2011 Latin American Bible ConferenceApril 21, 2011   For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”  (Romans 4:2-3)   The King of Salem, Priest of the Most High GodIf, when you read the Bible, you know when the passage you are reading was recorded and when the incident you are reading about occurred, you will find it helpful to your understanding. How long before Jesus came to the earth did Abraham live? When was the book of Genesis written? Although some of the events described in the Bible were recorded around the same time as they occurred, there are also passages that were recorded long after the incidents took place. Genesis contains accounts of events that took place from the time of Adam, the forefather of the human race, until about 1,800 years before Jesus came to this world, but it was recorded hundreds of years later by the hand of Moses. It is very helpful when reading the Bible to match the people and incidents with the era and year in which the books were recorded.Let’s turn to Genesis chapter 14 and read from verse 17.   And the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley), after his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him. Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High. And he blessed him and said: “Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand.” And he gave him a tithe of all.  verses 17-20   We have already seen how a war broke out and Lot was taken captive, so Abraham took some of his soldiers and rescued Lot. Lot had come out of Ur of the Chaldeans with Abraham, passed through Haran and entered the land of Canaan. After Abraham’s father, Terah, died in Haran, Lot had entered the land of Canaan with Abraham. After they came back from Egypt, however, Lot had chosen to go in the opposite direction, returning towards the east. Then when he failed, Abraham rescued him and brought him back. As we considered these events, we saw how our born-again spirits coexist with the powerful desires of our flesh, and we examined how the thoughts of the flesh and the thoughts of the spirit exist side by side. When Abraham returned from rescuing Lot in this way, two people appeared before him: Bera, king of Sodom and Melchizedek, king of Salem. Throughout his life, Abraham continually found himself at crossroads, having to make a choice. The Bible only provides us with brief accounts of these occasions, but in most cases the choice was by no means an easy one. The two people who came to meet Abraham were distinctly different. This provides us with an image of a choice that the Israelites had to make later in their history and the crossroads that lie before us today. As we read from verse 10, we find that during the battle the king of Sodom fled, leaving everything behind. It was in the midst of these circumstances that Abraham went, defeated the enemy and returned. The Bible does not tell us exactly what happened when Abraham faced the king of Sodom. Of course, the conversation that occurred between the two is revealed later, but it was at this point that Abraham beheld Melchizedek, the king of Salem. At that time, there was no city by the name of Jerusalem or Salem in the land of Canaan. This Melchizedek is a very mysterious person. He was not one of the priests who appeared within the history of the law as we know it. This man went out to Abraham bearing bread and wine. When we hold communion services we eat some bread and drink some wine. This is a ceremony in which we participate as we contemplate the body of Jesus Christ and the blood that He shed on the cross. At the time of Abraham, however, Moses had not yet been born and God had not yet provided the law. So what kind of priest was this who came, bringing bread and wine? It is really very difficult to explain him.In various places in the Bible we can see how God appeared directly to man. It was not Jesus who appeared before man at that time. It is the Man who was born of the virgin Mary that we refer to as Jesus. Before God was born into the world in this way, however, He appeared from time to time in the image of a man before several people in the course of Old Testament history.After Adam sinned, God walked in the garden, looking for Adam and calling out to him, “Where are you?” (see Genesis 3:8-9). It was not that He had called out from heaven; He actually appeared in physical form, looking for Adam. Also, from Genesis chapter 15 on, we find God appearing in physical form as He spoke with Abraham. Then He also said to Moses, “You shall see My back,” and He passed before Moses (see Exodus 33:23). This is not something that we can fully understand. From time to time, God appeared before man in this kind of mysterious form, and here, too, we find that a certain priest appeared before Abraham.  Let’s turn to Hebrews chapter 7 and read from verse 1.   For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated “king of righteousness,” and then also king of Salem, meaning “king of peace,” without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually.  verses 1-3   It says that he was king of Salem, meaning “king of peace,” so he appears to be one of several kings, but it also says here that this Melchizedek was priest of the Most High God. Everyone born into this world has a day on which their lives begin and a day on which they die, and they have a father and a mother. The only people who were formed without a father or mother were Adam and Eve, but this man was definitely not Adam or Eve. God alone has no father or mother and has neither beginning of days nor end of life. He appeared before Abraham as a high priest and the Bible says of him that he was “made like the Son of God” and “remains a priest continually.” Also, when he appeared before Abraham, Abraham offered him a tithe.In Matthew chapter 5 it says, “Do not swear … by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King” (see verses 34-35). Also, towards the end of the book of Revelation, we have a description of the New Jerusalem coming down from heaven. The Jerusalem in the land of Israel is a shadow of the real Jerusalem in the world of God. Yet, hundreds of years before the Israelites had that name and the city of Jerusalem had been established in their land, the king of Salem, that is the king of peace, appeared before Abraham. The Bible speaks of a certain Person, saying, “And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6). Here He appeared with bread and wine as the High Priest of God.When the Jesus was born, there were various sides to His image. First of all, He was born in the image of the Prophet that God promised through Moses (see Deuteronomy 18:15,18). He was also born as the true King, the true image of the kings that reigned during the history of Israel in the Old Testament, and He was born as High Priest in the likeness of the many priests in the Old Testament. All of the priests of Israel were born according to the order of Aaron, but Hebrews chapter 6 verse 20 describes Jesus as being High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek. The One who would someday be born into this world as a priest to accomplish the work of perfect salvation also appeared before Abraham. This is a very mysterious image. Being in a position much higher than Abraham, whom the Bible describes as the father of faith, He received tithes from Abraham. When the Israelites gave tithes to the priests, the people of the tribe of Levi used them as necessary, but even at a time when no such laws had been established, Abraham gave a tenth of all he had received to this person who was in a very high position. In a similar way, the Israelites later gave a tenth of their income to the tribe of the priests, although it was actually God who received it. When we willingly offer our tithes today, this, too, does not belong to us; it belongs to God.   Now consider how great this man was, to whom even the patriarch Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils.  Hebrews 7:4   It says here to “consider how great this man was.” Abraham is the forefather of several nations and the man whom the Jews regard as their greatest patriarch and greatest father. When God brought this man into the land of Canaan, there was no one between him and God. This great man offered Melchizedek a tenth of all he had received, but the question is just how much greater was he than Abraham to bring Abraham to do this. We cannot know whether or not Abraham understood what it meant when Melchizedek appeared before him in human form bearing bread and wine. The Bible does not say anything about this. Nevertheless, Abraham clearly recogn

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