The Best Portion

1 Peter 2:9 (ESV) But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

You’ve likely heard the verse above teaching that we as New Testament believers are priests of God, and hopefully you’ve learned that it means we are representatives of Christ to the world. Let’s look at priesthood from another angle—how our priesthood blesses us and how it should change us. 

I’ve recently finished a study on Joshua and a study that looked at the exile and return of God’s people to their land. In both studies the tasks and ministry of the priesthood were brought up. 

In the Joshua study, we followed the division of the land among the twelve tribes as they first entered the promised land. Each land received a portion, but Levi was separated and scattered throughout the land into cities, so they could minister to the people in each of those places. At first it seems that the Levites received a lesser inheritance—no large portion of land to call their own. But let’s dig further.

We were reminded that the scattering was initially intended as a type of punishment because in Genesis 34 Simeon and Levi had been part of an agreement with the people of Shechem, after the son of their leader raped their sister Dinah and asked to marry her. But Simeon and Levi were deceitful, and while the men of Shechem were recovering from circumcision they killed them all.

Jacob (Israel), on his deathbed, gave the following prophecy for Simeon and Levi:

Genesis 49:5-7 (ESV)  “Simeon and Levi are brothers; weapons of violence are their swords. 6 Let my soul come not into their council; O my glory, be not joined to their company. For in their anger they killed men, and in their willfulness they hamstrung oxen. 7 Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce, and their wrath, for it is cruel! I will divide them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel.

Hundreds of years later, once Moses led the people out of Egypt, the Levites became the tribe who ministered to the Lord in service by taking care of the tabernacle and sacrifices and helping the people understand God’s laws. What an honor, yet when the lots were cast according to God’s direction to divide the land of Canaan, it seemed like their portion was less valuable. But was it?

Joshua 13:33 (ESV) But to the tribe of Levi Moses gave no inheritance; the LORD God of Israel is their inheritance, just as he said to them.

In addition to cities, land for their flocks, and provision from the offerings, the tribe of Levi received God as their inheritance. They had the privilege to spend their time in service and worship of the Lord every day. 

Look at what David said many years later as he recognized his better portion (he was not of the tribe of Levi, but of Judah, yet he learned to take joy in what God had provided):

Psalm 16:5-6 (ESV) The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot. 6 The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.

Through the new covenant with Jesus, we are now priests of the Lord most high (look back at 1 Peter 2:9). And God is our best portion—our inheritance.

Do we value that? Do we treasure Him and look forward to spending time with Him? How can we increase our love for Him? I would say by being intentional to spend time in His word and talking to Him each day.

Both are important. His word shows us who He is and what is important to Him while reminding us who we are in light of Him. Be sure to meditate on His words—study and ponder them. Without this step, it’s less likely we’ll retain or understand them. 

Praying is the other important daily practice. By it we also strengthen our relationship with God. Mondern day prayers often become either a laundry list (airing of grievances) or a shopping list (I need 1 of these and three of those). Yet prayer should be a time when we come humbly before God in acknowledgment of who He is, desiring that He forgive and direct our erring hearts and guide our paths. It should include thankfulness for His provision in our lives, and finally requests for things that trouble us and those around us.

An easy way to remember this is using the acronym ACTS: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication (requests).

Our time in God’s word usually requires planning it into our schedules, and it is good to include prayer at those times. Along with that, I’ve found that an ongoing conversation with God is what carries me through my day. God is ever present and I can talk to Him whenever something reminds me of Him, worries me, or when I struggle in my thoughts or actions. 

I would even encourage you to take time for God’s word when you are distracted, exhausted, feel far from Him, or think you’ll get little from it. 

Isaiah 55:10-11 (ESV)  “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, 11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

Matthew 6:19-21 (ESV) “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

When we spend time with God, He changes our hearts to look more like His—to see things and people the way He does so we want to speak Him into the lives of others.

See how that works? We draw near to Him, He changes us from the inside, we love others, we share Him with others. What a blessing we’ve been given! And what's more, one day we will have our full portion as we bask in the presence of our Lord and Savior--our true treasure.

Psalm 16:11 (ESV) You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.