modeled after Aaron, the High Priest must have three core qualities. First, a High Priest must be singled out, special, and unique. Second, the High Priest cannot be self-appointed or even appointed by human beings. Only God can appoint the High Priest. In other words, the High Priest is called by God to serve. Third, the High Priest must have a set of qualities that include empathy for those who are weak and sinful, humility, and patience.
The primary role served by the High Priest is that of intermediary between God and humanity. Pilch (n.d.) offers the best metaphor of the intermediary role, in that the petitioner will need a patron or a broker to conduct complicated affairs or to restore order or harmony. The High Priest reconciles the human being who has sinned with God, who is offended by that sin. With humility, empathy, patience, and kindness, the High Priest helps the human being restore harmony in his or her relationship with God.

Jesus as the Son of God is the ultimate High Priest of a new world order. Far from the old model in which High Priests could only come from specific families, Jesus returned to the world the genuine model of the High Priest who serves humanity as intermediary. As the anointed one, the Christ, Jesus is royal, priestly, and divinely ordained. Jesus was also humble enough to surrender his divine privileges and assume the burden of sin in order to cultivate the solidarity with others needed to become truly empathetic and humble (Matera, n.d.). Even if Jesus was a layman, he fulfilled the primary requirements of High Priesthood.
Christians today can learn from Jesus’s radical new model of High Priesthood. For one, Jesus taught that birthright is not an effective means by which to determine fitness for spiritual leadership. Being called by God is really the only way to prove oneself able to fulfill the duties of the High Priest. Second, Christians can look to Jesus as the ultimate role model of priestly comportment. Humility, patience, and empathy are the qualities of a good leader in any sector. Even Christians who do not wish to become members of the clergy can easily understand how they can benefit others by developing qualities like those exhibited by the High Priest. Those who do become members of the clergy can learn how to keep themselves and their ego in check. Jesus’s example also offers hope to those who fear that being a layperson precludes them from serving God. In fact, Jesus was a layperson who exemplifies the dedication and hard work needed to overcome any challenges that befall us.

Finally, Hebrews 5:1-6 has implications for the day-to-day living of the people of Hawaii. Hawaiian Christians can learn from this first the importance of seeking out the intermediary through intercessionary prayer. Those who serve in the priestly role do so to serve the people; there is no one who is exempt from God’s love and grace. The whole purpose of the High Priest is to offer salvation and forgiveness, even when the sinner does not feel worthy of God’s love. An intermediary restores one’s relationship with God through intercessionary prayer, and helps the person repent. Jesus is the ultimate intermediary, but clergy serving in positions like the High Priest offer benedictions that function to promote forgiveness and salvation. Also, these passages provide a clear reminder of the importance of humility and empathy in all our affairs. When working within the community, we can seek to embody the qualities of the High Priest even when our role is more secular in nature. It is also important to remind the congregation of the importance of heeding the call to serve. Those who have heard the call can balance the sense of humility with the sense of duty and drive to become a servant-leader to help others.









References

Bergant, D. (n.d.). Preaching the New Lectionary.
Matera, F.J. (n.d.). Strategies for Preaching Paul.
Pilch, J.J. (n.d.). The cultural world of the apostles