our high priest

"...because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. Such a high priest meets our need--one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself."--Hebrews 7:24-27

Easter is right around the corner, which is in itself a great reminder of God's forgiveness through Jesus' death. These verses use strong language looking back on Christ's sacrifice as a complete act. Once we accept it as the payment for our sins (in our past, present and even future) we are completely forgiven and completely saved. These verses paint a picture of Jesus at the right hand of the Father, constantly interceding on our behalf.

Before we got married, Justin and I went through premarital counseling which was so beneficial for us. We look back on it often and the things we learned, though we do not always put them into practice the way we'd like to. A Christian counselor and his wife organized the sessions, and lead us through several exercises. One week they taught us how to fight. This was not a physical exercise, thank goodness! They wanted us to learn to communicate in such a way that we did not cause the other person to shut down. In marriage, as in all human relationships, language using words like "always" or "never" is typically an exaggeration and they encouraged us to avoid these types of accusations. For example, "You never encourage me," or "You are always late." Humans on the whole are inconsistent and statements like these are almost never true of any one person.

But when it comes to God, and Jesus our high priest, words like "always" and "forever" are the only ones that fit. His character is so consistent and steadfast that anything less would be a lie. In a world where imperfection is the norm, we have a perfect priest who sacrificed himself (not a lamb or a dove), and even now intercedes for us. His love is active and is always working for you.