The words of a priest’s lips should preserve the knowledge of God, and people should go to him for instruction, for the priest is the messenger of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. Malachi 2:7

When Cleveland dropped the name Indians and took up the name Guardians, I thought it was a strange name for a major league baseball team. It’s an even stranger name for the Jesus Movement people, although it is accurate to our purpose. I’m not sure what the Cleveland Guardians are guarding, but we are guarding the integrity of the faith, and preserving the knowledge of God through a proper understanding of the word of God. It is part of our responsibility as believers to be priests.

Priests in the Old Testament were a designated tribe (Levites) who looked after all things spiritual for the rest of the nation. In the New Testament and on through to today, all believers are priests. Therefore, we all have access to God; we all instruct others as to what the Lord of heaven’s armies has to say to us, and we all are guardians of the covenants.

There is lots of truth mixed in with error in Christianity right now, and it is our job to dig through the rubble of falsehood and pull out the truth. No one else can do this for you; you must do it for yourself and for those you touch. You are a priest.

Part of being a priest is interpreting the truth or in some cases re-interpreting the truth if others have gotten it wrong. Jesus, as our High Priest did this all the time. Over and over in the sermon on the mount Jesus uses two phrases: “You have heard it said … but I say to you …” And each time he is correcting something the Pharisees had twisted in the truth of God’s word. So just knowing the word and repeating it is not enough; you have to know what it means. Two people can quote the same passage and mean something entirely different.

As members of a countercultural movement, we are uniquely positioned to take on this aspect of the priesthood because, from the beginning, we were always questioning the status quo — the reasons why we do things. Is it because we’ve always done it that way or because that is the right thing to do? This is another aspect of the Jesus Movement that is desperately needed today. We must take seriously our calling as guardians of the things of God. Preserving the knowledge of God for all to see.

Introducing our new podcast, Between the Answers 

Beginning September 18 through mid-October, the daily “Between the Answers” Podcast will look back to the pioneers of a historical phenomenon: the Jesus Movement, examine why it transformed into a broader social and political force over time, and ask questions about the Movement’s original message and its transformative power today. Our premise lies in the questions we need to ask between the answers.

Join John & Marti for today’s podcast, “Guardians of the Covenant” by clicking on the logo: