Exodus 28:2 says, “And you shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty.” The words “glory” and “beauty” are very inclusive. The phrase “for glory” means to express Christ’s divinity (John 1:14; Heb. 1:3; John 17:22). The phrase “for beauty” means to express Christ’s humanity (Luke 24:19). Glory here refers to Christ’s divinity. In our expression of Christ there must be something of the divine nature. This divine nature is typified by the gold which was part of the priestly garments. The fact that the element of gold was part of the garments typifies that divinity, the divine nature, is part of the expression of Christ. A priest must express Christ’s divinity.
If we read the four Gospels carefully, we shall see that although Jesus of Nazareth lived a human life, in His humanity there was the expression of the glory of God. This means that in His human living there was divinity, typified by the gold in the priestly garments. The Lord Jesus certainly expressed the glory of God. John 1:14 says, “We beheld His glory, glory as of an only begotten from a father.” The disciples beheld the glory of Jesus, the glory of God’s only begotten Son. Furthermore, Hebrews 1:3 says that Christ is the effulgence of God’s glory. This means that He expresses God with the divine attributes.
The priestly garments were for beauty as well as glory. Beauty in 28:2 refers to the expression of Christ’s humanity. Christ’s divinity is for glory, and His humanity is for beauty. The four Gospels reveal that in the life and daily living of the Lord Jesus we can see the divine glory and also the human beauty. With the Lord divinity and humanity are blended in a very positive way. They are woven together like fabric woven to make a particular type of textile. With the Lord Jesus the divine glory has been woven into human beauty. For this reason, with Him we behold both the divine glory and the beauty of His human virtues.
First Peter 2:9 says, “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for a possession, so that you may tell out the virtues of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” The Greek word rendered “praises” in the King James Version is better rendered attributes, excellencies, or virtues. This includes Christ’s divine glory and human beauty. In 1 Peter 2:9 the virtues, or excellencies, are the divine glory, the divine attributes, and the human beauty, the human virtues.
If we live Christ and Christ lives out of us, Christ will be expressed. If we have such an expression, others will realize that in our living there is something glorious. At the same time, they will sense that in our daily living there is a beautiful expression of human virtues. In the expression of Christ both the divine glory and the human beauty can be seen.
For thirty-three and a half years, the Lord Jesus expressed the divine glory with the human beauty. He bore this expression every hour, in fact every minute, of His life on earth. The divine glory and the human beauty were never absent from Him even for a moment.
We, however, are often different from the Lord Jesus in this regard. Perhaps in the morning we may express the Lord with His glory and beauty. But later in the day, we may express something quite poor or low. Then it seems that the divine glory is gone and that the human beauty has disappeared. In the place of such an expression, we express the fallen natural life. I must confess that this has often been my experience. In this matter, we are all the same and suffer from the same spiritual illness. The only difference there may be among us is a matter of degree.
Because we often express the fallen natural life instead of Christ with the divine glory and human beauty, we need to look to the Lord for His mercy, humble ourselves, and pray, “Lord, have mercy on me. I realize that I should express You with the divine glory and human beauty. But, Lord, You know that often I fail to express You with Your glory and beauty. Have mercy on me, Lord, and grant me grace that I may remain attached to the divine glory and the human beauty. Lord, I don’t want ever to be separated from Your divine attributes and human virtues. I need this kind of life to be sanctified and qualified to be in the priesthood.”
I wish to emphasize the fact that it is a life that expresses Christ with the divine glory and the human beauty that actually sanctifies us and qualifies us to be the priesthood. Whenever the divine glory and the human beauty are not expressed in us, we are immediately detached from the priesthood, from the corporate body of priests. If such is the case, then we are not in the building. But whenever we express the divine glory blended with the beauty of human virtues, we are truly in the building. We are built up together as the priesthood.
What is expressed in our living is not merely a matter of doctrine; it is a matter that is very practical and experiential. If you consider your experience, you will realize that whenever you are separated from the other saints and become individualistic, you immediately express the fallen, natural life instead of expressing Christ with the divine glory and human beauty. Those who work in a secular office may not express the divine glory and the human beauty, and even those who serve in the ministry may fail to have such an expression. Even those who love the Lord, who love the ministry, and who are willing to help in the service to the ministry may not be truly built up with others. On the contrary, some may be isolated and individualistic. Whenever we cut ourselves off from the saints, we no longer express the divine glory or the human beauty.
We praise the Lord that in the church life we have truly been graced by Him. The brothers and the sisters in the churches are genuinely one. Therefore, at the Lord’s table we can proclaim our oneness. Nevertheless, at least sometimes in our service we do not have an expression of the divine glory and the human beauty. This means that we are not wearing the priestly garments, the holy garments for glory and for beauty. If we are short of the divine glory and the human beauty, this means that we do not have the priesthood, for there is neither the qualification nor the sanctification necessary for the priesthood. I hope that we shall be helped by this word to reconsider our situation and condition.