Set Apart For His Service
In February 2015, I was ordained as an associate pastor through a Progressive National Baptist Convention member church. The ceremony included my charge to be in God’s service, to preach His word and to carry out my service in a way that was pleasing to Him. Hands were laid on me, I was anointed with oil and I was prayed over. There was preaching and singing and the whole ceremony stirred deep emotion within me. It was truly a transformative experience. In Exodus 29:1–9, 35–37, Aaron and his sons are consecrated and ordained for service as priests as a lasting ordinance (i.e. priests forever by God’s command). Their purification, anointing, donning of priestly garments and the sacrifices offered, all served to prepare them for their service and make them conscious of God’s holiness and His expectations of them to be holy in their service. You may not have had an ordination ceremony, but you too have been set apart for God’s ministry. I pray that you would know that you serve a holy God and that your service unto Him is to be holy. Amen
“This is what you are to do to consecrate them, so they may serve me as priests: Take a young bull and two rams without defect. And from the finest wheat flour make round loaves without yeast, thick loaves without yeast and with olive oil mixed in, and thin loaves without yeast and brushed with olive oil. Put them in a basket and present them along with the bull and the two rams. Then bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance to the tent of meeting and wash them with water. (Exodus 29:1-4)
Given the failure of the nation of Israel to act as the royal priesthood that God called them to be, God instructed Moses to consecrate (set aside for a holy purpose) Aaron and his sons for the priesthood. Moses was instructed to gather the ingredients to use for the consecration ceremony. These included a bull and two rams, fine flour and olive oil. With the flour Moses was instructed to make loaves of bread, cakes and wafers without yeast. The bread, cakes and wafers were to be presented along with the bull and rams. Then Aaron and his sons were to be ceremonially cleansed at the entrance of the tabernacle.
Take the garments and dress Aaron with the tunic, the robe of the ephod, the ephod itself and the breastpiece. Fasten the ephod on him by its skillfully woven waistband. Put the turban on his head and attach the sacred emblem to the turban. Take the anointing oil and anoint him by pouring it on his head. Bring his sons and dress them in tunics and fasten caps on them. Then tie sashes on Aaron and his sons. The priesthood is theirs by a lasting ordinance.
“Then you shall ordain Aaron and his sons. (Exodus 29:5-9)
After cleansing Aaron and his sons, Moses was instructed to put the priestly garments on them. Moses was instructed to first dress Aaron, including the ephod and breastpiece (containing the Urim and Thummim which were used to receive divine guidance from God) which was to be worn by the high priest. Aaron was to be anointed by Moses with the pouring of oil over his head, symbolizing his appointment for special service to God. After dressing and anointing Aaron, Moses was to dress Aaron‘s sons. God told Moses to ordain Aaron and his sons and commanded that the priesthood would belong to Aaron and his sons by a “lasting ordinance” (order/decree).
“Do for Aaron and his sons everything I have commanded you, taking seven days to ordain them. Sacrifice a bull each day as a sin offering to make atonement . Purify the altar by making atonement for it, and anoint it to consecrate it. For seven days make atonement for the altar and consecrate it. Then the altar will be most holy, and whatever touches it will be holy. (Exodus 29:35-37)
God instructed Moses to ordain Aaron and his sons in a ceremony lasting 7 days. In addition to what Moses was instructed to do to consecrate Aaron and his sons for their service as priests, Moses was instructed to consecrate the altar. The altar was to be consecrated and purified for 7 days by anointing and the sin offering sacrifice of bulls.
God’s instructions for consecrating the priests and the altar that would be used for offering sacrifices, were specific and intended to be followed exactly. Likewise, God would later give Aaron and his sons specific instructions regarding their service in the tabernacle. It wasn’t long after their ordination that two of Aaron’s sons ignored God’s protocols and commands regarding their service in the tabernacle. They failed to keep their service holy and paid for their carelessness with their lives. This is an indication that God is holy and He takes holiness seriously. God wants us to be holy as He is holy. Just as Aaron and His sons were set apart for His service to be priests and act as intermediaries between God and Israel, God has called us to be a part of the royal priesthood in service to Him. We are called to help others know God, know His character and know His offer of salvation. He wants us to keep our hearts pure and our minds on Him as we are being transformed to be more like Christ. We don’t have an external tabernacle where God dwells with us, instead God dwells in us. And He wants us to conduct ourselves with the knowledge and conviction that we have been called out and set apart… so that we can serve Him.
Blessings, Rev. Glenn
