¹ Now the main point in what has been said is this: we have such a high priest, who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens …

Main points are great, especially when the author explicitly tells the reader—and here is one of those situations. The underlying word is related to the root word for “head.” The theme of this part of Hebrews is coming to a head, a pinnacle. This is the place where we are being taken, namely, an appreciation for the high priesthood of Jesus Christ who has completed the once for all sacrifice on the cross for our sins (see 7:27).

It has been pointed out that in the tabernacle, while every piece of furniture, utensil and fixture is described in detail in Scripture, there is no mention of any place for the priests to sit down. The implication may very well be that there was no place in the ritual sacrificial system for symbolizing that the work of the priests was ever done. To be sure, individual sacrifices came to completion. But there was always another to be offered up. Even the yearly offering on the Day of Atonement was never completely finished, and had to be repeated each year. There was nothing in the Law of Moses that provided for an end of the sacrifices, and therefore an end to the work of the priests.

But the book of Hebrews makes the case that the priesthood of Christ put an end to sacrificing. It is true, as we have seen before, that Christ continually intercedes for us (7:25), but this is on the basis of a once-for-all-never-to-be-repeated-sacrifice. His sacrificial work is complete, it has been perfected (7:28). Now, Christ is seated at the right hand of God, waiting “until His enemies be made a footstool for [his] feet” (1:13).

At least twenty-two times in the New Testament we find reference to the Lord Jesus Christ being at the right hand of the Father, five of those in the book of Hebrews. If anything is clear, the work of sacrificing to God is finished, and God wants us to be unmistakably certain on this point.

The great truth is presented, not with the goal of winning theological arguments, but to elicit praise. Most translations use the word “such” to describe the high priesthood of Christ. It is supremely “fitting for us to have such a high priest!” (7:26). This carries the comparative sense and leads to awe and worship. Our hearts cannot help but soar in praise to such a One as this. As the songwriter put it, “ ‘It is finished,’ was His cry. Now in heaven, exalted high. Hallelujah, what a Savior!” (see John 19:30).

Lord, I praise You for the absolutely perfect sacrifice of Your Son on the cross for my sins. Help me never lose the awe and the wonder of this.