Thanksgiving night I saw something on the web that was kind of Oneness & it troubled me. So I prayed & asked the LORD, "Who then did the Father love before the foundation of the world?"
Since some Oneness folks say that:
John 17:24 ¶ Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.
Because they say that it is the same as:
Revelation 13:8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
They say that the Lamb slain was only looked forward to from the foundation of the world.
They also say that the Father loving the Son, was only looked forward to from the foundation of the world.
Since that really troubled me, I woke up a few times in the night and prayed the same prayer.
Then Friday afternoon, my son-law, sent a text and asked what I thought about Melchisedec. I started to study it out, and sent him an email, also, I didn’t go to the commentaries, when I was studying it.
Whenever I study something to preach or teach, I stay away from the commentaries and stick with the book.
I’m not saying it's wrong for anyone else to do that, it is that I don’t want to.
For a number of years I have been using the Online Bible, with built-in Strong’s Concordance & cross references.
I think that the LORD answered my prayer. I believe that he taught me something I had not thought about, before.
Please, let me know what you think, especially if you think that it could be heretical.
Gino
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I’ve thought about this before, but had not committed it to study.
Today you provoked me in a good way to studying this out.
This is what I believe that the LORD taught me today:
Melchisedec
Genesis 14:18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.
19 And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:
20 And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.
Melchisedec suddenly shows up to Abram after the LORD delivered Abram's enemies in to his hands.
Melchisedec was the priest of the most high God, who brought forth bread and wine.
It also said that he was also king of Salem.
He then blessed Abram of the most high God, and blessed the most high God.
Then for the first time in scriptures, the tithe is given by Abram to Melchisedec.
Apparently Melchisedec had at least two offices, that of priest and king.
Later, under the law, that was not to be, and was violated by two kings.
Saul lost the kingdom (I Samuel 13:9-14) because of that violation.
Uzziah became leprous (II Chronicles 26:16-20) because of the violation.
However, it was prophesied that Jesus would rightly have both offices.
Jesus would be a priest upon the king's throne:
Zechariah 6:12 And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD:
13 Even he shall build the temple of the LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both.
Melchisedec did not sacrifice anything from the flock, but brought forth bread and wine.
Only Jesus did the same at the last supper, that bread and wine looked forward to Calvary.
Ever since then, we have the Lord's supper to remember Calvary.
Apparently Melchisedec's bread and wine looked forward to Calvary as well.
Psalm 110:1 ¶ <<A Psalm of David.>> The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.
2 The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.
3 Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth.
4 The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.
5 ¶ The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath.
Here, the LORD prophesizes of where the Father speaks to the Son of two great things.
First, that the Son after his ascension, is to sit at the right hand of the Father.
Secondly, that at that same time, the Father swares that the Son is called a priest forever, after the order of Melchisedec.
So this person called a priest forever after the order of Melchisedec is in the context of being seated at the right had of the Father.
Hebrews 5:4 And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.
5 So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee.
6 As he saith also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.
Being a priest forever after the order of Melchisedec is where the Son is called to that office by the Father.
Secondly, it is in the context of the Son being the only begotten of the Father.
That priesthood is in the context of the Son's relationship to the Father.
Hebrews 5:10 ¶ Called of God an high priest after the order of Melchisedec.
11 Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing.
The subject of who exactly was Melchisedec, was one that Paul apparently desired to tell the Hebrews, but they were unable to receive it.
Melchisedec had a priesthood that only two persons ever had that office.
One was Melchisedec himself, and the other was the Son of God.
Hebrews 6:20 Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.
This priesthood was to be an high priest forever after the order of Melchisedec.
Hebrews 7:1 ¶ For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him;
2 To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace;
Melchisedec is called king of Salem (small "k"), and priest of the most high God.
Then in line two he is called King of righteousness (with a large "K").
He is also called King of Salem and King of peace (with a large "K").
Except when the word King starts a sentence (Song of Solomon 3:6 and Acts 26:27), or is the first word of a direct quote (Acts 25:24), all the other 73 times that King with a large "K" is used, in addition to Hebrews 7:2, are all and only used in reference to Deity, to the LORD himself.
The only righteousness that men can really have is imputed righteousness, since there is none righteous, no not one.
So to be the King of righteousness, he would have to be the LORD himself.
Also he is called the King of peace, but in Isaiah 9:6 Jesus is called the Prince of Peace.
So Melchisedec is called the King of peace, and the Son is called the Prince of Peace.
Hebrews 7:3 Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually.
Melchisedec is without father, neither had a beginning nor will have an end.
The Son of God also neither had a beginning nor will have an end.
However, with the Son, the Father is his Father.
Melchisedec, an eternal person, a capital "K" King of peace, is like the eternal Son, except Melchisedec doesn't have a Father.
Hebrews 7: 4 Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils.
5 And verily they that are of the sons of Levi, who receive the office of the priesthood, have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brethren, though they come out of the loins of Abraham:
6 But he whose descent is not counted from them received tithes of Abraham, and blessed him that had the promises.
7 And without all contradiction the less is blessed of the better.
8 And here men that die receive tithes; but there he receiveth them, of whom it is witnessed that he liveth.
Melchisedec brought bread and wine to Abram.
The LORD later asked Abraham to sacrifice his son, his only son.
The LORD stopped him, but it looked forward to what would come.
The Father, himself, would sacrifice his only begotten Son.
Right before that sacrifice, Jesus took bread and wine for his disciples.
The bread and wine looked forward to the Father sacrificing his Son.
Since then, by the bread and wine we remember that sacrifice of his Son.
So the only two persons who were priests of the order of Melchisedec, took bread and wine to look to the sacrifice of the Son of God.
The King of peace and the Prince of Peace are those two persons.
Are not princes the sons of kings?
So is the Prince of Peace the Son of the King peace?
The other priesthood, Aaron's priesthood, past from father to son.
However those priests did not abide forever.
So is the priesthood of Melchisedec past from Father to Son?
Yes, I believe that Melchisedec was the Father.
The Son is now forever after the priesthood of the Father.
Therefore, Abram, in Genesis 14, beheld a Theophany, as he also did in Genesis 18.