The Holiest of All By Andrew Murray

176 abe iboitest or an
at once be met by the joyful consciousness that all is well,
because Jesus
is so very kind, and cares so lovingly for all our
feebleness and all our ignorance.
Let us listen once again to what the word teaches.
Every
high priest being taken from among men, is appointed for
men in things pertaining to God, that He may offer both gifts
and sacrifices for sins. Here we have the work of a high
for that work. His work
priest, and the first essential requisite
is in things pertaining to God; he has charge
of all that
concerns the access to God, His worship and service, and has,
for this, to offer gifts and sacrifices. And the requisite is, he
must be a man, because he is to act for men. And that for this
great reason that he may be one who can bear gently with the
ignorant and erring, for that he himself also is compassed
with weakness ;
and who by reason thereof is bound, as for
the people, so also for himself to offer for sins.
At the root of
the priestly office there is to be the sense of perfect oneness in
weakness and need of help. In priestly action this is to mani
fest itself in sacrificing, as for the people,
so for himself.
And all this, that the priestly spirit may ever be kept alive for
the comfort and confidence of all the needy and weary he
must be one who can bear gently with the ignorant and
erring.
Glory be to God for the wondrous picture of what our Lord
A Jesus is. priest must be God s representative with men.
But he cannot be this, without being himself a man himself
encompassed with weaknesses, and so identified with, and
representing men with God. This was why Jesus was made
a little lower than the angels. The high priest is to offer as
for the people, so for himself. Offering
the bond of union with the people.
for himself was to be
Even so our blessed Lord