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PRIEST AND SACRIFICE

by Jerry Ousley  
11/18/2011 / Christian Living

This subject demands some definitions. The office of priest can be found in many religions. A priest is an individual who mediates between the object of worship and man. He stands in office above other humans because he or she (and she would be a priestess) is supposedly holier than other people. They are to be next to the god being worshipped. I define it so vaguely because most religions sport a priest or priestess. A sacrifice is something that we dearly love or is of great value to us and we willingly give it up as an offering to a deity.

Okay, let's move from the general to the specific. In Christianity priests are found in only a few denominations such as Catholic, Episcopalian, and Anglican. There may be a few others but these would be the largest groups. Other Christian denominations are considered Protestant (which is a subject for another day) and have pastors, ministers, deacons, and preachers.

When someone would present a sacrifice in Old Testament days they would bring their offering which was usually a bull, goat, or sheep, to the priest. He would kill the animal, burn part of it on the altar and keep a good portion of the lean meat which provided food for the priestly order. This was the way God had set it up.

With these facts in mind let's take a look at the Christian faith. Now I have my opinion on this matter but for the sake of today's subject I'm not going to express it. But I will say that I don't know too many priests or ministers in Christianity who would really like the messy, bloody job that Aaron and his descendants had. On the surface it may have seemed like a glorious position but in a way they were nothing more than holy, religious butchers. Day in and day out they took the lives of animals then cut them up into pieces, stood by while the stench of burning flesh arose in the atmosphere and constantly had their hands in blood. They sprinkled it on the altar and what wasn't part of the sacrifice was drained from the animal's body before it was passed to the next stage. If I have my facts straight there was a drainage ditch that ran from the altar to the brook Kidron, especially after the construction of the Temple, and this brook was said to have run red from all the sacrifices Not a very glorious job if you ask me! I mean, I get queasy at the sight of blood especially from another person or animal. I wouldn't make a good doctor or surgeon and I certainly wouldn't make a good priest! No thanks; someone else can have that job, thank you very much!

The priest was supposed to be holier than all other people. He was to be the one who heard from God and led the people in religious worship. But as we read the history of Israel in the Old Testament we find that there were flaws in many of those who held the office of High Priest. By law they were to have no physical flaws (which is another miraculous feat because most of us have something about us physically that isn't perfect and who am I kidding; there's a lot of physical flaws with me just take one look at my face!), but inside, in their heart of hearts there were many flaws. Some of them were selfish. Some cheated the people and looked for ways that they could become wealthy from the religious practice. And while we're being honest let's just face up to the fact that many priests and ministers today are also extremely flawed; how many Christian leaders have been caught up in child abuse, adultery, embezzlement of church funds, and on and on we could go! It's no excuse but folks we aren't perfect and that's a fact!

Jesus not only became our great High Priest Who was and is perfect in every way, but He also became the final sacrifice for our sin. We read in Hebrews 9:11-14, "But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation. 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. For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" Wow! What a statement and question! He is our perfect High Priest The only one truly worthy to stand between God and man. He not only mediates for us and God but He Himself became the sacrifice to finally and once for all, pay for our sin.

Now we can come before God in genuine worship because we stand with Christ by our side. Now we can accept the sacrifice for our sin because God already has. All we've got to do is to accept Him, believe Him, repent of our sin and turn to Him. Allow Him to complete the work by coming into our lives by way of the Holy Spirit and we can stand clean and in His holiness! Talk about a deal we can't refuse

Jerry D. Ousley is the author of ?Soul Challenge?, ?Soul Journey?, ?Ordeal?, ?The Spirit Bread Daily Devotional and his first novel ?The Shoe Tree.? Visit our website at spiritbread.com to download these and more completely free of charge.

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