Students as Priest-Kings

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In a previous post found here, I made the claim that worship is the center of education. Jesus said the greatest commandment is to love God with the totality of our being. Therefore, education is the growth and development of a human being in the Image of God to be a better worshiper. While this is true enough, this concept needs to be filled out and placed a concrete home. 

Worship is not something that goes on between our ears, but it looks like something. Man was created in the Image of God as a worshiper and the original worshipers, Adam and Eve, did certain things. In the creation account of Genesis 1 and 2, God gives Adam and Eve the charge to ‘exercise dominion’ (Gen. 1:16-28), and he gives the charges to ‘work and keep’ the ground specifically to Adam. I take this to mean that by working and keeping, Adam and Eve will be exercising dominion or stewardship over God’s good world. Let’s look at each of these terms. 

The word ‘keep’ can also be translated as ‘guard’ and ‘protect’. The Garden of Eden was God’s sanctuary, His special place, His Most Holy place. This teaches us that Adam was a priest. Just as the Old Testament priests guard the tabernacle and temple from unlawful worship, Adam was to guard the original sanctuary. 

What is a priest? A priest is a person called by God to represent the people to God. He is a mediator and a liaison between man and God. He brings the world before God in sacrifice, both creation and people; the main action for the priest is ‘to lift up’. The priest brings sacrifices to the altar to be consumed and smoke rises or lifts up to God. The priest brings the people before God as he lifts them up in prayer. The priest has his eyes always upward saying, “Here God” whenever he brings his a sacrifice. Adam was a Priest, Eve was a Priestess. 

The second word in God’s command is ‘work’. This word is variously translated as ‘dress’, ‘labor’, or ‘serve’ in other parts of the Bible. Adam was to put his hand to the plow and work. This word teaches us that Adam was a king; he was God’s viceregent, a person who acts in the place of a ruler, governor, or sovereign. Whereas the priest has his eyes up toward God, the King has is eyes outward; where as the priest lifts up sacrifices and says, “Here God”, the king receives his orders and duties from God above and says, “Yes Sir!”

What is a king? A king is primarily a ruler, and in the beginning, Adam and Eve were to lovingly rule over creation. This was a scientific and aesthetic task, seeking to understand the world and enhance it; to move the world from a Garden (Gen. 2) to a city (Rev. 21:2). God made the world full of potential, and it was Adam and Eve’s duty to tap into that potential for His glory and the good of humanity. “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter and the glory of kings to search it out” (Proverbs 25:2). Kings rule, organize, administer, plan, and place resources and people where they need to go. The king is God’s executive to get things done. Adam was the royal King of Creation and Eve was his Queen. 

If we put these roles together, we begin to see that humanity is a worshiping creature and worship takes the shape of a person who offers things up to God and who represents Him to the wider world. Just like the truth that we don’t choose if we worship but what we worship, so too it's not a matter of if we will be priest-kings, but what kind of priest-kings we will be; either one sanctified and in right relationship with God through Christ or one not in right relationship with God. Humans will take dominion and steward the world God made, they will either do it well or poorly. 

When viewing humankind in this way, human history and human endeavors begin to take on a new light. All the technological advances from the first hammer and chisel to the internal combustion engine has been the work of humanity exercising dominion. Think of history of the fine arts of visual images and music. Michelangelo took a massive slab of marble (the raw creation) and chisel by chisel, stroke by stroke, he made the masterpiece of David (glorified and enhanced creation). Think of the raw materials of oil, timber, and various metals that had to be extracted and refined (which is kingly) that were then put into better and proper use when used in a Bach orchestra and composition. Bach would sign his music ‘SDG’ or ‘Soli Deo Gloria’ meaning, ‘to God’s glory alone’ (which is priestly). Exercising dominion and being a priest-king means taking the world and creation from glory to glory. 

So humanity was created to be worshipers and Priest-Kings. What does this mean practically? Firstly, moms and dads, you are priests of your home.  You are priests as you pray for, instruct, teach your children the faith. You ‘guard’ the bounds of orthodoxy and true Christian doctrine by propagating it to your children. You represent your children to God in prayer and represent God to your children by teaching them His Word and modeling the Christian life for them. You are like Job who, “...when the days of feasting had run their course, Job would send and sanctify them, and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all. For Job said, ‘It may be that my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.’ Thus Job did regularly” (Job 1:5). You also bring new covenant sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving as it says in Hebrews 13:15, “Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name.”

You are also kings who ‘work’  ruling, dividing, administering the resources God has given you. You take all the time, talents, and treasures you have and strategically put them into use for the health of the household and for God’s glory. You lovingly rule over your children, by giving them commands that you expect them to obey. You observe their life and try to place them in a proper environment or give them the appropriate resources needed to thrive. You hearken diligently to the household codes found in Ephesians 5 and Colossians 3 and receive the divine duties to see what fathers, husbands, mothers, and wives are called to be and to do. These are your divine duties; God has called you to serve in this family over these children. If he wanted to give someone else your children, He would have, but he calls you to it!

Secondly, understand that your children are little Priest-Kings in the making. Again, the question is not whether they will be priest and kings, but what kind of priest-kings, sanctified or unsanctified. Parents, you have a huge opportunity in setting the direction of your children’s lives simply by teaching and reminding them of this truth. It could be a great guiding force in their lives if they know that whatever they put their hand to or whatever they are interested in, can be offered to God as a priest, and ruled over as a king on God’s behalf. 

Thirdly, because your children are Priest-Kings, this means they cannot be taught to be afraid of the world. Jesus came for the broken and dying world, and we, as His agents of redemption, go into the broken and dying world. Yes there are things in the world to be avoided and abstained from. But most things in the world need to be offered up to God as a sacrifice and ruled over on His behalf. It is the tangible ‘stuff’ in the world that God has given us to be stewards over, then given back to Him in worship. Take alcohol for example. Alcohol is a scientific process where the raw materials of fruit or grain are harvested, processed, and fermented to produce a different product; making alcohol is a very kingly activity. Alcohol, especially wine, can then be used in worship and lifted up as a sacrifice in the Lord’s Supper specifically and more broadly in a celebration and gratitude of life. Are there aspects and dangers of alcohol that need to be avoided? Absolutely. But that’s not the only way to view it. It is to be ruled over then lifted up to God in worship.

During their tenure at VCA, there’s no doubt that you want your children to grow academically, spiritually, and in virtue, but I would argue that all those things serve the telos or end goal of the child growing in worship and relationship with God as His Priest-Kings. This truth of Priest-Kings is baked into educational philosophy at VCA and it should be a dominate theme in your family life too.