Ezekiel 41-44 is not a passage with a lot of practical application, but I like this part about Israel’s priests:
“They are not to put on anything that makes them sweat…. They may not shave their heads or let their hair grow long, but must carefully trim their hair. No priest may drink wine before he enters the inner court. He is not to marry a widow or a divorced woman, but must marry a virgin from the House of Israel, or a widow who is the widow of a priest. He must teach My people [by WORD and by EXAMPLE] the difference between the holy and the common, and explain to them the difference between the clean and the unclean.” Ezekiel 44:18-23
God holds His priests to a high standard. That makes sense, right? I mean, if priests were ordinary, anyone could be a priest. But God calls them to an EXEMPLARY life.
Do you know the word “exemplary”? It means God wants priests to be “exemplars” or examples—role models.
Don’t wear clothes that make you sweat? That verse says respect the holiness of the temple. But a good haircut? That verse says set a good example. Don’t drink before entering holy places—again: respect God’s temple. Marry only a Hebrew virgin, not a divorced woman, or widow unless she is the widow of a fellow priest? Respect the holiness of the priesthood. Set an example. God allowed men to marry widows, of course. But not priests. He held them to a higher standard.
Don’t you want to be held to a high standard? Don’t you want to be someone God can use as a role model? I do. I want to be an example of God’s best, not of just getting by.
And which verse did I once share with Cooper? Verse 20:
“They must not shave their heads….”
One day I told him to go home and tell it to his father, Chris, my buddy who was shaving his head bald every other day. Chris, whose thick hair was his best feature. Just trying to do my part! Ha ha.
Ask God to help you live an EXEMPLARY LIFE.
ΑΩ
Household Words: 