See how great this man was to whom Abraham the patriarch gave a tenth of the spoils! And those descendants of Levi who receive the priestly office have a commandment in the law to take tithes from the people, that is, from their brothers, though these also are descended from Abraham. But this man who does not have his descent from them received tithes from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises. It is beyond dispute that the inferior is blessed by the superior. In the one case tithes are received by mortal men, but in the other case, by one of whom it is testified that he lives. One might even say that Levi himself, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, for he was still in the loins of his ancestor when Melchizedek met him.
(Hebrews 7:4-10 ESV)
Christ is the priest after the order of Melchizedek. Melchizedek is the first mentioned priest in scripture. So what? In a sense, that makes his order higher than that of the levitical priesthood. But could there be One even greater? One before Melchizedek? How about the Creator who has come? In the same way that the Christ is a greater King than David, having come from his line, yet at the same time pre-existing him, Christ is also a greater priest than Melchizedek. He is the ultimate priest, Who is truly able to bring us into relationship with God. We need The Priest of Priests, Jesus Christ.
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