Eze.44:15-31,Be Loyal&Holy to God,Your Inheritance(New Worship2-Loyalt…

Eze.44:15-31,Be Loyal&Holy to God,Your Inheritance(New Worship2-Loyalty&Holiness) The Priestly Mission
Chs.44-46 discuss the new worship offered in the new temple. What kind of people are the Zadok priests who serve in the new temple?
1.Be faithful(15-16). The priests of the descendants of Zadok faithfully maintained the duties of the sanctuary.
Verse 15, "The priests, the Levites, the descendants of Zadok, kept the duties of my sanctuary when the house of Israel went astray from me. They shall come near to me to minister to me and stand before me to offer to me the fat and the blood,' declares the Lord God." The priests of the descendants of Zadok faithfully maintained their duties of the sanctuary even when the people of Israel worshipped idols and turned away from God(10), and even when other Levitical priests followed the wrong path. During the reign of King David, Abiathar and Zadok were ministered as high priests. However, Abiathar joined the rebellion of David's son Adonijah and was dismissed when King Solomon ascended the throne. This was because he followed with the wrong path. However, Zadok the priest remained loyal to Solomon and was thus ministered as high priest. God granted them the privilege of approaching the Most Holy Place and ministering to Him alone. They were recognized by both God and the king. Verse 16 says, "They shall enter my sanctuary and come near my table to minister to me and keep the charge I have given them."
Zadok is a type of Jesus Christ, the ultimate high priest. Furthermore, believers in Jesus are also priests of all believers, descendants of Zadok. Like the priests of the descendants of Zadok, we must live faithfully for God and the church. We must believe in Jesus, who remains the same yesterday, today, and always, and serve the Lord's church. We must be faithful in small things for God and the church, faithful even in difficult times. We must remain faithful to the end. This is the principle of blessed loyalty. 1Cor.4:2 says, "It is required of those who have been entrusted that they be found faithful." Rev.2:10, Be faithful even unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. I pray that you will be faithful to God&the church, living as blessed saints who receive God's approval and crown.

2. Priests must maintain holiness(17-27). The priests of the descendants of Zadok, who hold a holy office, must live holy lives and always maintain holiness. God required holiness in every area of ​​the priests of the descendants of Zadok in their lives. How can they maintain holiness and distinction?
1) Clothing(17-19): Instead of wool garments, which symbolized impurity and caused sweat to flow, they were to wear linen. Even sweat from the body was considered impure. Instead, they were to wear breathable linen. Wool was also made from the skin of a dead animal. Death was impure. Therefore, they were to wear linen garments instead of wool. They were also to wear linen garments for their tops. Verse 17: "When they enter the inner courtyard gates or minister within the inner courtyard gates or the temple, they shall not wear woolen garments; they shall wear fine linen garments." Their headgear was also a fine linen turban(18). They also wore fine linen trousers. Their waist belts were also made of linen. Verse 18: "They shall put on fine linen turbans and wear fine linen trousers. They shall not gird themselves with anything that causes sweat."
 Furthermore, when leaving the inner courtyard of the temple, they were to wear garments other than priestly garments. They were to wear priestly garments only when performing their duties, distinguishing themselves by wearing ordinary clothing outside. Verse 19: "When they go out to the outer courtyard to the people, they shall take off their ministering garments and leave them in the sacred chambers, and put on other garments, lest they sanctify the people with their garments." This was also a precautionary measure to prevent people from wearing priestly garments and pretending to be holy priests, or to prevent priests from flaunting their garments by claiming, "I am a temple priest," or to prevent an impure person from being exposed to danger due to the priestly garments.
2) Appearance: They were to maintain order and distinction by not shaving their heads(this was a sign of mourning among Gentiles, a practice that also blasphemed the Creator) or letting their hair grow long(which would be considered impure and debauched). Verse 20: "They shall neither shave their heads nor let their hair grow long; they shall only cut off the hair of their heads."
3) Food: They were to abstain from wine(Lev.10:9). This was to prevent drunkenness&mistakes. The priests Nadab&Abihu lost their senses and died from intoxication. Verse 21: "No priest shall drink wine when he enters the inner court."
4) Marriage: They were to avoid illicit marriages(widows, divorced women). V.22: "He shall not marry a widow or divorced woman; he shall not marry a virgin of the house of Israel, or the widow of a priest." This tells us that in order to teach God's people what is clean&what is unclean, we must first be clean.
5) They were forbidden to come near dead bodies, except for family members, thus isolating themselves from the sins and impurities of the world. V.25: "You shall not defile yourself by coming near a dead body. However, you may defile yourself for your father, mother, children, brothers, or unmarried sisters." Priests were to be especially careful about becoming impure. However, they were to faithfully fulfill their duties toward their families. They were to care for their families in sin. They were to be prepared to expose themselves and care for their families. When a parent or sibling died, they were to mourn the body and perform the funeral. Because they were impure at this time, they were to be purified according to proper procedures before serving in the temple(25-27). They were to live out their teachings and serve as living role models for all the ordinances.
Mission: Priests served as teachers of the law and mediators. V.23: "They shall teach my people the difference between the holy and the profane, and they shall discern between the unclean and the clean." In judgment, "you shall judge according to my ordinances"(24). You shall judge cases according to my ordinances. You shall keep my decrees and my ordinances at all my appointed feasts. You shall hallow my Sabbaths." As mediators, priests were to practice justice.
This is not just a story of Old Testament priests. In Jesus Christ, we are all royal priests(1Peter2:9). These priestly ordinances demonstrate the mission of our saints, who do not belong to the world but belong solely to the Lord, living lives of spiritual holiness and distinction. May we also be blessed to live as holy saints who please God.

3. God Himself Becomes the Priests' Inheritance(28-31) : Vs.28-31: "They shall have an inheritance; I am their inheritance. You shall not give them a possession in Israel, for I am their possession. They shall eat the grain offering, the sin offering, and the guilt offering. Every thing dedicated in Israel is theirs. The firstfruits of every kind, every heave offering of every kind from all your offerings, are the priest's. You shall also give the priest the firstfruits of your dough, so that a blessing may be upon your house. The priest shall not eat anything of bird or animal that dies of itself or is torn."(They shall not eat unclean meat.)
V.30: God required the people to offer sacrifices, tithes, and all firstfruits to the priests, so that they could devote themselves to serving Him. God instructed the people to serve the priests as they served God, and to take responsibility for their livelihood. He promised blessings to those who provided for the priests(30). Gal.6:6, "Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches." 1 Tim.5:17, "An elder (pastor) who rules well is to be given double honor."
 The inheritance of the priests, who did not receive worldly inheritance(land, real estate), was simply this: "I am your inheritance"(v.28). The priests' livelihood was secured by the offerings&gifts the people gave to God, a promise that God Himself would be their provider. The priests did not own real estate; their temple service&living expenses came from the tithes of the wealthy in the community(vv.29-30).

*A priest is one who has made Jehovah God their inheritance. 1) One who is completely devoted to God (v.28) - a full-time minister for God and the church. 2) One who entrusts his livelihood and entire life to God. Mt.6:31-33, Phil.4:11(self-sufficiency) 3) One who upholds God's holiness. Being a priest is both a privilege and a duty. One is chosen, completely devoted, entrusting one's entire life to God, and one who maintains holiness and purity for God and the nation. This symbolizes that Jesus Christ, the ultimate high priest, offered a one-time, eternal sacrifice with the blood of the cross (Heb.9:12), making us heirs of God's inheritance. Our true inheritance is not the possessions of this earth, but God Himself, and we obtain everything in Him. Furthermore, this teaches us that those who work for God's kingdom must abandon worldly greed and live solely relying on God.
 Beloved saints, God speaks today through the life of Zadok the priest. Let us all look to Jesus Christ, who completed the entire work of salvation as the eternal high priest. May you, like Zadok the priest, be blessed to be faithful to God and the church to the end. As children of God, we must always maintain holiness. Holy clothing, holy appearance, holy body, holy food, holy marriage—I bless you to live as role models who teach holiness. I bless you to believe that God is our provider, to entrust your entire life to Him, and to live devotedly. May you also be blessed to be priests who believe that Jehovah alone is your inheritance, and who faithfully fulfill God's mission with loyalty and holiness. I pray in Jesus' name that you may be. Amen.
 Prayer: God, despite my weakness, thank you for calling me a holy priest through Jesus. Like the sons of Zadok, let me live without compromising with the world, guarding your sanctuary. As a life made holy by the blood of Jesus, let me worship you and serve my neighbors every day. I pray that my life today will become a worship offering to God. I pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.