Zechariah
Chapter Sixteen
TWO TEMPLES and
a NEW PRIESTHOOD
That
there is a physical Millennial Kingdom Temple for the Jews from which Jesus will
rule the world is a prophetic promise of God in Zechariah 6:12-15. That fact is obvious. However, what is often missed is that there
will also be a spiritual, living Temple through which Jesus will rule His
one-world Kingdom. It is to this latter
Temple that Peter speaks in I Peter 2:4-12.
“4
To whom coming, as unto a living
stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen
of God {vocational election;
Ephesians 4:1}, and precious, 5 Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy
priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus
Christ {the believer’s High Priest}. 6
Wherefore also it is
contained in the scripture, Behold, I
lay in Sion a chief corner stone {Jesus}, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded {dishonored or disgraced}. 7
Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be
disobedient, the stone which the
builders {the priesthood of Israel} disallowed {rejected}, the same is made
the head of the corner, 8
And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which
stumble at the word {the apostate
priesthood}, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed {Jesus had to be crucified and resurrected or
we would have no Redeemer and no door into the New Genesis}. 9 But ye {Sela} are a chosen generation, a royal
priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of
darkness into his marvellous light: 10 Which in time past were
not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained
mercy, but now have obtained mercy. 11 Dearly beloved, I beseech you
as strangers {your beliefs, practices, and customs will seem strange to the lost
people of the world} and pilgrims
{sojourners not yet occupying their true
new citizenship of Heaven}, abstain
from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul; 12 Having your
conversation {manner of living} honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas
they speak against you as evildoers {beliefs,
practices, and customs are viewed as worthless}, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify
God {maintain a high view of God} in the day of visitation {when Jesus finally takes believers to glory}”
(I Peter 2:4-12).
I
Peter 2:9 is the all encompassing prophetic statement connecting all Church Age
believers to their obligations in a new priesthood after the order of
Melchizedek. This new priesthood will
become the living Temple of “lively stones” through which Jesus will
rule His one-world Kingdom on Earth with a “rod of iron.” Just as their will be obligations of that new Melchizedekian priesthood
throughout the Kingdom Age, there are
obligations throughout the Church Age.
The
corruption of the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers was one of the
first satanic attacks against the Church right after the attacks against the
Gospel of salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone
(Galatians 1:6-9). This corruption of
the priesthood of all believers came to be known as Nicolaitanism. Nicolaitanism separated Christians into
two divisions: ruling clergymen and stupid laity who were incapable of doing
the “work of the ministry.” Of course
the vast majority of commentators on the “Nicolaitans” were “Nicolaitans,” so
they found another explanation of Christ’s condemnation of the corruption in
Revelation 2:6 and Revelation 2:15. C.I.
Scofield has a defining comment on this corruption that is faithful to Christ’s
intended condemnation:
“1 Nicolaitanes
From nikao, ‘to conquer,’ and laos, ‘the people,’ or
‘laity.’ There is no ancient authority for a sect of the Nicolaitanes.
If the word is symbolic it refers to the earliest form of the notion of a
priestly order, or ‘clergy,’ which later divided an equal brotherhood Mt 23:8 into ‘priests’ and ‘laity.’
What in Ephesus was ‘deeds’ Re
2:6 had become in Pergamos a ‘doctrine’ Re
2:15.”[1]
What was the effect of the satanic
corruption of doctrine of the priesthood of all believers? The primary corruption was the creation of a
hierarchy of clergy that ruled local churches abrogating the priesthood of all
believers that was intended to exist in congregational polity. The
governance of local churches was literally stolen from local congregations. Individual believers, in most part, totally lost
their voice in the government of their local churches. Who could become members of local churches
became the sole discretion of the ruling
clergy. The ruling clergy also would solely determine right or wrong doctrines
for local churches that would later evolve into corrupt denominations of alliances
of local churches. Once these
denominations evolved, individual local congregations would no longer even have
a voice in choosing who would be their pastors.
There have been all kinds of variations of this corruption down trough
the centuries, but the point is that Christ hates ANY KIND of this corruption
of the priesthood of all His believers.
The second great corruption of the doctrine
of the priesthood of the believers is that individual believers (the laity) were deemed incapable of doing
the “work of the ministry.” In this
corruption, it became the responsibility of the laity to fiscally support the clergy
so the clergy could do the “work of
the ministry.” (PIC) Individual
believers began to be viewed by the clergy
as merely cows to be milked or sheep to be sheared. The clergy
became a kind of spiritual royalty to be reverenced
by the laity (hence the term Reverend). Whole cultures became Christian by proclamation of kings and by mass baptisms, without
any consent of individuals, or the masses, or without any mention of personal
conversion. If the clergy was supposed to do all the “work of the ministry,” there
certainly was no need for the laborious instruction necessary to “perfecting”
all believers for “the work of the ministry.”
Under this scenario of Christianity, only the clergy needed Bibles and only the clergy needed to know how to read.
Everyone else were just managed. This
is NOT WHAT THE BIBLE TEACHES!
“14
For he is our peace, who hath made
both one {Jew and Gentile in the body
of Christ}, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;
15 Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of
commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself {the New Genesis
in the last Adam} of twain one new man, so making peace; 16
And that he might reconcile both unto
God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby {the curse of the Law}: 17 And
came and preached peace to you which were afar off {Gentiles}, and to them that were nigh {Jews}. 18 For through him {Jesus} we both {Jew and Gentile in the body of Christ}
have access by one Spirit unto the
Father {a privilege only of the
priesthood under the Mosaic Covenant} . 19 Now therefore {in the New Covenant} ye {plural; Jew and Gentile collectively in the body of Christ} are no more
strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God {the nation of Israel}; 20 And
are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner
stone; 21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth {local church growth through evangelism and discipleship} unto an holy temple {of living stones} in the Lord {‘in’ the New
Creation}: 22 In whom {the
New Genesis in Jesus} ye also are
builded together {as a living Temple
of priests} for an habitation of God
through the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:14-22).
The ramifications of the corruptions of the priesthood of all believers
as a living Temple through which
Christ ministers is overwhelming in scope.
Along with maintaining the purity of the gift of salvation offered by
grace alone and received through faith alone in Christ alone, the doctrine of
the priesthood of all believers should be guarded with equal tenacity. By corrupting the doctrine of the priesthood
of all believers, Satan and his deceivers were able to remove most of the
appointed guardians of the Gospel
allowing the wolves to become shepherds of the sheep.
The protective custody of the Gospel given
to the priesthood of all believers is the substance of the epistle to the
Hebrews. The epistle is written to
address the corruption of the Gospel by Jews, who professed to be Christians, but continued to make
believers obligated to be circumcised, continue to offer the appropriate Mosaic
Covenant sacrifices, subjection to the Levitical priesthood, and keep the holy
days and pilgrimages to Jerusalem as necessary to keep their salvation. These
practices of the Mosaic Covenant, by their very nature, was incompletion crying out for completion; shadows crying out for the reality
in Christ. The practices of the Mosaic
Covenant could never purge the believer of the penalty of his sins. However Christ did that “once for all” (Hebrews 10:10). This is the introductory fact of the epistle
to the Hebrews. “Who being the brightness
of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding {present tense} all things by the word of
his power, when he had by himself
purged {aorist tense; completion} our
sins, sat down {aorist tense; completion}
on the right hand of the Majesty on high” (Hebrews 1:3).
The context of the warning regarding
intermingling the expectations of Mosaic Covenant incompletion to keep one’s salvation under the New Covenant of completion is the theme that runs
throughout the epistle to the Hebrews.
To return to the Mosaic Covenant incompletions
in any way manifests a misunderstanding of the Gospel of New Covenant completion and brings into question the
reality of such a person’s conversion. The
responsibility for maintaining the purity of the New Covenant completion of redemption by the
“finished” Cross-work of Jesus is very much the central responsibility of the
New Covenant priesthood of all believers. The factual statement of Hebrews 1:3 is
expanded upon again and again throughout the epistle to the Hebrews.
“1 Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly
calling {the priesthood of all believers},
consider the Apostle and High Priest of
our profession, Christ Jesus; 2 Who was faithful to him that
appointed him, as also Moses was faithful in all his house. 3
For this man {priest; actually refers to the High Priesthood of
Jesus, vs. 1} was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath builded the house hath more
honour than the house. 4 For every house is builded by some man;
but he that built all things is God. 5 And Moses verily was
faithful in all his house {national
Israel}, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be
spoken after; 6 But Christ as
a son over his own house {the church
as the living Temple of living stones};
whose house are we, if {maintain the warning context of the epistle:
this is a condemnation of Replacement
Theology, which is what the Judaizers introduced into Christianity, because the New
Covenant maintains a clear distinction between the Church and national Israel;
the Church DOES NOT replace national Israel and the manufacturing of
efficacious sacraments do NOT replace the Mosaic Covenant sacrifices} we {true
New Covenant believers} hold fast
the confidence {of completed
redemption} and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end” (Hebrews
3:1-6).
The
great substance of the warning to Jews professing faith in Christ but
considering returning to the Mosaic Covenant is the whole of Hebrews chapter
four. The warning is equally applicable to all professing
Christians adhering to any degree of Replacement Theology (Reformed or Covenant
Theology). Replacement Theology is just
a Christianized form of the
corruption of the Mosaic Covenant by the Levitical priesthood of Israel that made
keeping the Law necessary to keeping one’s salvation.
Once
a believer understands the extensive warning of Hebrews chapter four, the rest
of the epistle to the Hebrews and the “fulness of Christ” is opened to his
understanding beginning with the Melchizedekian Priesthood of Christ (Hebrews
chapter five through seven) and the believer’s own connection to that
priesthood under the New Covenant. The warning of the epistle
to the Hebrews is that it is spiritual suicide to try to find rest in the incompleteness
of the Mosaic Covenant sacrifices. The
one sacrifice of Messiah, of which Mosaic sacrifices were mere shadows, is complete and the redemption He offers by grace through faith is “finished.”
“1 For the law {Mosaic Covenant sacrifices} having a shadow of good things to come {complete
propitiation of God’s wrath upon sin}, and not the very image of the
things {they were not the real thing; the Mosaic Covenant sacrifices merely portrayed and looked forward in
anticipation of the actual once-for-all sacrifice of Messiah; 10:10, 12, 14,
and 18}, can never with those
sacrifices which they offered year by
year continually make the comers thereunto perfect {complete; Colossians
2:10}. 2 For then would they not have ceased to be offered?
because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of
sins. 3 But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made
of sins every year. 4 For it
is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away {remove or remit the penalty of} sins” (Hebrews 10:1-4).
The pinnacle of the warning of the epistle
to the Hebrews is found in Hebrews 10:10, 12, 14 and18.
“10 By the which will
we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. 11 And
every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same
sacrifices, which can never take away
sins: 12 But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;
13 From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.
14 For by one offering he
hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. . . 18 Now
where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin” (Hebrews 10:10-14 and 18).
C:\Program
Files\SwordSearcher\Modules\Scofield.ss5cmty, Module file time: 7/31/2011 7:15:28 PM UTC.
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Numerous studies and series are available free of charge for local churches at: http://www.disciplemakerministries.org/
Dr. Lance Ketchum serves the Lord as a Church Planter, Evangelist/Revivalist.
He has served the Lord for over 40 years.
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