August 14 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Devotional

Under the old covenant, the priests were not the only ones who could establish contact between God and the people. There were also prophets and kings—rulers. God used these three "offices" to maintain the traffic with his people.

The prophet spoke for God to the people. The priest spoke for the people to God; he led the people to God by means of sacrifices and prayer. And the king ruled over the people on behalf of God. Without the prophet, the people would not know the will of God. Without the priest, the people would not have the peace of God. And without the king, they could not enjoy the protection of God.

Today Jesus fulfills all these functions for God's people. Jesus has revealed the will of God, he has become our way to God, and God rules us through him.

Christ is our prophet because in these last days God has spoken his last word through him. Christ is our priest because he has led us to God by his once-for-all sacrifice. And Christ is our king because he is seated "at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven."

All our knowledge of God, service of God, and worship of God is concentrated in Jesus Christ. Outside of him we do not know God, cannot please God, and have no protection by God.

In the text printed above, we are asked to get "the main point" of Christ's priestly kingship. The writer wants us to observe that the great high priest of Christians is exalted above all, that he is not in a human-made building but in the only one that is not an imitation of something better than itself. Moreover, the writer informs us that the old covenant priesthood of Aaron has now been replaced by the "order of Melchizedek." The new has taken the place of the old.

REFLECTIONS

What specific things does Christ do for you as your prophet, priest, and king?

Andrew Kuyvenhoven's Daylight, a modern devotional classic, was originally published by Paideia Press in 1977. This updated edition is copyright 2009 by Faith Alive Christian Resources. You can order a copy of this revised version of the book directly from the publisher.

A man of many accomplishments, Andrew Kuyvenhoven is probably best known for his contributions to Today (formerly The Family Altar), a widely-used monthly devotional booklet associated with the Back to God Hour. Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations for this updated edition of Daylight are from the Holy Bible: Today's New International Version copyright 2001, 2005 by the International Bible Society.