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“The Christian: A Priest At God’s Altar – Part 2”
The Christian: A Priest At God’s Altar – Part 2
Wade Webster
In the last installment of this study, we began considering the Christian as a priest. We noted three words in connection with being a priest - honor, holiness, and hopefulness. In this installment we are examining holiness.
Holiness
I suppose that no concept is as closely connected with being a priest as holiness. Obviously, when we think of priests in the Old Testament, the book of Leviticus comes to mind. Consider the holiness that it associated with this work: “They shall be holy to their God and not profane the name of their God, for they offer the offerings of the LORD made by fire, and the bread of their God; therefore they shall be holy…Therefore you shall consecrate him, for he offers the bread of your God. He shall be holy to you, for I the LORD, who sanctify you, am holy” (Lev. 21:6, 8). To prepare them for the holy work that God had for them to do, blood was shed for them and applied to them. We read, “You shall also take the other ram, and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands on the head of the ram. Then you shall kill the ram, and take some of its blood and put it on the tip of the right ear of Aaron and on the tip of the right ear of his sons, on the thumb of their right hand and on the big toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood all around on the altar. And you shall take some of the blood that is on the altar, and some of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron and on his garments, on his sons and on the garments of his sons with him; and he and his garments shall be hallowed, and his sons and his sons’ garments with him” (Exod. 29:19-21). The garments of the priests were to be kept spotless. A scene from the book of Zechariah pictures this for us. We read, “Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the Angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to oppose him. And the LORD said to Satan, “The LORD rebuke you, Satan! The LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?” Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and was standing before the Angel. Then He answered and spoke to those who stood before Him, saying, “Take away the filthy garments from him.” And to him He said, “See, I have removed your iniquity from you, and I will clothe you with rich robes.” And I said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head, and they put the clothes on him. And the Angel of the LORD stood by” (Zech. 3:1-5).
We see these same characteristics in New Testament priests (Christians). We read, “Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:13-16). Again, Peter wrote, “You also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (1 Pet. 2:5). Like Old Testament priests, New Testament priests are consecrated by blood. However, it is better blood than that of bulls and goats - the blood of Christ. We read, “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To the pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace be multiplied” (1 Pet. 1:1-2; cf. 1:18-19). Our garments also are to be unspotted by the world. James wrote, “Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble and to keep oneself unspotted from the world” (Jam. 1:27).
