The Sacrament of the Priesthood
The Sacrament of the Priesthood
The priesthood is a distinguished service from the Lord in both its men and their responsibilities.
The priesthood is a calling, a choice, an anointing, a stewardship, a mission, and an authority.
The importance of the laying on of hands, its apostolic succession, and the existence of the three ranks of the priesthood since the time of the Apostles.
Is the priesthood for all people? And are all believers “kings and priests” in the literal sense, as some interpret certain biblical verses (Revelation 1:6; 1 Peter 2:9)? How, then, should the expression “kings and priests” be understood? We answer these questions through the following points:
The Desire to Universalize the Priesthood Is an Ancient Sin, Condemned by God
The desire to universalize the priesthood and make it available to all is an ancient sin. It began with Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, who gathered against Moses and Aaron and said to them:
“You take too much upon yourselves, for all the congregation is holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the Lord?” (Numbers 16:3).
They stirred up rebellion and gathered with them 250 men from the people, who took censers and offered incense. The result was that God decisively judged the matter:
“The ground split apart under them. The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, with their households and all the men who belonged to Korah… So they and all those with them went down alive into the pit; the earth closed over them, and they perished from among the congregation… And fire came out from the Lord and consumed the two hundred and fifty men who were offering incense” (Numbers 16:31–35).
A similar event occurred with King Saul, who dared to offer a burnt offering (1 Samuel 13:9–14). God removed him from kingship, rejected him, and the Spirit of the Lord departed from him, and “a distressing spirit from the Lord troubled him” (1 Samuel 16:14).
Likewise, King Uzziah dared to enter the temple to burn incense on the altar of incense, and the Lord struck him with leprosy (2 Chronicles 26:16–21).
The priesthood is not for all, but for a group chosen by the Lord, even though the entire people were holy. The Lord said of them:
“You shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exodus 19:6).
Indeed, the phrase “a kingdom of priests” was used, yet the priesthood itself was confined to a distinct group—Aaron and his sons—of whom the Lord said:
“I give your priesthood to you as a gift. The outsider who comes near shall be put to death” (Numbers 18:7).
How beautiful are the words of Moses the prophet:
“The Lord will show who is His and who is holy, and will cause him to come near to Him. That one whom He chooses He will cause to come near to Him” (Numbers 16:5).
It is a choice from the Lord.
God Chose the Priesthood and Its Ministers
- God chose a priesthood from ancient times and declared them consecrated for His service. His first choice was the firstborn, saying:
“Consecrate to Me all the firstborn… it is Mine” (Exodus 13:2).
They were called clergy, meaning “the Lord’s portion”.
God, who established the priesthood and chose its ministers Himself, is a God “with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning” (James 1:17), and all His works are done in wisdom: “In wisdom You have made them all” (Psalm 104:24).
- The sons of Aaron remained priests throughout the Old Testament according to God’s choice. In the New Testament, the priesthood was not abolished, but changed (Hebrews 7:12)—from the order of Aaron to the order of Melchizedek, and from offering animal sacrifices to offering the Body and Blood of the Lord through their transformation from bread and wine.
The Priesthood Is an Anointing
The Lord did not merely choose Aaron, but commanded that he be anointed with holy oil, as explained to Moses: “Moses poured some of the anointing oil on Aaron’s head and anointed him, to consecrate him” (Leviticus 8:1–12). Moses also anointed Aaron’s sons (Leviticus 8:13).
The Lord Jesus Christ Himself was anointed as Priest, King, and Prophet. He was “anointed with the oil of gladness more than His companions” and thus became the Messiah. When the scroll was handed to Him, He read from the prophecy of Isaiah: “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted” (Isaiah 61:1).
Here we see both the anointing and the mission.
In the Kingdom of God, since God is the King, He chooses, calls, and sends, and everything is done according to His command (Exodus 39:43), just as everything in the Tabernacle was made according to the pattern shown by the Lord (Exodus 25:9).
The Priesthood Is a Mission
The Lord Jesus said to His disciples: “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21).
And He said to the Father: “As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world” (John 17:18).
Among His most profound words is His saying to them: “You did not choose Me, but I chose you” (John 15:16).
Thus, the Lord chose the Twelve and sent them (Matthew 10), chose the Seventy, and chose the Apostle Paul and sent him. Concerning ministry, He said: “Pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest” (Matthew 9:38).
It is He who sends; therefore, His disciples were called apostles.
How Shall They Preach Unless They Are Sent?
Even the work of teaching within the priesthood cannot be undertaken by anyone on his own initiative; one must be sent by God to teach. Scripture says:
“Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent?” (Romans 10:13–15).
The Apostle Paul recounts his own story in preaching: “When it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles” (Galatians 1:15–16).
Thus, he did not preach on his own initiative, but God separated him, called him, sent him, and defined his mission.
In the Mission, God Defines Both the Work and the Place
When the Lord first sent the disciples, He defined their place of ministry:
“Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans. But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
He also defined their work: “And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead” (Matthew 10:5–8).
When He sent them a second time, He defined the place: “You shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
And He defined the work: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them… teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19–20).
Thus, there are persons distinguished with specific responsibilities. God chooses them, calls them, anoints them, sends them, and they become His portion—the clergy—and He determines both the place and nature of their service.
How beautiful is what was said of John the Baptist, the son of Zacharias the priest, the link between the two covenants: “There was a man sent from God, whose name was John” (John 1:6).
Since there is a mission, priestly ministry is not for all, but only for those whom the Lord chooses and sends.
No One Takes This Honor to Himself
The priesthood is not for all, and no one may claim it for himself. Therefore, the Apostle says: “No man takes this honor to himself, but he who is called by God, just as Aaron was” (Hebrews 5:4).
If the priesthood were for all, there would have been no need for the Apostle to say that only those called by God may receive it.
Concerning those whom the Lord did not send, He said: “I did not send them or command them; therefore they shall not profit this people at all, says the Lord” (Jeremiah 23:32).
The Clergy Were Chosen by God and Therefore Were Divinely Endorsed
The Lord said to them: “He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me” (Matthew 10:40).
“He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me” (Luke 10:16).
He warned that the cities which rejected them would receive a punishment more severe than that of Sodom (Matthew 10:15).
The Laying On of Hands, with Fasting and Prayer
The Lord breathed on the Apostles and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” Others, however, received the laying on of hands from the Apostles in order to be sent—whether bishops, priests, or deacons.
Even the Apostle Paul, whom God separated from his mother’s womb and whom the Lord called on the road to Damascus, received the laying on of hands from the Apostles so that he and Barnabas might begin their ministry: “Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away” (Acts 13:3).
The seven deacons, though they were “full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom” (Acts 6:3), were nevertheless presented to the Apostles, “who prayed and laid hands on them” (Acts 6:6).
Paul said to Timothy the bishop: “Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands” (2 Timothy 1:6).
He also said concerning the ordination of priests: “Do not lay hands on anyone hastily, nor share in other people’s sins” (1 Timothy 5:22).
If all were kings and priests, what need would there be for the laying on of hands? And what need for ordination to ministry?
As the Apostle said concerning the seven deacons: “Whom we may appoint over this business” (Acts 6:3).
And as Paul said to Titus, Bishop of Crete: “For this reason I left you in Crete, that you should set in order the things that are lacking, and appoint elders in every city as I commanded you” (Titus 1:5).
In all the above, we observe that the laying on of hands was performed by the Apostles or by their successors, the bishops, and likewise the ordination of all three ranks of the priesthood.
