Grafted Priesthood
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'See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!' 1John 3:1a.
My heart resoundingly echoes the exclamation made by the Apostle John in the scripture above. Indeed, how amazing that WE should be called the offspring of the Sovereign Creator YHWH!
Even more astonishing is that as Gentiles (i.e. non-Jews), we should be chosen to be Priests and Ministers of YHWH!
The office of the Priesthood in ancient Israel was set apart for only one tribe and one family within that tribe. Among the children of the Patriarch Abraham, the descendants of Levi were to serve in the Temple/Tabernacle work; they were the Levites and Priests. Therefore, when the Lord God (YHWH) made blanket promises like those in Isaiah 61:6:
"And you will be called priests of the Lord,
you will be named ministers of our God.
You will feed on the wealth of nations,
and in their riches you will boast," to Israel (referred to as Zion in verse 3), the people knew exactly what that meant: they would all be given the privilege of direct access to hear and serve the Lord in the most intimate and holiest of places and positions. They would ALL have access to the Most Holy Place, the place of God's manifest presence!
Hence, when under the New Covenant, the Apostle Peter, a Jew, says,
"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light" (1 Peter 2:9), to us non-Jews and his fellow Jewish believers in Messiah Jesus, we have nothing more than a resounding Halleluyah, exclaimed from an awestruck and gratitude filled heart! If natural Jews shout praises as a result, we, as aliens and strangers to the covenant YHWH had with Israel, have all the more reason to praise Him.
You see, as the Apostle Paul explained in Romans 11:17, some of the natural branches of the Olive tree, i.e., the nation of Israel, were broken off to make room for the Nations outside the covenant, i.e., Gentiles. So now you gentile believers in the Jewish Messiah Jesus, "though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root." And not only do we now share in that nourishing life from YHWH, but we are also partakers in the exclusive office of the Priesthood through the Messiah Jesus!
YOU are a Priest. Our Priesthood, however, is even more glorious than that of the Levitical Priesthood because the Order of this Messianic Priesthood is not Temporal as Levi's was; this is eternal. Messiah Jesus is "one who has become a priest not on the basis of a regulation as to his ancestry but on the basis of the power of an indestructible life. For it is declared: “You are a priest forever,
in the order of Melchizedek.” Hebrews 7:16-17
Thoughts on scripture such as these are what make us invincible in the face of debilitating situations. Our access to intimacy with YHWH is unsurpassed by that experienced by the ancient Aaronic (Levitical) priesthood! How can we not rejoice despite the pain or even the shallow pleasures this temporal life on earth offers us? Joy is found in that intimate presence, as is peace. That is why the ancient King David says in Psalm 16:9-11,
"Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you let your faithful one see decay.
You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand."
Understanding shifts perception.
To the undiscerning, joy in the face of adversity is fake or 'toxic positivity'. But to the insightful, this is not a denial of adverse circumstances or the lack of desire for human pleasures, but rather a focus on the deeper truths of our relationship with the Messiah Jesus and the glorious entry into YHWH's promises he has purchased for us. This intimacy cannot be bought with money. This access is the bedrock of our joy and fulfilment. For this, we are grateful!
Indeed, what great love the Father has lavished on us that not only are we called the children of God, we are grafted into his Priesthood!
Praise the Lord God for His great love and mercy. halleluyah!
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