The Priests' Garments

 

 

Exodus 28:31-43

 

October 14, 2024

 

The Priests' Garments

“You shall make the robe of the ephod all of blue.  It shall have an opening for the head in the middle of it, with a woven binding around the opening, like the opening in a garment, so that it may not tear.  On its hem, you shall make pomegranates of blue and purple and scarlet yarns, around its hem, with bells of gold between them,  a golden bell and a pomegranate, a golden bell and a pomegranate, around the hem of the robe.  And it shall be on Aaron when he ministers, and its sound shall be heard when he goes into the Holy Place before the Lord, and when he comes out, so that he does not die.

“You shall make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it, like the engraving of a signet, ‘Holy to the Lord.’  And you shall fasten it on the turban by a cord of blue. It shall be on the front of the turban.  It shall be on Aaron's forehead, and Aaron shall bear any guilt from the holy things that the people of Israel consecrate as their holy gifts. It shall regularly be on his forehead, that they may be accepted before the Lord.

“You shall weave the coat in checker work of fine linen, and you shall make a turban of fine linen, and you shall make a sash embroidered with needlework.

“For Aaron's sons, you shall make coats and sashes and caps. You shall make them for glory and beauty.  And you shall put them on Aaron your brother, and on his sons with him, and shall anoint them and ordain them and consecrate them, that they may serve me as priests.  You shall make for them linen undergarments to cover their naked flesh. They shall reach from the hips to the thighs;  and they shall be on Aaron and on his sons when they go into the tent of meeting or when they come near the altar to minister in the Holy Place, lest they bear guilt and die. This shall be a statute forever for him and for his offspring after him.

What is a follower of Christ: a person who, with the faith God has given them, and the grace to ask Jesus to forgive their many sins, and take over the management of their lives.  What does Scripture give as a title for that person?  Words that both the Church and the World are not comfortable with the word Saint, the Catholic Church, is made to be a person whose service to both God and people is exceptional.  Is that what God has said in the Scriptures?  The Scriptures are very clear that all who are in Christ are saints. 

“Got Questions” handles this very well. The following is some of what they said: “The word 'saint' comes from the Greek word hagios, which means 'consecrated to God, holy, sacred, pious." It is almost always used in the plural, “saints.” "…Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he did to Your saints at Jerusalem" (Acts 9:13). "Now as Peter was traveling through all those regions, he came down also to the saints who lived at Lydda" (Acts 9:32). "And this is just what I did in Jerusalem; not only did I lock up many of the saints in prisons …“ (Acts 26:10). There is only one instance of the singular use, and that is "Greet every saint in Christ Jesus…" (Philippians 4:21). In Scripture there are 67 uses of the plural “saints” compared to only one use of the singular word “saint.” Even in that one instance, a plurality of saints is in view: “…every saint…” (Philippians 4:21).

The idea of the word “saints” is a group of people set apart for the Lord and His kingdom. Three references are referring to godly character of saints: "that you receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints …" (Romans 16:2). "For the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ" (Ephesians 4:12). "But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints" (Ephesians 5:3).”

The other word is being called to be Holy and into the  Priesthood.  But Scripture addresses both of these; let’s begin with being holy.  1 Peter 1:15–16: "Just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: 'Be holy because I am holy'"  Leviticus 20:7: "Be holy; for I, the Lord your God, am holy" And also in the book of Ephesians 1:4-6, “ even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love ⁵ he predestined us^[a] for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,  to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.”  It is clear that we are saints that sin, so our holiness is not found in our actions, but only when we allow and obey our Lord, for it is His holiness that makes us holy.

What about the word priest? Has God said you, as a follower of Christ, have been brought into the holy priesthood?  1 Peter 2:5-9 give a very clear picture of our calling; “you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. ⁶ For it stands in Scripture: “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame. ”So, the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,”  and “A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense. They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”

In my career as a professional salesman, I was trained to ask questions that would open the door to share what my product would do that exceeded what they were using or doing.  So here is the question: why do followers of Jesus not understand their identity in Christ?  And the second question is, if we do, why do we not act on it?

Could it be that you are so busy with all the things of this world that you don’t have time to study the Scripture, to know who you are in Christ?  Maybe you are like the man who brought his son to be healed by Jesus and said, “IF” you can, please do so.  When Jesus addressed the “IF,” the man said, “I believe; help my unbelief.”  I find myself in need of getting my eyes off this dark and evil world and onto what Jesus calls me.  Could it be that we just have an identity problem?

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice  

More about the Priests' Garments

                                                            Exodus 28:15-30

 

October 12, 2024

 

The Priests' Garments

“You shall make a breast piece, of judgment, in skilled work. In the style of the ephod, you shall make it—of gold, blue and purple and scarlet yarns, and fine twined linen shall you make it.  It shall be square and doubled, a span its length and a span its breadth.  You shall set in it four rows of stones. A row of sardius, topaz, and carbuncle shall be the first row;  and the second row an emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond; and the third row a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst;  and the fourth row a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper. They shall be set in gold filigree.  There shall be twelve stones with their names according to the names of the sons of Israel. They shall be like signets, each engraved with its name, for the twelve tribes.  You shall make for the breast piece twisted chains like cords, of pure gold.  And you shall make for the breast piece two rings of gold, and put the two rings on the two edges of the breast piece.  And you shall put the two cords of gold in the two rings at the edges of the breast piece.  The two ends of the two cords you shall attach to the two settings of filigree, and so attach it in front to the shoulder pieces of the ephod.  You shall make two rings of gold, and put them at the two ends of the breast piece, on its inside edge next to the ephod.  And you shall make two rings of gold, and attach them in front to the lower part of the two shoulder pieces of the ephod, at its seam above the skillfully woven band of the ephod.  And they shall bind the breast piece by its rings to the rings of the ephod with a lace of blue, so that it may lie on the skillfully woven band of the ephod, so that the breast piece shall not come loose from the ephod.  So, Aaron shall bear the names of the sons of Israel in the breast piece of judgment on his heart, when he goes into the Holy Place, to bring them to regular remembrance before the Lord.  And in the breast piece of judgment, you shall put the Urim and the Thummim, and they shall be on Aaron's heart, when he goes in before the Lord. Thus, Aaron shall bear the judgment of the people of Israel on his heart before the Lord regularly.

 

Often, I’ve read past words like the Urim and the Thummim with no understanding of it meaning.  Let me share what I read this morning on these two items.  Urim: The Hebrew word for "lights" Thummim: The Hebrew word for "perfection" or "truth" 

Function: The Urim and Thummim were placed in a breastplate worn by the High Priest, which was attached to an apron-like garment called an ephod. The priest would use the Urim to inquire of YHWH on behalf of the ruler. 

We find them referred to also in Numbers 27:21,  ^“And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire for him by the judgment of the Urim before the Lord. At his word they shall go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he and all the people of Israel with him, the whole congregation.”

 

Deuteronomy 33:8, “And of Levi he said, “Give to Levi your Thummim, and your Urim to your godly one, whom you tested at Massah, with whom you quarreled at the waters of Meribah;”

1 Samuel 28:5-7, “When Saul saw the army of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly.  And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, either by dreams, or by Urim, or by prophets.  Then Saul said to his servants, “Seek out for me a woman who is a medium, that I may go to her and inquire of her.” And his servants said to him, “Behold, there is a medium at En-dor.”  Often it is our unbelief or fear that drives us to evil sources, and this sure did not work out well for Saul.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

The Priests' Garments

 

Exodus 28:1-14

 

October 11, 2024

 

The Priests' Garments

“Then bring near to you Aaron your brother, and his sons with him, from among the people of Israel, to serve me as priests—Aaron and Aaron's sons, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar.  And you shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty.  You shall speak to all the skillful, whom I have filled with a spirit of skill, that they make Aaron's garments to consecrate him for my priesthood.  These are the garments that they shall make: a breast piece, an ephod, a robe, a coat of checker work, a turban, and a sash. They shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother and his sons to serve me as priests.  They shall receive gold, blue, and purple, and scarlet yarns, and fine twined linen.

“And they shall make the ephod of gold, of blue and purple and scarlet yarns, and of fine twined linen, skillfully worked.  It shall have two shoulder pieces attached to its two edges, so that it may be joined together.  And the skillfully woven band on it shall be made like it and be of one piece with it, of gold, blue, and purple, and scarlet yarns, and fine twined linen.  You shall take two onyx stones, and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel,  six of their names on the one stone, and the names of the remaining six on the other stone, in the order of their birth.  As a jeweler engraves signets, so shall you engrave the two stones with the names of the sons of Israel. You shall enclose them in settings of gold filigree.  And you shall set the two stones on the shoulder pieces of the ephod, as stones of remembrance for the sons of Israel. And Aaron shall bear their names before the Lord on his two shoulders for remembrance.  You shall make settings of gold filigree,  and two chains of pure gold, twisted like cords; and you shall attach the corded chains to the settings.

 

As I read Exodus 28:1-14, one verse caught my attention, verse three. Maybe it would be wise to ponder.  You shall speak to all the skillful, whom I have filled with a spirit of skill. How many people do you encounter that God has blessed with skills and talents, looks, and a great mind, and believe it was their doing?  In my career in sales.  I often told people who I work for and my customers that would say You are good at what you do;” I’m a composite of all those professionals in sales that I’ve encountered.”  And there was some truth in that statement. I often learn from them, but who gave them the skills they have?  My question to me and maybe to you is, where did the skills, the talents, the mind, and our good appearance come from?  And why are we willing to give credit to others but not to God?

Maybe it is time to open your Bible to James 1:17, which states, "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change." 

In Exodus 31:1-3, we have a very clear picture of how God has blessed you and me, “The Lord said to Moses,  “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah,  and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship,” 

That being true, why not apply Romans 12:3, “For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.”

If you are a follower of Christ and believe you are better than another brother or sister in Christ because of your spiritual gifts, you need to examine yourself. I Corinthians 12:4-11 makes it clear that these gifts have been given to serve others.  “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of work, but in all of them and in everyone, it is the same God at work. Now to each one, the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous power, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 

All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.

 

Let me share my thoughts about myself. I’m not sure why you do it, maybe for some of the same reasons.  I never applied myself in school; I did not see the value in learning at that time in my life. I just wanted to be noticed.  I was one of the smallest in my class for many years, and I chose to be somebody by association, and who I wanted to be like, the smart kids, not to mention they were popular.  So, my kind of flesh, needing to be noticed, needs to be included, but on my terms.  When you grow up with that kind of mindset, you’re not very secure, and so once more, you look to others who seem to be the best at whatever needs to be done.  One big problem was that fear and insecurity do not go away with becoming a new person in Christ.  I was trained like a bird dog on how to get my needs met outside of Christ.  For many years, I was that man, and then one day early in my career, I was putting a copy machine in my car and saw a young man in a suit, who looked very sharp and handsome, going into my office, and I just knew that he would get my job.  And at that moment of fear and insecurity, I heard a voice in my head that said, Bob, I have given you skills and talents to be the best at this job, and I listened and went about my day, and never again did I doubt that God had blessed me.  I did look at others who were real pros in sales, but often what they did was not a fit for the gifts God had given me.  Was I blessed by the many who helped me improve? You bet, but they were sent by my Lord.

 

Let's end with 1 Timothy 6:6-8, “But godliness with contentment is great gain,  for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.  But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.”

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice

The Armor God has given His Church

 

The Armor God has given His Church

 

Lord, How, do I put on the Armor?

 

By Jan Rice

 

It is of utmost importance to understand the Armor Has only been given to His Church and it is a Gift to use in all areas of Life.

 

Breastplate of Righteousness

 

2 Corinthians 5:21, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

 

Romans 8:1-4, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.  For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.  For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”

 

Nothing can separate us from the Love of God if we stand with the Breastplate of Righteousness protecting.  We walk as children of the Light. 

 

·      Be angry and do not sin.

·      Don’t give the devil an opportunity to steal your peace.

·      Steal no more but labor.

·      No unwholesome words.

·      Confess sin, an agree with God.

 

Sons can’t be kicked out of God’s house.

 

 

Shoes of Peace

 

Put on the shoes of peace and take the gospel to others.  You are putting on Christ-being at peace with God thru Christ.

 

·      Peace with God

·      Peace with others

Do Not’s

·      Don’t let anger rob you of Peace

·      Do not allow unwholesome words 

·      Bitterness will defile you, so put away bitterness.

·      Confess sin, agree with God.

·      Satan wants disobedience; sin given him power; it will hold you captive.

·      Peace comes after obedience.

 

Review of the Breastplate of Righteousness

 

We are declared righteous, so we need to walk righteously.

 

The shoes of Peace

 

Shoe your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace.

·      Peace with God

·      Living in peace with man.

These are the areas that will Rob your Peace

 

·      Anger, bitterness, and unforgiveness.

·      Those will keep us from walking in Righteousness.

·      Steal your peace.

·      These three above will open the door for the enemy to gain a foothold.

 

What two pieces of Armor must the follower of Christ take up to stand firm against the enemy?

 

Shield of Faith

 

Ephesians 6:16, “In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one;”

 

Want does the Shield of Faith Do?

·      It extinguishes all not some of the flaming darts.

 

What was the purpose of a flaming dart, then and now?

 

Answer from Got Question

An arrow is a deadly weapon used in warfare since ancient times. Arrows were forcibly thrown or projected at a target but were not self-propelled. The original Greek word (belē) used in Ephesians 6:16 could be translated as “arrow,” “dart,” “javelin,” “spear,” or “missile.” Flaming arrows were sharp, piercing projectiles that, in Paul’s day, were dipped in a flammable substance and set on fire before being launched at an enemy (see Psalm 120:4). Their purpose was to cause widespread destruction and death.

The flaming arrows of the evil one in Ephesians 6:16 represent all the wicked schemes the devil devises and then hurls at us to weaken and undermine our faith. Determined to take us down, Satan loads his bow and quiver, always ready to attack (1 Peter 5:8–9). He shoots his flaming arrows or “fiery darts” (NKJV) at our minds and hearts (Romans 7:22–23; 12:2; Ephesians 4:23; Matthew 15:18–19).

 

Without the second piece of Armon no one can Stand

 

The Helmet of Salvation

 

Purpose of the Helmet?

 

Our helmet is the assurance of Salvation.

Question: What does it mean to take up the helmet?

Answer: To put on the helmet of salvation is to know with an absolute certainty you belong to the Lord Jesus Christ and are a member of His forever family.  It is to know and embrace your identity in Christ.

Question: What three aspects of salvation does the helmet cover?

·      I have received Justification

·      I am being sanctified

·      I shall be glorified 

 

 

 

Why do you need the Shield of Faith and the Helmet of Salvation?

 

Question: What is Satan primary objective?

Answer: Getting us to sin

Question: What does he target?

Answer:  Both the heart and mind.

 

What principles can we learn about warfare from 

2 Corinthians10:3-6?

“For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh.  For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.  We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete.”

 

The first item we must put on is the belt of Truth

Without Truth, all is for nothing.

Pilate asked Jesus What is Truth?

John 10:36-38, “You are a king, then!” said Pilate.

Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”

“What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this, he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him. 

Pilate is like so many who go by the title of Christian; they ask a question, but are not willing to wait for the answer.  If he had, he would have heard the following: "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6

Jesus is the Truth; the devil is the father of lies, and if you are seeking truth, run to Jesus.

 

From our Back Porch,

Jan Rice