Beth Moore - Feast The Soul - Part 4
Somebody needs to know that your anointing has not diminished with age. Aaron was older than you'll ever live to be. Anybody? Holy Spirit isn't subject to age. He is eternal. What happens is we go, "Well, I don't know. I'm telling you, it's gone. I'm..". No, this is what happens. We tend to start getting lazy with it, and we want the outpouring more than the infilling. Is anybody getting that with me? We want the out, "Oh, pour your Spirit over me. Pour your Spirit over me. Pour your Spirit over me". Well, we don't want the infilling. We just want the outpouring 'cause we're all about the show. Anybody? Now, I don't know. I can't really go backing this up with you. I'm just gonna tell you what I feel, what he pressed upon my heart, I thought this for years, thought this, I wish I had something to pour this into.
I want you to picture it with me. What I see, when you see someone, you go, "There's truly the anointing of God". That it just seems visible to you. To me, what that's like is if God started pouring this oil, that to the degree that I'm filled up with the Holy Spirit till it starts just teeming over and the cup overflows, that in the overflow, that's what you can see. Can anybody go there with me? The overflow of the Spirit is what you can see. But if I just want, I don't care a thing about being filled with the Spirit, I just want it to be on me, not in me. I just want it to be on me. That's the flesh. That's counterfeit, that's fake. And listen, fake can look real. Oh, fake can look real.
Listen, you don't go walking up with your, like, get out a deck of cards and take the queen of hearts and try to pay for your Starbucks with your queen of hearts, why? 'Cause she'll know that's not a dollar bill. That's not counterfeit. It's not counterfeit, it's just a substitute. A counterfeit looks like the real thing. There's a whole lot of people that have got a whole lot of fire that don't have any heat. We want the real thing. You've got a real life anointing on you; operate in it. You don't need a counterfeit. This is the real thing here. This is the real thing. Okay, here is the question on the table and everything that has driven me about this lesson today. I thought, 'cause I sat in my room yesterday, I want you to turn back to Exodus 28 and 29, I'm gonna try not to start, I'm gonna try to get over wanting to cry 'cause I wanna cry right now.
And it's silly. You're all gonna wonder why in the world I wanna cry about it because it was so powerful and so beautiful, it about kills me. I mean, I sat at my desk yesterday in the hotel room and I sobbed. I thought, "Who are you? Who comes up with this stuff? Who? Who comes up with this"? It's just fascinating and it's just brilliant and I thought to myself, how would your life change if you really knew what your anointing means? How would your life change if you knew that something dramatic has happened to you? Something dramatic, you just couldn't see it with your eyes. How would it change for you today, the way you operate, your security, your confidence in what God has called you to be and where he has sent you? How would it change if you thought it was real? And you thought something significant had happened? How would it change you, if you had been visibly anointed with oil? 'Cause this anointing comes when we're born again in Christ.
Listen, I'm gonna get four women. The reason why I'm gonna do it is because in Exodus 29, when they go to anoint the priest, there is the great high priest, and that is Aaron, and who that is to us in the New Testament according to the book of Hebrews, our great high priest is Christ. But the sons of Aaron, that is who will represent us, there were four of them so I'm gonna be asking for four volunteers. What we're going to see over the next couple of minutes is what happened when they were anointing the priests for the priesthood to serve because you and I are royal priesthood. Everybody say, "We are royal priesthood". Okay, so in chapter 28, would you look at it because that's gonna be where all the preparations are. Where they get prepared for it. When we get to 29 is when they're actually told how to do it. So 28 is them getting ready for it, 29, they're long, long chapters. 29 is them actually doing it.
Let me tell you how this went. Okay, when they first brought forth Aaron and his sons, they had to bring 'em right there to the front of the tabernacle. They stood right there in front of the whole congregation just like you guys are right now. And their instructions, this whole process to set them apart for their priesthood took a solid week, it took 7 days. The reason why that's important for you to know is because seven is the number of completion or perfection in the Word of God. So you want to see that it went on and on, what happens to us in a moment because Christ is the perfect one and has perfectly met all of the qualifications for us to be anointed, it happens to us in a moment. But they went on for seven solid days, getting ready for this thing, and here's how it all begins.
So I'm looking in verse 20, I mean, in chapter 29. First of all, all five of them, so Aaron and then the four sons, because remember, Aaron wasn't Christ, he was not the perfect one. Aaron and all four of his sons had to be washed with water. I mean wash, wash, wash, wash, wash. Wash, wash, wash, wash, wash. So you'd have been, I mean, all four of you would have gone forward, all of you, gone forward, have to be cleansed, have to be cleansed, have to be cleansed. Don't think anything, don't touch anything. You have to be clean, you have to be clean. Second, in verses 5 and 6, they were dressed. They were dressed. First, Aaron was dressed, and I want you to know what he had on because it is a beautiful, spectacular thing. I've brought you a picture.
Listen, we don't know for sure, but this would be an approximation of what's described in 28. Look on the screen at how beautiful it is. So if Aaron were here, he would be the one that they would be dressing with all this gorgeous color. And the breastpiece which would have a stone in different colors representing the 12 tribes of Israel. The ephod which is that portion that looks like an apron over it. The robe which you would see down below it that, in this picture, is in blue. Do you see on it, toward the bottom, the tassels? They had tiny little bells on them; not just tassels 'cause what he had to do was the scariest thing 'cause once a year he's gonna go behind that veil into Holy of Holies, and so they had to still hear those little bells ringing 'cause if those bells stopped for long, that man was dead. Dead. Because something of him would have been unholy, and I mean it had killed him dead, Doris, killed him dead.
And so, hey, all the little bells there. But one of the most fascinating things that was on Aaron's head was a turban. Now, all of these sons are gonna have caps on 'em. We'll get to that in just a moment, but he had a turban on him. I want you to know something 'cause this is so beautiful. Exodus 28:2 says that "that they wore holy garments for their glory and beauty," and it doesn't just say it about Aaron. Kendra, it say it about y'all. Nicole, it says it about you, that when you, when we're making this that is literal in the Old Testament, to us, understand with me that when you came to Christ, you were clothed, you were robed in salvation, and it is for your glory and beauty that there is a beauty on you because you are in Jesus. Do you see a single woman up here that you do not think is beautiful? I mean, come on now.
Come on now. And I just, imagine if Kendra enters into this, and I mean, just the beauty that would be clothed with it. It's not about our mascara and our highlights. But I love mascara and highlights. But this is about, I mean, a divine dressing, and so this turban was just absolutely fascinating. Listen, do you know according to Exodus chapter 28, listen, girls. God literally had to give a spirit of skill to those who were going to be making these garments. They couldn't even make them in the flesh. And I mean, in their best flesh, I mean in their noble flesh, really wanting to do their very best. No, no, they had to have the Spirit of God on them to even sew the fabrics to put them together to stick them on these priests.
What happens next is the turban and this would be on the high priest. It was the most conspicuous feature of it 'cause here is the coolest thing. And I'm gonna act this out right here as if she is Aaron right now. So here's the turban. I would set it on your beautiful head. Right across the front would be a gold plate that says, "Holy to the Lord". Everywhere girlfriend, 'course, she's guyfriend in that, but everywhere girlfriend would have gone, I mean, anybody that talked to her would be seeing, "Holy to the Lord". I mean, I think we should tattoo that on our daughters' foreheads, just right here. Every day if they ever go on, if he says, "I just wanted to ask you if you would do a particular thing," she'd go, "What, dear"? And it would have "Holy to the Lord," right on her forehead.
But you know what I'm saying? When you talk about set apart. But here's what happened. Here I am utterly convinced that we have this seal on our heads, utterly convinced. I mean, I might be totally missing this thing, but I believe that in the spiritual realm where our eyes cannot see, that the angels, every demon out there knows who is in Christ and who is not. There's not a demon out there confused about which one of you are in Christ and which were not, because we who are in Christ bear a mark. We are anointed but we are sealed. Do you remember, 2 Corinthians 1, verse 21. We are sealed. And it says, if you look in the NIV in verse 36 of chapter 28 of Exodus: "Make a plate of pure gold and engrave it as on a seal: HOLY TO THE LORD". We are sealed.
Then Revelation 22, verse 4 says that when we're standing there in the glory of God and in the light of his presence, that literally we will be able to see that his name is on our foreheads. His name is on us. We are marked with him, and I believe we are marked with this seal right here, that every time the enemy harasses us, he's having to look straight in the face of "Holy to the Lord," right here. We are sealed. Listen, listen, I will say this to Kendra. This doesn't have anything to do with you. It just has to do with being a young woman, growing up in this culture. Listen, one reason why life in Christ can seem unpopular to folk out there is because it seems like that all there is, we get that picture that religious life is all about what we cannot do, that God is the God of N-O, no. If you want to, no. If it's fun, no. If it would really just be, if it would just build you up and make you laugh, absolutely not.
But I wanna make you a promise. What he has set you free for is your yes. Yes to what you were put on the planet to do before the foundation of the world, yes to your calling, yes to your very purpose for living, yes, yes, yes, to you having a satisfied soul, yes, yes, yes, to your dignity and honor. Anything, I want all of you young women, all of you older women, to listen carefully to what I'm saying, every single one of you. Anything once you are in Christ that Christ says no to is because it is not worthy of you. Sleeping around with man after man is not worthy of you. Defiling your body with all manner of substance abuse and excess is not worthy of you. Because you have been clothed with the beauty and glory of Christ. Anything that's a no, it's not because God's trying to withhold something from you, it's not worthy of you.
Look at one another and say, "If he says no, it's because it's not worthy of you. If there's a guy he says no to," forgive me, I'm not gonna say the rest of that. I would say the same thing to a guy: if he's saying no. Some reason somehow in there, no, no, no. All right, so, next, third, would be the anointing oil poured on Aaron's head but then all four of theirs, all four of theirs. Later in Exodus 30:30 through 32, it says: "And you shall anoint", Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, "that they may serve me as priests. And you shall say to the people of Israel, 'This shall be my holy anointing oil throughout your generations. It shall'", oh, you're gonna, oh, Kendra, I can't wait for you to hear this.
Nicole, you may not know this. I just can't wait for you all to know this. "'It shall not be poured on the body of an ordinary person,'" Doris, the Holy Spirit did not get poured on you because you were ordinary. Rebecca, the Holy Spirit did not get poured on you because there's anything ordinary about you. Do you understand what I'm saying to you? Every single one of you who are in Christ, there ain't nothing ordinary about you. Look at one another and say, "There is nothing ordinary about you". Nothing ordinary about you. "'It is holy and it shall be holy to you.'" What I want you to understand is that it would be this action right here, boom. Kendra, I'm not gonna do that to you. You could if you wanted to. Okay, I would take it too, just be like, "Pour it on, pour it on, pour it on". They would be like this, pouring on that head. But what I'm gonna do here is I'm just gonna take this, just as, I'm just doing this symbolically, of this oil and it would be perfumed. It would have the spices in it, and I mean, they'd just be pouring it on the head, pouring it on the head.
Now, this happens when someone receives Christ, when someone is born again in Christ. The Holy Spirit comes to dwell upon them and I mean, it'd just be like the anointing. I want you to understand this happened to you. If you're in Jesus, when you're thinking there's not a whole lot to your anointing, when it says you're anointed, you're just going, "I'm anointed". No, you're anointed! You're anointed, like Doris, Doris, you are anointed. You are anointed. I mean, just get that. Get that. There has been oil. The oil of the Holy Spirit has been poured on your sweet head. Then it talks about, four, it talks about the tunics. See, y'all would be wearing, the four sons, and I wonder if this is part of it. It's also very, very much like the linen garments that are in the marriage supper of the Lamb. I have to wonder, if we're dressed like the sons when we get to be born again in Christ, what they wore is, they wore white linen robes like this and then really, really colorful sashes right here. And then they wore this little cap right here, so they're all dressed. Then here is the really crazy part.
Somebody stay with me that's brand new because this is gonna really freak you out. This is probably even gonna gross you out. Here's what you would do next. I want you all to stretch forth. I want you to do your hand just like this, your right hand. All right, you would have your hand on an animal. You would feel that animal's life, that animal squirming, and then you would take that animal's life. This was in the ordination, and it didn't happen just one time, it happened several times. I want you to understand that they were to feel the life, take the life, and feel the death. I mean, it's like, whoa. I want somebody new to ask me right now, "Why? Why would God", and you all all relax your hands. "Why"? But can you imagine? I mean, think about your, like, your dog or whatever, I'm asking why. I love this, 'cause Kendra's asking why. She said, "I'm asking why"? That's a good question. I want somebody to ask why. Because, listen, we just think, like, "God, you are gross. I mean, that is gross".
Listen to me carefully. Animal sacrifice happened in the garden because of the Fall of man. The Fall of man. Because he had to cover them, cover their shame up. He had to cover their selves with animal skins. Is anybody getting this with me? So this became, God said there had to be a substitute. Something had to die for something to live. That is why before God ever said, "Let there be light," he'd already said, "Let there be the cross". That's why Revelation says that the Lamb was slain before the foundation of the world, because he looked at Jesus. Basically would have said to him something like this: "Listen, the second I breathe a soul into this man's body," talking about Adam, "you are as good as dead. Are you prepared for that, 'cause there's no turning back because they will fall, they will sin, and something will have to die so that they can live".
And so, over and over, one lamb after another, one ram after another, over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over. Only, for us, that was Jesus. In our ordination service, there's no more animal sacrifice because there was one perfect Lamb of God. Here's the wild part. Here is the wild part. Is do you realize, I mean, he gave his life. In other words, he was dead, blood shed, dead. He was alive and then he was dead. Blood shed, dead. Do you realize with me that he laid on the altar as the Lamb of God and he got up and was raised from the dead to be the great high priest. It's so crazy because he's just filling all these roles. It's just the wildest thing you've ever seen.
You're gonna wanna find this, and this is gonna be in Exodus 29:19 through 21. So they've killed the animal, there's the blood, they put blood on the horns of the altar, and then, in this ordination service, what Moses does, he takes the blood and he's gonna do this to all four sons and Aaron. Here's this. He is going to take the blood and he is going to put it on their earlobe, on their right earlobe, on their right thumb, and on their right big toe. You get that with me? So if I'm looking at one person, let me do it with Doris, since I didn't get to her. So, Doris would have a smear of blood on her right ear, a smear of blood on her right thumb, and a smear of blood on her what they called, not the big toe, but the great toe. I love that, just from now on, go, that's my great toe. That, right there, is a great toe. And so, in doing that, here's what it meant, here's what it signified.
What set apart the Israelites, it was their shema, I'm thinking of Deuteronomy chapter 6, "Hear O Israel: The Lord our God is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength". It was, what set Israel apart from the rest of the nations is that Israel had an ear to hear God. It's why we've got his Word, the ability to hear, the ability to serve, they were gonna be serving with their hands, so her hand was covered with the blood. Your ear's covered with the blood. Your hands, covered with the blood. And then where you walk, your toes, you cannot walk very far without your big toes, not easily, you'd have to have some kind of prosthetic something or other, a prosthetic great toe, 'cause you need something there because what helps you walk forward, Doris, Rebecca, Nicole, Kendra, and you, is that you were covered by the blood. You're covered by the blood. Anybody, anybody?
Now, let me tell you something. Here's what happened when all of this was done, seven days of this. Listen, Leviticus 9:22 through 24, and you think no big deal happened when you were anointed by the Holy Spirit. "Then Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people and blessed them, and he came down from offering the sin offering and the burnt offering and the peace offerings. And Moses and Aaron went into the tent of meeting, and when they came out they blessed the people, and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. And the fire came out from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the pieces of fat on the altar, and when the people saw it, they shouted and they fell on their faces".
That's how dramatic it was. Turn with me to Hebrews chapter 10, and team, by all means, please come. You guys are dismissed. Would you all thank them for what they've done for us. What a pleasure, thank you. Listen, Hebrews chapter 10:19 through 23. I'm gonna read it to you out of the NIV. Hebrews 10:19 through 23, so that you can see proof of what this does for you.
"Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful".
Listen, for some of you, the reason why you cannot get on with it and respond to the anointing that has been put upon you, the fact that you've been appointed, that you've been authorized, that you've been empowered and that your God is with you is because you're full of shame about something, you have such a guilty conscience you don't know what to do. You've already repented. I need you to understand that you stand before the very cross of Christ and the blood from that crown of thorns drips right off the tip ends of that and right onto you. You are cleansed by the blood of Christ. You are made clean in him, you are forgiven. I need somebody to celebrate that with me today. Somebody, celebrate.