Melchizedek is the mysterious king-priest who meets Abraham and blesses him. That’s all we would know about him except that the apostle Paul unfolded the topic a bit more in the book of Hebrews, showing that the Melchizedek priesthood is the true heavenly one, of which Christ is the great original.
But Melchizedek was not Christ, for just as Aaron represented Christ in the Levitical priesthood, so Melchizedek represents Christ in the heavenly priesthood. So this book unfolds the truth about the Melchizedek priesthood: what are the qualifications? what is the work involved? what are the privileges? what will it mean in the heavenly kingdom? and, of course, who is Melchizedek?
It’s a marvelous and inspiring topic that opens up some of the glories of the achievements that God will accomplish in the redemption and lifting up of fallen man, from the lowest pits, to the uttermost heights.
I’m not sure when the study of Melchizedek first opened up to our church. The earliest reference was a study printed by W. Race in 1970 on The Tribe of Dan. Fred also incorporated a brief overview of the theme into the studies on the Sanctuary in 1980 (which appeared in The Messenger and News Review), and this was later printed in the booklet, The Living and the Dead, (chapter 3). I know I personally heard a study on Melchizedek at the first camp meeting I attended in 1982.
The articles this book is based on were written in 1990, as part of a series on “Praying for the Latter Rain” in The Messenger and News Review. They are by far the most complete and mature presentation of the theme, a theme which inspired Fred, and impressed him deeply. This is their first public appearance. 138p
Contents
- Introduction
- Qualifications of Melchizedek
- The Melchizedek Order
- Rulership in Christ’s Kingdom
- Priesthood in Christ’s Kingdom
- The Testimony of God’s Redeeming Love
- Further Qualifications
- The Identity of Melchizedek
- The Number of Melchizedek
