Transcript [00:06] Wonderful. Oh, amazing, [00:10] amazing time of worship. Great to be [00:12] back together tonight. King of Kings, [00:14] welcome home. Glad to see all of you. We [00:18] welcome our visitors tonight. Welcome to [00:20] King of Kings Community Jerusalem. We're [00:21] so happy to have you as well. We want [00:23] you to feel at home tonight as much as [00:26] you can. And welcome everybody watching [00:28] online. Kings Community Live, Facebook [00:30] Live, YouTube, other platforms. Alpha [00:32] Omega Ministries all around Europe. [00:34] Welcome to Jerusalem. We're happy you [00:36] get a chance to worship and study the [00:38] word of God with us tonight. This was a [00:41] big week for us. Um uh thank you for [00:44] those that were part of Vision Sunday [00:46] last week. We we talked about all the [00:49] great things God did in 2025. We started [00:51] to look ahead at some of the vision [00:53] points the Lord had given us for this [00:55] coming year, 2026. some on the Gregorian [00:57] calendar of course for that. Remember we [01:00] talked about the four or five different [01:02] uh new years that the Jewish people [01:03] celebrate especially here in Israel. And [01:06] then I also wanted to say thank you to [01:08] everybody especially our members uh who [01:11] joined us on Wednesday night. Thank you. [01:13] I know some of you couldn't be there but [01:15] thank you for those of you that joined [01:16] us on Wednesday night for our membership [01:18] meeting. We went a little bit deeper. We [01:20] cast a little bit more specific vision [01:22] and we talked about how we could all be [01:24] part of that. we got a chance to thank [01:26] many people at that same time. So, thank [01:28] you guys for for being part of that. [01:31] It's a a big week ahead of us, of [01:32] course, and you heard me mention or the [01:34] members heard me mention about our BO uh [01:37] worship and arts expo. We want you to [01:39] pray for us and our team. We've got [01:42] about 350 [01:44] um artists and and creatives coming from [01:47] all over the country to our time and [01:50] conference and expo this week. Uh we get [01:52] a chance to host that. It's a big body [01:55] of Messiah unity event we're going to do [01:57] this week. So, thank you for your [01:59] prayers. If you're jotting down or you [02:01] have bullet points of prayer this week, [02:03] thank you for praying for us here uh at [02:06] King of Kings. We we bless you. Let's uh [02:09] grab your Bibles. Listen, we're going to [02:10] start a brand new series tonight. We're [02:12] excited about this series. It's called [02:15] the Covenant Table. [02:18] And if you want to get ahead of me a [02:20] little bit, you can turn to Genesis 12 [02:22] and Genesis 14. Those will be the two [02:24] main texts that we we look at tonight. [02:29] Uh if you're a member of the [02:30] congregation and you missed that [02:32] membership meeting, [02:34] one thing you missed and I want you to [02:36] email us at the office or give us a text [02:38] or a phone call. We did put forth the [02:40] name of one potential new deacon we [02:44] wanted to add to the team. uh we we we [02:47] felt uh he has served us in so many ways [02:50] and uh a man of high character. So if [02:53] you missed that announcement, make sure [02:54] you email me or text or something to uh [02:57] to us or ask one of our our ushers who [03:00] might have been there. We will we will [03:01] give you that that person's name. And we [03:04] we like to get the feedback from the [03:06] members. It's a team work thing we do [03:09] together. So we want your feedback. uh [03:12] we give you one month to give feedback [03:14] and then we'll we'll uh announce um the [03:17] next step for that. So if you're an [03:20] official member that was an announcement [03:22] for you. Now listen in the Bible and in [03:25] the kingdom of God history on earth [03:28] there are important moments that that [03:30] shape and direct the future. Many times [03:34] these important moments are connected to [03:36] a special meal or eating around a table. [03:39] there there's often a transaction at a [03:41] covenant table that greatly alters the [03:45] course of history. And in the series we [03:47] want to present to you over the next [03:48] several weeks, we want to read and then [03:51] examine several of these crucial moments [03:54] and draw out what God revealed uh to his [03:57] people around the table and during these [04:00] moments. And that's why we're calling it [04:02] the covenant table. [04:05] There are so many times in the Bible [04:07] where where God is interacting with us [04:09] or he's putting people together. They [04:11] have this moment, this covenant moment [04:13] over a meal and it and it alters things. [04:16] Things change after that. It's not the [04:17] same. Sometimes he introduces new [04:19] covenants, a new direction. He gives [04:21] Israel a new instruction or he changes [04:25] the way that people understood [04:27] something. We want to look at those and [04:28] we want to take those applications and [04:30] then apply them to our life as well. And [04:32] we're going to do that leading up to [04:34] Pesak, of course, because we will cover [04:37] the the original Pesak in this series as [04:40] we get closer to the Passover time. So, [04:43] let me give you a little history lesson [04:44] here. Genesis 12, first verse. We're [04:48] going to start there and read. I'm going [04:49] to build a little bit of history for you [04:51] because it's important for the context. [04:55] Genesis 12:1. The Lord had said to [04:58] Abram, "Go from your country, your [05:01] people, and your father's household to [05:03] the land I will show you. I will make [05:05] you into a great nation, and I will [05:08] bless you. I will make your name great, [05:10] and you will be a blessing, and I will [05:12] bless those who bless you, and whoever [05:14] curses you, I will curse, and all the [05:17] people on earth will be blessed through [05:18] you." So, Abram went as the Lord had [05:21] told him, and Lot went with him. Abram [05:25] was 75 years old when he set out from [05:28] Haran. He took his wife Sarah, his [05:31] nephew Lot, and all the possessions that [05:33] they had accumulated and the people they [05:35] had acquired in Haran, and they set out [05:37] for the land of Canaan or Canaan, and [05:40] they arrived there. [05:42] So, that's kind of our opening. God [05:44] said, Abram, I want you to leave where [05:46] you are. Leave, leave Haron. go to this [05:50] new place, this this covenant land I'm [05:54] going to give to you and your [05:55] descendants. Now, Abraham, of course, he [05:57] didn't he didn't get to see all of the [05:59] fulfillment of that. He got to see some [06:01] of it, but but not all of it. But [06:03] Abraham believed God's words were true. [06:06] He obeyed God, and he moved his family [06:08] from Haron uh to what would later become [06:12] the land of the covenant. Uh, and [06:14] Abraham and all of his very large and [06:19] growing household when they got to the [06:22] land of Canaan, later to be Israel, they [06:26] settled in the area called Mamry. Well, [06:29] Mamry was uh really the name of the [06:32] person who owned the land. And in [06:34] Mamry's land, there were all these great [06:37] trees and forests and that's where he [06:38] settled. Often times, you'll read about [06:41] it. it calls the great trees of memory. [06:44] Right? So, it's not necessarily only the [06:46] name of the place. The place is named [06:47] after the person who owned it. And this [06:49] is where he settled. But what's [06:51] important about that settlement area [06:55] is it was in the area or the region of [06:58] the Amorites [07:00] at the time. At the time it was it was [07:02] the the region of the Amorite territory. [07:06] And it was from there that Abram gets [07:09] sucked into a war. And this war has been [07:13] going on about 13 years, according to [07:16] the Bible, about 13 years. So here he [07:18] is. He's left his home. He's moved by [07:20] faith to where God said across this vast [07:23] land in the Middle East. He settles in [07:26] the territory of the Amorites. He knows [07:28] he's in his covenant land of the future, [07:30] but it's not it's not ready yet. And so [07:33] he's by the great trees of Mamry in the [07:35] Amorite territory. This war has been [07:38] going on for 13 years and Abram gets [07:41] sucked into it. Well, let me tell you [07:42] how that happened. There's a man named [07:45] Ketare. [07:46] He's the king of Elum and uh he makes an [07:51] alliance. So Ketal makes an alliance [07:54] with three other kings. Now listen, back [07:57] in those days, a king [08:00] wasn't necessarily the king of an [08:02] empire. [08:04] He was the king of a city. It was more [08:06] like a time of the citystates. Now, [08:08] there were a few empires like the [08:09] Egyptians, um the Calaldanss maybe, but [08:12] but most most cities were their own [08:16] country. We call that a city-state. And [08:18] and the kings were kings of those [08:20] citystates. So this man, king of Elum, [08:23] Ketalomare, he unifies his city with [08:27] three other cities. So that makes a [08:29] group of four. Everybody following the [08:31] math? Okay, stick with me. It's a math [08:34] quiz at the end of this sermon. So [08:36] there's a group of four and they start [08:39] attacking people and they start [08:40] conquering people. The Bible says they [08:42] conquered at least seven other [08:44] citystates [08:46] as this alliance uh was growing. [08:50] So they they they they push forward and [08:53] there's a group that gets tired of them [08:58] and they get off to the side and they [09:00] decide that we're going to form our own [09:02] alliance and we're going to be a group [09:05] of five. And our group of five led by uh [09:11] by Barra the king of Sodom. Everybody [09:14] knows the famous Sodom, right? He's Bara [09:16] is the king of Sodom. and he greets a [09:17] group of five together and his group of [09:20] five stand up against [09:24] uh the king of Elim and his four. So [09:26] it's like five against four. You can see [09:28] how the battle lines are now being [09:30] drawn. [09:32] Well, [09:34] the king of Elum is attacking the [09:37] Amorite territory, right? And you see [09:38] that at some point this is going to [09:40] start to involve Abram [09:43] because that's where he settled. But his [09:45] nephew Lot settled in the city of Sodom. [09:50] So when the group of four hears the king [09:53] of Sodom has arranged the group of five [09:55] to fight against them, what's his first [09:57] action? He attacks Sodom. And of course [10:00] when he does that, he overwhelms the [10:03] city. He defeats Sodom and he takes Lot [10:06] amongst other people, but he takes Lot [10:10] uh captive and hostage. [10:12] And now Abram has no choice. Now he has [10:15] to enter into this war that he probably [10:18] doesn't want to be part of, but he gets [10:20] sucked into it here. [10:23] So, let me read you that passage and how [10:25] it kind of lays out in Genesis 14 verse [10:29] 8. [10:30] Genesis 14:8. [10:33] You'll hear a lot of names thrown [10:35] around. Just stick with the main story. [10:37] Then the king of Sodom, the king of [10:38] Gomorrah, the king of Admma, the king of [10:40] Zaboim, and the king of Bella, that is [10:42] Zor, marched out and drew up their [10:46] battle lines in the valley of Sadim [10:47] against Kedomare, king of Elum. Tidal, [10:50] king of Goim, Amrafel, king of Shinar, [10:53] and Ariak, king of Alasar. Four kings [10:57] against five. Now, the valley of Sadim [11:00] was full of tarpits. And when the kings [11:01] of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some of them [11:03] fell. Some of the men fell into these [11:06] tar pits and the rest of them fled to [11:08] the hills. [11:11] The four kings seized all the goods of [11:13] Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food. [11:15] Then they went away. They also carried [11:18] off Abrams nephew Lot and his [11:20] possessions since he was living in [11:21] Sodom. A man who had escaped came and [11:24] reported this to Abram the Hebrew. Now [11:26] Abram was living near the great trees of [11:29] Mamry the Amorite, a brother of Eshkol [11:31] and Anar. All of whom were allied with [11:34] Abram. [11:36] Okay, so let's just make sure we all [11:39] understand what's happening. [11:41] There's Ketal and a group of four [11:43] attacking everyone. [11:46] There is Barra and his group of five [11:49] that are trying to stop him. [11:52] They don't succeed. [11:54] Cedalomare takes over Sodom, takes a [11:56] bunch of people hostage, including Lot. [11:59] Abram [12:00] gets a group of three. So now there's a [12:02] group of five, a group of four, and a [12:04] group of three. Follow my math. Come on. [12:08] And and now Abram is sucked into this [12:11] 13-year-old war because he has to go [12:14] rescue his nephew Lot. Okay, so that's [12:17] kind of where we are. But but we're [12:18] going to pause there in the story to [12:20] learn a little bit about Abram. [12:23] First of all, it says that Abram took [12:27] 318 [12:29] fighting men from his own household. [12:34] You say, "Well, I I didn't I didn't hear [12:36] about this covenant child yet. He hadn't [12:38] have any children." It even says Abraham [12:39] the Hebrew, but he's the only Hebrew. [12:44] How can you be the Hebrew if you're the [12:46] only Hebrew? [12:49] Well, Abram had a an an enterprise, if [12:54] you will. He was a great businessman. He [12:57] was quite wealthy. He had 318 fighting [13:00] men in his family. That means he he had [13:03] his own army. But in order to have 318 [13:06] fighting men in your own family, that [13:09] means those 318 men had parents, [13:14] which means Abram had a lot of people in [13:16] his household. [13:18] It's estimated a couple of thousand [13:19] people. You know how rich you have to be [13:21] to have a household of a thousand [13:23] people? Listen, I got four kids. They're [13:25] sucking me dry. [13:29] Can imagine taking care of all these [13:30] people and having an army. What it tells [13:33] you [13:36] in simple terms is that Abram was a [13:40] king. [13:41] You need to understand the context of [13:43] that. He's a king. [13:46] You have that many people, you're that [13:47] wealthy, and you have your own army. And [13:49] then you have the ability in the middle [13:52] of a war to go make an alliance with [13:55] other people so that your citystate [13:59] alliances [14:00] go and defeat the big bad, [14:04] right? You're you're a you're a king. [14:07] You have audience with other kings, [14:09] and it's your army that ends up winning. [14:13] So now Abraham, [14:16] he's called Abram at this point. [14:20] He's immediately going to be famous to [14:22] all of the cities that we read about. [14:25] The group of five, the group of four, [14:26] the group of seven that was conquered, [14:28] his own group of three. Everybody in [14:30] that sphere [14:33] is now going to know who he is because [14:34] it was his group that won. [14:38] and his fame begins to spread after [14:40] defeating Kadalo Mar and his alliance. [14:44] And there was a custom at this time that [14:49] if you were close by or in a surrounding [14:51] region and and and there was a war [14:56] between kings or between citystates, the [14:58] custom was that you go and congratulate [15:03] assuming you weren't part of it. You go [15:06] congratulate the winning king. [15:10] You bring him gifts and you say, "Hey [15:13] man, you're the winning team. I want to [15:15] be on the winning team." And you make [15:18] friends with the winning king. [15:22] And what's interesting is this follows [15:24] culturally [15:26] the accuracy of the time. But look what [15:28] happens. Stay in Genesis 14 for a [15:30] second. [15:33] Look at verse 18. Abraham gets a [15:36] visitor. Now that he's famous, he gets a [15:38] visitor after being victorious. [15:42] Then MelkiseDC, king of Salem, brought [15:45] out bread and wine. He was priest of God [15:49] most high. And he blessed Abram, saying, [15:51] "Blessed be Abram by God most high, [15:53] creator of heaven and earth. And praise [15:55] be to God most high, who delivered your [15:56] enemies into your hands." Then Abram [15:58] gave him a tenth of everything. [16:02] MelkiseDC, this famous figure in the [16:05] Bible, visits Abraham in keeping with [16:08] the custom because Abraham just won a [16:11] war cuz he's a king. [16:14] Now, I know in your mind you have to [16:16] kind of shift a little bit from your [16:19] Shabbat school and what they taught you [16:21] about Abraham [16:23] that he had no kids and it was just him [16:25] and Sarah and Lot and they left and it's [16:27] just the three of them and they were [16:28] like, "Hey, we're all alone. [16:31] But that's not the actual picture of of [16:34] Abraham. [16:36] And when King MelkiseDC visits him, he's [16:39] congratulating him like all the other [16:42] kings would. As a matter of fact, if you [16:44] were to read further into chapter 14, [16:46] you're going to see that the king of [16:48] Sodom does the same thing right after [16:50] Melkisedc. He tries to come and say, [16:52] "Hey, I know this is a custom. You're [16:54] the winning king. I'm going to bring you [16:56] this and I'm going to bring you that." [16:57] And Abraham goes, "I don't want it from [16:58] you. Interesting. [17:02] When Melkazedc brings him something, he [17:04] welcomes it. [17:07] When Barah tries to bring him, king of [17:09] Sodom, when Bara tries to bring it to [17:11] him, Abraham says, "I don't want any of [17:12] it." [17:14] I found that interesting because Abraham [17:17] says to the king of Sodom, "I don't want [17:19] to owe you anything." [17:22] And every [17:24] piece of honor needs to go to God for [17:26] this victory. I don't want to owe you [17:28] anything. [17:30] So now we have this figure, this [17:32] visitor, this visiting king named [17:34] Melkazedc. Stay with me on the story [17:38] and what we just read is the crucial [17:40] covenant table portion. What are the [17:44] elements of Melkazedc's visit? Well, [17:46] first, did you notice the first thing [17:49] listed was he brought bread and wine to [17:52] Abram. [17:56] He shared it with him. Now, this is the [17:57] first time that bread and wine together [17:59] are mentioned in the Bible. If you ever [18:01] want to go from where we're going to end [18:03] up in our series is at the wedding [18:05] supper of the lamb, right? We're going [18:06] to end up way down the road eventually. [18:08] But if we start working our way [18:10] backwards, [18:12] right? Taking of the Lord's supper [18:14] together, Yeshua's last Passover seder [18:17] meal, right? You understand all this [18:19] Passover throughout history, other [18:21] covenant meals that we're going to talk [18:22] about. You work your way back to the [18:24] first Passover. Nope, still not there [18:25] yet. You got to keep working your way [18:27] back. The elders on Mount Si. Keep going [18:31] and you're going to arrive here. [18:35] This is the first mention of the bread [18:36] and wine together in the covenant meal. [18:39] It's MelkiseDC. [18:41] But Abraham notices he's different than [18:43] the other kings. All right off the bat, [18:45] he's different. I take I take blessing [18:48] from MelkiseDC and I reject blessing [18:51] from the other guys. [18:53] He knew something. He knew something. He [18:56] had a secret. [18:58] Abraham had a secret. [19:02] We can easily see the correlation to the [19:04] Lord's supper. I mean, it's not hard for [19:06] any believer to see the bread and the [19:08] wine and go, "Something important is [19:10] happening here." [19:14] Could it be that God wanted us to see [19:16] the foreshadowing of what he was going [19:17] to do with the bread and the wine? [19:20] And he wanted to set the stage here. The [19:23] first thing he did, he did three things, [19:25] but the first one was they shared the [19:27] bread and the wine together. The second [19:29] thing Melkisedc does is he blesses [19:30] Abram. [19:32] He blesses him. [19:35] Now, it's clear that Melkisedc, it says [19:37] three times he's a priest of the most [19:39] high, that he serves the same God as [19:42] Abraham. It's very clear from the text, [19:44] he calls him God most high. He calls him [19:46] the creator of the of all creation of [19:49] the world. And it's he's not talking [19:50] about a different God. This is the same [19:52] God. [19:53] creator of heaven and earth, the most [19:55] high God. So Melkisedc is in a very rare [19:59] company in the Bible because it calls [20:03] him a priest and yet it has already told [20:06] us that he's the king of Salem. So he is [20:08] a king and a priest. Whoa, [20:12] that got really special, really unique. [20:17] Abraham's a kind of a king, but he's not [20:18] a priest. [20:20] And as you look forward into the Torah, [20:23] you're going to see a lot of priests, [20:24] but they're not kings. [20:27] But this guy, he's unique in so many [20:31] ways. He blesses Abraham because he's a [20:34] priest. [20:36] You know, I see there the foreshadowing [20:38] of what will come later with the the [20:41] Levitical priesthood ironic benediction [20:43] where God says, "I want my priest to [20:44] bless my people." [20:47] Well, MelkiseDC was long before all that [20:50] and he was already in the role of taking [20:54] communion together with Abraham and then [20:57] saying a priestly blessing over Abraham. [21:00] Remember, Abraham receives it. He [21:02] doesn't reject it, but he rejects it [21:03] from everybody else. Abraham knows [21:06] something. He knows something. [21:09] King and priest. Third, so he gives him [21:11] the bread and the wine together. He [21:12] blesses him. He speaks a blessing, a [21:14] priestly blessing over him. And then [21:16] third, Abraham's response to MelkiseDC [21:19] is that he gives him a tithe. [21:22] He gives him a tenth of everything. [21:25] Now, what on earth would motivate [21:27] Abraham to do this? Remember, there is [21:29] no tabernacle yet. There is no temple. [21:32] There are no Levites. There are no [21:34] tribes. There's not even a defined [21:36] border of Israel yet. [21:40] What would prompt Abraham [21:42] to do this? Abram saw something in [21:45] Melkisedc. He saw something in the [21:47] visit, in the blessing, in the covenant [21:48] meal, in the bread and the wine, but it [21:50] prompted him to give the tithe, the 10%. [21:54] And here's what's interesting. If you [21:56] were to read the names very carefully of [21:59] the story, MelkiseDC's not even involved [22:02] in the war, [22:04] right? You had the the group of five, [22:07] the group of four, the group of three, [22:08] and then the group of seven that was [22:10] conquered. And Melchisedc, king of [22:12] Salem, is not in any of that. [22:16] It reminded me of when the Lord [22:20] visited [22:22] Joshua [22:24] and Joshua's spying on the enemy and [22:27] then he sees the Lord in the flesh. [22:29] Doesn't know it's the Lord at the at [22:31] first. He says, "Who are you?" He says, [22:33] "You know, I'm the commander of the [22:34] Lord's army." And Joshua says, "Are you [22:37] for us or for them?" And he's like, "I'm [22:38] not for anybody. [22:41] MelkiseDC's not for anybody. He's not [22:43] even in the war. His name never comes up [22:45] in the war. And he just shows up [22:48] congratulating Abraham, [22:51] taking of the covenant meal, bread and [22:52] wine, giving him a priestly blessing. [22:55] Then Abraham's response isn't rejection [22:59] like the other kings. It's I need to [23:01] tithe to you. [23:03] He knows something. He knows something. [23:07] We have a pretty good handle now on who [23:09] Abram is at this point. [23:11] But who's this other person at the at [23:13] the covenant table? This Melkisedc guy. [23:16] Well, [23:19] we are told that his name means right [23:23] from from MelkiseDC you're going to get [23:25] Melkitzedc in Hebrew. So you're going to [23:27] get Mel the king and Zedc righteousness. [23:32] So you're going to get king of [23:33] righteousness. [23:35] And then what is he? The king of [23:38] Salem. [23:41] Shalom. [23:42] Peace. So he's the king of righteousness [23:45] and he's the prince of peace. [23:48] That's what he's in charge of. Sounds a [23:50] lot like a verse we know from our [23:52] prophetic writings of Isaiah. Chapter [23:54] nine. For to us a child is born. To us a [23:57] son is given. And the government will be [23:59] on his shoulders. And he will be called [24:02] wonderful counselor, mighty God, [24:04] everlasting father, prince of peace, the [24:06] sar shalom. Of the greatness of his [24:09] government, and peace there will be no [24:11] end. He will reign on David's throne and [24:13] over his kingdom, establishing and [24:14] upholding it with justice and [24:16] righteousness from that time on and [24:18] forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty [24:20] will accomplish this. [24:23] An important thing to remember when [24:26] Abram is meeting MelkiseDC and he [24:28] responds so positively to him but he [24:31] doesn't respond as positively to the [24:33] other kings and he gives him a tithe and [24:35] he doesn't do anything to the other [24:36] kings. What's important to remember by [24:39] the time we get to the story in Genesis [24:40] 14 is that Abram has already seen the [24:43] Lord twice. [24:46] Abram [24:48] met the Lord in Genesis 12 and he met [24:50] him again in Genesis 13. [24:53] He sees something in MelkiseDC [24:56] that he recognizes. [25:00] By the way, he coming episodes he sees [25:03] it again. [25:05] You'll find out when he sees it again. [25:08] And he's responding not as a stranger. [25:11] He's responding as an ally, as a friend, [25:14] as a partner, not as he did with the [25:18] other kings. [25:20] So, either Abram met God and talked with [25:24] him and saw him on these other [25:25] occasions, or Abram at least knew what [25:28] the voice of God sounded like, and he [25:30] could hear the voice of God through [25:31] Melkisedc. [25:35] Now, as we get into some new covenant [25:37] scriptures here in a minute, Hebrews [25:38] chapter 6:19, [25:40] we're going to learn a little bit more [25:42] about him. [25:44] Hebrews 6:19, [25:46] we have this hope as an anchor for the [25:48] soul, firm and secure. It enters the [25:51] inner sanctuary behind the curtain where [25:53] our forerunner Yeshua has entered on our [25:56] behalf. He has become a high priest [25:58] forever in the order of MelkiseDC. [26:01] Yeshua has become a high priest, but not [26:03] like the Levites. [26:06] Very important, [26:08] crucial moment in the history of Judaism [26:11] right there. Crucial moment to [26:13] understand it. Yeshua is high priest, [26:16] but he's not like the Levites. [26:20] He's like MelkiseDC. You say, hm, this [26:24] guy is a little bit of an enigma. He [26:26] wasn't in the war, but he showed up to [26:28] congratulate [26:30] He does a covenant meal, bread and wine. [26:32] He speaks a priestly blessing over [26:35] Abram. Abram seems to recognize [26:37] something about him, tithes to him. [26:42] There's no such thing as the Levites. [26:44] There is this thing called the order of [26:46] MelkiseDC. And Yeshua is part of that [26:48] order, not part of the order of the [26:51] Levites. You know, King David also saw [26:53] this connection later. Psalm chapter 110 [26:58] verse 4. or Psalm 110:4, [27:01] he says, "The Lord has sworn and will [27:02] not change his mind. You are a priest [27:04] forever in the order of Melkisedc." [27:07] So both King David and the author of [27:09] Hebrews are now making a direct link [27:10] between Yeshua and MelkiseDC. [27:13] They're relating them together because [27:15] of their unique qualities because they [27:18] are both king and priest. [27:21] And the Levites were not kings and [27:23] priests. [27:25] They were priests but not kings. [27:28] But MelkiseDC and Yeshua are both king [27:31] and priest. And that's one of the [27:33] reasons that David and the author of [27:35] Hebrews puts him in the category [27:38] of Melkisedc. Let's keep reading in [27:40] Hebrews 7 [27:42] first verse. Hebrews 7 verse 1. [27:46] This Melkisedc was the king of Salem and [27:49] he was priest of God most high. He met [27:51] Abraham returning from the defeat of the [27:53] kings and blessed him and Abraham gave [27:56] him a tenth of everything. First the [27:59] name MelkiseDC means king of [28:00] righteousness. Then also king of Salem [28:02] means king of peace. Without a father or [28:06] mother, without genealogy, without [28:08] beginning of days or end of life, [28:10] resembling the son of God, he remains a [28:12] priest forever. Just think how great he [28:15] was. Even the patriarch Abraham gave him [28:17] a tenth of the plunder. Now the law [28:20] requires that the descendants of Levi [28:22] who become priests that they collect the [28:25] tent from the people that is from their [28:28] fellow Israelites and even though they [28:30] are also are descended from Abraham. [28:33] This man however did not trace his [28:35] descent from Levi yet he collected a [28:37] tenth from Abraham and blessed him who [28:40] had the promises. [28:44] Yeshua is not born from Levi. He's born [28:46] from Judah. [28:48] That's why he's like Mkisedc because [28:50] Mkisedc wasn't born from Levi either. [28:52] There was no Levi, but he was allowed to [28:54] be king and priest not from Levi. That's [28:59] the same aspects that Yeshua is [29:01] carrying. Our key phrase tonight, God is [29:04] showing us that the Messiah will be both [29:07] king and priest. [29:10] This covenant meal is is revealing not [29:13] just the history of the war and how [29:15] Abraham got sucked into it. [29:18] It's really a prophetic picture drawing [29:22] of what you and I should be anticipating [29:25] the Messiah will be like. [29:28] It's a prophecy [29:30] at its core. [29:32] It's telling us when you are looking for [29:35] the Messiah, what it will look like is [29:37] he will be a king and priest and he will [29:40] not be born from Levi. It's the text is [29:42] just laying it out really clear. He's [29:44] not going to be from Levi. So when [29:46] Yeshua is born in Bethlehem and he's [29:50] born to the tribe of Judah according to [29:53] other prophecies [29:55] and the wise men come and they start to [29:57] proclaim him as king already for which [29:59] Herod was so afraid [30:02] that's what's putting him in the order [30:03] of MelkiseDC. He's going to be the king. [30:06] He's going to be a priest but he's not [30:07] going to be from Levi. And that prophecy [30:09] in its original state is coming from [30:11] Genesis 14 the covenant table. It's not [30:13] coming from Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel. [30:16] It's coming from here. Genesis 14. [30:21] Let's make a few comments about this [30:23] order of MelkiseDC. First, MelkiseDC [30:27] predated the Levitical priesthood and [30:29] all of its regulations. [30:31] So, he did not need to be a Levite in [30:33] order to be the priest of God most high. [30:36] Similarly, Yeshua was born from Judah, [30:39] not from Levi. Second, [30:43] because Yeshua had no sin, therefore he [30:46] was not subjected to the priesthood [30:48] through Levi, but rather was eligible, [30:51] as all firstborn sons would have been [30:54] eligible for the priesthood prior to the [30:56] golden calf incident, where the [30:58] priesthood was narrowed to Levi only. [31:01] Friends, I've taught you this before. [31:02] Listen, when Israel first came out of [31:04] Egypt because God spared all the [31:07] firstborn sons, what he said was, "Every [31:10] tribe owes me their firstborn son." [31:13] Every tribe. And I'm going to take those [31:15] firstborn sons and they're going to be [31:17] my priests. [31:19] That's the original layout. But when [31:22] Israel [31:24] built the bo the golden calf and bowed [31:26] down to that idolatry when Moses came [31:28] back down from the mountain he said this [31:31] is idolatrous who's going to stand with [31:34] me against it only the Levites stood [31:36] forward and because only the Levites [31:39] stood forward that day the Lord took the [31:42] priesthood away from everybody else and [31:44] he said then only Levi gets it [31:50] because of their sins. [31:52] It went to Levi. [31:55] But Yeshua had no sin. He's not [31:58] subjected to that narrowness of tribe. [32:02] Therefore, Yeshua is in the pre-existent [32:05] state of the firstborn sons from all the [32:08] tribes would be the priests. [32:11] That's the order of Melkisedc. [32:14] He's the firstborn of God. He's the [32:18] firstborn of Yseph and Miriam. [32:22] He's from the tribe of Judah. It makes [32:24] him eligible. Everything in this story [32:26] makes him eligible to be a priest in [32:30] that order of Melkisedc. And then he's [32:32] also a king. [32:36] Let's close with a couple of thoughts [32:38] here. What significant thing or things [32:41] happened at this covenant table? Well, [32:43] symbolically, Abram and Melkazedc took [32:46] the seat had the elements of the Lord's [32:49] supper together. I believe they took it [32:51] together. And whether or not Abram knew [32:53] what they were doing, MelkiseDC [32:56] definitely knew what they were doing. [33:00] Then they shared a blessing over Abram [33:03] for which only a priest could give, [33:06] which is what the Lord later told Aaron, [33:08] the high priest, to speak over the [33:10] people of Israel. So he's serving [33:13] not only the covenant within the meal [33:16] but he's serving as priest for Abram. [33:20] Then the tithe of course was given as [33:22] we've mentioned. So either Abram was [33:25] interacting with the Lord himself in the [33:27] flesh in the form of Melkisedc. [33:32] That wouldn't be too far out there since [33:34] we called him the king of righteousness [33:36] and he's the king of the city called [33:37] peace. this prince of peace who had no [33:40] beginning, no end, no genealogy. We [33:42] don't know his his real parents. He's a [33:44] king and priest. He's not from Levi and [33:46] is without sin. That connection is not a [33:49] hard one to make. [33:51] So either Abram is fellowshipping with [33:54] the Lord and making covenant with him [33:56] again, [33:58] or at least God is highlighting that [34:00] MelkiseDC was a foreshadowing [34:03] of the coming of the Messiah. [34:06] It's one of these two. It's either him [34:09] or the foreshadowing of him. [34:12] But either way, Abram shared that [34:14] covenant table with him. [34:17] Now, we know what to look for in the [34:19] Messiah. [34:20] A non-levite high priest who predated [34:22] the Levite sin, [34:26] the sin of Israel that gave Levite [34:30] only priesthood, [34:32] someone who could be both king and [34:33] priest. [34:35] So either Abram knew he was the Lord or [34:38] he felt he was from the Lord. [34:43] And if he is the Lord, [34:47] this would be the second earliest [34:50] manifestation after the Garden of Eden. [34:55] Now he talked to Noah, but it it talks [34:57] about his voice. We don't know that Noah [34:59] ever saw him. [35:02] So if MelkiseDC is Yeshua, [35:05] it seems he fits all the categories. [35:09] This would be the second [35:11] iteration of Yeshua showing up in the [35:14] physical flesh as God on earth. [35:18] I've always looked at it in an [35:19] interesting way because [35:24] Abram met Yeshua in or at least his [35:28] voice in Genesis 12 and 13. And now [35:31] again in 14, he recognizes the voice. He [35:35] recognizes this the statements and the [35:37] wisdom and the blessing and the and the [35:39] purpose. He recognizes all of it. [35:42] Whether or not he he recognized the [35:45] physical look of Mkisedc, the king of [35:48] Salem. [35:50] And as a foreshadowing element, because [35:53] there's lots of foreshadowing moments or [35:56] prototypes of the Messiah in the Bible. [36:00] Joseph is one. King David is one. [36:05] Isaac is one. [36:07] What's interesting here is Isaac is not [36:09] born yet. So Melkazedc becomes one of [36:12] the earliest foreshadowings [36:15] or you know the the pre-existent figures [36:19] of what the Messiah will become, what [36:21] the Messiah will be. [36:24] So interesting. [36:26] This little bread and wine, this [36:28] blessing and tithe, this covenant table, [36:31] it shifted [36:33] so many things. [36:36] It it it made an order of priesthood. [36:39] This is what I'm talking about. It seems [36:41] small, but look what it does. It shifts [36:44] the order of the priesthood, [36:47] which now makes Yeshua eligible to be [36:50] our high priest. It gives us a [36:52] foreshadowing. So, we're going to [36:54] recognize the Messiah. It's a prophetic [36:56] word long before there were prophetic [37:00] writings. [37:02] And I believe that Abraham recognized [37:04] this person, which is why he took the [37:07] blessing and rejected everyone else's. [37:11] And he said to the other kings, "I don't [37:13] want to owe you anything, but to [37:15] MelkiseDC, I owe you everything." [37:21] Let's pray. [37:24] Lord, we can learn so many things from [37:26] this opening text, Genesis 14. Whether [37:30] it was you or whether we're supposed to [37:33] be learning about the foreshadowing of [37:36] you, what we're asking tonight is that [37:39] we don't miss these crucial history [37:43] changing moments when we're in your [37:45] presence reading your word. We can [37:47] easily fly by this story and we can say, [37:49] "Oh, the kings and the fighting and he [37:51] he rescued Lot and this weird guy that [37:53] no one knew about. He came and that that [37:56] could be one way to go." But you altered [37:59] history right here. You altered [38:02] salvation history right here in the [38:05] story at this covenant table. [38:08] Would you help us, Holy Spirit, to glean [38:10] all of these moments [38:13] as we study, as we worship, as we [38:15] meditate on your word [38:18] and that every time we we see these [38:20] crucial moments that we are applying to [38:22] our life what we've learned. [38:25] We're looking forward, Lord, to how much [38:26] you want to teach us in this series all [38:28] these incredible encounters and what [38:30] they mean and what changes. [38:33] But what we do proclaim tonight with [38:35] 100% certainty is that Yeshua, you are [38:39] our king and priest. [38:41] You are without number of days. [38:45] You are the unccreated. [38:48] You are the uncaused cause. [38:53] You are the one that gives blessing, [38:55] creates covenant. And it is our pleasure [39:00] to give you the tithe and to owe you [39:02] everything. [39:03] hear our prayer. Hear our worship [39:05] tonight. [39:07] Yeshua we pray. Amen. Amen. Let's stand [39:09] and celebrate who Yeshua is.
