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The Present Work of Christ in Hebrews

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The Present Work of Christ in Hebrews The Present Work of Christ in Hebrews David J. MacLeod Dean of the Graduate Program, Emmaus Bible College Dubuque, Iowa Several years ago a number of writers voiced the concern that at­ tention to the present work of Christ has been "largely neglected" by the systematic theologians of the church.1 The authors of the New Testament would not have understood such neglect, for Christ's pre­ sent work is one of their most important themes. The purpose of this article is to examine the work of one of those authors, the epistle to the Hebrews, and to outline its contribution to the subject. There are at least three reasons for such a study. First, to neglect any theme central to apostolic Christianity can impoverish Chris­ tians and the church. Second, attention needs to be drawn to some aspects of the subject neglected in earlier studies of Hebrews. Third, it is hoped that the material presented will aid Bible students who teach and write on the Christology of the New Testament. The Commencement of Christ's Present Ministry2 HIS ASCENSION THROUGH THE HEAVENS Having accomplished His redemptive work on the cross (Heb. 9:12), Jesus was raised from the dead by God the Father (13:20). 1 John F Walvoord, Jesus Christ Our Lord (Chicago Moody Press, 1969), ρ 219 Cf Brian Κ Donne, "The Significance of the Ascension of Jesus Christ in the New Testa­ ment," Scottish Journal of Theology 30 (1977) 555, C George Fry, "A Day to Remem­ ber, ' Christianity Today, May 9, 1969, ρ 3, Joel Nederhood, "A Christian Holiday You May Have Forgotten," Eternity, May 1974, ρ 32, David Ρ Scaer, "Jesus Did Not Leave—He Reigns through Us," Christianity Today, May 21, 1982, ρ 24 2 On the present ministry of Christ in Hebrews, see Β F Westcott, The Epistle to the Hebrews, 2d ed (London Macmillan & Co , 1892), pp 229-30, Philip E Hughes, A Commentary on the Epistle to the Hebrews (Grand Rapids Wm Β Eerdmans Pubhsh- 184 The Present Work of Christ in Hebrews 185 Subsequently3 He "passed through the heavens" (δίεληλνθότα τους ουρανούς, 4:14), "a statement which is most important for the theology of Hebrews."4 The ascension is one of a series of events that marked the beginning5 of Christ's present ministry. The imagery in 4:14 suggests the Old Testament Day of Atonement when the high priest walked through the outer court into the sanctuary. HIS ENTRANCE INTO THE SANCTUARY The Levitical high priest annually entered the earthly holy of holies. Christ, however, at His ascension entered the true holy of holies in heaven (9:24; cf. 6:19; 9:12). The aorist βίσήλθβν ("He en­ tered") and the aorist infinitive έμφανισθήναι ("to appear") both speak of Christ's past act of entering and appearing before the face of God, that is, at the time of His exaltation.6 Just as the high priest entered the holy of holies with blood (9:7), so Christ entered "through (δια) His own blood" (9:12), that is, by virtue of His blood.7 ing Co, 1977), pp 349-54, idem, "The Present Work of Christ in Hebrews," Biblio­ teca Sacra 131 (January-March 1974) 26-33, William Milhgan, The Ascension and Heavenly Priesthood of Our Lord, 2d ed (London Macmillan & Co, 1894), 149-65, Arthur J Tait, The Heavenly Session of Our Lord (London Robert South, 1912), pp 149-76, Harm Henry Meeter, The Heavenly High Priesthood of Christ (Grand Rapids Wm Β Eerdmans Publishing Co , 1916), pp 181-203, Henry Barclay Swete, The Ascended Christ (London Macmillan & Co , 1916), pp 1-15, 87-115, Aelred Cody, Heavenly Sanctuary and Liturgy in the Epistle to the Hebrews (St Meinrad, IN Grail Publications, 1960), pp 192-202, Peter Toon, The Ascension of Our Lord (Nashville Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1984), pp 53-71, J Η Da vies, "The Heav­ enly Work of Christ m Hebrews," Studia Evangelia 4 (1968) 384-89, John Murray, "The Heavenly, Priestly Activity of Christ," in Collected Writings of John Murray, 4 vols (Edinburgh Banner of Truth, 1976), 1 44-58 There are two theories as to the time of Jesus' ascension (1) He ascended 40 days after the resurrection, as described in Acts 1 (2) He ascended on the day of His resur­ rection, with the subsequent appearances of Acts 1 being visitations from His exalted order The author of Hebrews does not address this question For discussion on this is­ sue see F F Bruce, The Book of Acts, The New International Commentary on the New Testament, rev ed (Grand Rapids Wm Β Eerdmans Publishing Co, 1988), ρ 37, George E Ladd, J Believe in the Resurrection of Jesus (Grand Rapids Wm Β Eerdmans Publishing Co, 1975), pp 127-29, Murray J Harris, Raised Immortal Resurrection and Immortality in the New Testament (Grand Rapids Wm Β Eerdmans Publishing Co , 1983), ρ 91, Toon, The Ascension of Our Lord, pp 125-26 4 Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, s ν "διέρχομαι," by Johannes Schneider, 2 676 J G Davies wrote, "The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews is less concerned with testifying to the fact of the Ascension than with expounding its theo­ logical significance, yet, needless to say, the latter rests upon the former" (He As cended into Heaven [London Lutterworth Press, 1958], pp 44-45) 5 The perfect tense (διεληλυθοτα) is used here (as in 2 9, 8 6,12 2) to refer back to the commencement of Christ's present state (cf J H Davies, "The Heavenly Work of Christ in Hebrews,' ρ 385) 6 Ibid Cf F F Bruce, The Epistle to the Hebrews (Grand Rapids Wm Β Eerdmans Publishing Co , 1964), pp 200-201 186 Bibliotheca Sacra / April-June 1991 The use of the title Christ {Χρίστος, 9:24) draws attention to His exaltation.8 HIS OCCUPATION OF THE PLACE OF HONOR With the twofold divine accolade of Psalm 110 in mind9 the au­ thor wrote of Christ's formal investiture as High Priest at the time of His entrance into heaven. The first part of the accolade is Yah- weh's command (Ps. 110:1) to the Son to take His seat at God's right hand (Heb. 1:3; 8:1; 10:12; 12:2). This act of the Son ("He sat down") holds significance for two reasons.10 First, it signifies the completion of His work of purification of sins (1:3; 10:12). Unlike the Old Tes­ tament high priests, who were always standing because their sacri­ ficial work was never completed (cf. 10:11), Christ sat down because His work was done. Second, it signifies that His present session is one of glory and honor. He whose earthly status was inferior to that of angels is now exalted over all beings (cf. 2:9).n The right hand of a king was considered the highest place of honor in the kingdom (1 Kings 2:19).12 By giving Him this seat God ratified what the Son had accomplished at the Cross.13 HIS INSTALLATION AS THE HIGH PRIEST The second part of the divine accolade (Ps. 110:4) is Yahweh's bestowal of the Melchizedekian priesthood. At Christ's ascension the psalm was fulfilled, and He was designated (προσαγορενθείς) as High Priest (Heb. 5:10). The verb προσαγορεύω, "to call, name, des­ ignate,"14 expresses "the formal and solemn ascription of the title to Him to whom it belongs."15 Two other aorist participles, γενόμενος ("having become," 6:20; 7:26) and παραγενόμενος ("when [He] ap­ peared," 9:11), are also used by the author to point to the past event ° Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, s ν "χρίω," by Walter Grundmann, 9 564 ^ J Η Davies, "The Heavenly Work of Christ in Hebrews," ρ 386 ιυ Marcus Dods, "The Epistle to the Hebrews," in The Expositor's Greek Testament, 5 vols (London Hodder and Stoughton, 1910), 4 252, Hughes, A Commentary on the Epistle to the Hebrews, ρ 47 11 J G Davies, He Ascended into Heaven, ρ 65 12 Franz Delitzsch, The Psalms, 3 vols (Edinburgh Τ & Τ Clark, 1871), 3 189 13 W E Vine, The Epistle to the Hebrews (Grand Rapids Zondervan Publishing House, 1952), ρ 14 14 William F Arndt and F Wilbur Gingrich, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 5th rev ed (Chicago University of Chicago Press, 1957), ρ 711 15 Dods, "The Epistle to the Hebrews," ρ 290 The Present Work of Christ in Hebrews 187 when Christ's present priesthood began. The bestowal of the priest­ hood occurred after Jesus' perfection and as God's response to it (5:10). Presumably all three aorist participles are to be understood in the same way.16 HIS ATTAINMENT OF A SUPERIOR MINISTRY The Son of God has obtained (τετυχεν) a more excellent ministry (λειτουργίας) than that of the Levitical priests who served the earthly tabernacle (8:5-6). The perfect tense (τέτυχεν) suggests not only that Jesus obtained this ministry in the past but also that He still possesses it.17 The term λειτουργία is regularly used in the Sep- tuagint of the service of priests, particularly their service at the al­ tar (Num. 16:9; 18:4, 6; 1 Chron. 9:13,19, 28; 2 Chron. 31:4; 35:16). By using this word the author to the Hebrews highlighted the fact that Christ's ministry is a priestly one.18 Similarly in 8:2 He is called "a minister (λειτουργός) in the sanctuary,"19 the term λειτουργός draw­ ing attention to the fact that though His sacrificial work is fin­ ished, there is a ministry that continues.20 It also emphasizes His condescension in serving His people.21 The Activities of His Present Ministry The author of Hebrews wrote of a number of activities presently being performed by Christ as High Priest.
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