1 Kings 2:27 (NKJV)
“So Solomon removed Abiathar from being priest to the LORD, that he might fulfill the word of the LORD which He spoke concerning the house of Eli at Shiloh.”

While we know that God is just and does not show preferential treatment, in a way, He does. The way He treats those who wear the garment of priesthood and the way He treats others is not the same.

For those who have carried His presence and who carry His presence, He deals with them differently because they have touched the Holy presence and have been in fellowship with Him, even if they later walked away.

The judgment that comes to those who wear the robe of righteousness, even when they fall, is different from that of those who have never had holy oil poured on their head or entered God’s Holy presence.

What is the difference? Mercy. God remembers the labors of those who have served in the holy place. Even in carrying out discipline for their later misconduct or departure from holiness, God remembers where they had been and what they had done.

This is some kind of preferential treatment because others who committed the same type of scandal receive harsher punishment than the priests who had served at the temple. The way God treats priests differs from the way God treats non-priests.

In Christ Jesus, we are His royal priesthood; we are the Levites who wear holy garments and serve in God’s tabernacle. We are His tabernacle. Even when we fail, God looks upon us with eyes of mercy and treats us differently from the world.

From the passage, we see Solomon removing Abiathar the priest from his position of service, but does not put him to death as he did Adonijah, Joab, and Shimei. He deserved death like the others, but Solomon dared not strike a priest with the sword.

We, too, many times deserve death, but God’s mercy overrides His judgment. He looks at us with eyes of pity and remembers that we carry the presence of His Spirit. While He may remove us from a position of service, He does not condemn us to death.

For this reason, I want everyone who belongs to Christ to live with the assurance of God’s love, despite their areas of failure and weakness. A failure may lead to a removal from present ministry, but it does not mean a removal from God.

Abiathar the priest was spared because, as Solomon said, “you carried the ark of the Lord.” You and I will be spared eternal death because we carry the Lord’s presence in us. Even if discipline for our misdeeds will happen, it will not be eternal banishment. Amen.

@ChineduOranye
RestlessPilgrim.org