Prayer – Lord, open our eyes to comprehend Your word and
promises.
He has made us a Kingdom of priests for God his
Father. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen. Revelation 1:6
Meditate. Consider how special you are to God.
Who are these priests of the Kingdom?
Exactly two months
after the Israelites left Egypt, they arrived in the wilderness of Sinai. After
breaking camp at Rephidim, they came to the wilderness of Sinai and set up camp
there at the base of Mount Sinai. Then Moses climbed the mountain to appear before
God. The LORD called to him from the mountain and said, "Give these
instructions to the family of Jacob; announce it to the descendants of Israel:
'You have seen what I did to the Egyptians. You know how I carried you on
eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now if you will obey me and keep my
covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples
on earth; for all the earth belongs to me. And you will be my kingdom of
priests, my holy nation.' This is the message you must give to the people
of Israel." Exodus 19:1-6 (Underlined for emphasis.)
All the earth belongs to God.
The chosen people of God—His treasures are the Kingdom of
priests. Are you a “chosen” person?
You are coming to
Christ, who is the living cornerstone of God's temple. He was rejected by
people, but he was chosen by God for great honor. And you are living stones
that God is building into his spiritual temple. What's more, you are his
holy priests. Through the mediation of Jesus Christ, you offer spiritual
sacrifices that please God. As the Scriptures say, "I am placing a
cornerstone in Jerusalem, chosen for great honor, and anyone who trusts in him
will never be disgraced." Yes, you who trust him recognize the honor God
has given him. But for those who reject him, "The stone that the builders
rejected has now become the cornerstone." And, "He is the stone that
makes people stumble, the rock that makes them fall." They stumble because
they do not obey God's word, and so they meet the fate that was planned for
them. But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are
royal priests, a holy nation, God's very own possession. As a result, you
can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into
his wonderful light. "Once you had no identity as a people; now you are
God's people. Once you received no mercy; now you have received God's
mercy." 1 Peter 2:4-10
In the Strong’s Lexicon, #1588, this “chosen by God”
includes those who obtain salvation through belief in Christ, thus the
Christians are called the “chosen or elect” of God. They are included in the royal
priesthood that Moses, Peter, and John write about. If you are a believer…you are or will be a
royal priest for God, a kingdom priest.
Verse of Salvation ~ While Jesus was here on earth, he
offered prayers and pleadings, with a loud cry and tears, to the one who could
rescue him from death. And God heard his prayers because of his deep reverence
for God. Even though Jesus was God's Son, he learned obedience from the things
he suffered. In this way, God qualified him as a perfect High Priest, and he
became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him. Hebrews
5:7-9
Happy Birthday Blessings, Harriett!
© 2023 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All
rights reserved.
All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless
otherwise noted.
New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale
House Foundation.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream,
Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm.
Books by Mickey M.
Hunacek
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