The New Priests of God

BIG Idea: I want students to see that as Christians, that we are a group of individuals that are set apart for a special service, just like the priests of the OT, but yet so much more. We are to offer up our worship, our lives, and our service as a Sacrifice to God.

The New Priests of God

Priesthood before Christ

¨ At first every man was his own priest, and presented his own sacrifices before God (Noah, Abraham, Issac, Jacob, Job)

¨ The office of the priesthood was limited to the tribe of Levi, and to only one family of that tribe, the family of Aaron.

¨ The qualifications and disqualifications of priest:

§ HAVE VOLUNTEERS ACT OUT DISQUALIFICATIONS

§ Lev. 21:16–23- 16And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 17“Speak to Aaron, saying: ‘No man of your descendants in succeeding generations, who has any defect, may approach to offer the bread of his God. 18For any man who has a defect shall not approach:

1. a man blind or lame,

2. who has a marred face or

3. any limb too long,

4. a man who has a broken foot or broken hand,

5. 20or is a hunchback or a dwarf,

6. or a man who has a defect in his eye,

7. or eczema or scab,

8. or is a eunuch.

§ 21No man of the descendants of Aaron the priest, who has a defect, shall come near to offer the offerings made by fire to the Lord. He has a defect; he shall not come near to offer the bread of his God. 22He may eat the bread of his God, both the most holy and the holy; 23only he shall not go near the veil or approach the altar, because he has a defect, lest he profane My sanctuaries; for I the Lord sanctify them.’ ”

§ The role of priest in offering sacrifices:

1. Jewish men could not even enter into the first room of the temple, the holy place, for only the priests could go there. When offering sacrifices, they were allowed to approach the altar, and then only within the context of a complex series of rituals and while wearing specific vestments that symbolized their holiness. The blood of an animal was often sprinkled, and certain portions of meat were burnt, depending upon the type of sacrifice. Then into the inner room of the temple, the holy of holies, only the high priest could go, and he could only enter there once a year on the Day of Atonement.(Heb 9:1–7).

§ The role of priest in maintaining the Temple: 2 Chronicles 29:5,16 5and said to them: “Hear me, Levites! Now sanctify yourselves, sanctify the house of the Lord God of your fathers, and carry out the rubbish from the holy place.

§ 16Then the priests went into the inner part of the house of the Lord to cleanse it, and brought out all the debris that they found in the temple of the Lord to the court of the house of the Lord. And the Levites took it out and carried it to the Brook Kidron.

Priesthood after Christ
With the entrance of Jesus Christ on the earth and his death on the cross, things changed. No more was there a need for animal sacrifice for the sins of the people of Israel. In the OT priesthood, the priest would enter into the Holy of Holies to offer up sacrifices for the sins of the people because they were set apart, and purified for this service. Heb. 10:27 tells us that Jesus, our new High Priest “does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people’s, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself. 28For the law appoints as high priests men who have weakness, but the word of the oath, which came after the law, appoints the Son who has been perfected forever.”

Three roles of a priest

1. We have complete access to God

¨ the Latin word for priest is pontifex, which means bridge-builder; the priest is the man who builds a bridge for others to come to God; and the Christian has the duty and the privilege of bringing others to that Savior whom he himself has found and loves.

¨ Heb. 10:19Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, 21and having a High Priest over the house of God, 22let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

2. We bring people to God

Rom. 15:16- 16to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles with the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.

3. We offer spiritual sacrifices to God – 1 Peter 2:5

Instead of sacrifices of animals or offerings of the harvest, we as Christians offer up our lives as sacrifices to God. We offer up to God our bodies as a holy temple to God, we offer up our praise to Him, we offer up our good works that bring glory to his name, we offer up our resources by sharing those with others and giving back to God, and lastly we offer up our prayers to God.

For the next few weeks we will focus on these spiritual sacrifices that we offer up to God in our role as a holy priesthood. The priests were the ones set apart from the nation of Israel to communicate and serve God. They had the privilege of walking into the presence of our creator. Do you realize tonight, as a 9th -12th grade teenager, that we have that same privilege. 1. No longer do we have to take our sins to another human, which in turn takes them to God. He can go to God as our Father because Jesus has built the bridge between us and God.

2. No longer do we have to view God as distant and unattainable. We can know God as living and active in our lives, using us like the OT priests to do his work on earth- bringing people to Him.

3. No longer do we have to continually offer up sacrifices for the forgiveness of our sins. Jesus paid it all on the cross. Now we can go to God to seek forgiveness and have it immediately.

Christian- Did you know that you are set apart and given a special task in our world today. We are here to access our Father in Heaven, Bring people to Him, and offer our lives as a sacrifice to Him. Not everyone has that access. We do! Does that motivate you to serve God with all your energy and strength?

Sacrifice#1- Offer strength of body to God- Rom. 12:1-2

1 I beseech you therefore, brethren,

by the mercies of God,

that you present your bodies a living sacrifice,

holy,

acceptable to God,

which is your reasonable service.

2And do not be conformed to this world,

but be transformed

by the renewing of your mind,

that you may prove

what is that good and

acceptable and

perfect will of God.

I beseech you {Paul is urging the believers to listen to what will be said}therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God,(those mercies of God is what God has granted to the believer at salvation: Justification, Sanctification and Glorification) that you present (yield your physical body, body meaning complete man or entire body) your bodies a living sacrifice (not a slaughtered, useless animal but a living vessel given all to God, ready to be used), holy,(set apart) acceptable (to please well) to God, which is your reasonable service.(used in reference to acts of service that a priest would perform as his duty of being priest) 2And do not be conformed (compound word meaning to assume an outward appearance of something else that does not come from within the person’s heart) to this world (methods, systems, immoralities, thoughts and opinions of the evil that surrounds us) , but be transformed (means to change the outward appearance like Jesus did when he was transfigured on the mountain) by the renewing (compound word meaning new again)of your mind, that you may prove (test and approve based on results) what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

I urge you fellow Christians by the mercies of salvation like justification, sanctification and glorification from God, that you yield your entire physical person as a useful living sacrifice to God, as a vessel set apart, well pleasing and obedient to God, which is a role you play as a priest in worship to God. And do not assume the outward appearance of the methods, opinions, and immoralities of this evil environment around you, which is not a reflection of your inwardness, but change your outward appearance by making new again your mind, focused on God’s Word, for this will test and approve that God’s Word is real and God’s Will is true.

BIG IDEA: I want the students to see that as priests of God, we must offer up the best of our lives as a sacrifice to God.

Part A of our Sacrifice: We need to offer our entire lives up to God- that is our full allegiance, our time, our agendas and our dreams

Explain OT Sacrifice i. Abel’s acceptable sacrifice- heart given to God in faith

ii. Cain’s unacceptable sacrifice- heart not given to God

1. God wants our all given with the heart first

2. Heb. 11:4-By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks.

iii. A Jew would bring his offering of an animal to the priest, who would take it, slay it, and place it on the altar in behalf of the person who brought it.[1]

The body offered

i. Personal- We must offer up to God all our plans, hopes, and dreams as sacrifice to God. Putting our hands up in surrender and telling God that we give up, our plans will be his plans.

ii. Holy – Our bodies which are wicked and representative of our old sin nature, is the home of our inward Godly nature. Paul shares his struggles with his old nature of sin and his new nature of holiness in Romans 7:22-23, “For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.” Paul shares his struggle of good versus evil in his own mind but yet he is victorious through the discipline he has set. 1 Cor. 9:27 says “But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.” Even as Christians, our bodies are naturally evil, so we must offer them up to God and through his power, we can use them for his good service. So at salvation, we offer up our souls to God, as Christians we offer up our bodies to God, and at death, we will offer up our spirits to God. Our bodies are offered up and God uses them, which is pleasing in his sight.

Part B of our Sacrifice: We need to choose not to conform to the evil of this world and choose to be transformed

The world wants to conform us: We should not conform to those worldly things that contradict the word of God. #. We should be transformed by renewing our minds in the Word of God. The word for transformed pictures Jesus at the transfiguration where His divine nature shown through and his face and clothes turned white like the sun. So also as we study and obey the Word of God, the Holy Spirit and our divine nature transforms us on an outward level. Col. 3:16 says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”
Our transformed mind will produce a transformed will. We will focus on what God wants and instead of making our choices based on our needs, we will focus on “what does God want me to do?”

Sacrifice #2- #4

PSA1P

15 δι᾽ αὐτοῦ [οὖν] ἀναφέρωμεν θυσίαν αἰνέσεως διὰ παντὸς

Therefore by Him, we offer up sacrifice of praise all

PIA3S PAPMGP

τῷ θεῷ, τοῦτ᾽ ἔστιν καρπὸν χειλέων ὁμολογούντων τῷ

to God this is the fruit of lips, praising the

ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ. 16 τῆς δὲ εὐποιΐας καὶ κοινωνίας μὴ

name of Him But the doing good and fellowship, do not

PID2P PIP3S

ἐπιλανθάνεσθε· τοιαύταις γὰρ θυσίαις εὐαρεστεῖται ὁ θεός.

Neglect For such a sacrifice pleases God.

Word Study-

Ø αἰνέσεως: praise, to speak of the excellence of a person, object, or event—‘to praise

Ø παντὸς: all, every: God wants us to give him all our praise. Not some to others and some to Him, not some to ourselves and the rest to him, God wants all our praise

Ø χειλέων: lips- the point of no return for what we produce verbally, this word is also used for edge and shore. It all starts in the heart. If it makes it to the mouth, that is the environment of evil or good. But in the mouth is the tongue, which is the motor for evil but the lips are the gateway, the point of no return. What did your lips say today that God would consider a sacrifice of praise? What did you say today that God would reject as a sacrifice?

Psalm 107:21-22 (NIV) 21 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men. 22 Let them sacrifice thank offerings and tell of his works with songs of joy.

Isaiah 12:1-2 (NIV)1 In that day you will say: “I will praise you, O Lord. Although you were angry with me, your anger has turned away and you have comforted me. 2 Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord, is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation.”

What should be praise God for? Unfailing love! Amazing Grace!

Ø ὁμολογούντων: (continual action)confess in celebration. Same word that is used in Romans 10:9-10 “if you confess with your mouth” acknowledge honor to God and express allegiance to Him.

Ø εὐποιΐας- to do that which is good and beneficial to someone—‘to do good, good deed.

Ø Κοινωνίας- unselfish regard for or devotion to the welfare of others

Ø εὐαρεστεῖται- well pleasing

Sacrifice of Praise: Heb. 13:15-16

Orel Herschiser pitched an unbelievable 1988 season for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Following a complete game shutout in August, he pitched multiple shutout innings and hurled five more complete games through the end of the regular season. He did not allow his opponents to score an earned run in 59 consecutive innings.

When the Dodgers faced the New York Mets in the National League playoffs, Orel continued to dominate hitters, leading the Dodgers to victory by pitching more than 24 innings, crowned by a complete game shutout in the final game! In the World Series his complete game victory over the Oakland A’s in game five clinched the series for the Dodgers. No wonder Orel was awarded the Cy Young award and two MVP awards, one for the National League playoffs and the other for the World Series.

During the playoffs the TV cameras zoomed in on this legend in the making. They caught Orel in the dugout between innings singing softly to himself. Unable to make out the tune, the announcers merely commented that Orel’s record certainly gave him something to sing about.

Johnny Carson replayed that tape on the Tonight Show a few days later when Orel appeared. Johnny asked him what song he had been singing during the game and if Orel would sing it again right then and there. The audience roared its approval over Orel’s embarrassed reluctance.

So on national TV, Orel softly sang the tune TV crews had barely caught on tape:

“Praise God from whom all blessings flow.

Praise Him all creatures here below;

Praise Him above ye heavenly host,

Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen.”

Three ways that our sacrifices can please God:

1. Praise him with all our words

§ αἰνέσεως: praise, to speak of the excellence of a person, object, or event—‘to praise

§ παντὸς: all, every: God wants us to give him all our praise. Not some to others and some to Him, not some to ourselves and the rest to him, God wants all our praise

§ χειλέων: lips- the point of no return for what we produce verbally, this word is also used for edge and shore. It all starts in the heart. If it makes it to the mouth, that is the environment of evil or good. But in the mouth is the tongue, which is the motor for evil but the lips are the gateway, the point of no return. What did your lips say today that God would consider a sacrifice of praise? What did you say today that God would reject as a sacrifice?

· Psalm 107:21-22 (NIV) 21 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men. 22 Let them sacrifice thank offerings and tell of his works with songs of joy.

· Isaiah 12:1-2 (NIV)1 In that day you will say: “I will praise you, O Lord. Although you were angry with me, your anger has turned away and you have comforted me. 2 Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord, is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation.”

§ What should be praise God for? Unfailing love! Amazing Grace!

Ø ὁμολογούντων: (continual action)confess in celebration. Same word that is used in Romans 10:9-10 “if you confess with your mouth” which means to acknowledge honor to God and express allegiance to Him.

1. sacrifice by doing good deeds- physical action

§ εὐποιΐας- to do that which is good and beneficial to someone

§ Matt. 25:31-40- God commands us to love those of the King like we would love the King himself.

§ James 1:27 (NIV)27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

A sick man went to the doctor’s office with his wife. The doctor examined the man and ran some tests while his wife waited in the reception area. When the doctor emerged with a concerned look on his face, the wife became anxious.

“Doctor, will my husband be okay?” she inquired.

“I’m afraid your husband is very ill,” the doctor replied. “He has a rare form of anemia, and if it is left untreated, he will most certainly die from it. However, there is a cure.”

“A cure?”

“Yes. With rest and proper nutrition, the disease will go into remission and your husband should live for many more years. Here’s what I want you to do: Take your husband home and treat him like a king. Fix him three home-cooked meals a day, and wait on him hand and foot. Bring him breakfast in bed. Don’t let him do anything that you can do for him. If he needs something, you take care of it. Give him a back rub in the morning and full-body massage every evening. Oh, and one more thing. Because his immune system is weak, you’ll need to keep your home spotless at all times. Do you have any questions?”

The wife had none.

“Do you want to break the news to your husband, or shall I?” asked the doctor.

“I will,” the wife replied.

She walked into the examination room. The husband, sensing that something was wrong, said, “It’s bad, isn’t it? What have I got?”

His wife answered with a tear in her eye, “The doctor said you’re gonna die.”

2. sacrifice by caring for the needs of others- emotional intent

§ Κοινωνίας- unselfish regard for or devotion to the welfare of others

§ 1 John 4:20 (NIV) 20 If anyone says, “I love God,” yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.

Ø In conclusion, Colossians 3:17 (NIV)17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

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[1]John MacArthur, Romans (Chicago: Moody Press, 1996, c1991, c1994), 146.