Title: Duties of a Priest
Contents
priest's duty
Leviticus 10:8-20
Not long ago, I mentioned the words of James 3:1, “My brothers, do not become many teachers, knowing that we who are teachers will receive a greater judgment.” As a ‘teacher,’ that is, teaching and guiding others, comes with its own responsibilities and duties.
Jesus also said in Luke 12:48, “To everyone who has been given much, much will be asked, and from him who has been entrusted with much, much will be asked.”
So, what did God require of Aaron the high priest and his descendants? Of course, as a sacrifice, this is very important. But it wasn't just sacrifices that God required of them. What else?
■ First, God commanded the priests to live a life of discernment.
In Leviticus, there is only one place where God spoke only to Aaron, and verses 9 to 11 of the text about the priest's duties are there. This means that the words given to Aaron are very important.
In verse 10, God tells us to discern what is holy and what is common, and to discern between what is unclean and what is clean. The word ‘distinguish’ means ‘to divide, to distinguish, to choose’. In other words, it is an important task for a priest to distinguish and share what is consistent with God's holiness and what is not.
Aaron and Aaron's descendants had to always distinguish between what is holy and what is profane, in any object, in any deed, or in any word. And the unholy things, that is, the common things and the unclean things, were thoroughly rejected and kept away. Because only then can we live a holy life that does not damage the holiness of God. It is also because we can glorify God through such a life.
However, there was something the priests had to forbid for this discernment. Alcohol. God told them not to drink wine or strong drink when they entered the tent of meeting, so that they might not die. It is not only necessary to drink alcohol when offering sacrifices in the tent of meeting. God wanted them to abstain from alcohol even in their lives. For a drunken man cannot distinguish between the holy and the profane. Because alcohol not only blinds the mind, preventing good judgment, but also reveals the ugly nature of the flesh.
Scholars believe that after the death of Nadab and Abihu, he spoke of abstinence, so they may have burned incense while drunk. Even in today's life, the holy and the profane must be clearly distinguished. And believers believe that they should live by that standard.
■ Second, God told the priests to teach the people.
In verse 11, God commanded, “I will teach the children of Israel all the ordinances the Lord commanded through Moses.” The children of Israel are God's own and at the same time a holy people. But holy people don't just happen. You must live a holy life in the field of life. That is why God gave the Ten Commandments as well as various laws. Now God commanded the priests to teach the people all the ordinances that the priests had already spoken in real life.
However, the important thing is that in order to teach the people all the ordinances, the priests themselves must live so that they do not deviate from the Word. If you live a life that is against the rules and tell the people to live holy and righteous, it is not appropriate and has no power. Therefore, as mentioned earlier, priests must be able to distinguish between the holy and the profane, not only for their own sake, but also for the sake of teaching the people.
There are those around us who do not understand and cannot live holy lives. We should encourage them with the Word of God and lead them to holiness and lead a blessed life.
■ Third, God commanded the priests to eat the holy offerings.
It was the priest's prerogative and duty to eat after the sacrifice. The priest could eat the leftovers of the grain offering first. Only a portion of the fine flour mixed with oil brought by the people for the meal offering was burned with the burnt offering, and the rest was returned to the priests. However, even if it was the remainder of the meal offering, it had to be eaten near the altar, a holy place, without any leaven, which symbolizes sin. Other sacrifices the priest could eat were a rocked chest and a raised hind leg. In other words, the meat of the breast offered as a wave offering and the meat of the right hind leg offered as a large offering were returned to the priests and their families.
However, the priest's eating of sacrifices was not just a means of making a living. By eating the sacrifice, the priest takes the responsibility to participate symbolically in the work of atonement for the people. So Moses was looking for a sin offering that should have been left for Aaron's descendants, and when he realized that it had already been burned, he was angry with Aaron's two remaining sons. Of course, when Aaron explained that he had lost his composure due to the death of his two sons and that he could not eat because he knew he was lacking, Moses was pleased. Not eating was also acknowledging that it was started from the fear of God.
We must not only demand authority, we must realize our obligations and do them well. I hope that on that day, everyone will be not ashamed before God. - Amen -