Lent 5, Year B | Hebrews 5:5-10
St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church
March 17, 2024
the Rev. Jonathan Hanneman
No audio or video of the sermon is available.
“You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.” – Hebrews 5:6[1]
The book of Hebrews an oddity, as far as the Bible is concerned. A good bit of that is because we have no idea who wrote it. Every other part of the New Testament has a name associated with it, but with Hebrews, not even tradition offers a suggestion. Many assume the author was Paul or one of his followers. Others argue for one of the original apostles or even an Early Church leader named Apollos. After the first service Deacon Phil told me that some even wonder if a woman wrote it and the men conspired to remove her name. It’s interesting stuff, but all of that is complete speculation. The author never mentions anything about themself, so the writing remains completely anonymous.
Another unusual thing about Hebrews is that, beyond not knowing who the author is, we don’t even know to whom it was originally written! Paul’s letters always address a specific congregation, but Hebrews doesn’t really give us many clues. In fact, you won’t even find the word “Hebrew” within its text! Somewhere along the line someone noticed that the book draws a significant portion of its content from ancient Jewish tradition, suggested it must have been written to Hebrew people, and the name just stuck.
If any part of the New Testament was originally a formal theological work, Hebrews might just be it. So despite its complete anonymity and its utter lack of a defined audience, this unusual letter somehow spread its way through the Church and became important enough that the early bishops retained it within our formal canon of scripture.
It seems fitting, then, that this mysterious book spends a good bit of time talking about Melchizedek, an equally mysterious character. His name appears only twice in the entirety of the Hebrew Bible: a passing mention in the Psalms,[2] which our Hebrews reading quotes, and just three verses from Genesis. Abraham was returning home from a battle where he rescued his nephew Lot along with quite a few local captives and their pillaged goods. Along his journey back we read,
“King Melchizedek of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was priest of God Most High. He blessed [Abram] and said,
‘Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
maker of heaven and earth;
and blessed be God Most High,
who has delivered your enemies into your hand!’
And Abram gave him one tenth of everything.”[3]
And that’s it—the whole story. Yet our epistle takes this obscure character otherwise lost to history and builds one of its central arguments around them, referencing him by name eight times in the course of just three chapters and establishing him as the primary example for Jesus’ own unusual priesthood.
With thousands of years of history and theology to look back upon, it’s easy for us to recognize Jesus as prophet, priest, and king, but in the earliest days of Christianity—particularly before Rome destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem—that second title would have been questionable at best.
Under ancient Hebrew practice, certain tribes were either assigned or associated with specific roles. Prophets could come from anywhere, so that wasn’t a problem. But ever since Moses led Israel out of Egypt, God had established Levi as the priestly tribe. All of Israel’s priests, from the anointing of Moses’ brother Aaron to the final ruin of the Second Temple, came from the family of Levi. However, Jesus’ ancestry was from the royal house—the tribe of Judah. As a descendent of King David on both Mary and Joseph’s sides of the family,[4] people could readily argue that Jesus was Israel’s king.
Early in the history of the church, however, apostles had already been using sacrificial language and imagery when they talked about Jesus.[5] But that led to a bit of a problem: without any known ancestral heritage from the house of Levi, Jesus could never be considered one of Israel’s legitimate priests. It was a genetic impossibility. How, then, could someone from Judah formally “[give] himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God’?[6]
Enter Melchizedek, an individual quite literally grandfathered into the system.
Long before the birth of David or Aaron or Levi or Judah, long before even the imagination of any Hebrew royal or priestly house, Genesis records that brief encounter we read earlier, where Abraham, great-grandfather of both Levi and Judah, meets this mysterious Melchizedek, the first and only priest with whom we see Abraham interact. Melchizedek, whose name means “Righteous King,”[7] happens to be not only “priest of God Most High” but also King of Salem, the name of which means “Peace”—and the settlement that would one day become Jerusalem. So here we find Abraham receiving a blessing from this Priest of God Most High. Not only does Abraham willingly accept Mechizedek’s blessing, he offers tribute to this Righteous King and Prince of Peace, cementing the priest’s superior status in the eyes of the Ancient Near East.
This, especially when combined with King David’s ancient Psalm referencing Melchizedek’s priestly order, opened a door for Jesus. Not only did this order exist long before the Levitical priesthood, Levi’s ancestor was subservient to this King-Priest. The ancestor was considered superior to the descendant, so if Levi’s great-grandfather submitted to Melchizedek, that meant Levi would have also been required to submit. With early Christians reading Psalm 110 as prefiguring Jesus as the Christ, that meant that Jesus could possess the titles of Righteous King, Prince of Peace, and Priest of God Most High within Israel; he also held those positions beyond and outside of Jewish society.
So, that’s the significance of Melchizedek, along with a substantial part of the argument the author of Hebrews is making in honor of Jesus as Prophet, Priest, and King. But now that we have the information, we need to figure out what to do with it.
We’re approaching the end of Lent. Next Sunday we’ll experience the people of Jerusalem lauding and then rapidly turning their backs on Jesus as their king. But Jesus didn’t come for titles. He didn’t come for honor or renown. He wasn’t a prophet because people recognized him as a prophet. He wasn’t a priest simply because someone had anointed him as a priest. And he wasn’t a king just because the people greeted him as one. The people recognized Jesus as a prophet because, title or not, he functioned as a prophet. The people recognized Jesus as a priest because, title or not, he functioned as a priest. And the people called him a king, again, not because of some inherited title, but because he functioned as one: King of Righteousness; Prince of Peace.
The same goes for Lamb and sacrifice and Savior. Jesus didn’t necessarily seek out those roles so much as, by inhabiting their functions, the roles simply were part of who he was. Likewise for us, who claim the title of Christian.
Despite the way our society treats the concept, being a Christian isn’t something one just calls themself. Being a Christian isn’t simply a title one inherits or assumes or takes by force. An individual doesn’t become a Christian simply because of what they say or the culture they were born into or chose to adopt. A person becomes a Christian only by inhabiting that role, by functioning in life as righteous—being a force aligned with God, by following Jesus on a just and nonviolent path of peace, and by blessing others not only in word but in deeds.
Again, we’re approaching the end of Lent—only two more weeks to go in this season of intentional reflection! Now is a good opportunity to take some time to sit down and think about your life, all the habits and practices that not only fill your time but both build and reveal who you are. Maybe even make a list, if it helps. Consider the shape of your life and compare that with what you say you are and who you want to be. Are you faithful to God Most High, the maker of heaven and earth? Are you—in actions, not just in words—truly faithful to Jesus Christ, the Son of God? Are you faithful to the Holy Spirit? Do you continue in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of the bread, and in the prayers? Do you persevere in resisting evil, and, whenever you fail, repent and return to the Lord? Do you proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ? Do you seek and serve Christ in all persons, again, not simply with what you say but by genuinely loving your neighbor as yourself? Do you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?[8]
These are the marks of the Christian life, the way those who truly wish to follow Jesus function in the world. How do you line up? And how might you still need to change? Will you continue in your effort to follow our Savior, tracing his steps as
“…a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek”?
[1] All Bible quotations are from the NRSV unless otherwise noted.
[2] Psalm 110:4
[3] Genesis 14:18-20
[4] See Matthew 1:1-17 & Luke 3:23-38
[5] Romans 3:25; Ephesians 5:2; I John 2:2; I John 4:10
[6] Ephesians 5:2
[7] Or “King of Justification”
[8] Adapted from the Baptismal Creed in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer (pg. 304-305)