Malachi 2:6 describes he passed on to the people all the truth he got from me. He did not lie or cheat; he walked with me, living a good and righteous life, and turned many from their lives of sin.
In this description of one of God’s favorite people, Levi, He is describing the role of the priest. At least among the Protestants, the belief is held that all Christians are now priests. The tribe of Levi has been replaced with the Spirit filled people of God who walk by faith and obedience under the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
The world is increasingly moving away from God and toward chaos, rebellion and anarchy. This is the natural behavior of humanity.
What the world needs is a restoration to God which results in a Spirit empowerment for loving one another and doing those things that please God. This restoration is made possible through the work of Jesus Christ and is to be conducted by the Church, the priesthood of all believers.
As we begin a new year let us consider how we might become better priests to a world desperate for love.
The key elements of a priest described in our verse begin with seeking God to know and obey Him ourselves. Truth comes from God, is received by the priest and is shared with people. We must get better at knowing God so we are better at communicating and living what is right and wrong.
This is the second element of a priest: he lives what he speaks. Christians need to dial up their holiness, their righteous living, their obedience to the Lord God Almighty. All Christians, all priests, are under the authority of the High Priest to whom we demonstrate our loyalty and love as we obey His commands.
Finally we work toward turning others to God’s point of view. An essential and fundamental truth in Christianity is that people are born rebellious against God and must be restored to God through the person of Jesus Christ. When people turn from their wicked ways and submit to the ways of God the Spirit of God is released into them to empower them to do those things that please God.
This is the ultimate goal of God: His Kingdom come and His will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
His faithful priests, you and me, are the means for accomplishing God’s goal for 2015 and beyond.
Is “replaced” is the correct term? “The tribe of Levi has been replaced with the Spirit filled people of God who walk by faith and obedience under the Lordship of Jesus Christ.” Are we not “grafted in” to the olive tree which represents Israel? Obviously the sacrifice has been made once for all by our High Priest, Jesus Christ, and the temple in Jerusalem is not owned by Israel so no further sacrifice can be offered there. Now you have me curious about the other priestly duties…need to study my “Torah” some more.