Consider Your Calling – Tezaveh – Feb. 28

What do you want to be when you grow up? A doctor, lawyer, teacher, or an architect? I remember thinking about this as a child and dreaming of owning a large construction company. I loved to build and I wanted to do it on a grand scale. I had a painting and light construction business when I was in my university days and enjoyed building and making things new for my customers but at one point I realized that there had to be more to life than simply doing business. I came to faith in God as a young adult and started a spiritual journey that allowed me to think beyond the question of “What do I want to be when I grow up?” to “What does God want me to be?”

What does God want me to be?

Growth is a process that we don’t always understand. Physically we grow up and there are things we experience in life along with many choices along the way. It is very similar in our spiritual life. We are constantly being confronted with various teachings, books, or perspectives from different spiritual leaders and making decisions in regards to our spirit. The question which I believe everyone of us on this planet considers at some point along the journey is “Who is God and what does He really want from me? Various religions try to answer this in different ways. Even amongst those who believe in the Holy Bible, both Jews and Christians, there are various perspectives on how to best answer this question. What does God want from me? Does He really care what my profession will be, with whom I will marry, where I live, and how I live my life?

I believe in the God of the Bible who has created us with a free will to make decisions in this life that He gives to us. He gives us desires and we have a great amount of freedom to act on those desires within His parameters. However, I also believe that God does have a specific plan and purpose for each one of us on a spiritual level and we have the choice to accept or reject this calling. It is the calling of a priest. I believe God has called all of us to the priesthood.

The Calling of a Priest

Most of us have a perspective of a priest based on what we have seen in the world around us, in the catholic church or other streams of Christianity. However, I believe that these earthly institutions have done a disservice, in some regards, to what God really intended. We read of the office of the priesthood in this week’s Torah Portion. Stay with me until the end as I make my case.

The Example of Aaron & Sons

This week’s Torah Portion (Ex. 27:20 – Ex. 30:10) focuses on the sanctifying of Aaron and his sons to be priests unto God. God told Moses to bring Aaron and his sons near to him to minister as priests to God (Ex. 28:1). God gave specific instructions about the clothing of the priests including the ephod and the breast piece of judgement (Ex. 28:2-43). God then told Moses to consecrate Aaron and his sons as priests in a specific way (Ex. 29:1-2). Moses was to take a young bull and two rams without blemish, unleavened bread and oil. Moses was to take Aaron and his sons to the doorway of the tent of meeting, wash them, and dress them in the priestly clothes. Moses was then to anoint Aaron his brother by pouring oil over his head (Ex. 29:1-9).

The Sin Offering

Aaron and his sons were then to place their hands on the head of the bull. The bull was then to be slaughtered at the doorway of the tent of meeting. The blood was put on the horns of the altar. The fat and insides of the bull were to be burned on the altar but the flesh and hide were to be burned outside of the camp. This sacrifice was a sin offering (Ex. 29:10-14).

Sanctifying the Altar

Then one of the rams was to be taken and Aaron and his sons were again to lay their hands on the head of the ram. The ram was then to be sacrificed and the blood of the ram was to be sprinkled on the altar. The whole ram was to be cut up into pieces and consumed on the altar. It was to be an offering to the LORD for the sanctification of the altar (Ex. 29:15-18).

Sanctifying the Priests

The second ram was slaughtered and the blood of the ram was to be put on Aaron and his sons. The blood was to be put on their right ear lobes, right thumbs, and right big toes. Some of the blood was also sprinkled on the altar. Then the blood was mixed with the anointing oil and it was sprinkled on Aaron, his sons, and on their garments. It was through this process that they were consecrated and made holy unto God (Ex. 29:19-21).

Sanctification through Sacrifice and Seven Days

No priest could come to God anyway he chose, but rather through the prescribed manner in which God dictated to Moses. God is a holy God and must be approached in a holy manner. It was through a process of seven days with daily sacrifices that both Aaron, his sons, and the altar were consecrated and made holy (Ex. 29:35-37).

The Forever Daily Sacrifice

God then commanded that a daily offering be made on the altar continually, twice a day, morning and evening, FOREVER (Ex. 29:38-46). It would be a continual burnt offering throughout the generations of the Israelites at the doorway to the tent of meeting (Moed – מועד) before the LORD. It was here at the place of the altar where the sacrifice was made that God said that He would “meet with you (plural) there and I will speak to you (singular) there” (Ex. 29:42). The end goal of this whole priestly system and the sacrifices was a means for God to meet and communicate with His people.

Why does God use the plural and the singular of “you” in the same verse?

In Exodus 29:42, as indicated above, the Hebrew uses two different forms of the pronoun “you” when God is speaking, “I will meet with you (sing.) to speak to you (pl) there.” Why would God chose this wording? It may be because God would meet with the people of Israel collectively but would only speak to a representative of the people, as they requested. Or it could mean that God will meet with anyone who comes to Him through sacrifice and will speak with them individually there. God is a personal God. God knows us each by name and He desires to communicate with us.

God Dwells in the midst of His People

In the last few verses of Exodus 29 God reiterates that His desire is to meet with and dwell among His people (Exodus 29:43-46). Orthodox Religious Judaism has a difficult time accepting and believing that Almighty God can actually dwell with human beings. For example, in Exodus 29:45 God clearly stated in the text, “And I will dwell in the midst of the sons of Israel and I will be their God.” However, Onkelos, a respected Jewish Orthodox translation reads like this, “I will cause my Shekhinah to dwell among the Israelites, and I will be their God.” Onkelos adds “I will cause” before the phrase “Shekhinah” (God’s presence) when the Bible mentions God dwelling among the Israelites to indicate that it is not God Himself who will dwell with the Israelites but simply an aspect of His presence. Onkelos translates Ex. 29:46 in a similar manner with regard to God dwelling in the midst of His people, “that I may cause my Shekhinah to dwell among them.” (Onkelos on the Torah, Shmeot). Religious Judaism is trying to protect the glory and honor of a holy God. It is incomprehensible that a holy God can dwell with sinful human beings, however, is it impossible?

God is holy and His incomprehensible nature cannot be overstated. God is more than our limited minds can comprehend and we only have His Word and His Holy Spirit to guide us and give us understanding. One thing, however, that is clear from this week’s Torah Portion is the desire for God to dwell with His people and communicate with them through the foundation of sacrifice. God can only meet with us and communicate with us through sacrifice. Our sins must be atoned for in order for us to draw near to God and for Him to draw near to us.

God’s Ultimate Plan

God established a priesthood with a sacrificial system in order to sanctify His people and dwell in their midst but this was not God’s original plan. What I mean is that God’s original plan was not simply that a few would represent the whole before God through a select priesthood.  God desired that all of His people would be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation before him by listening to His voice (Ex. 19:5-6) but the children of Israel rejected the voice of God and wanted a representative (Ex. 20:18-19). God wants all of His children to be priests, to be sanctified through the atoning sacrifice, and to draw near to Him. God wants to dwell with us. This is part of who He is as Immanuel.

God is calling us to Himself today. He wants us to draw near to Him and dwell with Him. We can only draw near to God through the blood of a sacrifice and this is why Yeshua came to be our sacrifice. Yeshua actually became both our continual sacrifice and our forever high priest. It is through His life, death, and resurrection that we have confidence today to draw near to God and to enter into His presence (Hebrews 4:14-16).

Through the book of Revelation we get glimpse into God’s plan in the last days and the future He has for those who are called by His Name. In Revelation chapter five we read of an extraordinary scene where Yeshua is revealed. The book of seals was in the hand of God, who is sitting on His throne. No one was found worthy to open the book accept Yeshua, the Lamb of God. Yeshua took the book of seals from Him who sat on the throne. At this point the four living creatures and the 24 elders broke out in praise and sang a new song,
“Worthy art Thou to take the book, and to break its seals; for Thou wast slain, and didst purchase for God with Thy blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. And Thou hast made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.” – Rev. 5:9-10
The living creatures and elders declared that Yeshua was slain to purchase for God by His blood men from every tongue, people and nation to be a kingdom and priests to our God upon the earth. It was only through the sacrifice of Yeshua and by His blood that we are given the right and opportunity to be brought to God and made priests of God.

Fulfilling our Priesthood

All of those who believe in God and His Messiah, Yeshua, have a calling along with specific spiritual gifts that we are to use to serve and buildup others. However, one calling that we all have is to be priests to our God and part of our service is defined in this same section of Revelation chapter five. Revelation 5:8 speaks of “golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.” No matter what our circumstances are, our gifting or our ability, we can all draw near to God and make supplication to Him through our prayers. We are called to be priests to God. Let us take our calling as priests of God seriously, draw near to Him, and never cease to pray for His Kingdom to come and His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Shabbat Shalom!

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Torah Portion: Ex. 27:20 – Ex. 30:10

Hafatara: Ezekiel 43:10-27

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