Bible Reflections From Scripture Union Volume OneSample

God’s Holy Calling Read Leviticus 21:1-24 … priests are holy to their God…Leviticus 21:7b Filial piety (xiào in Mandarin) is a key teaching of Confucius. According to The Classic of Filial Piety, one of the five duties of a filial son is showing great sorrow when his parents pass away. In ancient Israel, however, the high priest must not even exhibit the conventional signs of mourning such as uncovering his head (literally) or tearing his clothes. The point is often made that allegiance to God’s calling comes before duty to family. This is correct but the lesson is broader: a servant of God must not be distracted from the ministry for any reason. If the high priests were to leave the sanctuary or become unclean, he could not perform his all-important duties. The rules for ordinary priests were more lenient. In Asian families deciding to enter full-time ministry is often a problem. Sons, especially, are under tremendous pressure to provide well for their parents and honour them with their ‘career success’. One must be sure of God’s calling to be able to withstand such pressure. God’s servant musts also see that they are not discredited. Their own families must be exemplary in conduct (1 Timothy 3:4-5, 11-12, Titus 1:6). Finally, God’s servants must guard against being disqualified. The physical conditions do not apply today but are replaced with spiritual ones (1 Timothy 3:1-13, Titus 1:5-9). The ancient priests had to regularly assess their suitability for ministry; we need to regularly do a spiritual check-up. One commentator suggests stepping down if we are disqualified. This does not come easily for Asians who are wary of ‘losing face’. Remember, we are all God’s priests today! God’s calling demands our wholehearted commitment. Let us release one another to be the best for God.