There are many people today that are unaware of what the priesthood is in Christianity. Often times many people think of churches where they see "priests" do religious things in front of their church, and then they don't give it a second thought. However, others may look and think to themselves, what is the priesthood? What people are to be considered "priests"? Is the guy preaching at my church a priest?
First off, a definition of the word priest is someone who offers sacrifices for himself and others. In the Old Testament, priests would give offerings to the Lord for their people's many sins (Lev 1:9; 7:5; 12:8). But what is a priest now that Jesus has come and became our High Priest (Heb 2:17)?
According to the Apostle Peter in 1 Peter 2:5 we are all called to be a "royal priesthood" in which we are to offer spiritual sacrifices to God. Peter repeats himself a few verses later (1 Peter 2:9) but he also adds that before we knew Christ, we were nothing. Now that we know the Lord and believe in Him, we are a chosen nation, a "royal priesthood", and have received mercy which we never had before (1 Peter 2:9-10). The sacrifice that our priesthood must offer now is to be a spiritual sacrifice of proclaiming the Gospel just like Paul had to do in Romans 15:16.
Now, if we have a priesthood then our Lord must have left some people to be above the priesthood, He must have left us some high priests that can shepherd the flock and make sure that we are keeping to sound doctrine. However, the Scriptures only give us one sure high priest in the New Testament, and that high priest is Jesus Christ Himself (Heb 4:14). There is no need for a super priest or a high priest then, because we are all called to be a royal (or special) priesthood and we are all called to follow our Great High Priest.
If this is so however, how can we know who is a priest and how can we trust the man preaching in church on Sunday? If I have the same right to the priesthood as the man preaching, what makes him better or more of a priest then myself? The quick answer is nothing.
Yet the Scriptures do not leave out what a church preacher should be. In Paul's first letter to Timothy he instructs us that an overseer (some translations read bishop) much be a respectable member of society who if faithful to his wife and is able to teach in the first place (1 Tim 3:2). An overseer must not be a drunk, violent, argumentative, or money hungry (1 Tim 3:3). He must be able to run his own particular family in a respectful manner, in which his own children grow up to be responsible (1 Tim 3:4). The reason that he must be able to run his own family in the first place is because if he can't even do that, then he cannot run God's church (1 Tim 3:5). As an overseer, he should have been a Christian for a long time, because if he wasn't, it is possible for him to come under temptation and lose sight of the Gospel (1 Tim 3:6). Finally, an overseer (preacher, pastor, minister, bishop, etc) must have a good reputation with outsiders of the Christian faith in order that he may show the light of the Gospel (1 Tim 3:7).
So, now that you know what a preacher should be like at church, make sure that the pastor at your own church is like what is mentioned by Paul. If he is everything that has been listed here, then you will have very little doubt that you are in God's church. If there is something missing from the pastor, then you need to evaluate what is missing. Is he a drunk? That's not good. Does he have a wife? If not, is this his own choice or is he following some one's false idea that he shouldn't have a wife. Can he be seen by the outside community as someone worthy of respect?
Our God wants us to be active and vigilant. Do not fall into a daily grind, and just blindly agree with someone. Always compare the church with the Scriptures so that you and others around you may not fall into the devils trap, which at times can be VERY clever (Gal 1:8-9).
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