Royal Priesthood

PROLOGUE

You & I, as children of God, are CHOSEN by God before the foundations of the

world and are called to CONSECRATE ourselves from the world and its many

connections in order to set ourselves apart to be COMMITTED TO SERVE of our God,

our Master and Lord

The Priests in the Old Testament are CHOSENa. A Tribe is Chosen among other tribes

For the Lord your God has chosen him out of all your tribes to stand and minister in the name of the Lord, him and his sons for all time. (Deuteronomy 18:5)

b. A Family is Chosen from the Tribe Appoint Aaron and his sons so that they are to take responsibility for their priesthood. Any unauthorized person who approaches it is to be put to death. (Numbers 3:10)

CHOSEN

Similarly YOU & I are CHOSENa. Jesus says - You did not choose me, but I

chose you (John 15:16); …I have chosen your out of the world (John 15:19) & chose us before the creation of the world (Ephesians 1:4)

b. God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are….. (1 Corinthians 1:27-31)

CHOSEN

We should always give thanks to God ……because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth.

2 Thessalonians 2:13

The Priests are to CONSECRATE themselvesa. The Lord tells Moses to consecrate

them, so they may serve Him as priests (Exodus 29:1) & especially, Aaron and his sons (Exodus 30:30)

b. The Lord says - Consecrate yourselves and be holy because I am the Lord your God (Leviticus 20:7; 11:44)

c. You are the heads of the Levitical families; you and your fellow Levites are to consecrate yourselves … (1 Chronicles 15:12)

CONSECRATEDCONSECRATE means ‘TO SET APART’

YOU & I too need to SET ourselves APARTa. Jesus says - If anyone comes to Me and

does not hate …. his own life, he cannot be My disciple (Luke 14:25-27)

b. Do not love the world i.e. the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them (1 John 2:15-17)

c. Don't copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think (Romans 12:2 )

CONSECRATED

1. Jesus loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests, so we can serve his God and Father (Revelation 1:5-6; 5:10)

2. Apostle Paul calls himself a servant of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles, serving the gospel of God as a priest (Romans 15:14-16)

3. Jesus puts himself as an example: “..For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:44; John 13:2-5)

COMMITTED TO SERVE

So YOU & I need to consider all the great things he has done for us (1 Samuel 12:24) and 1. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were

serving the Lord, not people (Ephesians 6:7) because we were ‘called to be free, but do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love (Galatians 5:13) with the gift each of you has received (1 Peter 4:10 ) & be sure to fear the LORD and serve him faithfully with all your heart (1 Samuel 12:24)

COMMITTED TO SERVE

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

Matthew 25:31-46

EPILOGUE