Just as a bit of background, here are the requirements of the Old Testament for entry into the priesthood for the Jews.
In Ezra 2:61,62 we read… “And of the children of the priests: the children of Ha-ba’-iah, the children of Koz, the children of Bar-zil’la-i; which took a wife of the daughters of Bar-zil’la-i the Gil’e-ad-ite, and was called after their name. These sought their register among those that were reckoned by genealogy, but they were not found; therefore were they, as polluted, put from the priesthood.” (KJV).
Then in Nehemiah 7:64, referring to the same group… “These sought their register among those that were reckoned by genealogy, but it was not found; therefore were they, as polluted, put from the priesthood.”
So we see that if someone were to be accepted into the priesthood of Israel, their genealogical record had to be available. Since the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem in 70 A.D., when all the genealogical records were destroyed, and the death of the priests then living, there has been no O.T. priesthood. And of course as a result there has been no animal blood sacrifice.
In the Revelation (or Apokalupsis, which means: disclosure, or manifestation) of Jesus Christ given to us through the writing of John, we read in chap. 1, verses 5b, 6... “…Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood, And hath made us kings and priests unto God and His Father; to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” (KJV, caps added). And obviously John was still alive at the time he wrote this.
To clarify the Middle English a bit, here is the same from the NKJV…. “…To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
Just who are the “us” that were so loved, and washed from their sins in the blood shed on Calvary’s Cross and have been made kings and priests that the apostle John is referring to? Well, for one, he includes himself. To find out who others of the “us” are, we need only back up to verse 4... “John, to the seven churches which are in Asia…”
The first of those seven churches is “…the church of Ephesus…” (Rev.2:1). This is one of the churches that Paul ministered to, and is mentioned in Acts 19, where we learn that Paul stayed over two years there, speaking boldly, both in the synagogue (for three months) and then “…in the school of Tyrannus.” And of course Paul wrote the Epistle to the Ephesians.
Just as an aside here… in speaking to representatives of the church in Ephesus with whom he met at Miletus on the way back to Jerusalem, Paul says in verse 25 of Acts 20... “And now, behold, I know that all of you, among whom I went about preaching the kingdom, will no longer see my face.” (NASB).
The aside is relevant, because many of those who would describe themselves as “mid-Acts dispensationalists” claim that Peter and those whose gospel allegedly applied only to the Jews, preached “the kingdom” which in their view was solely for those of the nation of Israel, and that Paul never preached a “kingdom” gospel. Paul would disagree.
As a matter of fact, in Acts 14 after Paul was miraculously brought to life after having been stoned and been taken up for dead (vs.19), and then having preached the gospel in Derbe, Paul and Barnabas went on “…to Lystra, Iconium and (Syrian) Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying ‘We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.’” (vs.21,22).
Then in Colossians 1:13, Paul writes: “He (referring to the Father mentioned in verse 12) has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.”
And in Col.4:10,11... Aristarchus my fellow prisoner saluteth you, and Marcus, sister’s son to Barnabas, (touching whom ye received commandments: if he come unto you, receive him
And Jesus, which is called Justus, who are of the circumcision. These only are my fellow-workers unto the kingdom of God, which have been a comfort unto me.”
To return to the seven churches… the second of the seven is mentioned in Rev. 2:8ff and is described as a persecuted church, and was at Smyrna, which Paul visited on his third missionary journey.
The third church mentioned is the one at Pergamos (or Pergamum), and again, Paul passed through there on the third journey.
The fourth church is located in Thyatira, and is mentioned in Acts 16:14,15... “Now a certain woman named Lydia heard us. She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira, who worshipped God. The Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul. And when she and her household were baptized, she begged us saying, ‘If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.’ So she persuaded us.” (i.e. to go to her house in Thyatira).
This too is an interesting scripture, as many dispensationalists deny that water baptism is valid for those who believe and become members of the Body-of-Christ/Church. Paul thought it was.
The fifth church is at Sardis, which is between Laodicea and Thyatira, and since it is only mentioned in Revelation, Paul may not have preached there, but that is not certain.
The sixth church is at Philadelphia, between Sardis and Laodicea, and again, is mentioned only in the Revelation.
The seventh is the church at Laodicea, and we find this church mentioned in Colossians 2:1... “For I want you to know what a great conflict I have for you and those in Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh…” Although one could come to the conclusion that Paul was including the church at Laodicea as among those who had not seen Paul’s face in the flesh, yet I have three maps (from different sources) detailing the missionary journeys of Paul, and Laodicea appears as a stopping point on all of them during his third journey. Actually, Laodicea and Colossae were very close together.
So… why go through all this? To show that contrary to what many “mid-Acts” to “hyper” dispensationalists teach, Paul preached the same gospel message that Peter preached, and they were in 100% agreement on the issues of baptism (in water by immersion), the kingdom of God, and the priesthood of all genuine believers. (note: I happen to be an Acts 2 dispy).
To get Peter’s take (actually, the Lord’s take through what Peter wrote) on the issue of priesthood, let us look at what Peter has to say in 1 Peter 2:1,2 .… “Wherefore, laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speaking, As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.”
And now verses 9,10... “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness unto His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.” (NKJV).
Who do you think Peter is referring to as those who “…once were not a people but are now the people of God…”? Certainly not the nation of Israel, the Jews, for it does not take much research to find that the Jews were the chosen people of Yahweh. Plus, the Jews had been promised, and had obtained, mercy… multiple times throughout the O.T.
Also, Deuteronomy 32:21 says… “They (the children of Israel) have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked me to anger with their vanities; and I will move them to jealousy with those which are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.” There is no way to legitimately say that God is not referring to a Gentile people both here and in First Peter.
Peter included Gentiles (those who at one time were “not a people” in his first epistle. In his second letter, he says (three times) in the first chapter, that he is writing to remind his readers of what he had presented in his first letter., so we may infer that he is writing to the same people.
So… what bearing does what we have seen so far have on “The Priesthood Of All Believers”?
First of all, we should know just what the function of the O.T. priest was. Their primary function was to make blood sacrifices to atone for, or provide a covering, for the sins of the people.
Only the High Priest was allowed into the Holiest of All, where for a period of time the presence of God abode. He (that is the high priest) could not enter without the blood of sacrifice; first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. See Hebrews chap. 8 & 9.
But Christ came…. “Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.” (Heb. 9:12)
The wonderful truth is, that if we are “in Christ” we have access to the Most Holy Place, at any time, and without any entry fee. The price is paid! That is what our Lord declared from the Cross… “It is finished!” That is the Greek phrase tetel’estai, which means exactly that; the price is paid. There is nothing more that anyone can do to make us acceptable in His sight.
As a result, everyone who puts their trust in the finished work of Calvary’s Cross as the only acceptable payment for their sin is now a member of “…a royal priesthood…” with direct access into the Presence of our Wonderful Saviour and His Father…. (and ours).
WAB
edited to remove smilie which popped up uninvited....
In Ezra 2:61,62 we read… “And of the children of the priests: the children of Ha-ba’-iah, the children of Koz, the children of Bar-zil’la-i; which took a wife of the daughters of Bar-zil’la-i the Gil’e-ad-ite, and was called after their name. These sought their register among those that were reckoned by genealogy, but they were not found; therefore were they, as polluted, put from the priesthood.” (KJV).
Then in Nehemiah 7:64, referring to the same group… “These sought their register among those that were reckoned by genealogy, but it was not found; therefore were they, as polluted, put from the priesthood.”
So we see that if someone were to be accepted into the priesthood of Israel, their genealogical record had to be available. Since the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem in 70 A.D., when all the genealogical records were destroyed, and the death of the priests then living, there has been no O.T. priesthood. And of course as a result there has been no animal blood sacrifice.
In the Revelation (or Apokalupsis, which means: disclosure, or manifestation) of Jesus Christ given to us through the writing of John, we read in chap. 1, verses 5b, 6... “…Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood, And hath made us kings and priests unto God and His Father; to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” (KJV, caps added). And obviously John was still alive at the time he wrote this.
To clarify the Middle English a bit, here is the same from the NKJV…. “…To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
Just who are the “us” that were so loved, and washed from their sins in the blood shed on Calvary’s Cross and have been made kings and priests that the apostle John is referring to? Well, for one, he includes himself. To find out who others of the “us” are, we need only back up to verse 4... “John, to the seven churches which are in Asia…”
The first of those seven churches is “…the church of Ephesus…” (Rev.2:1). This is one of the churches that Paul ministered to, and is mentioned in Acts 19, where we learn that Paul stayed over two years there, speaking boldly, both in the synagogue (for three months) and then “…in the school of Tyrannus.” And of course Paul wrote the Epistle to the Ephesians.
Just as an aside here… in speaking to representatives of the church in Ephesus with whom he met at Miletus on the way back to Jerusalem, Paul says in verse 25 of Acts 20... “And now, behold, I know that all of you, among whom I went about preaching the kingdom, will no longer see my face.” (NASB).
The aside is relevant, because many of those who would describe themselves as “mid-Acts dispensationalists” claim that Peter and those whose gospel allegedly applied only to the Jews, preached “the kingdom” which in their view was solely for those of the nation of Israel, and that Paul never preached a “kingdom” gospel. Paul would disagree.
As a matter of fact, in Acts 14 after Paul was miraculously brought to life after having been stoned and been taken up for dead (vs.19), and then having preached the gospel in Derbe, Paul and Barnabas went on “…to Lystra, Iconium and (Syrian) Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying ‘We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.’” (vs.21,22).
Then in Colossians 1:13, Paul writes: “He (referring to the Father mentioned in verse 12) has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.”
And in Col.4:10,11... Aristarchus my fellow prisoner saluteth you, and Marcus, sister’s son to Barnabas, (touching whom ye received commandments: if he come unto you, receive him
And Jesus, which is called Justus, who are of the circumcision. These only are my fellow-workers unto the kingdom of God, which have been a comfort unto me.”To return to the seven churches… the second of the seven is mentioned in Rev. 2:8ff and is described as a persecuted church, and was at Smyrna, which Paul visited on his third missionary journey.
The third church mentioned is the one at Pergamos (or Pergamum), and again, Paul passed through there on the third journey.
The fourth church is located in Thyatira, and is mentioned in Acts 16:14,15... “Now a certain woman named Lydia heard us. She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira, who worshipped God. The Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul. And when she and her household were baptized, she begged us saying, ‘If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.’ So she persuaded us.” (i.e. to go to her house in Thyatira).
This too is an interesting scripture, as many dispensationalists deny that water baptism is valid for those who believe and become members of the Body-of-Christ/Church. Paul thought it was.
The fifth church is at Sardis, which is between Laodicea and Thyatira, and since it is only mentioned in Revelation, Paul may not have preached there, but that is not certain.
The sixth church is at Philadelphia, between Sardis and Laodicea, and again, is mentioned only in the Revelation.
The seventh is the church at Laodicea, and we find this church mentioned in Colossians 2:1... “For I want you to know what a great conflict I have for you and those in Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh…” Although one could come to the conclusion that Paul was including the church at Laodicea as among those who had not seen Paul’s face in the flesh, yet I have three maps (from different sources) detailing the missionary journeys of Paul, and Laodicea appears as a stopping point on all of them during his third journey. Actually, Laodicea and Colossae were very close together.
So… why go through all this? To show that contrary to what many “mid-Acts” to “hyper” dispensationalists teach, Paul preached the same gospel message that Peter preached, and they were in 100% agreement on the issues of baptism (in water by immersion), the kingdom of God, and the priesthood of all genuine believers. (note: I happen to be an Acts 2 dispy).
To get Peter’s take (actually, the Lord’s take through what Peter wrote) on the issue of priesthood, let us look at what Peter has to say in 1 Peter 2:1,2 .… “Wherefore, laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speaking, As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.”
And now verses 9,10... “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness unto His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.” (NKJV).
Who do you think Peter is referring to as those who “…once were not a people but are now the people of God…”? Certainly not the nation of Israel, the Jews, for it does not take much research to find that the Jews were the chosen people of Yahweh. Plus, the Jews had been promised, and had obtained, mercy… multiple times throughout the O.T.
Also, Deuteronomy 32:21 says… “They (the children of Israel) have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked me to anger with their vanities; and I will move them to jealousy with those which are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.” There is no way to legitimately say that God is not referring to a Gentile people both here and in First Peter.
Peter included Gentiles (those who at one time were “not a people”
in his first epistle. In his second letter, he says (three times) in the first chapter, that he is writing to remind his readers of what he had presented in his first letter., so we may infer that he is writing to the same people.So… what bearing does what we have seen so far have on “The Priesthood Of All Believers”?
First of all, we should know just what the function of the O.T. priest was. Their primary function was to make blood sacrifices to atone for, or provide a covering, for the sins of the people.
Only the High Priest was allowed into the Holiest of All, where for a period of time the presence of God abode. He (that is the high priest) could not enter without the blood of sacrifice; first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. See Hebrews chap. 8 & 9.
But Christ came…. “Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.” (Heb. 9:12)
The wonderful truth is, that if we are “in Christ” we have access to the Most Holy Place, at any time, and without any entry fee. The price is paid! That is what our Lord declared from the Cross… “It is finished!” That is the Greek phrase tetel’estai, which means exactly that; the price is paid. There is nothing more that anyone can do to make us acceptable in His sight.
As a result, everyone who puts their trust in the finished work of Calvary’s Cross as the only acceptable payment for their sin is now a member of “…a royal priesthood…” with direct access into the Presence of our Wonderful Saviour and His Father…. (and ours).
WAB
edited to remove smilie which popped up uninvited....
