Priestly Stones

So over the last week, I have been talking about Jesus being our High Priest. If you get a chance to read Hebrews 9:6-7, 11-13, you will see that while there were many priests, the High Priest had one major role: to go into the Holy of Holies once a year on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) to make a sacrifice for himself and the people, for the forgiveness of sin.

That word Yom Kippur… comes from the Hebrew word “Koper” which means “ransom; hush money”. Jesus became our High Priest, giving Himself as the one time for all time sacrifice for the sin of the world, experiencing death, so that we don’t have to. The blood of Jesus HUSHED THE MOUTH OF THE ACCUSER! That’s how we overcome the enemy! By the blood of the Lamb and the Word of our testimony!!! Makes me want to shout!!!!

Why is it so important that you know that Jesus is your High Priest? Because,

When you discover

who He is,

you will recover

who you are!!!

If Jesus is our High Priest, that makes you a priest! Don’t believe me? In Exodus 19:5-6 it was God’s desire that all of Israel, all of God’s people, were priests. But in Exodus 32:25-29, God’s leader, Moses, came down from the mountain of meeting with God, to find God’s people had built a golden calf and were worshipping it! In verse 26, Moses said, “Whoever is for the Lord, come to me.” All the Levites came. From that time forward, (Numbers 1:47-53), the Levites became the priests.

BUT, when Jesus came as our High Priest, He made a way to restore the priesthood to all of God’s people!

Still not convinced?

1 Peter 2:5 “You also like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house TO BE A HOLY PRIESTHOOD, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”

YOU ARE A PRIEST!

I so love how it says we are living “stones”, not living “bricks”. Bricks are all the same. Bricks are reduced to the same shape, size, color, and purpose. Bricks are what God’s people were forced to make in Egypt. Bricks are weighty and often build walls. The enemy sees us as bricks. He wants to reduce us to believe that we are far less than who God created us to be. He wants us to build walls, not bridges.

But God says we are stones. That word actually means “little stones or pebbles”. (Helps us not get too big for our britches!!!) Stones are unique. No two stones are the same. Stones come in different sizes, shapes, colors, and serve various purposes. Stones are not made by force, but by the environment around them…by the water that runs over them over and over again in the same place smoothing them into something different and unique….special.

You are a stone. You are a stone that is very much alive. You help build a spiritual house called the Church. You are an important part of what God is building! No need to compete or compare, because every stone is different and every stone has its perfect place in the building! The enemy may try to make us bricks, but God sees us and says of us that we are stones.

So, may I encourage you today to know and declare this: that you are a priest! You are a unique and beautiful stone that God is using to build up His body, the Church! No apologies for who you are not, no focus on performing to be someone you are not, no pretending to be someone you are not! Just you. A priest. A stone. Highly important to the Kingdom. That’s who you are.

You are loved,

Jena

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