Study Guide

Working in the Temple of God

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CHAPTER THREE: WORKING IN THE TEMPLE OF GOD

The priests stand working in the outer court and the holy place on a daily basis, offering up sacrifices for the sins of the people. They act as the intercessors for the people of God. But the tabernacle in the wilderness is a symbol of the final tabernacle of the Lord. Man has become the dwelling place of the Lord. Therefore, the work of the priesthood must be done in the temple of the Most High. The work must be done in man. Now it is the Lord who appoints those who are able to approach Him on behalf of the people. Those working the five-fold ministry are anointed and appointed by the Lord to work in the hearts of the people in full view of the conscience of every man.

THE HIGH PRIEST: A TYPE OF THE APOSTLE

Now let us look into the work of the apostle in the Body of Christ. He is a type of the High Priest of the Tabernacle in the Wilderness. It was the High Priest who entered the Holy of Holies once a year to receive from the Lord. The apostle is also a type of Moses, as he went on the top of the mountain to receive the law that was to govern the people of God. Likewise, it is the apostle who receives the revelation of the Mystery of Christ to be given to the Church.

Ephesians 3:3-5

3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words,

4 Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ)

5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit.

The knowledge of the Mystery of Christ was given to the Apostle Paul. It was this Apostle who gave it to the Church. To understand the work of the Apostle and even the others of the five-fold ministry, we must look a bit closer at the work of the High Priest, and the things he concerned himself with. First of all, his work was confined to the tabernacle. He was set apart from the congregation to do the service of the temple. His most important function was that of atonement. He carried out the ceremony that allowed the people to be forgiven of their sins. He knew the law of God and the remedy for breaking that law. He knew how to bring a man or woman into the perfect will of the Father. The first thing we must note concerning the apostle is that he or she must be called of God. They are chosen by God alone for the work in the Body.

Hebrews 5:1-4

1 For every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins:

2 Who can have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way; for that he himself also is compassed with infirmity.

3 And by reason hereof he ought, as for the people, so also for himself, to offer for sins.

4 And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.

The Apostle of the Lord is set first in the order of the Lord. He receives the fresh manna from on high and dispenses it to the church. We know that he must commune with the Lord and offer gifts and sacrifices for himself and the people. However, we need to understand fully the call of the Apostle, so that we might discern the call of the other four. Tradition has made the Apostle and the other ministry gifts were church acts therefore, the authority and purpose of the gifts are not really seen. Thus there is a lot of abuse in the church. The members are stagnated and discouraged.

It is the mindset of the congregation and the ministers that each of us come to church to work. Everyone puts on his or her little show and comes back again the following Sunday. The work space for the ministry is in the temple of God, not in the church building. It is in the tabernacle of God. The priesthood must work in the temple of the Lord. Such temple today is Man, for God does not dwell in the tabernacle in the wilderness, nor does He reside in temples likened unto the one Solomon built. But the Lord lives in the hearts of men and women. HIS TABERNACLE IS THE BODY OF CHRIST. Therefore, the work of the ministry must be carried out in the inward parts of the human temple. It is the responsibility of the Apostles to train all the other ministers in the Body how to work the ministry in the temple of God. The priests of the tabernacle spent most of their time in the Holy Place and the Brazen Alter. Now, with the Old Testament being our schoolmaster, it is easy to see that the work of the priesthood today must be done in the Holy Place of the new temple. Our work space is the heart of man, the soul. How does one enter the soul of another to work the ministry of reconciliation? Become one with the word. We have been made watchmen for the souls of the people. In order to watch well, we must actually enter the soul of the believer.

Hebrews 4:12

For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Go in with the word. When the word itself begins to pierce the armour of pride and stubbornness, make yourself equal with the word and enter into the gates of the mind with truth, compassion and understanding. We are to spiritually walk up and down in the soul of the believer for we have been given the authority to cast down, uproot and rebuild anything that is not liken unto God in the heart of the Believer.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5

3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:

4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)

5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.

Our weapons are spiritual and mighty with the power of God. But where is the battleground? I submit that it, too, is spiritual. It is the soul realm of the Believer. This is the place of strongholds and evil imaginations. The mandate of the apostle is to cast down every high thing in the mind of the believer that exalts itself against the truth. We are to come against false doctrines, disunity and sin with the fervency of war. This is the calling and the responsibility of the Apostle. Every evil thought must be brought into captivity by the truth. The soul must be groomed to desire holiness. It must be cultivated to want the righteousness of God that resides in the spirit or conscience of the believer. The flesh must be disciplined and the soul must become a place of fellowship for the Father. This is the purpose and call of the apostolic mantle. However, all work is done under the watchful eye of the Holy Spirit, who dwells in the Holy of Holies (the conscience or spirit). Remember, the Apostle’s ministry is that of Jesus Christ. It is Christ, Himself, who wants to work through our bodies. He wants to continue His ministry upon the earth. Therefore, those who are chosen for this great work must quickly come into agreement with God. The called must surrender his or her will to the Father. The life that we now live, we live unto the Lord. We serve His purpose and seek to please Him in all things. Our life is no more our own. It is the life of Christ that has consumed our being. This leads to the question, “Why is it so hard to live the life of Christ in our own bodies? Well, the answer is simple. The flesh that this Christ now dwells in has its own agenda. It is selfish and very self-serving. It has not reckoned itself as dead. Therefore, it is very difficult to receive from the Father the needs of the people. For this cause, it is necessary for the priests of today, to take the same trip to the brazen altar as did the priests of the Levitical order.

THE BRAZEN ALTAR – A SPIRITUAL LOCATION

Leviticus 9:8-10

8 Aaron therefore went unto the altar, and slew the calf of the sin offering, which was for himself.

9 And the sons of Aaron brought the blood unto him: and he dipped his finger in the blood, and put it upon the horns of the altar, and poured out the blood at the bottom of the altar:

10 But the fat, and the kidneys, and the caul above the liver of the sin offering, he burnt upon the altar; as the LORD commanded Moses.

Exodus 20:24-26

24 An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.

25 And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.

26 Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon.

The brazen altar is where all the sacrifices were made. It is not a place of worship. It is a place of death. Before offering up the atonement for the people or entering the presence of God, the high priest had to first offer a sacrifice for himself at the brazen altar. To us today it is a place of decision. It is where we make a conscious decision to walk holy in the service of the Lord. Note that the blood from the sacrifice was placed on the body of the priest. It is the responsibility of the servants of the Lord to mortify the members of the flesh. This is done by making a heart decision to turn away from sin. This decision must be made with the heart. Although the body may have strayed from the truth, the heart must be pure in repentance, commitment and submission to the will of God. Desires of the heart contrary to the will of God exist because of the thinking of the fleshy mind. If the high priest approached God the Father, with iniquity, wantonness or any other hidden agendas, the sacrifice is not received. To begin the walk in service one must first come into agreement with God. The flesh is crucified by the renewal of the mind. The thoughts of the mind must become holy and pure before the members of the flesh can be sanctified. The heart must be pure before you leave the altar to enter the presence of God on behalf of others. He is all knowing. He can discern the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Romans 6:1-7

1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?

2 God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?

3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

7 For he that is dead is freed from sin.

SELF-DENIAL – A LIVING SACRIFICE

Aaron’s sacrifice was baptized in the flames of fire at the altar. Our sacrifice is baptized in the fire of the Holy Ghost. Having been baptized into His death, we must reckon this body as dead. Dead men have no agendas. A manifest token of this heart made decision, is self-denial. This is the decision that must be made. The minister of the Lord must count up the cost and decide with the heart to deny himself and not seek after the things of this life.

Romans 12:1-2

1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

The brazen altar is a spiritual location in which one comes into agreement with God by applying the precious blood of Jesus to any negative disposition of the flesh. It is a place of purging and purification. Note that Aaron offered the sacrifice, but it was Moses who anointed him with the blood of the sacrifice. Likewise, it is the individual who presents himself earnestly before the Lord, but it is God who applies the blood or covering for the sin. It is the Lord who will forgive and deliver such a one whose heart and motives are pure before Him. If the sacrifice that the high priest offered for himself was with spot or blemish, then the sacrifice was considered profane and defiled. If the priest entered the Holy of Holies after being anointed with the blood from this profane animal, he died. To offer such a sacrifice is the equivalent of tempting God.

There is a lesson for us in this. Let us not tempt God by going back and forth to the physical altar, knowing that we are not ready to truly repent of the sin in our lives. Instead, let us go to the altar of the mind and accept the Word of God as law for our lives. This is the only way we can come to a place of wanting nothing and denying self. After the Lord receives the sin-offering of the high priest, now the priest must maintain a sinless relationship with the Lord. He must fellowship with the Lord and the people of God. He must be no stranger at the table of shewbread, eating of the bread of life. The light of the golden candlestick should always guide him in the purpose and way of the Lord. He must offer prayers for sin, sickness and despair in the body.

THE LEVITES: THE UNDER-SHEPHERDS

The various duties connected with the tabernacle worship were far too numerous for Aaron and his sons to overtake; even the preparing of the sacrifices for the altar involved an amount of physical labor greatly beyond their strength. It is evident, then, that they required assistance. God might have given them as helps all the first-born sons of the Israelites, in whom, ever since the eventful night in Egypt, when the first-born sons of the Egyptians were smitten dead by the destroying angel and the first-born of the Israelites spared alive, he claimed a peculiar right. In their place, however, He saw helps, as an arrangement having many obvious advantages, to give the priests the whole tribe of Levi (Numbers 3:12), to which Moses and Aaron belonged.

Numbers 3:12

And I, behold, I have taken the Levites from among the children of Israel instead of all the firstborn that openeth the matrix among the children of Israel:therefore the Levites shall be mine;

The tribe of Levi numbered 22,000 (Numbers 3:39), the first-born Israelites 22,273 (Numbers 3:43), so that they were nearly equal. The 273 first-born sons, in excess of the Levites, were by divine permission redeemed at the rate of five shekels each (Numbers 3:46-51). Of the 22,000 Levites, 8,580 were qualified by age to enter on the duties of their office (Numbers 4:47-48).

Numbers 3:39-51

39 All that were numbered of the Levites, which Moses and Aaron numbered at the commandment of the Lord, throughout their families, all the males from a month old and upward, were twenty and two thousand.

40 And the Lord said unto Moses, Number all the firstborn of the males of the children of Israel from a month old and upward, and take the number of their names.

41 And thou shalt take the Levites for me (I am the Lord) instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel; and the cattle of the Levites instead of all the firstlings among the cattle of the children of Israel.

42 And Moses numbered, as the Lord commanded him, all the firstborn among the children of Israel.

43 And all the firstborn males by the number of names, from a month old and upward, of those that were numbered of them, were twenty and two thousand two hundred and threescore and thirteen.

44 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

45 Take the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead of their cattle; and the Levites shall be mine: I am the Lord.

46 And for those that are to be redeemed of the two hundred and threescore and thirteen of the firstborn of the children of Israel, which are more than the Levites;

47 Thou shalt even take five shekels apiece by the poll, after the shekel of the sanctuary shalt thou take them: (the shekel is twenty gerahs:)

48 And thou shalt give the money, wherewith the odd number of them is to be redeemed, unto Aaron and to his sons.

49 And Moses took the redemption money of them that were over and above them that were redeemed by the Levites:

50 Of the firstborn of the children of Israel took he the money; a thousand three hundred and threescore and five shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary:

51 And Moses gave the money of them that were redeemed unto Aaron and to his sons, according to the word of the Lord, as the Lord commanded Moses.

Numbers 4:47-49

47 From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old, every one that came to do the service of the ministry, and the service of the burden in the tabernacle of the congregation,

48 Even those that were numbered of them, were eight thousand and five hundred and fourscore.

49 According to the commandment of the Lord they were numbered by the hand of Moses, every one according to his service, and according to his burden: thus were they numbered of him, as the Lord commanded Moses.

The Levites were solemnly set apart to their office by Aaron. Having shaved their flesh and washed their clothes, they were sprinkled with the water of purifying, and then presented as a national offering to the Lord: the nation’s representatives, the elders of the respective tribes, putting their hands upon them, thereby signifying that the people gave the Levites to the Lord in place of the first-born. After being thus transferred to the Lord, the Levites offered two bullocks as sacrifices, one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering (Numbers 8:5-26).

Numbers 8:5-26

5 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

6 Take the Levites from among the children of Israel, and cleanse them.

7 And thus shalt thou do unto them, to cleanse them: Sprinkle water of purifying upon them, and let them shave all their flesh, and let them wash their clothes, and so make themselves clean.

8 Then let them take a young bullock with his meat offering, even fine flour mingled with oil, and another young bullock shalt thou take for a sin offering.

9 And thou shalt bring the Levites before the tabernacle of the congregation: and thou shalt gather the whole assembly of the children of Israel together:

10 And thou shalt bring the Levites before the Lord: and the children of Israel shall put their hands upon the Levites:

11 And Aaron shall offer the Levites before the Lord for an offering of the children of Israel, that they may execute the service of the Lord.

12 And the Levites shall lay their hands upon the heads of the bullocks: and thou shalt offer the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering, unto the Lord, to make an atonement for the Levites.

13 And thou shalt set the Levites before Aaron, and before his sons, and offer them for an offering unto the Lord.

14 Thus shalt thou separate the Levites from among the children of Israel: and the Levites shall be mine.

15 And after that shall the Levites go in to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation: and thou shalt cleanse them, and offer them for an offering.

16 For they are wholly given unto me from among the children of Israel; instead of such as open every womb, even instead of the firstborn of all the children of Israel, have I taken them unto me.

17 For all the firstborn of the children of Israel are mine, both man and beast: on the day that I smote every firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified them for myself.

18 And I have taken the Levites for all the firstborn of the children of Israel.

19 And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and to his sons from among the children of Israel, to do the service of the children of Israel in the tabernacle of the congregation, and to make an atonement for the children of Israel: that there be no plague among the children of Israel, when the children of Israel come nigh unto the sanctuary.

20 And Moses, and Aaron, and all the congregation of the children of Israel, did to the Levites according unto all that the Lord commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so did the children of Israel unto them.

21 And the Levites were purified, and they washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them as an offering before the Lord; and Aaron made an atonement for them to cleanse them.

22 And after that went the Levites in to do their service in the tabernacle of the congregation before Aaron, and before his sons: as the Lord had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so did they unto them.

23 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

24 This is it that belongeth unto the Levites: from twenty and five years old and upward they shall go in to wait upon the service of the tabernacle of the congregation:

25 And from the age of fifty years they shall cease waiting upon the service thereof, and shall serve no more:

26 But shall minister with their brethren in the tabernacle of the congregation, to keep the charge, and shall do no service. Thus shalt thou do unto the Levites touching their charge.

Whatever assistance the priests might require to enable them to overtake their sacred work, the Levites were ever at hand to render it. Some Biblical critics, such as Colenso, would not be so bold in asserting that it was impossible for Aaron and his sons to do all the work connected with the sacrifices if they had not willfully shut their eyes to this fact. It is true the mere Levite, except in cases of emergency (2 Chronicles 29:34), could not offer up the sacrifice, sprinkle the blood, burn incense, or perform other priestly acts. In helping, however, to prepare the victims for the altar, and in numerous other ways, he might lawfully assist in the religious services of the tabernacle. In the wilderness the Levites had the sole charge of taking down and putting up the tabernacle, and of transporting it from one place of encampment to another (Numbers 4). At one time the Levites may have been seen busy in the tabernacle court, waiting on the priests, and helping them in their work; at another time, taking down the sacred structure; at another, transporting it and its holy vessels through the wilderness; and at another, rearing it in some new place of encampment. Their duties, however, were not confined to such services as these, for to them, with the priests, the religious instruction of the nation was confided: “They shall teach Jacob Thy judgments and Israel Thy law” (Deuteronomy 33:10).

These numerous passages of Scripture illustrating them, showing that the Levites as well as the priests taught the people (2 Chronicles 17:7-9) When the children of Israel were settled in the promised land, and the tabernacle was fixed for long periods in the same place, the Levites were relieved of a very burdensome part of their labors—that of transporting the sacred edifice from place to place, so that there was no longer any necessity for them all being in attendance at the house of the Lord; consequently they were formed into divisions, and waited on the priests in turn. When disengaged at the sanctuary, the Levites resided in the Levitical cities, situated in all the tribal territories, not, however, passing their time in mere recreation, but employing it in divers ways for the moral and spiritual welfare of the people. They read and explained the law, assisted the elders in the different towns in the administration of justice, took charge of the cities of refuge, whither those who had sinned through ignorance fled for safety. Dwelling in the midst of every tribe, they were everywhere at hand to explain the law, instruct the ignorant, comfort the afflicted, shield the innocent, punish the guilty, and generally guide the people in the way in which they should go (Deuteronomy 17:8-12; 32:10).

Deuteronomy 17:8-12

8 If there arise a matter too hard for thee in judgment, between blood and blood, between plea and plea, and between stroke and stroke, being matters of controversy within thy gates: then shalt thou arise, and get thee up into the place which the Lord thy God shall choose;

9 And thou shalt come unto the priests the Levites, and unto the judge that shall be in those days, and enquire; and they shall shew thee the sentence of judgment:

10 And thou shalt do according to the sentence, which they of that place which the Lord shall choose shall shew thee; and thou shalt observe to do according to all that they inform thee:

11 According to the sentence of the law which they shall teach thee, and according to the judgment which they shall tell thee, thou shalt do: thou shalt not decline from the sentence which they shall shew thee, to the right hand, nor to the left.

12 And the man that will do presumptuously, and will not hearken unto the priest that standeth to minister there before the Lord thy God, or unto the judge, even that man shall die: and thou shalt put away the evil from Israel.

Deuteronomy 32:10

He found him in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness; he led him about, he instructed him, he kept him as the apple of his eye.

Charged with so many highly important duties, the Levites must have possessed immense influence, and when animated with the spirit of their office, and with love for God and man, could not fail in maintaining and advancing the best interests of the Kingdom of Israel. With a view to the transference of the scene of worship, from the tabernacle to the temple, David appointed a new arrangement of the Levites, in which we find that besides assisting the priest in the courts of the Lord’s House, and instructing the nation, 4,000 served as porters, who had charge of opening and shutting the gates, and of admitting only those who had a right to enter; 4,000 served as musicians, and conducted the public praise; and 6,000 served as officers and judges (I Chronicles 23). The Levites had no share in the division of the Holy Land, so that the eleven tribes got one-twelfth more territory among them on that account. Seeing that the Levites got no land, and were not permitted to follow a secular calling, it was not only right and fair, but bare justice that provision should be made for their maintenance. To this tribe (priests included) were assigned forty-eight cities (Joshua 21). Besides these cities, one-tenth of the produce of the whole land was to be given to them (Numbers 18:21; Deuteronomy 18:1,2; Nehemiah 10:37).

Numbers 18:21

And, behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they serve, even the service of the tabernacle of the congregation.

Deuteronomy 18:1-2

1 The priests the Levites, and all the tribe of Levi, shall have no part nor inheritance with Israel: they shall eat the offerings of the Lord made by fire, and his inheritance.

2 Therefore shall they have no inheritance among their brethren: the Lord is their inheritance, as he hath said unto them.

Nehemiah 10:37

And that we should bring the firstfruits of our dough, and our offerings, and the fruit of all manner of trees, of wine and of oil, unto the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God; and the tithes of our ground unto the Levites, that the same Levites might have the tithes in all the cities of our tillage.

By this arrangement the Levites got about the same quantity of the produce of the land as the share of the country that should have fallen to them would have yielded had they participated in the division of Canaan. They were thus saved from the toils of cultivation, the service rendered by the other tribes being no more than a fair equivalent for the higher and sacred services rendered by the Levites to the nation. Many of the priests and Levites performed their duties to God and the Hebrew people so as to glorify Him and benefit them, and thereby “purchased to themselves a good degree.” And having, through the shadows of the old dispensation, led many an Israelite to look to the substance—Christ the one great sacrifice—they are now among the saints in glory, and shall shine as the stars for ever and ever.

Others of the priests and Levites were not distinguished by that holiness becoming their office; and at the time of our Savior’s advent, few, very few, were to be found executing the duties of their office with clean hands and a pure heart. But blessed be God, there were still to be found, even then, some who walked in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. With all their sins and shortcomings, the Levites, up to the time of our Savior, were the custodians of the Scriptures, which they read and explained in the synagogues, and thus were instrumental in keeping alive, however faintly, a knowledge of the true God; so that, with all their defects, this tribe was of signal service to the nation. By the wise separation of this tribe to God, the light of true religion was kept burning amidst surrounding darkness; the ritual services of the tabernacle and temple were attended to; and at least a remnant was always found, even in the worst times, to worship God in the beauty of holiness, and to magnify and declare His great name.

God has, in the Gospel dispensation, made provision for making known His will, instructing His people, through the glad tidings of Salvation—not to one nation only, but to all nations, and peoples, and tongues. He had not seen fit, however, under this as under the old economy, to choose a particular tribe as His ministering servants. While God had given pastors to His church, He appointed all believers as New Testament Levites, and separated them from the rest of the world unto Himself. He calls upon them all to dedicate themselves to His service.

The Levites, when not on duty at the sanctuary, were scattered up and down the whole land, and thus became centers of light from which religious knowledge was diffused. Christ’s followers, however, are scattered through all lands, shining as lights in the world, and by the grace of God hastening on the bright era of the millennium glory, when all people shall walk in the light of the Lord and rejoice in Him. The beam that shines from Zion Hill shall lighten every land. If you have believed in Jesus, and would remain His disciple, you cannot escape His service. He claims you really as He did the first-born Israelites, nay, He has stronger claims on you than He had on them. He spared them from the stroke of the angel of death, but He died on the cross that you might live forever. Do you, then, feel the paramount claims He has upon you? Do you court rather than shun His service? And are you often asking, “Lord, what would You have me to do?” If so, then you are doubtless already in harness and aiding on the great work of building up the New Testament church. Work on, whether in instructing little ones in the Sabbath-school, as missionary collectors, as tract distributors, or in any other way God in His providence has opened up for you. God speed your efforts to advance the kingdom of His dear Son. Work on, ever looking upwards to your heavenly Father, and, as you look, exclaiming, “My sufficiency is of Thee,” and He will bless you and your work, and receive you to Himself at last with the joyful welcome, “Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things; enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.”

Never forget your high calling. Wherever you are, at home or abroad, in the midst of saints or sinners, in all places and at all times, seek to adorn the doctrine of God our Savior by a walk and a conversation becoming the gospel. The Levites, remember, were centers of light. You are also called upon to “Let your light shine.” “Arise, shine.” “Shine ye as lights of the world.”