Everett Muniz - Be Ye Holy - Class 3 - A Kingdom Of Priests - A Holy Nation

Automatically transcribed. Accuracy is good but not perfect, and words are sometimes wrong. Trust the audio over the text.

1. 0:03

   This is the 2015 Ontario Winter Bible School. Our speaker for this first session is Brother Everett Muniz from the Paris from Paris Ave. Ohio. His theme this week is Be Holy, the High Calling of God in Christ Jesus. This is his third class in the subject for this class is a Kingdom of priests, a holy nation. Our reading was taken from first beat it 2 verses one through 10. Brother Everett.

2. 0:48

   Thank you, brother Jason, and good morning, brothers and sisters. I should begin with just a very brief apology. I have not quite been myself these last few days in the way of small families. Sometimes illness strikes and the kids get it and they get over it pretty directly and then they pass it off to mom and dad and it hangs around. So yesterday, as a result, I think we we glossed over a few areas of emphasis that I had really intended to to dwell on a little bit more than we did.

3. 1:21

   And so I apologize for that. But with God’s help, we’ll try to get back on track this morning. Here’s what we intend to explore together in this session, which we have titled The Kingdom of Priests. We’re going to start by looking at the theme of priesthood generally. The Levitical priesthood may come to mind most readily, but the theme of priesthood is so much bigger than that founded in the line of Aaron.

4. 1:53

   And then we’ll turn our attention to some of the ways that the Levitical priesthood reminded Israel of its national calling to be a Kingdom of priests, and a few of the lessons that we can take away from that. And then finally, we’ll look at a few lessons that we can take away from the priestly responsibilities of teaching and sacrifice. And then, of course, as we have done, we’ll take a brief look at what we’ll be looking at in our fourth session tomorrow. So in our last session, we saw that God redeemed Israel from bondage in Egypt to be a Kingdom of priests and a holy nation. We saw that God wants to dwell among His chosen people, but to do that he requires a holy place. Ultimately and wonderfully.

5. 2:47

   That holy place that God wants to dwell in His habitation through the Spirit is us human beings. But owing to the fact that we are unholy by nature, God has to transform us, and that process takes time. The Tabernacle was an important part of the process that God put in place to transform the natural descendants of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob into a holy place where he could dwell.

6. 3:20

   Exodus 29 tells us that the Levitical priesthood was inextricably linked to this purpose as well, as we see here in Exodus 29, verse 44, where God says, and I will sanctify the Tabernacle of the congregation and the altar. I will sanctify also both Aaron and his sons to minister to me in the priest’s office, and I will dwell among the children of Israel and be their God. Here our Father describes the priesthood as a critical component of those things necessary for him to dwell among the children of Israel and be their God. The Levitical priests were to be agents of Israel’s transformation into a holy place where God could dwell, as we’ll see, brothers and sisters and young people. As he did with the Levitical priesthood and the tribe of Levi generally, God wants to involve us in the work of creating a holy place for him to dwell.

7. 4:27

   It’s a wonderful insight into the character of our God. He doesn’t need our help, but it gives him pleasure to include his faithful children in the work that he is doing.

8. 4:43

   So before we look at a few lessons about Our Calling to be agents of holiness from the priesthood that God established with Aaron, we’ll take a moment and look at the theme of priesthood generally. Now the first use of the Hebrew word translated priest, as far as I can tell, is in Genesis chapter 14 and verse 18. And Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought forth bread and wine, and he was the priest of the Most High God. Now there are a few more uses of the word in Genesis, but they’re in relation to Pagan priests of Egypt. And then we find a few references to this word in Exodus chapter 2 and 3, but they’re in reference to Moses’s father-in-law.

9. 5:27

   Interestingly, after Genesis 14 verse 18, the next use of the word in obvious relation to the Most High God is Exodus 19 verses 5 and 6, as part of God’s intention for the nation of Israel. In Exodus 19 verses 5 and 6, God says, If you will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then you shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people, for all the earth is mine, and you shall be unto me a Kingdom of priests and a holy nation.

10. 6:02

    You know, it’s interesting, there are 653 verses in the Old Testament where this word occurs. 643 of them come after this passage. It’s as if the theme of priesthood takes off after it’s been expressed in connection with Israel’s national calling. And because we already know that what an important role the Levitical priesthood plays in God’s work to make Israel a holy place where he can dwell, they naturally come to mind when we read Exodus 19, verses 5 and 6.

11. 6:38

    And there’s certainly an association between the priesthood alluded to in Exodus 19 and Levitical priesthood. But we know that they are not one and the same. The Levitical priesthood was part of the law in Hebrews chapter 10 and verse one tells us that the law was only a shadow of good things to come, and so likewise the Levitical priesthood was only a shadow of God’s priestly calling expressed here in Exodus 19. Helpfully, the apostle Peter confirms this for us in first Peter chapter 2.

12. 7:17

    The theme of priesthood is introduced in verse 6 when he says that believers are lively stones being built up, a spiritual house and holy priesthood. And just a few verses later, he expands on this idea, using the language of Exodus 19, verses 5 and 6 to describe us as a chosen generation, a royal priesthood and holy nation, a peculiar people. And so by applying the language of Exodus 19 to you and to me, Peter confirms that the priesthood that Israel was called to was the outworking of a better covenant based upon better promises than the one that God made with the people at Sinai.

13. 7:59

    It’s a marvelous example, isn’t it, of the continuity of God’s purpose. What a comfort to realize that there is an infinitely wise hand involved in events both great and small, the events upon the world stage and events in our lives to realize a truly glorious purpose. The work that God has undertaken isn’t haphazard.

14. 8:27

    It’s meticulously planned and executed with the greatest care and attention to detail. Now in verses four to six of first Peter chapter 2, he he, he does this beautiful thing that often happens in the Scriptures where two metaphors that we may not normally think of as as pulling together are pulled together. And he he does so.

15. 8:47

    He uses the metaphor of a building in connection with the priesthood. And in effect, Peter says that Jesus is the foundation of the priestly order of which believers become a part. He is the stone which the builders rejected, that has become the chief of the corner. And upon him God is building a holy temple, his habitation through the Spirit. And this aligns beautifully, doesn’t it, with what we’ve already seen about God’s intention to dwell among his chosen people.

16. 9:26

    The letter to the Hebrews has much to say about Jesus role as head of this holy priesthood touched on in first Peter chapter 2. Whereas the law, the Tabernacle and the priestly order associated with them were a shadow of good things to come, Jesus is the High priest of those very good things. The Tabernacle from which he ministers is a greater and more perfect Tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building as we have here in Hebrews Chapter 9 and verse 11.

17. 10:05

    Hebrews chapters 5 to 7 take us back to the first mention of priesthood in in Genesis chapter 14 and verse 18 when they tell us that Jesus is a high priest after the order of Melchizedek as we have here in Hebrews chapter 5. So also Christ glorified not Himself to be made in high priest, but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son today have I begotten thee as He hath also in another place thou art a priest forever. After the order of Melchizedek, this is the priesthood referred to in Exodus 19, verses 5 and 6, and in First Peter chapter 2. This is the priesthood of the Kingdom Age. The immortalized Saints, God’s holy ones, shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him 1000 years. Our High Priest has redeemed us to God by His blood out of every kindred and tongue and people and nation, and has made us unto our God, kings and priests, that we should reign with Him in the earth, a fact that has not yet been fully realized. But in our pursuit of holiness we are journeying to this reality.

18. 11:29

    When we put First Corinthians chapter 15 verses 25 to 28, together with Revelation chapter 20 verses 6 to 15, the 1st 2 columns that you see on the slide that’s currently displayed, we see that Jesus and those that have a part in the first resurrection who will be priests of God and of Christ, reigning 1000 years until all enemies have been conquered, the last of which is death. The great high priest and his priestly brethren will work together to prepare the earth, the earth for a time when God can be All in all.

19. 12:09

    When, as it says in Revelation chapter 21 verses one to four, the Tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them and be their God. And this work is certainly foreshadowed in the role appointed to the Levitical priesthood. They were meant to be God’s agents of holiness in the nation of Israel, to prepare the people to be a holy place where God could dwell.

20. 12:44

    So hopefully what we’ve seen is that the theme of priesthood runs right through the Bible, and it’s absolutely central to God’s overall purpose. The priestly calling that Israel received in Exodus 19 has its roots in the same priestly order of which Melchizedek was a member and over which our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is head. Peter tells us that we, brothers and sisters and young people, we have received this very same calling. But here’s the thing.

21. 13:20

    We have to live our lives today in active preparation for our future membership in this holy priesthood. Membership in the priesthood to come will be for those who cooperate with God’s efforts to prepare them for it now.

22. 13:50

    While the priesthood that God established back in Exodus with Aaron and his sons is only a shadow of good things to come and not the very substance of those things, it still has a great deal to teach us about the greater priesthood to which we have been called. The Levitical priesthood was a kind of model for Israel. The nation couldn’t afford to lose sight of their priestly calling.

23. 14:14

    Though the people couldn’t do the work of the priests and Levites, they were meant to identify with their calling, with their service. So God provides them with a number of reminders that the whole nation had received a priestly calling. Even as we have brothers and sisters, these principles hold true today. We can’t afford to lose sight of our priestly calling.

24. 14:41

    Like Israel, we need to identify with the work of priestly service. The lessons that they needed to learn are no less relevant to us. And so we’d like to spend a few moments looking at a few of the ways that the Levitical priesthood reminded Israel of their greater priestly calling. Firstly, prior to the establishment of the Levitical priesthood, the priest of the family would have been the first born son.

25. 15:11

    However, when God establishes the Levites as priests and the remainder of the tribe to assist them in their service, the men of the tribe of Levi are taken in exchange for all the first born sons of the other tribes. And then God gives the Levites to Aaron and his sons to do the service of the children of Israel in the Tabernacle of the congregation and to make an atonement for the children of Israel.

26. 15:39

    As it says in Numbers chapter 8 and verse 19, this is one of the ways that the nation was meant to identify with the service of the priests and Levites. Their representative status would have been driven home by the man for man exchange. That’s described there in Numbers Chapter 3.

27. 16:03

    This next slide shows the similarity between the process of consecration both of the nation of Israel and of the priesthood particularly. And there seems to be a very interesting similarity in the progression that the nation went through and that the priesthood itself went through. The Brown Driver Briggs lexicon says that the Hebrew word translated consecration in Exodus 29 and Leviticus 8 and 9 in reference to the priesthood carries the idea of installation. And I found that I found that helpful to think of Israel being as it were installed as a nation, as the priesthood was being installed later on.

28. 16:48

    It’s the same word that’s used in Exodus 25 and 35 in reference to the stones that were installed upon the priests, ephod and the breastplate. And there seems to be, as we’ve said, a close similarity between this process that Israel went through nationally and that Aaron and his sons went through individually washing, followed by an application of the Spirit word, either in fact or type, as in the case of the priests.

29. 17:23

    The blood of the burnt and peace offerings in the case of Israel sprinkled upon them and upon the book of the covenant in the case of Aaron and his sons, touched upon the right ear and the right thumb and the right big toe. And then finally this process coming to its fruition, coming to a crescendo, as it were, with the glory of the Lord appearing and a devouring fire.

30. 17:49

    One of the lessons that seems to be embedded in this similarity is that God would only come into the presence of his priestly people after they had been sanctified by submitting themselves to the process that He provided. And of course, the same principle applies to us. We have to submit ourselves to the process that God has provided for our preparation before He will draw near and receive us. It’s also interesting that God required the whole nation to be witness to the process of the priests consecration. In Leviticus chapter 8, beginning at verse 2, it says, Take Aaron and his sons with him, and the garments, and the anointing oil, and the Bullock for the sin offering, and two Rams, and a basket of unleavened bread. And after thou excuse me, and gather thou all the congregation together unto the door of the Tabernacle of the congregation. And Moses did as the Lord commanded him, and the assembly was gathered together unto the door of the Tabernacle of the congregation.

31. 19:06

    And Moses said unto the congregation, This is the thing which the Lord commanded to be done. And so the the nation is brought together to witness the process of the consecration of the priests, and they’re told very explicitly, this process that you are about to witness is a process that God himself has established.

32. 19:29

    It seems likely that the people were required to witness this process in part to reinforce the nation’s priestly calling. Another way that Israelites generally could more intimately identify with the nation’s greater priestly calling was through the Nazarite vow. There are at least three similarities between the requirements of the Levitical priesthood and the requirements of the Nazarite vow, and they’re shown here on the slide Separation on the Head, Abstention from Wine and Strong Drink, and Avoidance of Defilement from the Dead. The word Nazarite is is interesting to me. It’s essentially a transliteration of a Hebrew word, which the theological word book of the Old Testament says may be similar in context to the English word distinction, which not only bears the connotation of difference, but also eminence.

33. 20:33

    So it isn’t simply that it’s separate, but that it’s superior. This concept is more nuanced than simply separation. It’s separation to a superior status. Even though the average non Levite was barred from participation in Levitical priesthood, they could choose for a time to take a path of distinction emulating the lifestyle and dedication intended for the Levitical priesthood.

34. 21:07

    In fact, in at least two ways, the Nazarite vow was superior to the Levitical priesthood. Firstly, it was open both to men and women, whereas we know that the Levitical priesthood was limited to the men of that tribe.

35. 21:24

    It was also chosen voluntarily as an expression of love for God out of a desire to live in holiness before Him, whereas the Levitical priests served as a matter of hereditary duty.

36. 21:48

    Another interesting point that is at least worth noting in passing comes out of a closer look at Numbers. Chapter 6. There are 24 occurrences of this word that’s associated with Nazarite, Nazar. Nazir and Nazar taken together appear 24 times in Numbers chapter 6, and this is a number that we find on a few different occasions associated with the priesthood there in First Chronicles 24. It’s a bit hidden in that it it it lists the number 16 and the number 8, but it’s clear that they’re intended to be to be grouped together and then in Numbers rather in First Chronicles 25 and also in Revelation chapters 4:00 and 5:00.

37. 22:49

    Another way that the priesthood was representative of the nation as a whole was through the office of the high priest. We already alluded to the stones that were upon the ephod and upon the breastplate. Upon those stones were written the names of the children of Israel according to their birth. The stones, the Onyx stones upon the ephod, and they were on the high priest shoulders for a memorial, and he also bore the names of the children of Israel according to the 12 tribes in the breastplate for a memorial. He also wore a gold plate upon his turban on which was written holiness to the Lord, symbolizing what God requires from all those that would draw near to him. A sanctification of mind who’s outworking is sanctification of speech and action, and this sanctification of mind is one of the defining features of the priesthood in the Kingdom Age and seems to be symbolized in Revelation 14 and in Revelation 22 by having the Father’s name written in their foreheads, which certainly calls to mind this golden plate worn by the high priest.

38. 24:06

    The thoughtful Israelite would look on and see this aspect of representation as well. He or she would look on the high priest and see their own priestly calling to the pursuit of holiness. The New Testament seems to emphasize the representative aspect of the high priest by linking that office to none other than our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ through His priesthood, though His priesthood is of the order of Melchizedek rather than of Aaron. As the office of the Levitical high priest represented what God wanted from each and every Israelite, Jesus as a greater high priest, represents what God wants from all those that he calls to membership in His family. So, brothers and sisters, if it was this important for Israel to identify with their priestly calling, if God saw fit to remind them time and again in various ways that they too were meant to be a Kingdom of priests, it was not a service that could be farmed out, so to speak, to the Levites, but rather the Levites served as a model for the development of a priestly character throughout the nation. If this was true for them, can it be any less so for us? Do we think of ourselves as priests in training? Are we attentive to the teaching and example of our high priest, the head of our order?

39. 25:50

    Our journey on the way of holiness is a journey, among other things, to priesthood. That is the character of the work that God has in mind for those who become holy as He is holy. It will be our great privilege to work alongside our high priest to transform the whole earth into a place, a holy place, where God can dwell.

40. 26:18

    So let’s look briefly at a few lessons that we can take away from the responsibilities of the priesthood. In his Blessing on the Tribe of Levi at the end of Deuteronomy, Moses describes the work of the Levitical priesthood this way. There are two things that he mentions in Deuteronomy chapter 33 and verse 10. He says, They shall teach Jacob thy judgments and Israel thy law, and they shall put incense before thee, and Holbert sacrifice upon thine altar.

41. 26:52

    Pardon me. These two aspects of priestly responsibility provide a helpful index into a few lessons that we can draw from the work and the service of the Levitical priesthood. Now, some of you may be teachers by profession, and you will know this much better than I. To be an effective teacher, one has to have a good grasp of the subject and be a competent practitioner.

42. 27:20

    And as we are confronted with or as we confront the Law of Moses, all of the the minute detail that is contained there, it’s easy to lose sight of its overarching goal. It was a tool to affect holiness among the chosen people of God. All of this instruction and holiness hung on two precepts as described by the Lord in Matthew chapter 22.

43. 27:45

    Love God with one’s whole being, and love our neighbor as ourselves. This timeless essence of the law continues to be the foundation of holiness today. Unless we’re well schooled in what it means to love God with our whole being and our neighbor as ourselves, we’ll be ill equipped for priesthood in the age to come.

44. 28:08

    And of course, we know, don’t we? We know that the only place we can gain this vital education is the Word of God. But as Peter says in Second Peter chapter 1, it would be negligent if we did not remind one another, even though we know these things and be established in the present truth. God’s Word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path to teach us how to distinguish between a step along the way that leads to life and a step towards destruction. Only God’s Word can make men and women wiser than our enemy and keep our feet from the evil way.

45. 28:50

    And This is why the psalmist says that the Word of God was his meditation all the day. This is why he had developed, as it were, a taste for truth. Through Isaiah, God promises Israel teachers who would direct them back to the way of holiness when they turn to the right hand or to the left.

46. 29:11

    And those with ears to hear can benefit from this incredible blessing right now if we’re attentive to God’s Word. Through consistent and prayerful reading and meditation on His Word, God equips us to distinguish between thoughts that are consistent with His character and purpose and those that run counter to them. Just as the law was a schoolmaster to bring the people of Israel to Christ, the fullness of God’s Word is a schoolmaster to keep our feet on the way of holiness, bringing us at last among the redeemed to Zion with everlasting joy upon our heads.

47. 29:51

    In short, if we want to be priestly teachers in the Kingdom age, then we have to be God’s pupils today. Another important aspect of effective teaching is putting what we teach into practice ourselves. It turns out that this is absolutely essential for those who want to be part of the priestly of the priesthood.

48. 30:15

    God is assembling. The Levitical priests couldn’t just know and understand the principles of holiness, they had to be experienced at applying them in their own lives to have any hope of effectively helping others to the same end. When the priests were not personally committed to holiness, it had a particularly destructive effect on Israel’s holiness generally. For example, we’re told that the sin of Eli’s sons Hofnai and Phineas was very great before the Lord. Why?

49. 30:51

    Because men abhorred the offering of the Lord. Such is the impact of priests who refuse to apply the principles of holiness in their own lives. Leviticus chapter 10, verses 8 to 11, tells us that it was the priest responsibility to use their understanding of God’s commandments and judgments to distinguish between holy and unholy, and that they were supposed to teach the children of Israel how to do that same thing.

50. 31:20

    It says beginning in Leviticus chapter 10 and verse 8. And the Lord spake unto Aaron, saying, Do not drink wine, nor strong drink thou, nor thy sons with thee. We now go into the Tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations, and that ye may put a difference between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean, and that ye may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord had spoken unto them by the hand of Moses. Now the impetus for this instruction seems to be the death of Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu, for offering strange fire before the Lord.

51. 32:00

    They failed to put a difference between holy and unholy, and they were consumed by the fire of God’s judgement. Afterward, God sends word to Aaron through Moses. I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me, and before all the people, I will be glorified. This is an incredibly important point for those of us called to this priesthood. It is not an introduction to some form of license or over familiarity with our Heavenly Father. Though God wants His people to draw near, it must be according to the method that He has prescribed. Many years later, God finds fault with the priests of Ezekiel’s day for the same reason. In Ezekiel 22 verse 26, we find that those priests profaned God’s holy things.

52. 32:52

    They put no difference between the holy and profane. Neither have they showed difference between the unclean and the clean. On the other hand, some chapters later God reveals that this will not be so for the priests of the Kingdom age, of whom God says, they shall teach My people the difference between the holy and profane and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean.

53. 33:21

    This priestly discernment is the product of a sanctified mind. And so if we hope to be among the king priests of the future age, our minds have to be well educated in holiness today. What’s more, we have to become proficient at putting a difference between holy and unholy. And that can only happen if we’re actively engaged in doing it. Certainly God wants us to understand his will and purpose. He wants us to understand the truth that he has revealed. But then he wants us to put that truth into action. Knowledge and understanding of God’s truth is a essential beginning, but it isn’t an end in itself. We must continue on to do truth.

54. 34:10

    The truth that teaches us to distinguish between holy and unholy is not a thing to be kept in a case, as it were, like a trophy, but rather to be an ever present companion to guide and to encourage us along the way of life.

55. 34:28

    The writer to the Hebrews tells us that the ability to distinguish good from evil is a mark of spiritual maturity. Everyone that useth milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

56. 34:54

    And the word discern here is really a word that means to judge, to judge between good and evil. And becoming proficient at judging between good and evil requires exercise. I find it very, very hard to exercise myself, find it difficult to work up the the sense of necessity to get out and and physically move my body.

57. 35:23

    And there’s some part of me that wants to just remain sedentary, you know, it requires a measure of effort to get up and get going. And yet, don’t we always, at least usually. This has been the case for Sister Amanda myself. We feel better when we’re done. We know that we feel better when we’re done.

58. 35:40

    And yet we still find it difficult to put the time and the effort in to the process. So too at times with the exercise we so desperately need in the Word of God. This word exercise here implies rigorous training. It comes from the same word that the word gymnasium is taken from, which was the place that Greek men would go to train.

59. 36:08

    And like the physical athlete who invest time and effort in difficult training, a regimen of training in the interest of obtaining a prize, those who wish to obtain the prize of the high calling of God in Jesus Christ have to be willing to invest time and effort studying and applying God’s Word. This kind of training requires determination and endurance because even though much good comes from it and it is incredibly rewarding, it is as difficult and uncomfortable as it is necessary to our success. In Romans chapter 12, verses 1 and 2, Paul tells us that the ability to distinguish between what is and is not the will of God is the intended effect of the mental transformation that God is affecting through His Word, the agent of our sanctification.

60. 37:09

    Be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

61. 37:21

    Have you ever noticed and the tendency that we have to practice putting a difference between holy and unholy in other people? This is something I’ve, I’ve certainly noticed in myself. It is much. I feel I’m much better at it with other people. Like I can see their faults. They’re so glaring, right? We look at others, we, we see the difference where they’ve gone astray in some fashion, right?

62. 37:47

    We can look at others and we can we can imagine that we’re well equipped to make these assessments in other people, and we can become preoccupied at times with doing so because it’s much easier and it’s much less uncomfortable to scrutinize someone else. But this scrutiny is really something that we should be most concerned with applying to ourselves. Our own lives, not the lives of others, are the primary training ground for this vital priestly characteristic. Now there’s an interesting connection in purpose between the priestly and the angelic roles in Malachi chapter 2, verse 7.

63. 38:34

    It describes the priest as the messenger of the Lord of hosts, and the word used here for messenger is the same word used throughout the Old Testament. That’s translated Angel. And while it’s applied generally to priests here, it’s also applied to the prophet Haggai. And we know that this is a word whose breadth of usage encompasses more than just divine representatives of our heavenly Father.

64. 38:58

    But how interesting that the word should be applied to the priests. As far as I could tell, all the other cases of malloc, which is that word Angel followed by God’s memorial name as we have it here in Malachi chapter 2 and verse 7, seem to be translated Angel of the Lord. Hebrews chapter 1 and verse 14 tells us that angels are ministering spirits sent forth to minister to the heirs of salvation. And the same word that’s translated ministering in Hebrews chapter one, verse 14, in reference to angels is applied later on in Hebrews in chapter 8, verse 2 and in chapter 10, verse 11 to the work of the priests. The priests of God, like his angels, are meant to be ministers to the heirs of salvation. And what an apartment description of the purpose of the Levitical priesthood, who ministered to the natural heirs of the promises to Abraham and Isaac and Jacob. Another connection between the priests and the angels is that the immortalized Saints are described. As both kings and priests in revelation, and as equal to the angels by our Lord, how incredible it will be, brothers and sisters and young people, to engage in priestly service as the angels do now, in perfect harmony with our Heavenly Father and without the impediment of our flesh. Now, as we practice priestly teaching in our natural and ecclesial families, it’s so important to remember that salvation, not condemnation, is the goal of our ministry. God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved. Men may and certainly do condemn

65. 41:04

    themselves by refusing to believe in Him or refusing to obey God’s commandments, but the fact remains, the Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost. If that’s the spirit of our High Priest, then it ought to be our spirit as well. As we promote the principle of holiness that allow the faithful to enter into the holiest by a new and living way, we can’t forget that God wants men and women to draw near to Him. He wants to dwell with us and to be our Father. And so the focus of the priest ministry is not keeping people away from God, but rather teaching people how to recognize and to address unholiness in themselves so that they can draw near to Him.

66. 41:56

    As God told Aaron, after the sin of Nadab and Abihu, he must be sanctified in those that come near him. We can never forget that God can only be approached on His terms. But even when the Levitical priest had to admonish or reject unholiness, he had an incredible opportunity, did he not, to affirm God’s care and provide counsel and encouragement about how things could be put right. Another important aspect of our efforts to promote the will and purpose of God is that God wants men and women to enter the way of holiness willingly, and He wants them to continue on that way willingly in anticipation of receiving the prize of our high calling.

67. 42:47

    Certainly He could forcibly impose holiness upon humanity, but he has chosen not to do that. It isn’t the kind of obedience that God wants. The priest role was not to forcibly impose legal observance throughout Israel, but rather to teach and to provide unbiased and expert consultation in matters of particular difficulty. And it’s, it’s really beautiful to see when we look at an example like Deuteronomy chapter 17, that both the priest and the people had a responsibility in this effort to learn the ways of holiness.

68. 43:25

    The priest to keep knowledge and to faithfully dispense it without bias, and the people to seek knowledge at the priest’s lips. And only if there arise a matter too hard for thee in judgement were they to bring it to the priests or the judge. So the goal of the priest was that those that he was teaching took ownership of these principles and learned to apply them themselves.

69. 43:54

    Not that they should always rely upon the priests for all matters of judgement, but they should learn independently, individually, to apply God’s Word proficiently to His glory. And of course, we know that the priests were required to apply their understanding of God’s will to the execution of their ministry at the sanctuary, which could look like forcible imposition of legal observance. And in one sense it certainly was. However, I think this was less a matter of the priest imposing observance upon the people than it was a matter of the priest practicing obedience themselves.

70. 44:34

    The priest had responsibility for preserving holiness, the holiness of the sanctuary. In the execution of their office, God prescribed the character of their service, and their conformance to that prescription was a vital part of the way in which they taught the people, in that case by example. So how do we see these principles then reflected in the head of our priesthood? What spirit characterized the ministry of the greatest messenger that God has sent to mankind? The anti typical High Priest Jesus of Nazareth in whom the principle of holiness was so perfectly manifest. What was the focus of his teaching? Was his focus on excluding the unholy or forcibly compelling holiness?

71. 45:24

    Doesn’t seem to be. Did he ignore the need for holiness or even slightly diminish its importance? Certainly not. He was the embodiment of holiness. He had stern warnings for those whose responsibility it was to understand and promote the principles of holiness, but who instead sought their own profit. At the same time, he discerned between those that were actively hostile or complacently inattentive to the way of holiness and those who were ignorant of it or strayed from it due to some spiritual or physical weakness.

72. 46:04

    And in the latter case, our great High Priest affirmed God’s care and provided admonition along with compassionate education and encouragement about how holiness could be affected in order to draw near to God. It seems to me that this spirit is beautifully captured in Galatians chapter 6 in the 1st 2 verses where Paul says, Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual restore such an one in the spirit of meekness, considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted, bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

73. 46:41

    For if a man think himself to be something when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself. There’s a a beautiful symmetry here to this idea of being overtaken in a fault. In our our journey towards holiness. There’s sort of an image that at least comes to my mind of, of a person walking along away and they’re being stalked by a ravenous beast. They’re walking along that way and they are overtaken by that ravenous animal which is stalking them. And certainly we know that we are in this precise situation. We are being stalked by our nature as we walk along the way of holiness and and too often we are overtaken. But the goal that’s expressed here in Galatians Chapter 6 is restoration.

74. 47:30

    Restore such a one, not condemnation. And the requisite spirit is meekness, not judgmental self righteousness. And this spirit is so important to the priesthood that God is preparing us for. In fact, Paul says that to do so is to fulfill the law of Christ. Now there are certainly occasions where the behaviour of others makes it necessary, because we love them to witness to the difference between holy and unholy and warn of the consequences of continuing in an unholy way.

75. 48:07

    But our primary focus should be on applying these principles to ourselves. If we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. And when we do have cause to witness to and to warn others in God’s family, we have to do it with reverence and respect for the fact that God gave his Son.

76. 48:24

    He redeemed them too, not just us. That God cares deeply for every one of His children and He wants from each of us our willing obedience. We too easily forget the value that God places upon all of His children, even those who have gone astray. He doesn’t abandoned them at the first sign of infidelity.

77. 48:51

    He works in love to seek and to save that which is lost. Certainly He reproves us for our sin while affirming His earnest desire to receive us if we will only return to Him. Trying to force someone back onto the way of holiness is counter to God’s desire. He wants willing submission in love rather than compliance compelled out of obligation, fear, or a misplaced sense of exchange.

78. 49:25

    So as we bring this session to a close, we’ll just touch on a few lessons from the priestly responsibility of sacrifice. Earlier we noted that the two aspects of priestly responsibility Moses mentioned in Deuteronomy 33 verse 10 are teaching and officiating over the offerings prescribed by the law. Passages like First Samuel 15 verse 22 and Hosea 6 and verse 6 and Psalm 40 make it clear that these offerings were not an end in themselves to Saul.

79. 49:58

    In First Samuel 15 verse 22, Samuel says to obey is better than sacrifice and to hearken than the fat of Rams. And in Hosea chapter 6 and verse 6 we read for I desired mercy and not sacrifice and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings. And Psalm 40, verses 6 to 10 seems particularly helpful in this regard.

80. 50:23

    Sacrifice and offering Thou didst not desire. My ears hast thou opened burnt offering and sin offering Thou has not required. Then said I, Lo, I come in the volume of the book. It is written of me. I delight to do Thy will. Oh my God, yeah, Thy law is within my heart. I have preached righteousness in the great congregation. Lo, I have not refrained my lips. O Lord, Thou knowest I have not hid Thy righteousness within my heart, I have declared Thy faithfulness and Thy salvation. I have not concealed Thy loving kindness and Thy truth from the great congregation.

81. 51:00

    Commentators have pointed out that the language of Psalm 40 and verse 6 is suggestive of the entire sacrificial system under rather the entire system of altar offerings under the Law. And there are 6 basic altar offerings, the sin offering, the trespass offering, the burnt offering, the peace offering, the meal offering, and the drink offering.

82. 51:21

    But they they can be combined due to the way in which the sin and the trespass offering are closely associated. And the meal and the drink offering are also closely associated. And with these two groupings we end up with a list of four rather than of six. And if it’s reasonable to combine the offerings this way, then all four of them seem to be mentioned in Psalm 40, verse 6.

83. 51:47

    The words sacrifice and offering at the beginning of the verse are closely associated with the peace offering and the meal offering, respectively. And then we have burnt offerings and sin offerings mentioned explicitly as the verse continues on. So this passage suggests that the true goal of the basic altar offerings under the Law is the development of a character, a character that delights to do the will of God, to preach righteousness, and to declare God’s faithfulness, salvation, loving kindness and truth forward. Progress on the way of holiness depends upon the grace of God and our ever present awareness of His sovereignty over our lives.

84. 52:30

    Sins against Him must be confessed, forgiveness requested, and restitution made. The 1st and best of our energy and strength must be dedicated to His service. Joyful Thanksgiving should be given regularly and sincerely, along with our desire expressed to share in true and lasting fellowship with God. All of this and more are bound up in the system of offerings that were prescribed by the Law.

85. 53:01

    In this way, the offerings were an essential part of Israel’s journey on the way of holiness. They were meant to develop a spirit that delights to do the will of God, to preach righteousness, to declare God’s faithfulness, salvation, loving kindness, and truth. And though believers today are no longer required to make the offerings that the law prescribed, the principles of that system are still very much in force. Paul describes the offering that God wants from believers today this way in Romans 12.

86. 53:32

    I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. The offering that God wants from you and me is a life lived willingly and joyfully in holiness. If we want to be members of the priesthood that will officiate over the offerings of the coming age, then we have to learn to offer our own lives in holiness today.

87. 54:04

    And contrary to what we might think, this isn’t accomplished in a few extraordinary acts of self denial or self sacrifice through which we somehow managed to sacrifice ourselves. It’s the accumulation of many simple, seemingly unremarkable acts of faithful obedience through which we cooperate with the work of transformation that God has begun in each one of us.

88. 54:34

    And if we focus on faithful obedience in the day-to-day experiences of life, then we can be sure that he which has begun a good work in US will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ, when that work will be completed once and for all. So as we bring this session to a close, it’s worth considering again the apostle and high priest of our profession, Christ Jesus, who is the greatest example of being well schooled in the will of God, teaching it faithfully without bias, and applying it in every aspect of his own life to distinguish holy from unholy and to make in himself a place for God to dwell. He willingly offered his life to God in complete obedience, and his pursuit of holiness has brought him to the right hand of God.

89. 55:25

    He is the first born among many brethren. That’s us by God’s grace, brothers and sisters and young people, which gives us assurance that if we are conformed to his image today, we can be led by grace through faith into everlasting life. And so we have good reason to live our lives today in act of cooperation with our Heavenly Father’s efforts to prepare us for membership in this holy priesthood shortly to be established by our Lord and the earth. So tomorrow we are going to look at this idea of two ways. We know, of course, that there is another way. There is the way of holiness, the way of life, but there is a way of death.

90. 56:10

    And we’re going to look at those two ways and the two masters that are associated with them. We’re going to spend a little time looking at the war in our members. We’re going to look at this concept of the world and, and try to come to A, to a more immediate sense or a sense of the immediate urgency that that this idea has for our lives.

91. 56:31

    It isn’t simply something that’s out there apart from us, but that the world has an embassy inside of every one of us. And then we’re going to look at a couple of tactics that God has provided to resist our nature and the world. And so with that, I will say thank you and I will turn things back over to brother Jason.