Wed.’s Devo - The Priesthood

Read: Leviticus 20:22-22:16; Mark 9:1-29; Psalm 43:1-5a; Proverbs 10:18
Sacrificing their children to Molech was our modern day practice of abortion. In the Bible, child sacrifice was done to atone for sin and Molech means “shame”. That would fit why people get abortions and how they feel later. Child sacrifice was the culmination of Israel’s greatest fall into sin. When a nation starts killing its offspring then it has gone far from God. Children represent our inheritance, our posterity and our legacy. We want a future full of life and a generation of righteousness.
Every time you see the word “priest” in the Old Testament think “believer” because that is who a priest is. God is raising up a holy priesthood who will offer sacrifices of righteousness unto him. God gave of list of regulations and “not to’s” for the priest. A priest was only to make himself unclean for a relative who dies. What that means to us is that there are exceptions we make for our unbelieving relatives that we wouldn’t normally make. God gives us grace for our family that we would not have for anyone else.
If a priest had any sort of physical disability he was not to approach the altar and make an offering. This means that if we have any unrepented sin our prayers will not be answered. Isaiah said the same thing in Isaiah 1:15-18. God said when they prayed he would not hear them because their hands were full of blood. They were to wash themselves and put their evil deeds away. First Peter 3:12 says that the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears open to their prayers, but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.
The priest was also to marry a virgin which means that he gives his heart to what is holy and undefiled. If we want to enjoy the presence of the Lord and hear his heart then we have to make a lifestyle of doing things that please him and getting rid of the things that don’t.
In Mark, Jesus makes the statement that some of them, his disciples, wouldn’t taste death until they see the Kingdom of God come in a powerful way then six days later, he took Peter, James and John up on the mountain and showed them the Kingdom of God in a powerful way. They got to see Jesus in his glorified body talking to Moses and Elijah who stood for the law and the prophets. It was the feast of Tabernacles at the time so Peter wanted to build them tabernacles so they could stay and celebrate with them. Peter was thinking so earthly and practical when God spoke out of heaven and said, “This is my Son, whom I love, Listen to him!” Moses and Elijah disappeared and only Jesus remained. God was trying to make a statement that everyone before Jesus was building up to him. Jesus was the climax, the fulfillment of every prophecy and the fulfillment of every law.
Jesus warned them that they couldn’t share what they had seen until he had risen from the dead. Now they were totally confused. They didn’t understand what they had seen and heard and now Jesus was telling them that he was going to rise from the dead. They didn’t understand that either.
When Jesus came back to his other disciples, a crowd had formed around a boy who had a deaf and dumb spirit. They all had this spirit but this boys was manifesting it. The disciples hadn’t been able to cast it out because they had the same spirit. Everyone did until Jesus rose from the dead and the Holy Spirit came to open their ears and their heart and help them understand truth.
Lord, deliver us from our doubts and unbelief and help us to trust you in a deeper way. Forgive us of our doubts. With you, we can do all things!