Our Highest Calling Pt. III

"You shall be called priests of the Lord." Isaiah 61:6

"The Promise of God made to Israel belongs spiritually to all believers. Christians who let their light shine before men to serve Christ's saving purposes for the world. We may work or trade as others do, and yet we may be solely and wholly the ministering servants of God. Our chief occupation shall be to present the perpetual sacrifice of prayer, praise, and self-consecration to the Living God." Charles Spurgeon

So many people will do any amount of service (to God) rather than love. Unfortunately we are by nature are doer's and we struggle to just be what we already are. Instead of lovers and worshippers we would rather do tasks, push buttons and check lists. In doing this we feel better about ourselves and we feel in control.

God is seeking those who will love Him. He does not want nor seek workers but worshippers, those that will worship Him in Spirit and Truth. John 4:23-24

Only after that love relationship has been rightly established and all has been centered upon Him, can he safely send us out to work with Him.

"When Israel was a child I loved Him as a son and brought him out of Egypt, sacrificing to Baal and burning incense to idols. I trained him from infancy, I taught him to walk, I held him in my arms. But he doesn't know or even care that it was I who raised him."
Hosea 11:1-5
Living Bible

Man is made for God, but God is also in a sense made for man. He created us not only that we might give ourselves to Him, but that He might also give Himself to us. It was God who came down to walk with Adam and Eve in the garden. (Genesis 3:8)

God created us with the capacity to receive Him. How often it happens when we worship God, He comes to us. We see it in the scriptures and also in our experience. Worship brings God's presence near. As we worship God, and give ourselves to Him , He gives Himself to us.

In 11 Chronicles 5 We read and interesting story about the temple of Solomon being completed and the Elders gathered, the ark was brought in but the Glory of God did not come down. There were innumerable sacrifices made that day but the Glory did not come down. It was not until the trumpeters and singers "were as one" to make a sound to be heard in praise,worship and thanking the Lord" that the Glory of God came down.

"then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of the Lord so that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud for the Glory of the Lord had filled the house of God"

It was not when they built the temple. It was not when they offered sacrifices. It was when they praised and worshipped God that the Glory of the Lord came down.

We were formed for His Glory, and we must continually be transformed to escape the conformity of the world in order to full fill our Highest Calling as priests unto the Lord,"...which is our reasonable service of worship..." (Romans 12:1-3)

When God brought the four million Hebrews out of Egypt , it is significant to note that He planned in His heart to make them all priest's. `(Exodus 19:3-6) He did not want only a priestly tribe (tribe of Levi) He wanted to make the whole nation a "...a kingdom of priests and a holy nation..."

God promised them if they would fulfill two conditions they would be unto Him a peculiar and special people above all people. Those two conditions were 1. Obey His Voice 2. Keep His Commandments.

In Exodus 24:3 Israel responded and said "all the words which the Lord hath said will we do". But it wasn't long before they were worshipping a molten calf (one of the old gods from Egypt) and sitting down to eat and drink and rising up to play.

These two violations of against God caused Moses to become "waxed hot" as he descended from Mt. Sinai with the Ten Commandments. The people had violated both of the conditions God had set up. He could not make or force them to be a kingdom of priests it must originate from their heart and manifest in obedience. They had become so dull and disobedient they could not endure His voice any more because of their sin and violation. (Hebrews 12:19-20)

Lord have Mercy on us, and forgive us of our blanant disobeience to your voice and your commandments. Teach us once again how to walk in your ways as priests unto the Lord.