rjones
Member
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2007
- Messages
- 314
"But the priests, who are Levites and descendants of Zadok and who faithfully carried out the duties of my sanctuary when the Israelites went astray from me, are to come near to minister before me; they are to stand before me to offer sacrifices of fat and blood, declares the Sovereign Lord. They alone are to enter my sanctuary; they alone are to come near my table to minister before me and perform my service" (Ez.44: 15-16).
In Ezekiel's vision of the glory of the Lord returning to the Temple, the Lord separates the descendants of Zadok the priest as the ones who would minister in His presence. The Lord gives the reason for His choice - they faithfully carried out the duties of the sanctuary when all the other Israelites went astray from Him.
Their ancestor, Zadok, had his loyalty and commitment in the right place also, at the time when it faced its greatest tests. When all Israel had been led astray, Zadok remained faithful.
Three times the priest Zadok was tested in his loyalty. Each test he faced is applicable to our lives also. As we study his situation and the choices he made, we must decide where the spiritual roots of our loyalty are to be found.
Tradition or the Anointing?
"These are the numbers of the men armed for battle who came to David at Hebron to hand over Saul's kingdom to him, as the Lord had said...and Zadok, a brave young warrior, with 22 officers from his family..." (1 Chr.12:23-28).
The first great test of Zadok's loyalty came when he had to choose between Saul or David as king. Saul had been king over Israel for nearly forty years, but young David was claiming rights to the throne. Afraid that he would lose his position, Saul had tried to kill David and had forced him into hiding (1 Sa. 19:11-18). A large band had followed David (1 Sa. 22:2). The nation was divided and Israel was in civil war (1 Sa. 26:2; 30:9).
On the surface it looked as though David was the usurper and Saul the one who deserved Zadok's loyalty. But Zadok was a man with spiritual insight.
Saul = Tradition
Saul was made king because Israel wanted to follow the tradition of all the other nations (1 Sa. 8:5-20). The Lord had been their King, ruling them through judges He set up throughout the land (Judges 2: 16; 21 :25; Ruth 1:1). But Israel rejected Him and clamoured for a man to be their king (1 Sa. 8:20). Saul was chosen because of his natural strength and manly bearing - in other words, HIS OUTWARD APPEARANCE (1 Sa. 9:2,15-17).
Saul was a man-made king, placed on the throne by the people (1 Sa. 11:15).
The anointing of God's Spirit had left Saul because of his disobedience to the Lord (1 Sa. 15:2-3,7-23,28,35; 18: 12). It was evident when he faced the challenge of Goliath. God's power was no longer upon him and Saul was afraid (1 Sa.17:10-11).
David = The Anointing
The Lord chose David to be king because he was a man after God's own heart (Acts 13:22). David loved God with all his might (Ps. 27:4; 63:1-8). He was chosen because of his heart, not his outward appearance (1 Sa. 16:7).
David was God's choice for king (1 Sa. 16:1; Ps.89:20). He was according to the word of the Lord, not according to man's demand.
David was anointed as king by Samuel when he was still a young lad caring for his father's sheep, but God's Spirit was upon him from that moment (1 Sa. 16:13).
Through God's power he killed a lion and a bear that attacked the sheep (1 Sa. 17:34-37), and faced Goliath in the anointing of the Holy Spirit that was upon him (1 Sa. 17:40-52; 18:12,28).
Zadok had to choose where to place his loyalty. We, too, face the same choice today. Like Zadok, the roots of our loyalty are either in Saul, who represented tradition (the organization and outward observances of men), or in David, who represented the anointing (God's word evidenced by the presence of His Spirit).
In Ezekiel's vision of the glory of the Lord returning to the Temple, the Lord separates the descendants of Zadok the priest as the ones who would minister in His presence. The Lord gives the reason for His choice - they faithfully carried out the duties of the sanctuary when all the other Israelites went astray from Him.
Their ancestor, Zadok, had his loyalty and commitment in the right place also, at the time when it faced its greatest tests. When all Israel had been led astray, Zadok remained faithful.
Three times the priest Zadok was tested in his loyalty. Each test he faced is applicable to our lives also. As we study his situation and the choices he made, we must decide where the spiritual roots of our loyalty are to be found.
Tradition or the Anointing?
"These are the numbers of the men armed for battle who came to David at Hebron to hand over Saul's kingdom to him, as the Lord had said...and Zadok, a brave young warrior, with 22 officers from his family..." (1 Chr.12:23-28).
The first great test of Zadok's loyalty came when he had to choose between Saul or David as king. Saul had been king over Israel for nearly forty years, but young David was claiming rights to the throne. Afraid that he would lose his position, Saul had tried to kill David and had forced him into hiding (1 Sa. 19:11-18). A large band had followed David (1 Sa. 22:2). The nation was divided and Israel was in civil war (1 Sa. 26:2; 30:9).
On the surface it looked as though David was the usurper and Saul the one who deserved Zadok's loyalty. But Zadok was a man with spiritual insight.
Saul = Tradition
Saul was made king because Israel wanted to follow the tradition of all the other nations (1 Sa. 8:5-20). The Lord had been their King, ruling them through judges He set up throughout the land (Judges 2: 16; 21 :25; Ruth 1:1). But Israel rejected Him and clamoured for a man to be their king (1 Sa. 8:20). Saul was chosen because of his natural strength and manly bearing - in other words, HIS OUTWARD APPEARANCE (1 Sa. 9:2,15-17).
Saul was a man-made king, placed on the throne by the people (1 Sa. 11:15).
The anointing of God's Spirit had left Saul because of his disobedience to the Lord (1 Sa. 15:2-3,7-23,28,35; 18: 12). It was evident when he faced the challenge of Goliath. God's power was no longer upon him and Saul was afraid (1 Sa.17:10-11).
David = The Anointing
The Lord chose David to be king because he was a man after God's own heart (Acts 13:22). David loved God with all his might (Ps. 27:4; 63:1-8). He was chosen because of his heart, not his outward appearance (1 Sa. 16:7).
David was God's choice for king (1 Sa. 16:1; Ps.89:20). He was according to the word of the Lord, not according to man's demand.
David was anointed as king by Samuel when he was still a young lad caring for his father's sheep, but God's Spirit was upon him from that moment (1 Sa. 16:13).
Through God's power he killed a lion and a bear that attacked the sheep (1 Sa. 17:34-37), and faced Goliath in the anointing of the Holy Spirit that was upon him (1 Sa. 17:40-52; 18:12,28).
Zadok had to choose where to place his loyalty. We, too, face the same choice today. Like Zadok, the roots of our loyalty are either in Saul, who represented tradition (the organization and outward observances of men), or in David, who represented the anointing (God's word evidenced by the presence of His Spirit).
