For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence. Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself.” –Hebrews 9:24-26

In order to set the high priest and his sons apart for service, God commanded that they participate in a public consecration ceremony that lasted a week. During this time, the priests had to remain in the tabernacle precincts. My last post summarized the first two stages of this ceremony. Below are the following five stages.

• The priests were anointed (Ex. 29:7, 21; Lev. 8:10-12, 30). In the Old Testament, God granted priests, prophets, and kings His Holy Spirit for empowerment and service (Luke 4:17-19; Isa. 61:1-3). A special oil was used only to anoint the priests, tabernacle and its furnishings. Moses poured the oil over Aaron’s head. The oil flowed down his beard—covering his breastplate and stones that represent Israel’s tribes—displaying a beautiful picture of unity in the Lord (Ps. 133:2).

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Under the new covenant, the Holy Spirit’s anointing isn’t reserved just for priests, prophets, and kings. Those who have placed their trust in Jesus as Lord and Savior have also received an anointing of God’s Spirit (1 John 2:20, 27; 2 Cor. 1:21-22). The Holy Spirit is the “down payment” of future glory. He has both anointed and sealed us by His Spirit.

• The priests were forgiven (Ex. 29:10-14).
  

  Jesus Christ is our sin offering. We find forgiveness in Him alone (Isa. 53:4-6, 12; Matt. 26:28; 2 Cor. 5:21; 1 Peter 2:24; Rev. 1:5-6).

  To atone for the priests’ sins, they had to sacrifice a slain bull (Lev. 4; 8:14-17). This sin offering was to be repeated daily for a week (Ex. 29:36-37) to cleanse not only themselves, but also to sanctify the altar where the priests would minister.

• The priests were completely dedicated to God (Ex. 29:15-18; Lev. 8:18-21). God expected the high priest and his associates to fully devote themselves to their work of ministry. Total dedication to the Lord is depicted when the animal is completely given to Him during the burnt offering sacrifice (Lev. 1). Likewise, Jesus held nothing back in both His ministry before the cross and becoming our sacrifice on the cross.
• The priests were marked by the blood (Ex. 29:19-22; Lev. 8:22-24). Warren Wiersbe (Be Delivered) writes: “At this point in the ordination ceremony, we would have expected Moses to offer a trespass offering (Lev. 5), but instead, he offered a ram as a peace offering, “the ram of consecration” (Ex. 29:22). The Hebrew word means “filling” because the priests’ hands were filled with bread and meat.” Moses not only sprinkled the blood—along with the anointing oil—on Aaron, his sons, and the altar, but also marked each man with some blood on the right thumb, right big toe, and right earlobe as a reminder to the following: Listen to God’s Word; carry out God’s work; and follow God’s way. As the blood speaks of sacrifice, the priests became “living sacrifices” in their service of the Lord (Rom. 12:1).
• The priests were fed (Ex. 29:22-28, 31-34; Lev. 8:25-29). As part of the priests’ payment for serving at the altar, pieces from some of the offerings—along with special harvest tithes—were given to them. However, they were to eat in the tabernacle precincts and view these gifts as holy sacrifices. The priests’ hands were filled from the “food basket” (Ex. 29:2-3) and from the altar (vv. 22-28). Then the priests would wave these gifts toward the altar in devotion to God. Lastly, they shared this food in a fellowship meal (vv. 31-34). The priests would never lack for nourishment if they faithfully encouraged Israel to obey God and taught His Word. Sadly—in later years—some of the priests lost sight of God and His commands as they consumed the best for themselves (1 Sam. 2:12-17; Mal. 1:6-14).

Upon completion of their ordination ceremony, the priests immediately entered into ministry with no allotted vacation or sick days. Their daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly schedule were charted in the law that God gave Moses on Mount Sinai. Every day would start with sacrificing a lamb as a burnt offering. This signified the people’s total dedication to God. The day also ended with offering another lamb as a burnt offering. Wiersbe observes: “That’s a good example for us to follow, opening and closing the day with surrender to the Lord. . . . The flour and wine [given as a meal offering] represented the results of the people’s labor in the fields and the vineyards. Symbolically, they were presenting the fruit of their toil to God and thanking Him for the strength to work and for food to eat (Deut. 8:6-18). The wine poured out was a picture of their lives poured out in His service (Phil. 2:17; 2 Tim. 4:6, NIV).”

Reflect

The priests’ first obligation was to minister to God. What does this mean for God’s people today? Who has been anointed with the Holy Spirit today? What is gained from this anointing? What does it mean for believers to present their bodies as a living and holy sacrifice (Rom. 12:1)?