So he may serve Me
“Then dress Aaron in the sacred garments, anoint him and consecrate him so he may serve me as priest.” (Exodus 40:13)
God created all things in the universe, and He made everything keep in order. Thus, the mission of all creatures is to do the own parts in order. As in philosophy, church is a miniature world of the world, as we call man the small universe - micro cosmos. If people work in the right place along the heavenly talent, a peaceful life will come true of one’s own accord. The church can maintain order by performing her functions according to God’s command. The priest of the Old Testament presided over the sacrifice to God. The pastor in these days of New Testament is responsible for overseeing the church service as well as guiding the worship service.
Among the twelve tribes of Israel, the Levite undertook the work of God’s temple and of sacrifice. Of the Levite, the descendants of Aaron were distinguished to serve as priests. Aaron was Moses’ elder brother, the leader of the Exodus with Moses, and he took the role of the mouth for Moses and delivered Moses’ words to Pharaoh, the king of Egypt at that time. He was a man of such a big job, but he had once made a great mistake in making a golden calf for worship with his people in the wilderness, when Moses went up to the mountain to receive the commandments of God. Even if the public of Israelite weren’t sensible like that, it is a pity that the leader who had spoken with Moses was involved in such a foolish thing. Nevertheless, God accepted Aaron and made him become the priest later.
Aaron and his sons were taken to the door of the Tabernacle, and washed by water. And they were consecrated to do holy work as priests according to God’s command, by being weared holy garments of ordination. People usually think they were given a position because they were well qualified to take the parts. However, it is not true. Of course, people can have different levels of ability, and some of them would have excellent qualifications. Even so, no one will be fully qualified for an absolute standard. God’s criterion is a complete and absolute level of height. Therefore, when it comes to qualifications related to the position of God’s church, no one will be able to pass it. Keep that in mind and only do your duty humbly.
To serve the gospel of Christ, you must first be called by God and washed with the water of the Spirit. only the reborn by water and the Holy Spirit, that is, only the saved wholly in spirit and body, can do the work of God. In modern times, sometimes bad things happen, that the unsaved in spirit want to have a pastoral position. Among them, some people want to earn money, some honor, or to use the position in order to gain social status like a member of the National Assembly and a minister of the Government. And some become church pastors with the intention of spending his later years in high esteem after retirement. They have no choice but to end up doing evil that stinks in church and society.
It was Aaron who hadn’t been holy, but by God’s command he was dressed in holy clothes. And the anointment was done for him to be the holy priest. The white garment, which symbolize the blood of Christ, is a sign that purifies the sinner. Sadly, the human soul is in a state of blackness inside. If anyone thinks otherwise, he is a spiritually ignorant person. So the blood of Christ is absolutely necessary for the salvation of life. And the saved life in Jesus is once get complete, but the sanctification will be done gradually. The Holy Spirit’s anointment must be sustained for the saved to be sanctified. It’s a big mistake if you think it’s completed, on the basis that God has distinguished you to do the work of God. Take note of the life of Moses, David, Solomon, Paul and other people in the Scriptures. They had to improve their lives by constantly agonizing and repenting.
God consecrated Aaron and his sons to perform their duties as priests in the holy temple. People’s innate gifts and talents are meant to do their duties for God. It is the church that concentrates on the duties God has given us. The worship service is a spiritual rite, and the sacrificial service is carried out by the association of officials. Let us offer holy worship with officials of pure faith.
(Written by Koonoh, Pastor of JDO Presbyterian Church in Korea, on Jan 26th 2020)