Post by mommadee48 on Jul 9, 2021 12:19:01 GMT -5
101 IMPORTANT WORDS of the BIBLE; by Len Wood
"TODAY'S WORD"; PRIEST
A spiritual leader who stands in the gap between a holy GOD and sinful people.
The priests are to perform my service in such a way that they do not become guilty and die for treating it with contempt. I am the LORD, who makes them holy. READ: (Leviticus CH.22:9).
In 2018, the Gallup organization researched the most and least trusted professions. "Clergy" received high marks from just 37 percent of those polled. (In 1985, this figure was 67 percent!) The silver lining-if there is one- is that religious professionals are still trusted more than car salespeople and members of Congress.
Sadly, even though many priests and ministers are good-hearted, we will always have a few bad apples. And even the really good priests and clergy members have off-days. " ALL EXCEPT for ONE".
When God established Israel's religious system, He assigned one of its twelve tribes- the Levites- the 24-7 task of taking care of the tabernacle (numbers 1:47-54). From the same tribe, He called Aaron-the brother of Moses-and his family to serve as priests.* This was hugely important role.
In ancient Israel, priests were the ones who represented God to the people. Their job description included blessing the people (Numbers 6:22-27), teaching the law of God (2 Chronicles 17:7-9), and sometimes acting as judges in legal matters (2 Chronicles 19:8-10).
Priests also represented people before God. They offered sacrifices on their behalf. Once a year' Israel's high priest would go trembling into the innermost part of the tabernacle, by himself, to sprinkle the blood of a "national" sacrifice onto the "mercy seat"-the lid of the holy, gold-covered box known as the ark of the covenant. The high priest did this to atone for the sins of all God's people, including his own.
In the first century, the Jewish followers of Jesus made a remarkable claim, They preached that by freely offering His life on the cross, Christ made a once-and-for-all atoning sacrifice for the sins of the whole world(Romans 3:25; 1Corinthians 5:7). As such, they insisted, He was the ultimate high priest making the ultimate sacrifice. By this act He secured eternal forgiveness for all who would put their faith in Him.
One of Christ's followers-the apostle Paul-insisted that as a result of Jesus's sacrifice, ALL believers can now approach God directly (Ephesians 2:18). Almost as staggering is the apostle Peter's claim that "we' ARE ALL NOW PRIESTS (1 Peter 2:5), intermediaries between a God who loves the world and a world that desperately needs to be reconciled to God Jehovah.
Let's be who the Bible says we are. Let's be priests today, approaching God without fear (Hebrew 4:16), bringing the spiritual needs of others to Him, and telling others of His love.
And where we fail in our role as priests, let's seek forgiveness from those we wrong and trust more deeply in Jesus, our great high priest, who never failed and never will!
"TODAY'S WORD"; PRIEST
A spiritual leader who stands in the gap between a holy GOD and sinful people.
The priests are to perform my service in such a way that they do not become guilty and die for treating it with contempt. I am the LORD, who makes them holy. READ: (Leviticus CH.22:9).
In 2018, the Gallup organization researched the most and least trusted professions. "Clergy" received high marks from just 37 percent of those polled. (In 1985, this figure was 67 percent!) The silver lining-if there is one- is that religious professionals are still trusted more than car salespeople and members of Congress.
Sadly, even though many priests and ministers are good-hearted, we will always have a few bad apples. And even the really good priests and clergy members have off-days. " ALL EXCEPT for ONE".
When God established Israel's religious system, He assigned one of its twelve tribes- the Levites- the 24-7 task of taking care of the tabernacle (numbers 1:47-54). From the same tribe, He called Aaron-the brother of Moses-and his family to serve as priests.* This was hugely important role.
In ancient Israel, priests were the ones who represented God to the people. Their job description included blessing the people (Numbers 6:22-27), teaching the law of God (2 Chronicles 17:7-9), and sometimes acting as judges in legal matters (2 Chronicles 19:8-10).
Priests also represented people before God. They offered sacrifices on their behalf. Once a year' Israel's high priest would go trembling into the innermost part of the tabernacle, by himself, to sprinkle the blood of a "national" sacrifice onto the "mercy seat"-the lid of the holy, gold-covered box known as the ark of the covenant. The high priest did this to atone for the sins of all God's people, including his own.
In the first century, the Jewish followers of Jesus made a remarkable claim, They preached that by freely offering His life on the cross, Christ made a once-and-for-all atoning sacrifice for the sins of the whole world(Romans 3:25; 1Corinthians 5:7). As such, they insisted, He was the ultimate high priest making the ultimate sacrifice. By this act He secured eternal forgiveness for all who would put their faith in Him.
One of Christ's followers-the apostle Paul-insisted that as a result of Jesus's sacrifice, ALL believers can now approach God directly (Ephesians 2:18). Almost as staggering is the apostle Peter's claim that "we' ARE ALL NOW PRIESTS (1 Peter 2:5), intermediaries between a God who loves the world and a world that desperately needs to be reconciled to God Jehovah.
Let's be who the Bible says we are. Let's be priests today, approaching God without fear (Hebrew 4:16), bringing the spiritual needs of others to Him, and telling others of His love.
And where we fail in our role as priests, let's seek forgiveness from those we wrong and trust more deeply in Jesus, our great high priest, who never failed and never will!