The Foreshadowing of God’s Promises To Us That Were Fulfilled in Christ # 5

Melchizedek was also a ‘type’ of Christ

C.F Romans 5: 14b

In Melchizedek, God foreshadowed the promise to us of righteousness and peace that was fulfilled through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior

Melchizedek is only seen once in the Bible narrative and that is when he meets Abraham

Genesis 14: 18-20

Melchizedek is also mentioned in 3 other texts, Psalm 110: 4; Hebrews 5: 6-11; Hebrews 6: 20-7: 28

So, here's what we learn about the likeness of Melchizedek with Christ

Firstly, Melchizedek was probably a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus Christ, Genesis 14: 18a ‘Melchizedek’

Q. “Pastor David, what does that mean?”

A. Melchizedek was an Old Testament appearance of Christ in disguise

Of Melchizedek, Hebrews 7: 3 says 'There is no record of his father or mother or any of his ancestors—no beginning or end to his life. He remains a priest forever, resembling the Son of God’

The Genesis 14 narrative records the first time the Lord appeared to Abraham in pre-incarnate form, as Melchizedek; later He appeared to Abraham a second time in disguise as an Angel of the Lord and was accompanied by 2 other angels

Genesis 18: 1-2, 17-19

C.F Genesis 24: 7

The case for saying that Melchizedek was a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ was strengthened by Jesus Himself when He confronted the Jewish Religious Leaders about their refusal to believe that He was their long-awaited Messiah

John 8: 56-58 ‘” Your father Abraham rejoiced as he looked forward to My coming. He saw it and was glad.” The people said, “You aren’t even fifty years old. How can you say you have seen Abraham. Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, before Abraham was even born, I am!”

John 8: 58 “The absolute truth is that I was in existence before Abraham was ever born!” TLB

C.F Exodus 3: 14

The Jewish Religious Leaders knew exactly what Jesus meant when He said this and that is why they tried to kill Him

John 8: 59

Secondly, Melchizedek was also known as, Genesis 14: 18b 'the king of Salem’

Hebrews 7: 2b tells us ‘He is first, by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace.’ ESV

‘Of righteousness’, The Apostle John says, 1 John 2: 1 ‘Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous.’

C.F Jeremiah 23: 5-6; Acts 3: 14

Q. OK so what does it mean to be ‘righteous’?

A. To be ‘righteous’ means to be right with God – and of course, Jesus Christ was right with God!

However, in our fallen sinful condition, none of us are righteous – none of us are right with God, Romans 3: 10 ‘As the Scriptures say, “No one is righteous—not even one.’”

C.F Psalm 14: 1-3; Psalm 53: 1-3

Q. So, how are we made right with God?

A. Romans 3: 26b ‘(God) declare(s) righteous the one who has faith in Jesus’ HCSB

‘Of peace’, the Apostle Paul said, Romans 5: 1 ‘Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.’

C.F Isaiah 9: 6; Acts 10: 36; Colossians 3: 15

What else can we say about the ‘king of Salem’?

1, 000 years after Abraham and this meeting with Melchizedek, the city of Salem became known as Jebus and was conquered by King David and renamed Jerusalem and 1, 000 years after that, Jesus referred to Himself when He declared Jerusalem, Matthew 5: 35b ‘the city of the Great King’

C.F Psalm 48: 2

Yes, Melchizedek was the king of Salem, and Jerusalem is the ‘the city of the Great King’ but when Jesus Christ returns to the Earth, we will worship Him as, Revelation 19: 16b ‘King of all kings and Lord of all lords’ - Amen!

Thirdly, Melchizedek was also known as, Genesis 14: 18d 'priest of God Most High’

As ‘priest of God Most High’, and bringing bread and wine to Abraham, Melchizedek was acting as a mediator between God and Man(kind)

This act of mediation finds its’ fulfillment in Jesus Christ

1 Timothy 2: 5 ‘For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Jesus Christ’ NKJV

As our Mediator, Jesus gave us the broken bread which represents His broken body on the cross that was given for our healing

And as our Mediator, Jesus gave us the cup of wine which represents the blood He shed on the cross given for our salvation

1 Corinthians 11: 26-27

Then, Genesis 14: 19-20 ‘Melchizedek blessed Abram with this blessing: “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of Heaven and earth. And blessed be God Most High, who has defeated your enemies for you.” Then Abram gave Melchizedek a tenth of all the goods he had recovered’.

By blessing Abraham, Melchizedek was demonstrating his spiritual superiority over Abraham

Why was Melchizedek spiritually superior to Abraham, after all Abraham was the great Patriarch of Israel?

Melchizedek was spiritually superior to Abraham because he was foreshadowing the eternal priesthood of Christ, as it says in Psalm 110: 4 ‘The Lord has taken an oath and will not break his vow: “You (Jesus Christ the Messiah) are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.”’

Notice: Psalm 110: 4 says ‘a priest forever’

Later under Moses, Israel would have a priesthood led by the families of Aaron and Levi, eventually as the old priests retired then died, they had to be replaced with new priests and eventually the entire Old Testament priesthood came to an end

And as the Old Testament priesthood came to an end, the eternal priesthood of Christ began under the New Covenant which Christ made through His shed blood

Hebrews 10: 11-12b ‘Under the old covenant, the priest stands and ministers before the altar day after day, offering the same sacrifices again and again, which can never take away sins. But our High Priest offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time’.

How ‘good’ is the eternal priesthood of Christ?

As it says in Hebrews 7: 24-25 ‘But because Jesus lives forever, His priesthood lasts forever. Therefore, He is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through Him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf’.

As it says in Ephesians 1: 3 ‘All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ’.

Our Text is concluded with Abraham honoring God through his giving to Melchizedek, Genesis 14: 20b ‘Then Abram gave Melchizedek a tenth of all the goods he had recovered’

Amen!