[christkid777]

When I first became a Christian I was told by the Spirit that I was a priest of the Most High. I have developed my own ideas as what this meant for me in the way of conduct and behavior but I am a little curious as to how we all see the role of a priest. For the purpose of this thread a priest is a man or woman whom God has selected for His own purposes. You can be a Catholic priest, a protestant pastor, a lay man, prophet, a father leading his own children to the light ect. I would like to remind us all that we are all to be a kingdom of priest and kings unto our God. So what does this mean to you? No trick questions here.

[winsome]

Originally Posted by christkid777

When I first became a Christian I was told by the Spirit that I was a priest of the Most High. I have developed my own ideas as what this meant for me in the way of conduct and behavior but I am a little curious as to how we all see the role of a priest. For the purpose of this thread a priest is a man or woman whom God has selected for His own purposes. You can be a Catholic priest, a protestant pastor, a lay man, prophet, a father leading his own children to the light ect. I would like to remind us all that we are all to be a kingdom of priest and kings unto our God. So what does this mean to you? No trick questions here.

In the Catholic Church we recognise the common priesthood of all believers. We are a royal priesthood (1 Pet 2:9)

However we also recognise some people as having a special role as ordained priests. They have three roles.

Firstly they teach - they are ministers of the word

Secondly they sanctify – they are ministers of the sacraments

Thirdly they govern - they have primary responsibility for leading and ordering the church.

So where does that leave the rest - the laity? The way I see it is that we exercise the same three roles in the world.

Firstly to teach. We do not teach in the same way as ordained priests; we have not had the theological training, but we teach by the way we live our lives. We are meant to make gospel values visible in the world though holy lives.

Secondly to sanctify. We are called to sanctify and consecrate the world we live in to God; to make it more holy. We offer our prayers and the sacrifices of our daily lives.As St. Peter said - to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. (1 Pet 2:5)

Thirdly the ordained priesthood governs. Now we too have this responsibility in the world, ordering temporal affairs as the Catholic Catechism put it. Some are called to that in a very visible way by being school governors, councillors, MPs. But we are all called to lead and to bring order in the different aspects of our daily life, in our family, in our neighbourhoods, in our work.

[christkid777]

That is a very good response. I think it captures the essence of Godly government raining down from the head. If indeed this was a fully functional process the world would be highly blessed by it. I am curious though as to the conduct of the individual who bears the mantle of a priest of God. Any thoughts on that?

The scripture states "we are a royal priesthood a holy nation" I believe we are those who by keeping the "temple of the Holy Spirit" and being "transformed by the renewing of our minds," and growing up in Him bring the gospel of good news to those who are in darkness. There is more but this is what first comes to my mind.

[winsome]

Originally Posted by christkid777

That is a very good response. I think it captures the essence of Godly government raining down from the head. If indeed this was a fully functional process the world would be highly blessed by it. I am curious though as to the conduct of the individual who bears the mantle of a priest of God. Any thoughts on that?

In terms of the three aspects that I suggested these are my first thoughts:

Teach - we teach gospel values by living them out. The prayer of St. Francis springs to mind here.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace,
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy;

But also by being honest, kind, encouraging etc.

Sanctify - by praying for our family friends, people at work and in our neigbourhoods; by praying for situations that need to change.

We can also sanctify by asking God to bless people. I know someone who, when waiting to cross a road, asks God to bless the people in the cars going by. We could ask God to bless houses, offices, shops that we enter.

We can offer up all the trials, tribulations and disappointments of our lived to God as "spiritual sacrifices" as St. Peter suggested

Govern - wherever we have authority or governance we exercise it with justice, compassion and love.

Just a few thoughts

Originally Posted by winsome

In the Catholic Church we recognise the common priesthood of all believers. We are a royal priesthood (1 Pet 2:9)

However we also recognise some people as having a special role as ordained priests. They have three roles.

Firstly they teach - they are ministers of the word

Secondly they sanctify – they are ministers of the sacraments

Thirdly they govern - they have primary responsibility for leading and ordering the church.

So where does that leave the rest - the laity? The way I see it is that we exercise the same three roles in the world.

Firstly to teach. We do not teach in the same way as ordained priests; we have not had the theological training, but we teach by the way we live our lives. We are meant to make gospel values visible in the world though holy lives.

Secondly to sanctify. We are called to sanctify and consecrate the world we live in to God; to make it more holy. We offer our prayers and the sacrifices of our daily lives.As St. Peter said - to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. (1 Pet 2:5)

Thirdly the ordained priesthood governs. Now we too have this responsibility in the world, ordering temporal affairs as the Catholic Catechism put it. Some are called to that in a very visible way by being school governors, councillors, MPs. But we are all called to lead and to bring order in the different aspects of our daily life, in our family, in our neighbourhoods, in our work.

Let me add something to that:

In ALL religions, the main role of a "priest" was/is to offer sacrafice. Some offered up human beings (yuck!) and others animals.

So how does that work with us? First understand: God exists outside of time: There is no past or future for God. He is in the eternal "Now". So Christ's sacrafice on the cross, which for us happened 2000 years ago, is ever present before God. The beauty of the Mass is that, in a mystical way, God makes present before us what is always present before him: The once-for-all sacrafice on Calvary. So when the priest transforms the bread and the wine into the body & blood of Christ, we are present at Calvary, which is why the Mass is referred to as the "sacrafice of the Mass". So, we do not sacrifiice Christ again and again as some people wrongly think, rather the once-for-all sacrafice of Christ is RE-presented before us in time.

Now here is an even more beautiful thing: The bread and wine represent our work, the fruit of the vine and the work of human hands. When that bread and wine are transformed, our work - OUR sacrafices - are joined with the sacrafice of Christ and offered back to the Father. It is mystical and it is amazing. So this is how I perform my priestly role, and why the ministerial priesthood is essential in the overall priesthood of believers.

[christkid777]

When I think about the role of a priest I tend to think in terms of relationships. To be real as a priest one must be in a relationship with the Almighty. And it helps to be in a relationship with the people He is in relationship with as well. This is because the priest is to serve as an outlet for the thoughts and conversation of God. This implies that an apostle and a prophet are both operating in a priestly role. That is not to say that God only speaks through a priest, He will speak to all who seek Him out, but each person who knows God must be careful to faithfully pass on what God gives him or her. They must be able to subdue their own opinions and desires when the representation of God is concerned. I honestly believe all are called to be priest. In one form or another. But just like some people are more diligent in the way they perform their jobs so there are those who are willing to set aside more of themselves to seek out the Lord and make room for Him. We can not live just any old way we want and expect God to bless it. Ultimately it is God who decides who servers Him best. There is no competition but if one person has given all and seeks the Lord day and night as Joshua they might get higher billing than one who seeks his own way as Saul did. Having received a high calling is good but it is required that one persevere in that calling. Of course we all hunger for recognition. But you can't just claim the best seats because you want it. Your submission to God and your willingness to serve Him will determine your place at the table. Serving God His way and serving God your way is the difference between Mary and Martha. Both were beloved. Both were saved. But Mary received a better commendation than Martha. Then there is the testimony of Christ. He said "My Father has not left Me because I always do those thing that please Him". Don't get mad, just repent.

A priest is someone who goes before god on behalf of the people. Jesus is our high priest.

( And an OT prophet use to bring god before the people)

[christkid777]

I suppose what I was aiming at is this, and seemed to have missed, is how we would conduct ourselves if we stood before the almighty as His representitive to His people, His priest. We can see ourselves standing there in the robes of office, with the rich adornment and beauty provided by the living Spirit of God. We are shot through and through with the rays of Gods glory, our faces glow with life and our eyes burn with a flame of fire. We are quickened in our inner man with such a spirit of life we feel as if we should lose control and give our very existence up in praise.

And then would we open our mouthes and vomit out a profanity? Would we shuck off the robes of office and slip out of the presence of the Living One and head to the Bar for a cold one? I would like to think we would not. But I am not sure all of us have considered the contridiction in some of our statements and confessions. I know we all love the Lord. I had just hoped to stir a little thought on the subject. Though we may not see it clearly we are already standing in the presence of God. And He walks among us to deliver us. Hear His command to His people of old:

De 23:12 "Also you shall have a place outside the camp, where you may go out;
De 23:13 "and you shall have an implement among your equipment, and when you sit down outside, you shall dig with it and turn and cover your refuse
De 23:14 "For the Lord your God walks in the midst of your camp, to deliver you and give your enemies over to you; therefore your camp shall be holy, that He may see no unclean thing among you, and turn away from you.

How much more important to keep our place before the Lord clean and free of filth in the spiritual sense. Uncluttered with profane things and persistent backslideings.

[danp]

Originally Posted by christkid777

I suppose what I was aiming at is this, and seemed to have missed, is how we would conduct ourselves if we stood before the almighty as His representitive to His people, His priest. We can see ourselves standing there in the robes of office, with the rich adornment and beauty provided by the living Spirit of God. We are shot through and through with the rays of Gods glory, our faces glow with life and our eyes burn with a flame of fire. We are quickened in our inner man with such a spirit of life we feel as if we should lose control and give our very existence up in praise.

And then would we open our mouthes and vomit out a profanity? Would we shuck off the robes of office and slip out of the presence of the Living One and head to the Bar for a cold one? I would like to think we would not. But I am not sure all of us have considered the contridiction in some of our statements and confessions. I know we all love the Lord. I had just hoped to stir a little thought on the subject. Though we may not see it clearly we are already standing in the presence of God. And He walks among us to deliver us. Hear His command to His people of old:

De 23:12 "Also you shall have a place outside the camp, where you may go out;
De 23:13 "and you shall have an implement among your equipment, and when you sit down outside, you shall dig with it and turn and cover your refuse
De 23:14 "For the Lord your God walks in the midst of your camp, to deliver you and give your enemies over to you; therefore your camp shall be holy, that He may see no unclean thing among you, and turn away from you.

How much more important to keep our place before the Lord clean and free of filth in the spiritual sense. Uncluttered with profane things and persistent backslideings.

Hi to all , a simple question ? The context was to Israel , spoken to Israel and Israel was under a Theocracy , but we are indwelt by God the Holy Spirit and do NOT see your Link to us today ?