Called by God to serve as priests.

I bless you in the name of Jesus. Today, meditating on the Scriptures about the call of the priesthood in both the Old and New Testaments, I stop to reflect on the need to internalize the responsibility we have before God to minister in sacred matters.

Today our call as a priesthood before God is more delicate than the call that specific men had in the Old Testament.

In the Old Testament, priests were chosen by the Lord (Exodus 28: 1)
God tells Moses to take Aaron and his children because they would be their priests to minister in sacred matters. So we can ask ourselves, in this present time, is the priesthood of all believers biblical?

To answer this question, we would have to review a very important passage that deals with the priesthood of all believers. That says: "But you are the chosen lineage, the royal priesthood, the holy nation, the people acquired by God, so that you can announce the virtues of the One who called you from darkness into His admirable light" (1 Peter 2: 5 -9).

Old Testament priests were chosen by God, not by choice; and they were chosen for one purpose: to serve God with their lives through the sacrificial offering. The priesthood served as an illustration or "type" of the future ministry of Jesus Christ ... an illustration that was no longer necessary, once His sacrifice on the cross was consummated. When the thick veil of the temple that covered the entrance to the Most Holy Place was divided in two by God, at the time of Christ's death (Matthew 27:51), God was indicating that the Old Testament priesthood was no longer necessary. Now believers could come directly to God through the great High Priest, Jesus Christ (Hebrews 4: 14-16). Now there are no more earthly mediators between God and man, as they existed in the Old Testament priesthood (1 Timothy 2: 5)

Christ, our High Priest offered a single sacrifice for the sin of all time (Hebrews 10:12), and there are no more sacrifices for sins that can be made (Hebrews 10:26). But just as the priests offered other kinds of sacrifices in the temple, it is clear in 1 Peter 2: 5,9, that God has chosen Christians "... to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." 1 Peter 2: 5-9 speaks of two aspects of the priesthood of the believer. The first is that believers are privileged. Being chosen by God to be a priest was a privilege. All believers have been chosen by God: a "chosen lineage ... people acquired by God" (verse 9). In the tabernacle and the Old Testament temple, there were places where only priests could go. Behind the thick veil, in the Most Holy Place, only the High Priest could enter, and only once a year on the Day of Atonement, when he made an offering for sin in favor of all people. But as we mentioned earlier, by the death of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary, now all believers have direct access to the throne of God through Jesus Christ, our High Priest (Hebrews 4: 14-16). What a privilege to be able to enter directly to the same throne of God, not through some earthly priest. When Christ returns and the New Jerusalem comes down to earth (Revelation 21), believers will see God face to face and serve Him there (Revelation 22: 3-4). Again, what a special privilege for us was that we weren't before. "His people" ... "without hope" ... destined to destruction for our sin.

The second aspect of the priesthood of believers is that we are chosen for one purpose: to offer spiritual sacrifices (see Hebrews 13: 15-16 for example) and to announce the virtues of the One who called us from darkness into His admirable light. . Therefore, both for life (1 Peter 2: 5; Titus 2: 11-14; Ephesians 2:10) and for the word (1 Peter 2: 9; 3:15), our purpose is to serve God. Just as the body of believers is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6: 19-20), God has called us to serve him wholeheartedly, through the offering of our lives as living sacrifices (Romans 12: 1- two ). One day we will be serving God in eternity (Revelation 22: 3-4), but not in any temple, "... because the Lord God Almighty is his temple ..." (Revelation 21:22). Just as the Old Testament priesthood must be free from contamination, as symbolized by a ceremonial cleansing, so Christ has made us positionally holy before the Father. He calls us to live holy lives so that we can also be a "holy priesthood" (1 Peter 2: 5).

In short, believers are called "kings and priests" and a "royal priesthood" as a reflection of their privileged position as heirs of the kingdom of God Almighty and the Lamb. For this privilege of closeness to God, no other earthly mediator is necessary. Secondly, believers are called priests, because salvation is not just a "fire insurance" to escape from hell. Rather, believers are called by God to serve him through the offering of spiritual sacrifices, being jealous people of good works. As priests of the living God, we should all praise the One who has given us the great gift of sacrificing His Son for us and, in response, sharing this wonderful grace with others.