Every believer is to be priest for God. This is, at the very least, a twofold proposition.
As you may recall from the Old Testament, the holy of holies was the place of the presence of God in the temple. It was separated by an extremely heavy curtain, or veil. The high priest only went into the presence of God one day per year, this being on the day of atonement. The veil was torn from top to bottom at the very moment of the death of Jesus Christ on the cross. His sacrificial death, having atoned for the sins of the world, meant we no longer needed a priest, or anyone else, to represent us, but rather we could enter directly into the presence of God through faith and prayer. Hebrews 7:22~27 talks about how we do not need a priest to intercede for us, because Jesus has become our eternal priest and paid the price once and for all:
22. By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament.
23. And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death:
24. But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood.
25. Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.
26. For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;
27. Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people's: for this he did once, when he offered up himself.
Furthermore, after Jesus' resurrection, he gave us what is called "The Great Commission". It is found in Matthew 28:18~20
18. And Jesus came and spake unto them saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
19. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
20. Teaching them to observe all thing whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
This second portion of priesthood is the where we tell others about Jesus Christ, about what he has done for us, and what he can do for others. This does not mean we do not need pastors. We have pastors for congregational leadership and guidance, but they are by no means to be the only people appointed to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Every believer had the right, privilege, and duty, to tell others about the good news of eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.
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3 comments:
Great post brother
If i could take the idea in a different direction...
Beyond preaching the gospel i also think a focus of this passage is the idea that we are our own priests. We are directly tied to God in intimate knowledge and relationship. To me this is the good news-more than just a get out of hell free card it is a living relationship with my creator.
Peter Rollins the theologian asks "can faith be real when it is motivated by wanting something" ie salvation from hell, needs met etc
He is posturing that real faith comes not from fear but from asking questions and seeking relationship. On the other hand we see examples in the bible where true faith was driven by need-look at the centurion. Jesus said that he hadn't seen such faith in all Israel-and it is seemingly driven by the need for healing. But maybe not-maybe if we look deeper the faith came to light by the need for healing but was already there.
Lots of good questions. Keep writing brother, it is making me think.
Exactly!! We don't need a priest because we are now our own priest. That was the focus of the first paragraph, but you summed it up much better than my drawn out explanation.
However, I neglected to point out the intimate relationship we can now have with God. The really is good news.
Proverbs 9:10 states "The fear of Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy (Holy One) is understanding"
Romans 10:17 states "So then, faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God".
I believe faith can come from fear. Fear drives us to question, and questions are answered though the Word of God. At least for me, that was the way it worked, and I suspect it was the same way for many others. I don't believe my faith is invalid because it began with fear. Rather, I think it began stronger due to that fear.
I agree
i guess i would doubt my faith if it ended with fear. If i was afraid-found God and stopped once i was safe then is my faith real?
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