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The Daily Word of Righteousness
The Ark of His Covenant, continued
For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. (Romans 12:3)
Then the Lord gave the people of Israel a plan whereby they could determine who was chosen to lead them, on whom the Divine election rested. Moses was to take a rod from the leader of each of the tribes. Aaron's name was written on the rod representing the tribe of Levi. The rods were to be placed in the Most Holy Place in front of the Ark of the Covenant. The owner of the rod that sprouted would thus be shown to be the High Priest of Israel.
And it shall come to pass, that the man's rod, whom I shall choose, shall blossom: and I will make to cease from me the murmurings of the children of Israel, whereby they murmur against you. (Numbers 17:5)
Those who participate in the first resurrection are the blessed and holy priesthood of God. God's true priesthood is as a dead rod except when resurrection life is present. Each member of the Body of Christ must be crucified with Christ and living by Christ. Each member of the Body must come to know the power of Christ's resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings.
That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; (Philippians 3:10)
There are two errors that can be made that will cause us to fail as one of God's ruling priests. The first error is that of neglect. The second error is that of ambition. Both errors will result in our not being prepared when the Lord returns, and both carry heavy penalties.
Erring on the side of neglect.
How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; (Hebrews 2:3)
The concept of the clergy and laity, that some members of the Body of Christ serve in a priestly role over other members who are the "laity," is at the root of much of the spiritual immaturity that we see today. If a believer views himself as a member of the "laity" he may then choose to occupy himself with some worldly pursuit or vocation and leave the "ministry" to those who are "ministers."
The truth is, the Holy Spirit has given a ministry to every member of the Body of the Christ.
But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will. For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ [the Christ]. (I Corinthians 12:11,12)
There is no Christian who is a priest over other Christians. Every Christian is called to be a priest of God, not over other Christians but over the saved nations of the world. The very concept of Israel is that of a people who have been called out from among the rest of mankind to serve God as a royal priesthood on behalf of the people of the other nations.
To be continued.