On Being a Keeper of the Oil

1 Chronicles 27:25–34 (ESV)

25 Over the king’s treasuries was Azmaveth the son of Adiel; and over the treasuries in the country, in the cities, in the villages, and in the towers, was Jonathan the son of Uzziah; 26 and over those who did the work of the field for tilling the soil was Ezri the son of Chelub; 27 and over the vineyards was Shimei the Ramathite; and over the produce of the vineyards for the wine cellars was Zabdi the Shiphmite. 28 Over the olive and sycamore trees in the Shephelah was Baal-hanan the Gederite; and over the stores of oil was Joash. 29 Over the herds that pastured in Sharon was Shitrai the Sharonite; over the herds in the valleys was Shaphat the son of Adlai. 30 Over the camels was Obil the Ishmaelite; and over the donkeys was Jehdeiah the Meronothite. Over the flocks was Jaziz the Hagrite. 31 All these were stewards of King David’s property.

32 Jonathan, David’s uncle, was a counselor, being a man of understanding and a scribe. He and Jehiel the son of Hachmoni attended the king’s sons. 33 Ahithophel was the king’s counselor, and Hushai the Archite was the king’s friend. 34 Ahithophel was succeeded by Jehoiada the son of Benaiah, and Abiathar. Joab was commander of the king’s army.

Introduction

These verses detail a list of officers who served in David's court. It is a list of the duties each one carried out. I would image it was a great honor to be chosen by the king for a place of service.

When I was in the sixth grade at Irving Elementary School, I was chosen to be a part of the Junior Police. We were responsible for acting as crossing guards at the intersections before and after school, we raised the flag each morning and brought it down each evening. We patrolled the playground during recess to be sure everyone was getting along.

It was my first job in law enforcement. I couldn’t have been more honored if the president himself had made that appointment. Imagine how it must have felt to have the king appoint you to some special task in his administration.

Have you ever considered that the Lord Himself appoints men and women to serve Him? As a matter of fact He does. God given every believer a place of service in the body of Christ.

Eph. 2:10

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

The verse says we are created to do good works, we have been prepared, custom built, to attend to what the Lord has for us.

1 Corinthians 12:4–7

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.

What a blessing it is to be used of the Lord! It is a blessing beyond compare to be chosen, gifted and used by the Lord.

This list of officials from David’s kingdom can teach us some lessons about serving the Lord. First off:

1. Each Person Had a Place of Special Service

In this list in 1st Chronicles we see a sizable number of jobs the king had appointed his chosen to do. In the same regard, if you are in the Lord’s will, The Lord chooses what we do, where we do it, and to what extent it is done. No one else can do the job you have been specially designed to do.

Secondly:

2.Each Person was Called by Name

God knows each of you by name, He cares for, and keeps up with, His Own.

Isaiah 43:1

1 But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.

The list shows us that:

3. Each Person Served in Different Capacities

God puts us where we are. God knows there are many roles to fill, and each of us have different abilities.

Let me use the example of a bicycle race team. Now, if you are not familiar with bike racing, you would think that each person’s job would be to go as fast as you kind and will the race.

That’s not how it works at all. Some cyclists excel at going fast up the steep mountains, yet another rider excels at descending down the other side of the mountain. Some riders specialize in being able to win a sprint against a large number of riders at the very end of the race. The specialty of some riders is to be a team helper. They lag behind the rest of the racers to meet the team car to pick up water bottles and then quickly catch the main body of riders so they can distribute the water bottles to their teammates.

Each has a very specialized job to do, and each of us has a very specialized job to do as well. You may be saying “well God has not put me in a position where I can do a whole lot for Him.” Let me tell you, like a flower in a field, God expects you to grow wherever you are planted.

Which brings us to our next point:

4. Each Person was Placed Where They were by the King

Anywhere the Lord places you is a special place of service. He knows where He can best us your gifts for His glory and for the edification of the whole church.

1 Corinthians 12:7 (ESV)

To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.

Ephesians 4:15–16 (ESV)

Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, (16) from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

We could spend time talking about each of these duties assigned in these verses, but I want to concentrate on verse 28.

I want to look at the man named Joash, who was the keeper of the cellars of oil. Here is a man who was in a place of special service to the king.

There are eight men named Joash in the Old Testament. He was not Joash, 8th Kind of Judah, he was not Joash 13th king of Israel, he was just a man with a job that he did to serve his king.

Now, his job was not flashy. It was not a job that would attract a lot of attention or be admired by a great number of people. But he served his king. He performed his job in a dark, damp, and deserted cellar. Let's look in on Joash and the job he was called upon to fulfill. I want to consider this man and I want to look at the cellar as a place of service.

You might wonder what you and I can learn from a passage such as this. Well, we can learn a lot about faithfulness to the Lord in our service. You see, Joash represents much of the church this morning.

Like Joash, many Christians serve the Lord in obscurity. Yet, the service they provide is absolutely essential in the life of the church. This morning, let’s look in on the life of this man named Joash who was The Keeper of the Oil.

Oil was very important in Biblical times. It was used in a religious context:

Leviticus 2:1 ESV

1 “When anyone brings a grain offering as an offering to the Lord, his offering shall be of fine flour. He shall pour oil on it and put frankincense on it

It was used as lamp fuel:

Exodus 27:20 ESV

20 “You shall command the people of Israel that they bring to you pure beaten olive oil for the light, that a lamp may regularly be set up to burn.

It was used as an item of commerce:

1 Kings 5:11 ESV

11 while Solomon gave Hiram 20,000 cors of wheat as food for his household, and 20,000 cors of beaten oil. Solomon gave this to Hiram year by year.

It was used as medicine:

Luke 10:34 ESV

34 He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him.

Oil was used in cooking and cosmetics and the list goes on and on.

Oil is also a symbol. It represents the Holy Spirit. We need saints of God who will be keepers of the oil in our day. We need saints who will keep old-fashioned preaching, praying, praising the Lord and personal holiness alive in our day.

In that day, the keeper of the oil literally kept the lights on in Israel. The keepers of the oil in the church today literally keep the lights on at the house of God.

Ephesians 5:18 (ESV)

18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,

Galatians 5:22–25 (ESV)

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.

Not only do we need Keepers of the Oil, we need them to:

Stay in Place

It must have been difficult to spend all your time in that cellar. When I was a child, my grandfather had a fear of storms. Anytime a black cloud came up we would be heading to the cellar. That was before 24 hour weather coverage and online radar. I spent many a night in that old earthen cellar wondering what all manner of critters might be down there with me. It was not easy for me to stay in place.

If the Lord has placed you in a position in the cellar and you want to live a life that is pleasing to the Lord then you must be faithful to serve Him where He has placed you.

1 Corinthians 4:2 ESV

2 Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful.

If you want to always be in the will of the Lord, then keep on doing the last thing the Lord told you to do until He tells you to do something else.

Let’s talk a little bit about:

The Disadvantages

a. It was unnoticed.

It was a thankless job. It was not a glamorous position. But it was an important job, just as all jobs appointed to us by the Lord are important jobs. You may not feel that your efforts are appreciated, but the Lord sees it all, He knows you are being faithful to the task He has appointed to you.

Proverbs 15:3 (ESV)

3 The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.

b. It Was Uncomfortable

The cellar was dark, damp, and deserted. All of God's assignments are not pleasant, but God’s call to a task says that He has faith in you. Your obedience, even in a difficult place shows you have faith in Him.

c. It Was Lonely

Sometimes the Lord's work is lonely work. It can seem even more lonely on those occasions were you are misunderstood or misrepresented.

What are some of the demands of the Keeper of the Oil?

The Demands

a. Stay Until the King Calls

Be faithful until He calls you home, or until He changes your assignment. Just keep doing what your doing. Your job is be faithful.

b. Don’t quit for any Reason

If you are serving the Lord, you are doing the most important work in the world. You recall the story about Nehemiah building the wall:

Neh. 6:1-4 “1 Now when Sanballat and Tobiah and Geshem the Arab and the rest of our enemies heard that I had built the wall and that there was no breach left in it (although up to that time I had not set up the doors in the gates), 2 Sanballat and Geshem sent to me, saying, “Come and let us meet together at Hakkephirim in the plain of Ono.” But they intended to do me harm. 3 And I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?” 4 And they sent to me four times in this way, and I answered them in the same manner.”

It is a special person who will just stay put and serve the Lord, even at times when there is difficulty, fatigue, and a lack of acknowledgment. It takes a person who cares more about the Lord than about self. It takes a person who is Spirit-filled and Spirit led. A person who is energized by God will joyfully do the job of keeping the oil.

c. Obey the King

He is the only one you need to try and please! Just keep the oil and all will be well.

God wants your obedience.

1 Samuel 15:22 (ESV)

22 And Samuel said, “Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams.

Conclusion

Are you a keeper of the Oil?

Are you faithfully fulfilling your duties before the Lord?

There are a couple of characteristics of this type of servant.

a. They are Humble

They are willing to do any job for the Lord regardless of how insignificant it may appear to the world:

Psalm 84:10 (ESV)

10 For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.

b. They are Helpful

Looking out for the good of all.

Galatians 6:2 ESV

2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

c. They are Hopeful

They know they will be rewarded for faithfulness to their King. It doesn’t matter to them if others see or notice what they do. They know they are where the king has placed them and they just keep the oil, knowing their king sees and takes notice of their service! They do it all out of love for their king.

Let us just keep the oil and God will bless!