Then we come to Moses. When he was in the wilderness, he was in the outer court. After he was called by God to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt, he was at least in the Holy Place. He helped them pass through the Red Sea and eventually was brought to Mount Sinai where he stayed for forty days. No doubt that was the real Holy of Holies to him. He was with God. When he came down from the mountain, the people saw the shekinah glory of God on his face.
At the time of the Passover, all the children of Israel offered the lamb without the help of priests. This was because they all were priests. Every house was a part of the priesthood. All the people offered the same sacrifice to God at the same time. Not one family had a special priest to offer the Passover lamb for them, because all of them were priests. When they were brought out of Egypt to Mount Sinai, the Lord told them that He would make them a kingdom of priests. They all were to be His priests. All were to be in His presence, to be saturated with Him, and to become His corporate expression. This is the real priesthood. I must say again that the priesthood is not to do something for God. It is a group of people filled, saturated, and permeated with God, in order that God might flow out of them as His corporate expression. However, the people of Israel also failed God.
Then God turned to the tribe of Levi. They became the priests. Actually, the Levites did not do much for the Lord. They spent their time in His presence to be dealt with by Him and to be one with Him. We will see more of this in the following chapters. As the priesthood, they continually enjoyed the Lord and bore Him as their testimony.
We cannot leave the Old Testament without considering the Psalmists. When we read their writings, we must admit that they were real priests. Their writings indicate that they spent most of their time in God’s presence to be filled and permeated with Him.
As we come to the New Testament, we realize that the Apostles were priests. They were continually opening themselves to the Lord to be saturated with Him. Thus, they were a real corporate expression of the Lord. In fact, according to the New Testament, a believer must be this kind of person. Peter and John especially emphasized this. Peter was the first apostle, and John ministered as the last one. Both of them told us that we are priests and that we are a priesthood.
Our concept of serving God has to be transformed and adjusted. To be a priest is not mainly to do something for the Lord, but to be taken over by the Lord. We must spend much time in the presence of the Lord and let Him come in to fill and saturate us.
In the beginning of my Christian life, I liked to talk with people about the Lord’s work. Now I simply do not have the appetite to talk about work. It is not a matter of working for the Lord, but a matter of being possessed by the Lord in the presence of His shekinah glory. Then He will flow out, and that flow will be the real work! The outflow of God is the real service. Only this flow can fulfill the purpose of the Lord. It is not a matter of a message, a form, or any kind of teaching. It is a matter of being fully and thoroughly permeated by and with Him. Then He will flow out of us. In this flow we will not only be one with Him, but also one with all who open themselves to Him. In this flow is the work, the service, the flow of life, the Body life, and the building up of the Body. We must realize that the building up of the Body is not a work or a kind of organization. It is a corporate life in the flow of God Himself.
We all must be saturated and permeated by His shekinah glory. Then we will be one with Him, and one with one another in Him. All Christian work and service must issue out of this priesthood. Please be impressed that God has no intention for us to work for Him. No, absolutely not! If we do realize His heart’s desire, we will be fully opened to Him that He may flood us with Himself. This is the priesthood, and this is the kind of person God desires to have today.
What a blessing, what a priv’lege!
Called of God a royal priest,
That this glorious, holy office
I should bear, though last and least.
CHORUS:
All the building of the Body
On the priesthood doth depend;
Ever praying in the spirit
I this office would attend.
If I keep this royal calling
Under Thine authority,
Priestly duty thus fulfilling
Then the church will builded be.
Now the church is but the priesthood;
Thus the priesthood formed we need!
When the priests are knit together,
Then the church is built indeed.
Through the church’s degradation,
Saints this office desolate;
Through the weakness of their spirits
Preaching doth predominate.
Most are leaning on the message,
And the preaching emphasize,
Yet neglect the priestly praying,
And their spirits’ exercise.
Deal with me and make me balanced,
As in preaching, so in prayer;
Leading others oft in praying,
As Thy Word I too declare.
Only serving by our praying,
Will our spirits mingled be;
Stressing prayer as much as preaching—
Thus the church is built for Thee.
(Hymns, #848)