As Aaron typifies Christ being the High Priest according to the order of man, the sons of Aaron typify the believers in Christ being priests to God with Christ.
In the Old Testament age God saved the children of Israel out of Egypt, saying, “I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself...You shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exo. 19:4, 6). God’s desire was for the children of Israel to be a kingdom of priests. Regrettably, because of their rebellion and failure, most of the Israelites lost the priesthood. Eventually, only the house of Aaron became the priests, with the tribe of Levi helping them in doing various duties. Hence, in the Old Testament there was a distinction between the clerical class (the priests) and the common people.
In the New Testament, 1 Peter 2:4-5 and 9 says, “Coming to Him, a living stone, rejected by men but with God chosen and precious, you yourselves also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house into a holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ... You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people acquired for a possession.” This portion clearly indicates that in the New Testament age God has recovered His original heart’s desire that every child of God fulfill the priestly ministry. Furthermore, the New Testament believers are priests of God not singly, individually, but corporately; they are a body of priests, a priesthood. This portion of the Word also shows that the body of priests in coordination is the built-up spiritual house. God wants a spiritual house for His dwelling, a priestly body, a priesthood, for His service. We all need the corporate service in the spiritual house in order to fulfill God’s purpose and satisfy God’s desire.
By indicating that all the believers in Christ are constituted into the holy priesthood, 1 Peter 2:4-5 and 9 show that in the New Testament age the priestly service is not only for a few but is universal; every believer is a priest to God without exception. The book of Revelation also stresses that the Lord has redeemed us with His blood to make us priests to His God and Father (1:5b-6; 5:9-10). If we practice the priestly ministry in the church life today, we will be made priests to God and Christ in the millennial kingdom as a reward. In the New Jerusalem in eternity, one of the blessings to be received by the redeemed ones is to be priests serving God. That will be the consummation of the priestly service.
The Old Testament priests offered bulls and goats as sacrifices. According to the New Testament, because all the sacrifices were accomplished by Christ (Heb. 10:9), there is no need for the New Testament believers to offer them any longer. However, according to the New Testament there is still the need for the believers in Christ to bring the sinners who have been redeemed by God through the sacrifice accomplished by Christ and present them to God as offerings (Rom. 15:16). Furthermore, the New Testament believers in Christ need to lead the believers, who have received the compassions of God, to offer themselves to God as a living sacrifice (12:1-2), and they also need to present the believers full-grown in Christ to God in all wisdom (Col. 1:28).
The offerings presented by the Old Testament priests were physical; they offered mainly bulls and goats as sacrifices to God to be His food to satisfy His heart’s desire. All these are types. In the New Testament all the types have been fulfilled. Now the priests of God offer sinners as sacrifices. In the Scriptures the turning of the priestly ministry from the Old Testament to the New Testament occurred with John the Baptist. John was born a priest, yet he “grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness” (Luke 1:80). He did not live in the holy temple or in a priestly house but in the wilderness. In his ministry he neither wore priestly garments nor ate priestly food. Rather, he wore a garment of camel’s hair, and he ate locusts and wild honey (Matt. 3:4). Moreover, instead of remaining in the holy temple to offer sacrifices, burn incense, and light lamps, he went to preach in the wilderness, baptizing people into water. All this indicates that the old way of worshipping God according to the Old Testament had been repudiated and that a new way was about to be brought in. There was a turn from the old way to the new way, and there was a change from the Old Testament priests to the New Testament priests. The New Testament believers, as the priests of the gospel of God, no longer offer bulls and goats. Instead, they offer sinners chosen by God and saved in Christ. Hence, every believer should personally preach the gospel by visiting people to save sinners and offer them to God as sacrifices.