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The Priesthood of the Believer: Ministers to God, Blessings to People

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The Priesthood of the Believer: Ministers to God, Blessings to People WILLIAMS | PAGE 1 WILLIAMS | PAGE 2 THE PRIESTHOOD OF THE BELIEVER: MINISTERS TO GOD, BLESSINGS TO PEOPLE PREFACE ........................................................................................3 INTRODUCTION ...............................................................................4 PART I: REMOVING IDOLS .........................................................5 SESSION 1: A DEFINITION & FOUR DIMENSIONS OF DEVOTION ..........6 SESSION 2: IDOLS & HUMANITY (PSALMS 115:4-8, 135:15-18) .........8 SESSION 3: IDOLS & DEMONS .........................................................13 SESSION 4: THE BRIDEGROOM’S RESPONSE TO IDOLATRY ................14 SESSION 5: THE BRIDE’S RESPONSE TO IDOLATRY ...........................18 PART II: THE PRIESTHOOD OF THE BELIEVER ..........................23 SESSION 1: 15 REASONS WHY THIS SUBJECT IS IMPORTANT ............24 SESSION 2: THE ETERNAL DESIRE IN THE HEART OF GOD ................27 SESSION 3: THE DWELLING PLACE OF GOD & MAN .........................28 SESSION 4: THE TRANSCENDENT BEAUTY OF GOD’S HOLINESS ........32 SESSION 5: THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE PRIESTLY MINISTRY .............35 SESSION 6: THE SEVEN FACETS OF OLD TESTAMENT PRIESTS ..........37 SESSION 7: THE HIGH PRIESTLY MINISTRY ......................................44 SESSION 8: THE SEVEN FACETS OF NEW TESTAMENT PRIESTS ..........48 SESSION 9: THE SIX NATURAL DYNAMICS OF THE PRIEST ................58 SESSION 10: THE ETERNAL PRIESTHOOD .........................................62 APPENDIX (EXTRA NOTES) ........................................................70 WILLIAMS | PAGE 3 PREFACE On October 17th, 2019, early in the morning, I sat in my dorm’s makeshift prayer closet preparing to continue my 90 days of reading through the Bible. For the past 47 days I had been encountering the Lord in a unique way by reading the Scriptures out loud. Almost every day the Spirit would highlight something new but little did I know that the words I would read this morning would send me on the journey of studying and uncovering a deep truth found in the Scriptures: The Priesthood of the Believer. I had been reading through the prophets for the past week and this particular morning the first chapter I read was Jeremiah 3 in which God was rebuking Israel for Her idolatry. As I read the words aloud immediately the spirit of wisdom and revelation fell upon my mind and heart, giving me a deep understanding of the emotions of God in this passage. In this portion of Scripture God pours out His heart as a husband who has lost his wife to another lover. In this passage I could almost feel and hear the Lord say, "Return, backsliding Israel,” says the Lord; “I will not cause My anger to fall on you. For I am merciful,” says the Lord; “I will not remain angry forever…Return, O backsliding children,” says the Lord; “for I am married to you” (NKJV, Jer 3:12-14). When I read the words of this chapter it was as if a veil was taken off of my face and the light of the knowledge of God flooded the room. In this moment I realized that, in God’s eyes, idolatry is synonymous with adultery. For believers, our trust (or intimacy) in anything other than the Lord is a direct violation of the covenant we have been brought into. Shaken by the power of this revelation I stopped reading and began weeping, knowing that the Holy Spirit was connecting my heart with God’s. Out of desperation to understand this subject I began studying idolatry and its effects on our relationship with the Lord. I completed the study within a month and a half but when I finished I felt that something was missing. Taking this issue to the Lord in prayer I realized that it is not enough to simply remove idols from our hearts but we must also walk in the opposite spirit, we must walk as priests of God. Therefore the past year of my life, in every aspect, has been focused on unveiling every believer’s identity as a priest of God. In my opinion, this is one of the most important doctrines of the Christian faith because it touches every aspect of our life. And I believe that as we approach the transition into the age to come (the return of Christ) the Lord will begin highlighting this doctrine amongst the larger Body of Christ because this will be our identity forever! I pray that the Spirit will touch your heart as we study this together! WILLIAMS | PAGE 4 INTRODUCTION The doctrine of The Priesthood of the Believer was forged and manifested in the fires of the Reformation movement of the 16th century (1500’s). Martin Luther led a revolt against the Catholic Church because they were guilty of manipulating the people and withholding believers from engaging personally with the Lord. The Catholic Church, opposite of biblical teaching, had priests (Catholic ministers) mediate the relationship between the people and God. Exposing this ecclesial atrocity in his 95 Theses Martin Luther exalted the doctrine of The Priesthood of the Believer, the biblical truth that every Christian has access to God. As this doctrine has taken root in Protestant Christianity over the past 500 years, over the past 50 years the Lord has begun bringing forth a fuller expression of it in the current (and increasing) Global Prayer Movement. According to studies in missiology and the IHOP Network (International House of Prayer) there are over 500 houses of prayer in the United States and thousands globally! The doctrine of The Priesthood of the Believer is not only about recognizing our access to the presence of God but it is also about engaging in our priestly ministry to His heart. I am not saying that Martin Luther and the Reformers missed it, I am saying that orthodoxy must result in orthopraxy; the doctrine of the priesthood must result in the deeds of the priesthood. In order to do the works of the New Testament priest it is imperative that we remove anything that hinders our wholehearted love for God. Many of us hoard idols that prevent us from experiencing more of God and if we are to ascend the mountain of the Lord it requires clean hands and a pure heart, a heart that does not lift itself to an idol or any other false deity (Ps 24:3-4). Therefore, the first 5 sessions of this document deal with the theology of idolatry and gives practical steps on how to remove such hinderances from our lives. Once we have removed the idols from our heart we must turn to the Lord and worship Him in spirit and in truth, lest anything steal our devotion. The doctrine of The Priesthood of the Believer is explained in the second part of these notes, dealing with the topic in 10 sessions. This section highlights the most important theological ideas of this doctrine and the Appendix holds more information on this subject, expounding upon concepts of subsequent importance. Keep in mind that this document is by no means exhaustive or perfect (there is more I would like to write about), it is simply an attempt to merge the core of our Protestant beliefs with the emergence of the Global Prayer Movement. My aim is to give the Body of Christ appropriate language and biblically rooted theology of our identity as New Testament priests. As you engage with this material I pray that you think critically about my theology and my propositions, but I also hope that you hear my heart and feel my passion for this subject. PART I: REMOVING IDOLS WILLIAMS | PAGE 6 SESSION 1: A DEFINITION & FOUR DIMENSIONS OF DEVOTION Definition of Idolatry: Any created thing (by God or by Man) that humans or satanic powers have turned into a primary object of devotion or that hinders our wholehearted love for God. I. AFFECTION (EMOTIONS) A. GOVERNANCE: The first question to be asked pertaining to idolatry is: where does the object have dominion in our emotional life? If we are not careful idols can easily assume the throne of our passions, controlling the way we feel about certain subjects. When idols have dominion in the area of our emotions (joy, fear, sadness, etc.) they nullify and disconnect our feelings from the truth of the Gospel and the heart of the Father. When idols have authority in our emotions they effect how and what we feel about certain things. B. INFLUENCE: This area pertains to the development of the person’s emotional life. When an idol governs a person’s emotions its influence becomes prevalent and dictates the trajectory of the individual’s heart response to God. As the dominion of the idol expands so does its influence. Not only does the idol dictate the individual’s heart response to God but it also dictates the actions of the individual as well. Action is simply the manifestation of the heart response. C. RELIANCE: Once the strongholds of governance and influence are established the individual begins to rely on the idol for emotional consistency. This means that a pattern is established on the internal life of the individual to sustain a certain feeling or emotion independent of God. The longer these patterns continue the easier it becomes for demonic strongholds to be established, making inward freedom harder to gain (freedom being were the Spirit has dominion [2 Cor 3:18]). Idols will not last, therefore when they are removed there is potential for great emotional turmoil. II. DESIRE (AMBITIONS) A. DESIRE: There are many longings of the human heart but when an idol becomes the focal point of those desires we begin to crave that which will not last. As stated previously idols cannot and will not last therefore their end is destruction. So when we allow our desires to be fixed upon idols we are longing for death itself. We have been created with eternal passions and desires and if we do not guard our hearts we can be easily led into the worship of false gods.
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