Insert the
Urim and Thummim into the sacred chestpiece so they will be carried over
Aaron’s heart when he goes into the Lord’s presence. In this way, Aaron will
always carry over his heart the objects used to determine the Lord’s will for
his people whenever he goes in before the Lord (Exodus 28:30 NLT).
Revelation
and Character
We do not know exactly what the urim and thummim
were. Some have suggested that they were
images or symbols. But we do know what
they represented. Urim exemplified
lights or revelation, and thummim characterized perfections or proven
character. What does this have to say to
us today? The Old Testament is revealed in the New, and the New Testament is
concealed in the Old. The Lord gives us
an object lesson about the condition of the heart of a servant of God, be it
under the Old or New Covenant.
The Heart
Of The Matter
The commentator Matthew Henry thought the
passage above may be read as, “And you will give, add, or deliver, to the
breastplate of judgment, the lights and perfections, and they will be on the
heart of Aaron.” He was given the
ability to know and make know the mind of God.
It is a two-pronged approach. The
minister of the Lord needs revelation, but also the integrity to use it
wisely.
God gives his servant intellectual prowess to
accomplish His will. But the mind by
itself can lead us to devious paths. God
bestows on his children gifts necessary to accomplish their calling. But giftings by themselves are not recipes
for success in ministry. It is gifting
flowing out of a heart given over to God that brings victory in our spiritual
pursuits. Is our motive in ministry to
glorify Him, or selfish ambition?
If
revelation and integrity are operative in our hearts, they tend to feed off of
each other. God blesses those whose hearts are pure, and they will see God (Matthew
5: 8 NLT). When are hearts are pure it
opens our spiritual eyes to see God. Sin
always blurs our spiritual vision. On
the other hand, when we see God for who he is, the most fantastic being in the
universe, it motivates us to rid ourselves of any hindering influences.
The
Urim and Thummim were lost in destruction of the temple or the following
captivity and never recovered again. But
that was not a major disaster as they were just a shadow of things to
come. Jesus Christ came to show us the
Father and reveal his will. If we look
to him it will keep revelation and integrity in our hearts and fruitfulness in
our ministries. We will know God and be
able to make him known.
Ken
Barnes, the author of “The Chicken Farm and Other Sacred Places”
YWAM Publishing
Email: kenbarnes737@gmail.com
website: https://sites.google.com/site/kenbarnesbooksite/
Email: kenbarnes737@gmail.com
website: https://sites.google.com/site/kenbarnesbooksite/
Ken, Thank you for your insightful message. It is a great encouragement as we assume our role as a royal priesthood. Thank you for your encouragement to look at God for who He really is to be motivated in removing all hinderances, living in integrity and being fruitful.
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