Every high priest is selected from among the people and is appointed to represent the people in matters related to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and are going astray, since he himself is subject to weakness. This is why he has to offer sacrifices for his own sins, as well as for the sins of the people.
Hebrews 5.11-3
this passage is a reminder to all Christians that every person has been saved from a life of sin
and alienation from God. Even the priests of the Old Testament, those who were called by God, were subject to the same temptations and moral weaknesses as any other people. Such knowledge keeps those who minister to others gentle in all their dealings. They know how close they are to being the one ministered to
lead instead of the one ministering.
The difference between those who are members of God's family and those who are still bound to sin lies in their appropriation of the work of Jesus. He alone allows us to approach our world with gentleness. Gentle is what happens to fierce when Jesus touches it with grace.
I will never get over the effect of God's saving transformation on people's lives. People who were lost in sin, filled with anger and bitterness, give up their hatred and become approachable. That is, of course, why we minister to others. Those of us who minister are not people to whom gentleness comes naturally.
We are all people who have been remodelled by grace. We thankfully leave our old natures far behind as we embrace gentleness in our treatment of others.
When we consider that we are all sinners, saved by grace, our ministry to others becomes gentle. We understand where we came from-a world of hopeless despair without Christ. We also understand where we are going to a bright future with God forever. In the meantime, we gently bring hope to others, so that they will
find us approachable. Only then we will have opportunity to share the grace of God
with them
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