A History Of Priesthood

A HISTORY OF PRIESTHOOD

Who was the first priest?  Ew, tough question!  Job 1:5 suggests Job was the family priest, and since it is considered written prior to 1500 B.C., it is also considered preMosaic, but Melchizedek is the first person associated with the word "priest" in the Old Testament; "And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God." (Gen. 14:18)  "And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all: for Job said, 'It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts.'  Thus did Job continually." (Job 1:5)  If one considers making offerings to God a symbol of priesthood, since it is recognized as one of the first duties of the earliest priests, then perhaps Cain and Abel could also be considered the first priests, although Cain would also have to be considered the first BAD priest, too!  "And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.  And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof.  And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering He had not respect.  And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell." (Gen. 4:3 - 5)  So for the sake of the first use of the word, we might consider Melchizedek the first officially named priest, while you might consider the other three informal priests, or perhaps "protopriests".

I would say that Melchizedek is recognized biblically as the first priest, because his name shows up once in Genesis, and the next time it appears is in Psalms; "The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek." (Psa. 110:4)  This psalm has the significance of asserting that Christ combines the offices of priest and king, just as Melchizedek, the first official priest did.

This first priest shows up again in the New Testament, with the spelling of his name slightly altered, and although Aaron serves as the model priest, this Scripture also glorifies Christ as the superior priest.  "For every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins: Who can have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way; for that he himself also is compassed with infirmity.  And by reason hereof he ought, as for the people, so also for himself, to offer for sins.  And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.  So also Christ glorified not Himself to be made an high priest; but He that said unto Him, 'Thou art My Son, to day have I begotten Thee.'  As He saith also in another place, 'Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.  Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto Him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared; Though He were a Son, yet learned He obedience by the things which He suffered; And being made perfect, He became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey Him; called of God an high priest after the order of Melchisedec." (Heb. 5:1 - 10)  Notice also that because Aaron is the model priest, and no women are ever priests throughout Scripture, this passage in Hebrews sets godly precept that women are excluded from being priests or pastors.  Christ is the head of man, man is the head of woman, woman is the head of children.  Adam was not deceived, but Eve.

Now this passage of Scripture calls for deeper investigation of a connection of Christ to Melchizedek.  You see, this passage means that Christ could never have been of the Levitical priests, because He was born of the tribe of Judah.  "For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Juda; of which tribe Moses spake nothing concerning priesthood.  And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another Priest, who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life.  For He testifieth, 'Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.'" (Heb. 7:14 - 17)

Both Christ and Melchizedek were not Levites, but they also have other similarities.

1. Both were men - "Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils." (Heb. 7:4)  "For there is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;" (1 Tim. 2:5)

2. Both were king-priests - "And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God." (Gen. 14:18)  "And speak unto him, saying, 'Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and He shall grow up out of His place, and He shall build the temple of the LORD: Even He shall build the temple of the LORD; and He shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon His throne; and He shall be a priest upon His throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both." (Zech. 6:12 - 13)

3. They were both appointed directly by God. - "(For those priests were made without an oath; but this with an oath by him that said unto him, The Lord sware and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec:)" (Heb. 7:21)

4. Lastly, both were called "King of righteousness" and "King of peace".  "To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace;" (Heb. 7:2)  "And righteousness shall be the girdle of His loins, and faithfulness the girdle of His reins.  The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.  And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.  And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice' den.  They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea." (Isa. 11:5 - 9)

So here we have a history of priesthood, but probably not what you expected; this is of the Judaic branch; now, shall we cover the Levitical branch?

Levi, the ancestor of the Aaronic priests, was born the third son of Jacob and Leah, and Leah named him Levi, which means "attachment".  She felt the hate for her out of the deception done to Jacob by her father, and so with this third son of her fertility, she named him Levi, assuming so many sons would make Jacob attached to her.  "And she conceived again, and bare a son; and said, 'Now this time will my husband be joined unto me, because I have born him three sons: therefore was his name called Levi.'" (Gen. 29:34)

While Levi may have been the grandfather of the priesthood, he was not known for being a good man.  Consider his father's blessing; "Simeon and Levi are brethren; instruments of cruelty are in their habitations.  O my soul, come not thou into their secret; unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou united: for in their anger they slew a man, and in their selfwill they digged down a wall.  Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel." (Gen. 49:5 - 7)

"And the sons of Merari; Mahali and Mushi: these are the families of Levi according to their generations.  And Amram took him Jochebed his father's sister to wife; and she bare him Aaron and Moses: and the years of the life of Amram were an hundred and thirty and seven years." (Exod. 6:19 - 20)  So it is in this Scripture we find that Aaron and Moses are the grandchildren of Levi, and as Exodus is laid out, we know Aaron becomes the first Levite priest, closest to God only after Moses.

Think not that there were only two branches of priests, because before Aaron officially became a priest, the sons of Abraham by Keturah also had priests in the land of Midian were they dwelled.  "Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters: and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father's flock." (Exod. 2:16)  Moses' father-in-law was a Midian priest!  "Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb." (Exod. 3:1)  There were other priests around, but they were not priests called by God.  The sons of Keturah were not approved by God.

Aaron at first is not referred to as a priest, but rather a prophet, and God Himself is He who called him thus; "And the LORD said unto Moses, 'See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet.  Thou shalt speak all that I command thee: and Aaron thy brother shall speak unto Pharaoh, that he send the children of Israel out of his land." (Exod. 7:1 - 2)  It was not God's will that only Aaron and his sons be priests, but rather ALL of Israel be priests!  "And ye shall be unto Me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation.  These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel." (Exod. 19:6)  "And the LORD said unto Moses, 'Go down, charge the people, lest they break through unto the LORD to gaze, and many of them perish.  And let the priests also, which come near to the LORD, sanctify themselves, lest the LORD break forth upon them.'" (Exod. 19:21 - 22)  The priests mentioned here may have been elders of the tribes, but not officially designated in the manner to be instituted later.

After setting up the definition of the tabernacle of the congregation, we find God giving Moses instructions on the making of garments for Aaron and his sons to define them as the first Jewish high priests.  "And take thou unto thee Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him, from among the children of Israel, that he may minister unto Me in the priest's office, even Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron's sons.  And thou shalt make holy garments for Aaron thy brother for glory and for beauty.  And thou shalt speak unto all that are wise hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron's garments to consecrate him, that he may minister unto Me in the priest's office." (Exod. 28:1 - 3)  I only used these 3 verses for brevity, because in actuality, the entire 28th chapter is dedicated to the creation of the clothing!  The entire chapter 29 following it gives all the description of the installation of the priesthood, the ceremony lasting seven days!

Now without making this 200 pages long, let me say that if you're interested, the book of Leviticus contains every fathomable law and duty God gave concerning the priests and all their interactions between God and the people.  Offerings, sins, sicknesses; all these things and more are given in Leviticus concerning priests and their duties.

Now this job and office for the Lord was not to be taken lightly.  Two of Aaron's sons one day made a terminal "whoopsie" which was never repeated again throughout all the bible.  "And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which He commanded them not.  And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD." (Lev. 10:1 - 2)

After the destruction of Aaron's two sons, God then instituted the Levite priesthood as a substitution for the firstborn of all the tribes.  "And I, behold, I have taken the Levites from among the children of Israel instead of all the firstborn that openeth the matrix among the children of Israel: therefore the Levites shall be Mine;" (Num. 3:12)

Think not that every day in the life of the priesthood was boring in the Old Testament.  One priest, Phinehas, killed two people with the same javelin right in the middle of the congregation one day, and while one might think it should've come to mind "thou shalt not kill" before he acted, as a matter of fact, God rewarded his action!  "And, behold, one of the children of Israel came and brought unto his brethren a Midianitish woman in the sight of Moses, and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of Israel, who were weeping before the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.  And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from among the congregation, and took a javelin in his hand; and he went after the man of Israel into the tent, and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her belly.  So the plague was stayed from the children of Israel.  And those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand.  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 'Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, hath turned My wrath away from the children of Israel, while he was zealous for My sake among them, that I consumed not the children of Israel in My jealousy.  Wherefore say, "Behold, I give unto him My covenant of peace:"  And he shall have it, and his seed after him, even the covenant of an everlasting priesthood; because he was zealous for his God, and made an atonement for the children of Israel." (Num. 25:6 - 13).

Priests apparently were not excluded from war, either; no, they were sent into the thick of it!  "And Moses sent them to the war, a thousand of every tribe, them and Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, to the war, with the holy instruments, and the trumpets to blow in his hand." (Num. 31:6)

Let's move up to the New Testament now.  The priests didn't like Jesus; "And the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple; and He healed them.  And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, 'Hosanna to the Son of David'; they were sore displeased, And said unto Him, 'Hearest thou what these say?'  And Jesus saith unto them, 'Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?'  And He left them, and went out of the city into Bethany; and He lodged there." (Matt. 21:14 - 17)  The priests are Jesus' enemies.  How has this happened?  "Then assembled together the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders of the people, unto the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas, and consulted that they might take Jesus by subtilty, and kill Him." (Matt. 26:3 - 4)  Corruption and power.  Jesus did not come up in the Levite priesthood as did they, so they were jealous, and coveted the power He wielded being the almighty Son of God!  Whenever He taught in the syngogues, no priest could defeat His wisdom, or catch Him slipping up, but He often tonguelashed so many in our Father's house, that they counted Him an enemy for His entire ministry.  "And when He was come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto Him as He was teaching, and said, 'By what authority doest Thou these things?  And who gave Thee this authority?'  And Jesus answered and said unto them, 'I also will ask you one thing, which if ye tell Me, I in like wise will tell you by what authority I do these things.  The baptism of John, whence was it?  From heaven, or of men?'  And they reasoned with themselves, saying, 'If we shall say, From heaven; he will say unto us, "Why did ye not then believe Him?"  But if we shall say, "Of men"; we fear the people; for all hold John as a prophet.'  And they answered Jesus, and said, 'We cannot tell.'  And He said unto them, 'Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things.' (Matt. 21:23 - 27)  He often spoke of their hypocrisies, and pointed out their shortcomings as to their station, so for them, this was cause to hate Him to death!  Once they had Him, He was tried by the priests, and they even would sin by bearing false witness against Him to have reason to kill Him!  "And they that had laid hold on Jesus led him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled.  But Peter followed Him afar off unto the high priest's palace, and went in, and sat with the servants, to see the end.  Now the chief priests, and elders, and all the council, sought false witness against Jesus, to put Him to death;" (Matt. 26:57 - 59)  "And they led Jesus away to the high priest: and with him were assembled all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes.  And Peter followed Him afar off, even into the palace of the high priest: and he sat with the servants, and warmed himself at the fire." (Mark 14:53 - 54)

Jesus usually didn't speak as though He held any priests or scribes in high regard, because if any was righteous, it appeared He never encountered them in any Gospel!  As a matter of fact, He used them as setting a wrong example in one of His parables!  "And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.  And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side." (Luke 10:31 - 32)

Even after Jesus ascended into heaven, His apostles went at odds with the Jewish priests.  Because they still had not believed that Jesus was the Christ and Messiah they were waiting for, they still set themselves against even His apostles.  "And it came to pass on the morrow, that their rulers, and elders, and scribes, and Annas the high priest, and Caiaphas, and John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the kindred of the high priest, were gathered together at Jerusalem.  And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, 'By what power, or by what name, have ye done this?'  Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said unto them, 'Ye rulers of the people, and elders of Israel, if we this day be examined of the good deed done to the impotent man, by what means he is made whole; be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by Him doth this man stand here before you whole." (Acts 4:5 - 10)  "Then the high priest rose up, and all they that were with him, (which is the sect of the Sadducees,) and were filled with indignation, and laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison." (Acts 5:17 - 18)  "And to him they agreed: and when they had called the apostles, and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.  And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name." (Acts 5:40 - 41)

Now let's go back to Jesus the High Priest, because we must remember not only that He is not dead, but He is still functioning as God and King and Savior and Priest!  "For verily He took not on Him the nature of angels; but He took on Him the seed of Abraham.  Wherefore in all things it behoved Him to be made like unto His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.  For in that He Himself hath suffered being tempted, He is able to succour them that are tempted." (Heb. 2:16 - 18)  Since He took on the form of man, and since He withstood the temptations man is tempted with, yet remained sinless, and died for our sins, taking them all away from us on the cross, He is therefore in the eyes of the Father the perfect high priest of all mankind, ever faithful to all believers, abundant in mercy to all of us, who still make mistakes and sin, and He forgives every one.  "Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.  For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.  Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." (Heb. 4:14 - 16)  "But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.  For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" (Heb. 9:11 - 14)

Jesus is the perfect High Priest, for His single offering of His own precious blood forever more cleansed us of all iniquities, past, present, and future, of those of us who believe on Him.  "And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; from henceforth expecting till His enemies be made His footstool.  For by one offering He hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified." (Heb. 10:11 - 14)

"For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp.  Wherefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered without the gate.  Let us go forth therefore unto Him without the camp, bearing His reproach." (Heb. 13:11 - 13)  This passage of Scripture illuminates the similarity of the animal sin offerings of the Old Testament and Christ as the sin offering of the New Testament, and the last sentence calls for us to leave false religions for the true faith which is in Christ Jesus.

Are you ready to become a priest?  All believers saved by His grace will become priests, offering up spiritual sacrifices!  And we will not be Levitican, but Judaic, like Melchizedek!  Note that it is written we will be a royal priesthood, and that means of the Judaic line!  "Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.  Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on Him shall not be confounded.  Unto you therefore which believe He is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, and a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.  But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvellous light: Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy." (1 Pet. 2:5 - 10)  Let it be understood that the last part of this passage means once we were unsaved, but born again, now we are saved, since that point of salvation.  Let me give you further Scriptural backup to the concept that we will be both kings and priests, ministering forever to God; "And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the Prince of the kings of the earth.  Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood, And hath made us kings and priests unto God and His Father; to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen." (Rev. 1:5 - 6)

I will give you one more proof of our royalty and priesthood, but further, I will give you in this passage that place where we will be such, for it is so written also in Revelation; "And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth." (Rev. 5:10)  Oh, and by the way, we'll be priests for a mighty long time!  "And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.  But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished.  This is the first resurrection.  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years." (Rev. 20:4 - 6)

Just one more of many reasons to bless the Lord, each and every saved soul; because we are all heirs to the kingdom, who believe on Christ Jesus.  And we who believe on Him, we shall inherit the kingdom, and treasures that cannot be lost!

Honestly?

HONESTLY?

Lies come in a lot of forms; half truths, "white" lies, blatant lies.  We lie to ourselves as much as we do others, some a little more one way than the other, but every day we seem to have to deal with a lie.  Any wonder some people would enjoy being a hermit.  Some of the worst lies are from people you know; friends are bad, and family are even worse!  Consider a man I know of who loved people and wasn't afraid to show it.  He married a gal with special needs, she was handicapped.  Some family members of hers actually were wagering how long before he would divorce her, but it didn't happen.  When he visited some of her family, though, he had a way of hugging, lifting them off their feet when he did.  He meant nothing wrong or carnal about it, but some sowed this in their heart that he did, and made an innocent man bad.  In their sinfulness they lied to themselves that he was carnal in thought, judging against him without real cause.  He never had inappropriate relations with anyone, yet some of them made him a womanizer, even a child molester in their minds.  Then one day, it was made known that a different member of the family had molested an underage girl in the family, and certain ones in the family even heightened the evil in their hearts toward the innocent man, even though he had not done the deed.  The molested one even had projected her experience on the innocent man, and her brother even condemned him and denied he was related to the innocent man, yet claimed his wife as a relative.  He rationalized evil onto the innocent man that was unfounded, with no physical proof or even verbage from the innocent man to be condemned with; talk about being hated without cause!  One day the innocent man visited his wife's sister, and finally the evil, twisted lies about him were revealed to him.  He had not done anything carnal or evil, yet a number of his in-laws already had him convicted in their hearts.  What a tragedy for the innocent man.  Their hearts lied to them about him to make him evil as to bring him to the level of wickedness that was in their own hearts.  Honestly!  Condemned for the way he hugged!  Let's explore this situation and where it came from, and of other examples of lying and false witness.

"Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made.  And he said unto the woman, 'Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?'" (Gen. 3:1)  The devil is able to plant a seed of doubt about everything, including what God tells us.  Ever hear the ditty, 'Believe none of what you hear, and only half of what you see"?  The devil suggested here that God was not telling Eve and Adam the truth, and he was also tempting Eve to rebel against God and eat the fruit against God's law.  The innocent man's in-laws, whether saved or not, obviously have been ignorant for quite some time not to judge (Matt. 7:1-2), and not to bear false witness (Exod. 20:16, Deut. 5:20).

So where does all this evil of the innocent man's in-laws come from?  Even the evil that all of us have done at some time, of which lying and bearing false witness are only a facet of?  "But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.  For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man:" (Matt. 15:18 - 20)  Jesus, our perfect Teacher, He has said it comes from the heart.  Whether one lies to themselves or to other people about an innocent person, it starts in their hearts.  Think not that lying and bearing false witness are not common afflictions of man, because they are.  The bible has a number of people who have lied, even some of His chosen have not told the truth in some way.  Let's look at a few.

"And Pharaoh called Abram, and said, 'What is this that thou hast done unto me?  Why didst thou not tell me that she was thy wife?  Why saidst thou, "She is my sister?"  So I might have taken her to me to wife: now therefore behold thy wife, take her, and go thy way.'" (Gen. 12:18 - 19)  Abraham, who started life as Abram, told a half-truth to the Pharaoh.  "And yet indeed she is my sister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife." (Gen. 20:12)  While Abraham gave excuses for his deception to Abimelech, yet God kept safe the mother of the promised Seed, for Jesus would be of the line of Abraham.  Abram's lie had the consequence of all the wombs of Pharaoh's house to close up until Abram prayed for God to heal them.  No lie or false witness goes without consequence.

"And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying, 'Bring forth the men that are come to thee, which are entered into thine house: for they be come to search out all the country.'  And the woman took the two men, and hid them, and said thus, 'There came men unto me, but I wist not whence they were: And it came to pass about the time of shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out: whither the men went I wot not: pursue after them quickly; for ye shall overtake them.'  But she had brought them up to the roof of the house, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order upon the roof.  And the men pursued after them the way to Jordan unto the fords: and as soon as they which pursued after them were gone out, they shut the gate." (Josh. 2:3 - 7)  Rahab lied.  Flat-out lied.  To her king, no less.  But she recognized a greater king, the King of creation, and her loyalty to God, though a lie for demonstration, included her in the Messianic lineage.  As to the consequence, well; we all know what happened to Jericho, those of us who read the bible!

From Exod. 8:8 to 10:27, the Pharaoh lied to Moses that he would let the people go after each plague was dissolved.  Why?  "But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, so that he would not let the children of Israel go." (Exod. 10:20)  Because Pharaoh's heart was hardened!  Here again we see that lies, like other evils done by man, come from the heart.

We know also now that even Peter lied, and three times!  "Then began he to curse and to swear, saying, 'I know not the man.'  And immediately the cock crew.  And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, 'Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.'  And he went out, and wept bitterly." (Matt. 26:74 - 75)  Now this is a unique lie.  It is unique in that Peter was the only person in the bible to commit a forewarned lie.  He was warned that he would do it three times before the cock crowed, and even though he found himself in a situation where the temptation was too great to lie, he did so indeed.  But let's consider the temptation, because although Peter said he would die with Christ, he did not, because just like the average human, we fear death, as he did, and so, even with Christ as his teacher and role model, he caved in to fear and lied.  Who among us would not do the same?  Remembering Jesus' warning, he cried bitterly, realizing who he denied, and probably feeling hypocritical that he didn't do what he said he would.

It is not good to practice lying and bearing false witness.  First of all, the tragedy begins in that the liar must then repent for a long time so that his or her reputation can be restored to a position of reputed honesty, that they might be judged trustworthy again.  Secondly, the lie(s) will have most likely produced consequences that may or may not be repairable.  Lastly, if a person practice lying to the death, Jesus may judge him or her in this manner: "But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death." (Rev. 21:8)  If their lives are like this in entirety, it is proof enough of being an unbeliever in Christ, and thus the punishment fits their crimes.

So if you know of someone who is like this, who bears false witness or lies as a habit, or as though a casual occurrence, there are a number of things you can do for them; also if a person read this and find themselves in this problem snare, there is something for that person, too.  "Hide Thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities.  Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.  Cast me not away from Thy presence; and take not Thy Holy Spirit from me.  Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation; and uphold me with Thy free Spirit." (Psa. 51:9 - 12)  Pray to God!  Yes, ask Him like this example, it's perfect for the sinful liar and false witness.  "Ye have heard that it hath been said, 'Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.'  But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; that ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust." (Matt. 5:43 - 45)  When someone bears false witness against you, they are your enemy.  They are your enemy against your reputation, for the least part, let alone whatever other evil is conjured up in their wicked heart.  Jesus here tells us to love them, pray for them, bless them, and do good to them.  Even me, I pray for my enemies.  I pray that God turn them from children of perdition to children of God, that they may no longer be called my enemies, but my brothers and sisters in Christ.  I think it's a perfect prayer for enemies, myself, because they are not wished evil upon them, but rather good, and on top of that, if they become saved, they can no longer be my enemies!  I do indeed pray to God every night that my enemies be blessed by Him, and so should we all.  I pray for the good as well; God bless you all and your families, and abundantly!

Temple Maintenance

TEMPLE MAINTENANCE

First let me say I am not talking about some false religion's building, nor the building of ancient Christian days, but rather, I'm talking about YOU!  Your body is a temple, did you know that?  "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are." (1 Cor. 3:16 - 17)  What things you do to your body, He expects you to take good care of it; not defile it, nor destroy it, nor use it for unholy, unChristian purposes.  We may have practiced these things when we were in unbelief.  But do we now?
While we were unsaved, we didn't deal with the temple in the way we should have.  We most certainly were the loose bull in a china store.  We were separated FROM God; once saved, we are required to be separated TO God.  "For I am the LORD your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth." (Lev. 11:44)  So we need to sanctify ourselves, or, make ourselves holy.  This passage gives us one facet of being holy, not defiling ourselves with creeping things.  For the unsaved, it's gabage in, garbage out.  For the saved, it's wholesome and holy things in, wholesome and holy things out.  What other ways can we sanctify ourselves to God?

"Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy: for I am the LORD your God.  And ye shall keep My statutes, and do them: I am the LORD which sanctify you." (Lev. 20:7 - 8)  "Likewise shalt thou do with thine oxen, and with thy sheep: seven days it shall be with his dam; on the eighth day thou shalt give it Me.  And ye shall be holy men unto Me: neither shall ye eat any flesh that is torn of beasts in the field; ye shall cast it to the dogs." (Exod. 22:30 - 31)  See these two instances where obedience makes us holy, because we have set ourselves apart to God from the world?  God wants us to be holy as a part of temple maintenance.  After all, would we expect a holy God to take up residence in a defiled temple?  Certainly not!

Tattoos and piercings are a common worldly practice these days, but how is this temple maintenance?  "Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD." (Lev. 19:28)  While the piercings everywhere on peoples bodies is a vanity thing, it is clear that tattoos are marks on the body, and thus violates this request from God!

Can we get help with temple maintenance?  Jesus said so.  "Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.  The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak." (Mark 14:38)  We know our flesh is weak, but we can pray to God for help; we know that He is faithful in all things to we who believe on Him!  Understand that the works of the flesh are the things which defile our temple, and the fruit of the Spirit are the things which maintain our holiness for cleanliness of our temple that we would have our God reside in!  So what are the works of the flesh?  "Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God." (Gal. 5:19 - 21)  For those who need help with some of these words, sedition is rebellion, as in against authority, variance is a form of strife, emulations are jealousies, lasciviousness is lewdness, and heresy is a controversial dissention against accepted Christian dogma.

Now the fruit of the Spirit are things which lend to holiness; "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.  And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit." (Gal. 5:22 - 25)  If we have all these fruits, we are of no offense, so we are in complete obedience each moment we walk this way.  God knows we are human, so maintenance of this degree is impossible to sustain until our last breath, of course, but it is still a worthy level of holines to strive for as long as you can maintain it!

So what else contributes to temple maintenance?  Would you believe denial?  Yes, denial of sustenance; fasting!  "And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on whom they believed." (Acts 14:23)  Now some of us can only fast for so long, especially the diabetic.  Nevertheless, fasting lends to spirituality, because it is a way of denying self and rejecting the world.  Consider this next passage of Scripture.  Christ told His disciples they could not cast out a particular demon because it required much prayer and fasting; "And when He was come into the house, His disciples asked Him privately, Why could not we cast him out?  And He said unto them, 'This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.'" (Mark 9:28 - 29)  Christ instructed that fasting lent to power over certain demons.  He was exemplary of fasting Himself before His temptations by Satan in the desert as well; "Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.  And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He was afterward an hungred." (Matt. 4:1 - 2)  Being our holy Lord, He certainly took His human frame to the limits of its endurance, you would think, to fast for so many days, and with such a length of fasting, He resisted all the temptations of Satan with quotes of Scripture against each temptation.  Like another reference to fasting being something holy men do?  "As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, 'Separate Me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.'  And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away." (Acts 13:2 - 3)  See how these men made themselves holy so as to minister to the Lord through fasting?

I have another ensample of that prior statement I gave of "garbage in, garbage out", and "wholesome and holy things in and out".  "That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.  Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another.  Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil.  Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.  Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.  And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.  Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." (Eph. 4:22 - 32)  By now it has become clear that temple maintenance is sustaining as long as humanly able a state of holiness, of both the mind and the body.  That term "corrupt communication" covers anything unholy that comes out of your mouth.  "Evil speaking" also covers a wide range of verbage that one might allow to slip off the tongue.  Nasty words, hurtful words, lies of all kinds...these are examples of a defiled temple!  These sins come from within the body, but carnality is external sinfulness.  "Flee fornication.  Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body." (1 Cor. 6:18)  By this we have an example of defiling our temple from without.

Our Lord gave ensample also of the difference between a defiled and a holy temple as through the eyes; "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.  The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.  But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness.  If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!" (Matt. 6:19 - 23)  "No man, when he hath lighted a candle, putteth it in a secret place, neither under a bushel, but on a candlestick, that they which come in may see the light.  The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness.  Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness.  If thy whole body therefore be full of light, having no part dark, the whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light." (Luke 11:33 - 36)  If one be unsaved, they are full of darkness, their temple is defiled.  They do no maintenance of their temple, for they do not understand that their body is meant to be the temple of God.  So they trash their temple; God is not in them.  Those who are saved, however, are lit with the Spirit of God, and strive to be holy and obedient, that their temple be maintained, and their whole body be full of light, the light of God!  "According as His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.  And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.  For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." (2 Pet. 1:3 - 8)

We also have this promise, that God will always be with us who believe and work to keep our temple holy; "Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for He hath said, 'I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.'  So that we may boldly say, 'The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.'" (Heb. 13:5 - 6)  We can depend on our faithful Jesus to help us be like Him; He is there to ask always when we think of striving to be like Him; and trying to be like Him is temple maintenance, indeed!