Our Sermons

Bible Passage: Hebrews 5:7-9
Pastor: Pastor Schlicht
Sermon Date:  February 14, 2018

In the first verse of Hebrews 5, the Holy Spirit reminds us of the two necessary qualifications of an Old Testament high priest. The author writes, “Every high priest is selected from among the people and is appointed to represent the people in matters relating to God.” A High Priest must be chosen from among the people. He must be one of them to represent them before God and he, himself, must be acceptable to God. He must be fit to serve in both ways.

This Lenten season, as we look closely at Jesus as our great high priest we will see that he himself fits both requirements in a way no one else could. All throughout Epiphany Jesus reveal himself to be the true Son of God from heaven. We heard the voice of the Father declare it at his baptism, we saw him perform miracles by his own authority, and we saw him transfigured in glory. Certainly, Jesus is an acceptable High Priest before God. This is the groundwork of our comfort in Jesus; we know that he is one with the Father as his only begotten Son. As Jesus said, “No one comes to the Father except through me.”

But that is not the point I want to focus on tonight. I want to consider the singular suitability of Jesus to be a High Priest for us, to be a High Priest who is one from among us and is fit to represent ordinary humans like you and me. And perhaps no greater example of Jesus’ suitability in this regard exists than his prayer-life. Jesus is our Praying High Priest! In this short section of Hebrews 5, he teaches us three comforts we have because of his prayers as our high priest: 1. Jesus prayed because prayer meets needs. 2. Jesus understands desperate prayers. And 3. Jesus prayed to a God who saves and so do we. God bless the Spirit’s work in our hearts.

1. Jesus prayed because prayer meets needs.

Let’s start with verse 7, “In the days of his flesh, he offered prayers and pleas with loud cries and tears to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence.” There is so much packed into these words! The first phrase refers to Jesus’ state of humiliation, “in the days of his flesh”. His weakness as a human was not just in appearances, he who was from time and eternity God, became fully human. He who needed nothing became needy. And as such, he prayed to God. In fact, the gospels each record him praying over twenty times. And these occasions are, no doubt, just a few typical of a much greater number. Jesus’ heart was in constant communion with the Father; he was constantly in prayer.

Brothers and Sisters, don’t ever think that Jesus prayed just for show. He was a real man and his prayers were as real as yours or mine. Jesus, as a true human, had real needs. Our text said he offered “prayers and pleas.” We only offer up a plea if we need something. As simple as this observation may be, that our Savior really did pray, it is one that needs to be repeated.

It needs to be repeated because you and I sometimes neglect the gift of prayer. I wonder if we would neglect it if we truly trusted that praying to God meets our needs. There may be many reasons why we don’t pray as much as we should, but this is what it really comes down to. We have trouble really believing in the effectiveness of prayer. And that’s why we need to remember that even, Jesus, himself prayed to God the Father. Jesus spent more time in prayer than any of us, not because he liked to look good, but because he had needs! My friends, if you have needs, then pray! Pray and be confident that your prayers are powerful! Because of Jesus, your High Priest, God hears you and will meet your needs according to his wisdom and his timetable.

2. Jesus understands desperate prayers.

But it wasn’t just the fact that Jesus prayed, but also how he sometimes prayed, that deserves our attention this evening. Verse 7 tells us he prayed, “with loud cries and tears.” Some of those days of his flesh were incredibly hard and the intensity of his prayers rose to the match the difficulty. But, perhaps no day or prayer could match the one he uttered in the Garden of Gethsemane, the night before his death. When the dread of God’s desertion and the guilt of the world pressed down on his shoulders, he sank to his knees under the olive trees and poured out his soul, even to a bloody sweat, in prayer to God.

Just think about what it means that Jesus would cry in prayer. When a man like Jesus, perfect in courage, perfect in patience, perfect in self-control, cries, we can be sure his sorrow has surpassed all limits. Luke’s Gospel says “And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground” (Luke 22:44). There is a condition called Hematidrosis which is rare, but very real, where one’s sweat will contain blood. The sweat glands are surrounded by tiny blood vessels. When these vessels constrict and dilate at an accelerated level they can rupture and the blood will then seep into the sweat glands. Some scholars believe this is what happened to Jesus that night in Gethsemane. After all, the main cause of Hematidrosis is extreme anxiety. In Jesus’ case, severe mental anguish. And Jesus’ didn’t just perspire a little, he was dripping bloody sweat. In the Matthew and Mark’s Gospels, Jesus’ level of anguish is described in his own words: “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death” (Mt 26:38; Mk 14:34).

Here is the point: When you feel the weight of the world on your shoulders and kneel down in prayer you need to remember this. When you feel the weight of sin or the panicked sensation of desperate need and your prayer gathers strength and pulls loud cries from your mouth and tears from your eyes, you need to remember this. It might be hard to imagine that Jesus ever did the same, but he did! He prayed with loud cries and tears!

He knows that solitary cave on Mt. Carmel where Elijah bowed his head and cried seven times. He knows the wall Hezekiah turned his face toward and wept in sorrow. He knows that place beside the Jabbok river where Jacob wrestled with God. He knows the sackcloth David wore lying on the ground for a week praying for his infant son. And he knows the agony of your soul as well. He can relate to your loneliness, your desertion, your sorrow and despair. He is your praying High Priest! If you are in an extremely terrible moment of depression or despair. If you cry yourself to sleep or feel so filled with anxiety that you cannot move, then remember Jesus under the olive trees. Do not apologize for your tears. Know that Jesus is passing through the depths with you. He has been there and he understands desperate prayers, even when no one else can.

3. Jesus prayed to a God who saves and so do we.

Jesus’ prayers were not just intense, they were also filled with an understanding of the God to whom they were directed. Verse 5 says Jesus cried out “to the one who was able to save him from death.” The expression is startling! Our Savior prayed to be saved. Jesus, more than anyone else, knew the character of the God he addressed. Jesus was about to die and so he prayed to the only one who could save him from out of death. He prayed to God, knowing that he must drink the cup which had been given him. And yet he prayed again and again, “If it is possible, if it is possible…” And though God did not take the cup of bitter suffering and death from him, he did prove to be the God who is able to save him from death. For after three days Jesus rose victorious from the tomb. Jesus believed in the power of God to rescue him from death, even though he had to die. Jesus prayed with faith. No matter how bitter his cry was, he offered it with faith in a loving God. When you pray and receive no answer except, “my grace is sufficient for you,” know that God is still at work to save you. He still fulfills his promises. The God who was willing to sacrifice his beloved Son will save you.

In fact it is because Jesus drank the cup of death and rose from the dead that you and I have faith in God who saves. Look at verse 9, “After he was brought to his goal, he became the source of eternal salvation for everyone who obeys him,” Jesus is the source of eternal salvation. He is the ultimate High Priest because he not only represents us before God, but he atoned for our sin with his own body and blood. He is the source of salvation, for only through him do we stand justified before God our Father. Only through Jesus are our prayers acceptable in God’s sight. In fact, the author of Hebrews goes on to say that Jesus is a high priest in the order of Melchizedek, meaning he is an eternal, perpetual high priest before God. Jesus is still our intercessor before the throne of God. He still prays on our behalf every moment. Jesus is still our praying High Priest; even tonight he prays for you, and tomorrow, and every day to follow.

I’m going to end this sermon with a portion of Scripture for John 17. John 17 contains what has come to be known as Jesus’ High Priestly prayer. It is the prayer he spoke to God the Father when he was still in the days of his flesh here on earth. First he prays specifically for his 12 disciples and then he prays for all those who would believe their message. That means he prayed these words specifically for you and me, even 2,000 years ago. “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them” (John 17:24-26).

Amen.