God asks Moses to build him a tent - the "tabernacle", so he can be present with his people. Now God gives instructions on the clothing for the priests.
Priests are the people who look after the maintenance of God's tent. We have read earlier that they keep the oil lamps lit, and they help people with their offerings to God. They are agents of blessing - God blesses the Hebrews through the priests.
What we have in this chapter is the description of the priestly "uniform". As with all uniforms, they uniquely identify a priest as a priest, even from a distance.
We don't really even know exactly what the pieces are. But what we can glean is that the clothing is colorful - so no one would miss a priest whent they see one, and they bear the names of the Hebrew tribes - so they always remember whom they serve.
God doesn't require us to dress like them in our priestly altars - our desks, our work benches, our job spaces...thank goodness. These days, we don't even have a dress code at church besides basic modesty. It is not our clothing that marks us as God's priests in the world.
Paul talks about the Spirit and his fruit as our calling card. These days, people recognizes Jesus' followers by the way they emulate his relational values in the world - his love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22).
And Paul also instructs us to pray without stopping, for our friends in church as well as those who come into our workspaces.
Write
Think about your faith story: how have you experienced the Spirit through his fruit in yourself and others?
In your life presently, how well do your "wear" the Spirit? Which of the Spirit's fruit is your calling card through which people identifies you as Jesus' follower? Which fruit challenges you the most?
Who do you know needs your priestly service?
Pray
What
is God saying to you today? What's Good News to you?
Talk to God about your experience of His Spirit through his fruit. Thank God for the way he is nurturing these relational skills in you so you can bless people through heartfelt friendship.
Pray about the authenticity of your fruit. Ask God for the wisdom and support to prune the thinking, behaviour, and grudges that keep you from maximum fruitfulness.
Pray for the people who are needing your priestly service. Ask God for the wisdom and opportunity to love and bless them.
Pray for an experience of God's love, grace and mercy in the way he prunes you for fruitfulness, and the way he uses the sweetness of your fruit to bless the people in your world.