A Kingdom of Priests and Filling My Place
Acts 3, Exodus 19:6, 1 Peter 2:9
The other day as I was listening to a chapter about prayer in Blessed are the Misfits by Brant Hansen, a very unexpected thought was brought to mind. It was one of those thoughts that I just knew was prompted by the Holy Spirit because it popped into my mind, seemingly out of the blue, fully formed and demanding to be contemplated through the lens of scripture.
It was the second time in less than two weeks when filling my place was connected to a spiritual activity. The last time was when I was listening to a devotional about fearing the Lord. This time the Spirit-prompted thought told me that praying was an essential part of filling my place.
Recently, when working through some emotions and thoughts about how I view myself prompted by my current struggles with recovery from long covid, I had begun to think of filling my place as more than just what am I supposed to be or do with my life.
And then, that beginning was pushed forward a notch when the Holy Spirit linked my place with the fear of the Lord.
Now, after the intriguing thought while I was listening to that audiobook and during my study of Acts 3, the idea has been booted forward significantly - or so it feels. And yet, it seems like only the first step in understanding a deeper level of what it means to fill one’s place.
Acts 3 is the chapter where we find the story of the healing of the man who begged at the gate called Beautiful in the temple. It’s the story with that well-known verse – Silver and gold have I none… (KJV) – in it.
This is followed by Peter, once again, having an opportunity to testify about Jesus. It’s not a long sermon. Perhaps it would have been longer if the Sadducees, the priests, and the captain of the temple guard hadn’t interrupted him and put Peter and John, who was with him, into jail (see Acts 4:1-4).
But even with the sermon possibly being cut short, we see in Acts 4:4 that it was effective and the number of men who believed grew to five thousand. (It was just three thousand in chapter 2 at the end of that sermon by Peter.)
Those numbers are fantastic, but none of that is what spoke to me about filling my place by praying.
You see, Peter’s sermon ended with some statements about his fellow Israelites being heirs of the old covenant and reminding them that through Abraham all the world would be blessed by the nation of Israel via the death and resurrection of Christ.
And yes, that is the part where filling my place and prayer made a connection and fanned out to start other connections. Let me see if I can lay out the wandering path my mind took.
This reminder to the crowd to which Peter was speaking made me think back to Moses imparting the commandments as Israel was formed into God’s special nation at Mount Sinai. It was here that Israel entered into the old covenant. It was here that they joined themselves to their God to be His partner in what He was doing.
“‘...Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites.” (Exodus 19:5-6 NIV)
They were to be a kingdom of priests.
Hmmm… I thought to myself. I think I’ve heard that phraseology in the New Testament somewhere. Maybe in Hebrews?
Nope.
I was wrong.
It wasn’t Hebrews. (Although Hebrews does talk about Jesus as our High Priest and about offering sacrifices of praise.)
It was 1 Peter. Yep, it was in one of the letters written by the guy who was preaching in Acts 3. Gotta love that connection.
Here’s what Peter wrote:
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 1 Peter 2:9 (NIV)
Peter’s audience for his letter was a group of believers who had been scattered across the Roman world due to persecution. (Side note: I can’t help but wonder if any of those recipients of his letter were part of the audience on the day when the cripple was healed at the temple.)
In his letter, Peter urges the believers, that no matter where they were in the world, they should live as those set apart as a special people who are partners with God in what He is doing.
That pleading extends to us today if we call ourselves followers of Christ.
I know that still doesn’t tell you how this connects to prayer being part of filling one’s place. However, it is what led me to researching about what it means to be a priest as part of this kingdom of priests, and that landed me on Marty Solomon’s blog, Covered in His Dust, reading what he had written about the book of Leviticus in an article called “A Kingdom of What?”
As I read, I took notes about what being part of the priesthood entailed. Here they are with my commentary:
The priests were to put God on display.
Hmmm, that sounds like what Peter was teaching in his letter to the scattered believers. But our display that points to God isn’t just an outward one of fancy robes and special ceremonies, nor does it include following a set of complex rules. No, we live in freedom and our portrayal of God to those around us comes from a heart that loves God and others. It’s an inward thing that radiates outward. His love moves through us to others.
They were to help people navigate their atonement.
Again, that sounds a lot like Peter. That is what he was doing when he preached on the day of Pentecost and again when they were questioning how the lame man had been healed. See Acts 3:19 where he tells them to repent and turn to God so their sins can be wiped away. That’s our role – we’re to point people to God through Christ since He is their atonement.
They were to intercede on behalf of the people.
In other words, the Israelite priests spoke to the people for God and to God on behalf of the people. That part about speaking to God on the behalf of others sounds a whole lot like prayer to me. And you guessed it. This is where filling my place and prayer and Acts 3 came together. But there was one more part of being a priest in the article so lets look at that first before I come back to this connection.
They were to distribute resources to the oppressed.
You know my mind goes to Luke 4, to the verses that give Jesus’s purpose statement and the gospel in a nutshell, right? It also goes to the second greatest commandment and the story of the Good Samaritan. I’m also reminded of John the Baptist’s teaching in Luke about the fruits of repentance.
Repenting and turning to God is more than just “a way to get to heaven.” It’s taking up residency in a new kingdom. One that does not look like an earthly kingdom. It’s one where the Ruler offers Himself as payment for the debts of His enemies. Where His victory does not mean forced capture. Instead it offers citizenship in the kingdom and relationship with the King as a free gift that can be either accepted or rejected. Each choice will have their consequences, of course, but a choice is given.
Can you see from these notes how filling my place includes prayer but also so much more? Can you see just how intricate the answer to “what place am I supposed to fill” can be?
Prayer is communication with our Heavenly Father.
It is us putting God in His place* in our lives as the provider of all that we and those around us need while keeping us, as His children, in our own place.
It’s us offering sacrifices of praise for who He is and what He’s done.
It’s standing, like a priest, in the gap and interceding on the behalf of others. (I’m reminded here of Abraham asking for Sodom to be spared if there were a certain number of righteous people in it.)
It’s where we find our strength and guidance.
It’s a beautiful two-way street that creates fellowship between us and our God.
And, it’s just one of the ways in which we properly fill our God-give places.
(*To clarify for those who might take umbrage to how I worded that - putting God in His place actually means moving ourselves to where we should be standing under His authority. It has nothing to do with us somehow being able to tell God what to do. In case you missed it, you can read another Morning Thoughts from Scripture journal entry that uses this same phrase, “putting God in His place,” as it connects to fearing the Lord here.)