Everything in the typical ceremonial
service of Old Testament worship was designed and intended by
God to point us to the person and work of our Redeemer, to
his finished work upon the cross as our Savior. This is portrayed
clearly in Leviticus chapter 8, as it is in other portions
of Holy Scripture as well. You will, just hold your Bibles
open there, and I want you to listen to the scriptures very
carefully as the scriptures instruct us concerning these things. Aaron
was a type of the Lord Jesus Christ, our high priest, who
made atonement for us by the sacrifice of himself. The Paschal
Lamb was a picture of our Redeemer who died in our stead, satisfying
the wrath and justice of God for us. as the priest in Israel
and the one who came to worship God laid his hands upon the head
of the sacrifice. That portrays faith in the Lord
Jesus Christ. The tabernacle itself was typical
of the whole work of redemption accomplished by Christ for the
glory of God, the whole picture of salvation displaying God's
great grace and glory in Christ our Lord. Now, we need to understand
when we read the Old Testament law, the ceremonies, the pictures,
the prophets, everything is designed to point us to our Redeemer.
The whole purpose of the giving of the law was to point us to
one who would satisfy God's justice, bring in everlasting righteousness,
and put away sin, obtaining eternal redemption for us. In this gospel
age, we worship God, as our Lord said, in spirit and in truth. We are the circumcision, which
worship God in the spirit and rejoice in, that is, trust in
Christ Jesus and have no confidence in the flesh. We are God's elect,
God's true people, worshiping him spiritually. It is idolatrous
for men and women today to call upon any priest other than Christ,
our high priest. It's blasphemous for sinners
to offer any sacrifice to God for sin other than Christ himself
who was once offered for our sins. And it's base superstition
to look upon any material building or any material place as a holy
place, as though somehow this physical building is God's tabernacle,
God's temple, or God's house. Nothing could be further from
the truth. The Church of God, the Church Universal, is the
house of God, the tabernacle of God, the temple of God, the
dwelling place of God. The Church Universal is His spiritual
house, and every local church Every local congregation of true
believers is the house and temple of God. And each of us who are
born of God, washed in the blood of Christ, are the house and
the temple of the living God. Our worship of God, in true worship,
is altogether spiritual. In this spiritual worship, every
believer is a priest. Every believer is a priest. I know the Roman Church has its
priest and the Episcopal Church has its priest and the Mormon
Church has its priest. In each of those societies of
wickedness, blind, ignorant, deluded men are kept in bondage
and taught that they cannot approach God except through the medium
of the priest, who is himself nothing but a sinful man. Sadly,
in Baptist churches and in Protestant churches, this generation began
back even before God saved me, but got very popular in the late
60s and since then of pastoral counseling. And pastors love
it. They love it because they love
for people to treat them like they are priest. I have no more
access to God than you do. I don't have God's ear any better
than you do. You don't come to God through
me or through any man except the God-man, Christ Jesus the
Lord. You and I, who are God's people,
are God's priests. Everyone who is born of God has
free constant access to God on his throne and we do not need
any earthly priest and you should never look upon a man as such. Never look upon a man as a mediator,
an intercessor between you and God. Each believer walks with
God as the sons of Aaron walked with God in the tabernacle and
in the temple serving God as his priest. All who come to God
by faith in Christ are described in this book over and over again
as a holy priesthood. Listen to what the scriptures
tell us in first Peter. We'll look at it again later,
just listen for now. Ye also are lively stones, you who come
to Christ the living stone. You are as lively stones are
built up a spiritual house and holy priesthood, and holy priesthood. You and I are called by God and
holy priesthood. That's my subject this evening.
As the priest of the Most High God, it is our privilege to offer
up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ all the
time. all that I, as I was reading
our texts just a little bit ago to you. Aaron and his sons being
consecrated to God, clothed for the priesthood, having the consecration
of God by blood upon their ears, their hands, and their feet,
were required of God to abide in the tabernacle for seven days. Those seven days representing
completion. So that the believer, in the
totality of his life, as we walk with God on this earth, from
the time he calls us to the time he calls us home, live constantly
at the throne of God, in the presence of God, at the altar
of God, Christ Jesus the Lord, doing business continually in
the holy place. You may not be able to read or
write, but if you're truly converted, you're one of God's priest, a
chosen generation, a royal priesthood, and holy nation, a peculiar people
that you should show forth the praises of him who has called
you out of darkness into his marvelous light. You may never
stand behind the pulpit. You may never even lead the people
of God in prayer in public. You ladies are commanded of God
to be silent in the church. Yet you belong to God if you
belong to Christ. Men and women, young and old,
made a holy priesthood, a royal priesthood, because we're one
with Christ. As in the Old Testament, there
was one sin-atoning high priest, only Aaron, though all the sons
of Aaron were priests in the service of God. So in this gospel
day, there is only one sin-atoning high priest. In fact, there's
always just been one. Aaron and the high priest who
succeeded him in Israel were only typical of him who is the
true high priest. There's one high priest whose
sacrifice God has accepted. And yet all who are the sons
of God in union with Christ are like the sons of Aaron, the priest
of God. Now here in Leviticus 8, God
the Holy Spirit shows us how priests were made under the Mosaic
law. And in this chapter, we're given
many things that are richly instructive of our typical spiritual priesthood. We'll come back to the chapter
again, but tonight I want us to look at six or seven things
in these 36 verses that show us characteristics of those chosen
redeemed sinners who are in holy priesthood under God. First look
at verse two. Those who are priests under God
have been chosen as God's priest by God himself. I know folks
who don't care for the gospel and don't care for what I preach
think, well, he just always looks for election. You don't have
to look for it. It's always there. You have to
ignore it. These priests are God's priests
because God chose them. Take Aaron, God said, and his
sons with him, and the garments, and the anointing oil, and the
bullock for the sin offering, and two rams, and a basket of
unleavened bread. God said to Moses, take Aaron. I've selected Aaron and his sons
to be my priest. This was not something that men
decided upon, not something they voted on, not something they
chose for themselves. Only those chosen, ordained,
called, named by God were allowed to serve as priest. We're told
no man takes the priesthood to himself. Now turn to that passage
in 1 Peter 2. 1 Peter 2. No man takes this honor to himself,
but rather we are chosen to this priesthood. Look at verse 9,
or verse 5 rather. Ye also, as lively stones, are
built up a spiritual house. and holy priesthood to offer
up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. Wherefore
also it is contained in the scripture, behold, I lay in Zion a chief
cornerstone, elect, precious, and he that believeth on him
shall not be confounded. He shall not make haste. He shall
not be confused. He shall not be put to confusion.
Unto you therefore which believe, he is precious. but unto them
which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed,
the same is made the head of the corner, and a stone of stumbling,
and a rock of offense, even to them which stumble at the word,
being disobedient, whereunto also they were appointed. But ye are a chosen generation,
a royal priesthood. and holy nation. This royal priesthood,
this holy nation, this peculiar people, these people distinctly
cared for by God, this people distinctly God's, under God's
protection, a peculiar people, not odd people, peculiar people,
a distinct people. that ye should show forth the
praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his
marvelous light. If you're part of this holy priesthood,
it's because God from eternity chose you, elected you, and ordained
you to be his own. Salvation, which is what this
priesthood is, doesn't begin with man's will, but with God's
will. It's not something that's determined
by man's choice, but by God's choice. Not by man's purpose,
but by God's purpose. Men and women are not saved because
they will to be saved or choose to be saved. We're saved because
God from eternity willed to save us. And all who are born of God,
all who are born of God readily acknowledge that. "'Tis not that
I did choose thee, "'for Lord, that could not be. "'This heart
would still refuse thee, "'but thou hast chosen me.'" All right,
look at verse six, Leviticus 8, verse six. First, every priest
is chosen. Second, every priest must be
cleansed, cleansed before God. And Moses brought Aaron and his
sons and washed them with water. That's one cleansing. It was
done with water, ceremonially. Obviously, the ceremonial washing
was just a ceremonial washing. It did not in any way make a
man who washed his hands and feet physically clean before
God, but ceremonially made him clean before God. It was done
with water ceremonially so that throughout the chapter, we see
these priests cleansed several times, not only by water, but
by blood and water. In verse two, they brought a
bulk for sin offering and two rams. And the blood of the bulk
was poured out at the bottom of the altar. The blood of the
one ram was sprinkled upon the altar, and in this manner the
priests were cleansed before God ceremonially by the shedding
of blood. For without the shedding of blood,
none were clean. So it is with us. Let the water
and the blood from thy wounded side which flowed, be of sin
the double cure, cleanse me from its guilt and power. This typical
ceremonial cleansing is full of instruction. First, our cleansing
took place at Calvary. When the Lord Jesus died at Calvary,
he washed away our sins. When the Lord Jesus died at Calvary,
he cleansed us from all sin. When he satisfied the justice
of God, we were justified. When he died, we were sanctified. The scriptures speak of that
clearly. but the atonement effectually accomplished at Calvary. must
be applied to our hearts in time in the experience of grace. Though
I was redeemed 2,000 years ago, I knew nothing about it until
God the Holy Spirit, giving me faith in Christ, sprinkles my
heart and my conscience, declaring that I am justified. That's the
sense in which we are justified by faith. By faith, God speaks
to the believing center and declares, you're justified. Justification
is imputed to us consciously when God gives us faith in Christ. It is not our faith in Christ
that justifies us. God did that when Christ died
for us 2,000 years ago. Indeed, we're told in Romans
8, he did it before the world began, when he was accepted as
the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. But we come to
know in the sweet experience of grace that were justified
when God gives us faith in Christ. And we're able to lay our hands
upon the head of our Redeemer, confessing our sin. When the
gospel is applied to us effectually in the new birth and regeneration,
we're experimentally cleansed. This is what washing with water
represents. It doesn't represent baptism,
but rather the new birth. Hold your place here in Leviticus.
Turn over to Titus chapter three. Titus chapter three. Verse four. After that the kindness and love
of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness
which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us. by
the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Ghost,
which He shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior,
that being justified by His grace, we should be made heirs according
to the hope of eternal life. And this cleansing atonement
of Christ is personally received by faith. Look at verses 18 and
19 back in Leviticus. Leviticus 8, verse 18. And he brought the ram for the
burnt offering. And Aaron and his sons laid their
hands upon the head of the ram, and he killed it. And Moses sprinkled
the blood on the altar round about. Aaron and his sons laid
their hands on the head of that ram. And every believing sinner
lays the hand of faith on Jesus Christ, because God gives us
faith. Yes, faith is something we exercise. Yes, it is our faith. God gave
it to us. But it is the operation of God
in us. Oh, thank God for faith that
looks away from self to Christ alone and lays all the weight
of my soul upon Jesus Christ the Lord. God will have no priest
in his sanctuary except those who are cleansed by the blood
of Christ. And until you trust Christ, all
religious exercises are vain oblations, unacceptable to God. No matter what they are, they
are but eating and drinking damnation to yourself until you believe
on the Son of God, but believing Him. We're accepted of God, clean
before God, and we come to Him continually trusting the Savior,
cleansed day by day. Ever coming to Him as Our Lord
came to his disciples and said, except I wash you. You have no
part with me. And he came to wash their feet.
So the priests were required every time they came to the tabernacle,
came to do service in the tabernacle, to wash their hands, wash their
feet in the laver before they approached the holy things of
God. So you and I continually are to wash in the Savior's blood. Never, never tire. Oh, my soul,
never tire. of coming continually to the
Savior. Now listen to me, listen to me. Merle, much as I admonish you
and me to do so, oh God give me grace hour by hour to do so. Our coming to Him is the result
of Him coming to us. Oh Spirit of God, draw me. to
the Savior that I may be cleansed continually. And then thirdly,
the priest being chosen and cleansed, they are all clothed with the
same garments. Look at verse 13. No matter how
clean they were, these priests had to have specific garments,
suitable attire, or they could never appear before the Lord.
Aaron, as the high priest, was given distinct garments. He was
distinctly arrayed in the gorgeous garments of the high priest.
You read that in verses seven through 12. But all of Aaron's
sons were clothed alike. None of them had even a thread
of their own that was made by their own stitching. The garments
were made for them, the garments were given to them, and the garments
were put on them by someone else. Look at verse 13. And Moses brought
Aaron's sons and put coats upon them, and girded them with girdles,
and put bonnets upon them, as the Lord commanded Moses. Every
priest had a coat put on him. These priestly coats were like
the coat worn by our Lord Jesus, all of one piece, woven from
top to bottom, hanging over the shoulders, draping the body. You know what the coat represents.
the righteousness of Christ imputed to us and imparted to us, given
to us at the moment of conversion. I love the picture of the prodigal
son. He comes to his father and his father said, bring hither
the best robe and put it on him. The robe of Christ's righteousness,
a perfect fit for his people. Jesus, thy blood and righteousness,
my beauty are my glorious dress. Midst flaming worlds in these
arrayed, with joy shall I lift up my head. Until God puts the
robe on you, you can't serve it. But as soon as you come to
Christ, God puts the robe on you consciously. Every priest
who was also girded with a girdle, We're told that the Lord Jesus,
as our great high priest, is girded about the paps with a
golden girdle, the girdle of his faithfulness, truth, and
love. And he gives each of his own a girdle of faithfulness,
truth, and love. Girdles were used. We don't generally
use that term with reference to men these days. Well, I'm
sorry, in this politically correct age, I hear till they do. But
generally, you don't hear men wearing girdles. In old times,
men wore long flowing robes. And when they would travel or
walk in a distance, they would use girdles like a wide belt
to hold up their robes. When they went to battle, they'd
use the girdles to hold up their robes and give strength to their
loins. And when they went to work, they
used those wide belts like girdles to hold up their robes. The Lord
God has made his people glorious and honorable and beautiful in
his own eyes, accepted and beloved in him, girdled about with the
very girdle of Christ's righteousness, faithfulness, and truth. And
being girt about with his girdle, clothed with his robe, we're
strong and honorable and beautiful in his sight, having his beauty,
which he has put upon us, he says in Ezekiel 16, so that when
he's done with us, all the nations will behold us and we shall appear
before them in his beauty and his renown. The Lord Jesus says
to every saved sinner, thou art all fair, my love, there is no
spot in thee. He looks upon me and says, thou
hast ravished my heart. Our Savior so falls in love with
his own image and each saved sinner that his own heart is
captured by us. Imagine that. He looks on you
with the delight of a man whose heart has been captured by the
beauty of a woman. So the Savior embraces his people. Fourth. I want you to notice
that the only way anyone can enter this priesthood is by birth. Only those who were born in Aaron's
family were priests in the Aaronic priesthood. You couldn't be adopted
into it. You couldn't be by your way into
it. Nobody could put you into it.
Either you were born of Aaron or you were not a priest. And
you and I are made the priest of God by the new birth. You must be born again. When our Lord Jesus spoke those
words to Nicodemus, he was saying more than most people imagine.
He was saying, Nicodemus, if you would be saved, you must
be born again. You must have a new nature. You
must be made a new creature. There's no other way for a man
to see or enter into the kingdom of God. But he uses a very strong
word. It is an absolute word. He said,
you must be born again because there are people in this world
who must be born again. Every sinner chosen of God, every
sinner redeemed by God must be born again. And you who are God's
are his priests because God said before the world was, you must
be born priest. Born again by the power of God
the Holy Ghost. Look at verse 30. Here's the
fifth thing. All this holy priesthood, who
are washed in the blood of Christ, clothed with his righteousness
and born of God, are anointed for the service of God. And Moses
took the anointing oil and and the blood which was upon the
altar and sprinkled it upon Aaron and upon his garments and upon
his sons and upon his son's garments with him and sanctified Aaron
and his garments and his sons and his son's garments. Again,
I remind you, this was a ceremonial sanctified, a ceremonial holiness,
a ceremonial separation, this holy anointing. Abram was anointed
with the holy oil poured on his head. Then all of his sons were
anointed. Even so, our Lord Jesus Christ,
we told in scripture, was anointed with the Holy Ghost without measure.
And all who are in him by faith are anointed as priests unto
God. You're familiar with the passage
in 1 John. If you want to, you can turn there and look at it
with me. 1 John chapter two. God's elect, have the anointing
of the Spirit. I want to spend a little bit
of time with this because we live in this stupid, insane,
blasphemous, idolatrous, corrupt, charismatic Pentecostal age.
They see these clowns on television, and they have untold thousands
following them. If you just listen to them for
a minute, you realize their religion is just paganism. It's just paganism,
but they claim to have a special anointing from God. Listen to
what John tells us in 1 John 2, verse 20. You have an unction,
the word is anointing, an unction from the Holy One, and ye know
all things. This anointing of the Spirit
is that by which God's people are taught of God. Verse 27,
but the anointing which you have received of him abideth in you. It's not something you're gonna
lose. And you need not that any man teach you, but as the same
anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth and is no
lie, even so as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him. God the Holy Spirit from within
teaches you. As you read the word, hear the
word, he teaches you. And you don't need some man to
come and show you another way. You have the anointing of God.
He teaches you. He writes his law on your heart. I know men talk about the anointing
of the Spirit as though it was some mystical, charismatic second
work of grace which some believers have and others do not have.
If you pray just right, if you live just right, if you have
enough faith, you have the anointing. Nothing could be further from
the truth. This anointing flows to all freely through and from
our Lord Jesus Christ. In fact, back up to verse 19,
1 John 2, 19. Here the Spirit of God tells
us that the thing that distinguishes the believer from the unbeliever
is this anointing of the Spirit. They went out from us, but they
were not of us. For if they had been of us, they
would no doubt have continued with us. But they went out, that
they might be made manifest, that they were not all of us.
But you have an unction, an anointing from the Holy One, and you know
all things. Now I don't suggest by any means
that there are no special fillings of the Spirit, special demonstrations
of divine power. I pray for more. I don't suggest at all those
things are not real. I don't suggest there are no
special manifestations of the Spirit's presence. As I prepare
to preach here and other places, as I pray for our brethren who
meet in other places, I pray that God will be pleased to give
us the joy of the manifest presence of his spirit in our midst, making
his word a fire and a hammer, making his word lively to your
hearts. By these things, this special
unction, this special anointing, this special outpouring of the
Spirit, this special demonstration of His power, we are enabled
to carry out the work He would have us to do. And without that
power flowing to us from God the Holy Ghost, our praying,
our preaching, our worship, our singing, our witnessing, our
writing, our labor is just vanity. Last night I went to bed fairly
late and had some trouble sleeping. I commonly, after we turn the
lights out and I've kissed Shelby for the last time, I turn to
the other side and try to pray. And often it happens as it did
last night. I keep trying to pray. And even
in silence, just muttering words. And the frustration causes me Difficulty I can't put into words.
We must have the spirit of God. I don't minimize in any way his
person, his power, or his work. Without him we are nothing and
we can do nothing for Christ. If we pray, if we really pray,
we must pray in the spirit. As we sing in just a little bit,
then you'll come lead us in another hymn. Don't ever take it It's
just a mundane thing like you were singing songs at a bar. If we sing in worship, we must
sing in the spirit. If I preach with any good to your souls,
I must preach in the spirit. If you hear to the benefit of
your souls, you must hear in the spirit. God's children, however, are
complete in Christ. and he will not take his Holy
Spirit from them. Galatians 3, 13 and 14 tells
us that God the Holy Spirit is the heirloom Christ gives to
all his people. He died for us that we might
obtain the blessing of Abraham, the Spirit of God by which we
are anointed as God's priest. Thank God for the anointing of
the Spirit he's given us. And pray continually for the
power of God's Spirit to be upon you and upon me, upon us as a
people. This anointing of the Spirit
is our sanctification in the experience of grace. It's a ceremonial
sanctification here in Leviticus 8, but it's real sanctification
for God's elect. We were sanctified by God the
Father in election, we're told in Jude verse one. We were sanctified
by God the Son when he redeemed us and sanctified us with his
blood, we're told in Hebrews chapter 10. And we are sanctified
by God the Holy Spirit in the new birth. Now let me tell you
what sanctification is. Sanctification is to be set apart
for God. We were set apart for God from
eternity. Sanctification is to be declared
holy. God said concerning those items
of furniture in the tabernacle and temple, these are holy. These
are holy, going into the holy place. They were declared to
be holy, but they were just ordinary things. No change was made in
them. They were simply set apart for
God and declared to be holy. With the believer, there's another
aspect of sanctification. God's elect are made holy in
the new birth. Made holy by the divine nature
being imparted to us. Made holy being partakers of
the divine nature. Made holy with Christ coming
to dwell in us. Made holy as we're made new creatures
in Christ so that we're separated apart from the rest of men by
the call of God. given a new nature by the call
of God, and made to be God's servants, separated unto him
for his holy service continually. That brings me to the sixth thing. Look at verses 22, 23, and 24.
Aaron's sons, every member of this holy priesthood is consecrated
unto the Lord. And he brought the other ram,
the ram of consecration, and Aaron and his sons laid their
hands upon the head of the ram, and he slew it. And Moses took
of the blood of it and put it upon the tip of Aaron's right
ear, and upon the thumb of his right hand, and upon the great
toe of his right foot. And he brought Aaron's sons and
Moses put the blood upon the tip of their right ear, and upon
the thumbs of their right hands, and upon the great toes of their
right feet. And Moses sprinkled the blood
upon the altar round about. The blood of Christ, when applied
to our hearts by the Spirit of God, causes us to be consecrated
to the Lord. The consecration, of course,
is not perfect. but it is entire. The believer's
ear is consecrated to God by the blood of Christ. Consecrated
ears hear his voice in his word by the gospel. They hear his
voice in providence. Not an audible voice from heaven, but a voice from heaven that
comes up from within. The Spirit of God speaking from
within, saying this is the way, walking in it. And the believer's
hand, the hand is that by which we work. His hand is consecrated
to God by the blood of Christ, so that in the activities of
life, the believer is a person who does what he does with an
eye to God, whether he eats or drinks, Whether he works in the
factory or labors in the ministry, all that he does, he does for
God's glory. I assure you, it will make your
labor, whatever it is, sweeter and more joyous to you as you
Fix this in your mind hour by hour. I'm not here working to
get rich. I'm not here working for my own
advancement. I'm not here working just for
a man. I'm God's servant. I'm here for
God's glory. To honor him here and to honor
him with what I make in this place. Preachers, I fear often, languish in the work. Some years
ago, someone, when I was just a young man, sent me a series
of messages. Some reform preacher in England
had preached on, what was it called? It was languishing in
the ministry, folks getting tired of preaching, wearing out in
the ministry. I can't imagine I can't imagine wearing out doing
what I'm doing. I can't imagine getting weary
of it. I can't imagine tiring of it. This is what God's given me to
do for His glory. We who are God's have our right
hands consecrated to Him. And the believer's foot is consecrated
to God by the blood of Christ. speaks of his movement, walking
through the world, our course of life in this world. So that
the believer's life is governed not by riches, pleasures, and
comforts, but by Christ. He seeks not wealth and prosperity,
or even stability, he seeks Christ. Consecrated feats. carried about
by God through the world for the glory of Christ. Anything
not consecrated to and used for God, look at verse 32, must be
destroyed. And that which remaineth of the
flesh and of the bread shall you burn with fire. Oh God give me grace day by day
and hour by hour to consecrate myself afresh to you. One last thing. All this holy
priesthood offers up to God spiritual sacrifices, acceptable and well-pleasing
to God. We read it earlier in 1 Peter
2. We offer God the calves of our lips, our praise, our thanksgiving
as we worship Him. And we offer God All our lives,
every day, Allah, we commit everything to him. That's contrary to the
flesh, contrary to our selfish pride. God give us grace to commit
ourselves, all that we are, All that we possess, all for which
we're responsible, all he's trusted to us, to him. To live utterly to him. Coming
to God, always coming to God by faith in Jesus Christ as his
priest. All the seven days appointed
for us on this earth. so that every day is a Sabbath
day. Every day resting, every day
worshiping, every day coming to God on his throne, seeking
his glory, his mercy, and his grace. Sacrificing ourselves
to him. Our thanksgiving, our praise,
our prayers to him. Our property, our possessions
to him. with willing hearts, committing
all to Him. Thanks be unto our God, the God
of all grace, that there is a priest before God through whom atonement
has been made, by whom sinners may come to God and be saved
by Him. Now, I have one more word for you, my brothers and
sisters in Christ. you who have been made in holy
priesthood. Let us one and all consecrate
ourselves afresh to God as his priest, dedicated to his service
as men and women whose ears and hands and feet are touched by
the blood of Christ. You're not your own, you're bought
with a price. Therefore glorify God in your
body and in your spirit which are God's. Paul said in one sentence what
I've been trying to say this entire service. Whatsoever you
do in word or in deed, do all to the glory of God. Whatsoever
you do in word or indeed do all to the glory of God. I'm often
asked by people about various circumstances, decisions they
have to make, what should I do? When it's obviously a matter
that the scriptures are clear, this is right and that's wrong,
no difficulty. But the decisions that you have
to make day by day, hour by hour in your lives. Decisions you
have to make throughout your lives. For the most part, I just
don't know what's best for you. I know a lot of folks are very
quick to tell folks, you ought to do this, you ought to do that. I don't
know what's best for you to do. I just don't know. I can tell
you this, whatever you do, do it for God's glory, and you'll
be all right. That'll be all right. And if
you're God's, it is my privilege and my responsibility to trust
you to do what you do for God's glory as God's holy priest. Amen.