“Moses took some of the anointing oil and some of the blood which was on the altar, and sprinkled it on Aaron, on his garments, on his sons and on the garments of his sons with him; and he sanctified Aaron, his garments, and his sons and the garments of his sons with him” (v. 30). This signifies that God sprinkles us, the New Testament priests, and our conduct (garments), with the compounded Spirit and the redeeming blood of the cross of Christ to separate us, to make us holy unto Him.
No matter how much God has been working on us, dealing with our sin, our natural life, and the old man, we still need more “coats” of the anointing oil. The anointing oil refers to the processed Triune God with all that He has become, has done, and has passed through. Such a Triune God, who has been processed and has been compounded with the “spices” of incarnation, human living, an all-inclusive death, a wonderful resurrection, and an excellent ascension, has become the anointing oil, the ointment, to “paint” us (Exo. 30:23-30). We need to be painted again and again with the processed Triune God as the anointing oil.
In order to have the proper knowledge of our New Testament priesthood, we need to study the book of Leviticus. Leviticus is not only for the Old Testament saints. If we understand the typology of this book, we will see that point after point applies to us in a practical way today.
“Then Moses said to Aaron and to his sons, Boil the flesh at the entrance of the tent of meeting, and eat it there with the bread which is in the basket of the consecration offering, as I have commanded, saying, Aaron and his sons shall eat it” (v. 31). This signifies that Christ as the redeeming One with His humanity is food to us (John 6:51), the New Testament priests, at the entering in of the church life.
In Leviticus 8:28 we have God’s portion, and in verse 31 we have our portion. The flesh here refers to Christ as the redeeming One, and the bread refers to His humanity. Christ as the redeeming One with His humanity is our food.
“What remains of the flesh and of the bread you shall burn with fire” (v. 32). This signifies that the inexhaustible riches of Christ should be kept by God’s holiness.
Verse 32 indicates that the Christ whom we offer to God for His enjoyment and whom we also enjoy is inexhaustible. After God’s portion has been offered to Him and we have enjoyed our portion, something still remains. In Leviticus 8 the remainder was burned with fire, which signifies God’s holiness. From this we see that the inexhaustible riches of Christ should be kept in and by God’s holiness.
The consecrating priests remained at the entrance of the tent of meeting for seven days for their propitiation (8:33-36). This signifies that our assuming of the New Testament priesthood should be thorough and complete for our propitiation at the entering in of the church life.
Verses 33 through 35 say, “You shall not go out from the entrance of the tent of meeting for seven days, until the day when the period of your consecration is fulfilled; for you shall be consecrated seven days. As it was done this day, so Jehovah has commanded to do, to make propitiation for you. You shall remain at the entrance of the tent of meeting day and night for seven days, and keep the charge of Jehovah, that you may not die; for so I have been commanded.” The same procedure was repeated for seven days. Each day the program was carried out in a solemn way, for every aspect of the program was solemn. This solemnity is indicated by the words “that you may not die.” Therefore, no one dared to be careless or loose. Everyone was aware of the seriousness of what was taking place and of what might happen if anyone was careless.
These verses should be a warning to us not to enter into the enjoyment of Christ in a careless way. We especially need this warning with respect to the Lord’s table. The bread signifies Christ’s body, and the wine signifies His blood. If we eat the bread and drink the wine without the proper discernment, our eating and drinking could be to our own judgment (1 Cor. 11:27-29). We need to be warned of the seriousness of participating in the fellowship in the enjoyment of Christ in a light or loose way.
The consecration of the priesthood lasted for seven days, with the same things repeated each day. Through this repetition, Aaron and his sons were no doubt deeply impressed with every matter. As God’s priests today, we also need to remember all the things involved in our consecration and ordination as priests. In particular, we need to be reminded that, in ourselves, we are sinners, even the flesh of sin.
The consecration of Aaron and his sons is solemn not only in its typology but also in its application to us today. If we realize the seriousness of this matter, we will also realize how much we need the Lord’s mercy and the cleansing of His blood. We will ask the Lord to be merciful to us, and we will hide under the covering of His blood.
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