Restoration of God’s Supernatural Guidance

A recent article appeared in Archeology Today documenting an important discovery near the caves where a Bedouin found the Dead Sea scrolls. I will try to post the URL when the magazine is put online. Apparently, a team from the University of Jerusalem discovered actual temple artifacts sealed within a large clay vessel buried in a false wall at the back of a cave. What was most interesting is that the jar contained a priestly ephod, at least part of one, complete with Urim and Thummim. Ex 28:30 mentions this,

“You shall put in the breastpiece of judgment the Urim and the Thummim, and they shall be over Aaron’s heart when he goes in before the LORD; and Aaron shall carry the judgment of the sons of Israel over his heart before the LORD continually.

This same Urim and Thummim was the means through which God provided guidance to His people from the time of Aaron. Men would come to the priest for guidance; God spoke to them through the Urim and Thummim in the priest’s ephod. King David sought guidance from God through the ephod in 1 Samuel 23.

Now David knew that Saul was plotting evil against him; so he said to Abiathar the priest, “Bring the ephod here.” Then David said, “O LORD God of Israel, Your servant has heard for certain that Saul is seeking to come to Keilah to destroy the city on my account. “Will the men of Keilah surrender me into his hand? Will Saul come down just as Your servant has heard? O LORD God of Israel, I pray, tell Your servant.” And the LORD said, “He will come down.” Then David said, “Will the men of Keilah surrender me and my men into the hand of Saul?” And the LORD said, “They will surrender you.”

Beyond a few scriptural references, the lack of specific details on the Urim and Thummim has made them the subject of scholarly disagreement and debate. This discovery changed this forever. The University of Jerusalem has finally made it possible for men to inquire of God the same way as King David and Israel’s leaders. Secrets lost for thousands of years have been restored to God’s people. Dr. Avi Kravitz explains,

“We now know that the Ephod contained a parchment Urim on which the priest places the engraved Thummim. The priest asks God a question, places his fingers on the Thummim and God moves it to the right answer.”

In light of the importance of the discovery, investors backing the dig have set up a foundation to promote God's guidance. They have commissioned exact replicas of the original Urim and Thummim, using actual parchment and semi precious stones, to be made in Israel by members of the priestly tribe of Levi. This tool is now available to Christians everywhere; the restoration of Biblical guidance to the end-times church. No Christian should be without one. We now have access to God’s guidance through the proven method used by the priests of Israel. The author of Hebrews says, "He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father." Christians are all priests and now they can have God's supernatural guidance whenever they wish. Amazing as it sounds, we can now use the same means to have God's direct guidance in our lives as King David.

STOP! 

The above is NOT true but simply a literary device to underscore the question, “Do Christians need the restoration of Old Testament supernatural guidance?”  Should we build “tents of meeting” or go searching for prophets or ephods in pursuit of God’s guidance?

Heb 1:1

“God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world.”

Based upon the book of Hebrews, we know that the Old Testament priesthood and ceremonial system has been rendered obsolete by Christ.  The ephod, even if somebody really did find it, would now be illegal as a source of guidance for Christians.  The same is true for the other means of guidance that God prescribed in the Old Testament.  The last record of casting lots to discern God’s guidance is found in the 1^st chapter of Acts, just prior to Pentecost.  After Pentecost we no longer find people seeking guidance from a prophet, lots, the ephod, or any other method.  The great prophet that Moses predicted in Deut 18, Jesus, had come and revealed God’s guidance, once for all.  This Prophet Jesus chose His apostles to teach us His words that the Holy Spirit would bring to their remembrance.  This is the certain guidance that God has given and to which He holds us accountable.  Jesus says that all men are under the wrath of God that will be poured out upon sin.  God became man and offered Himself as the Lamb whose blood would atone for the sins of all who repented and believed on Him.

God revealed His moral law and all that is necessary for life and godliness in the scriptures.  The words of His Son, Jesus, are recorded there.  His Holy Spirit testifies to Jesus and His work accomplished in the flesh for the forgiveness of sins.  Beyond what has been revealed with certainty in scriptures concerning salvation and His moral will, God and other spirits can continue to give subjective impressions, feelings, dreams, etc. to mankind.  As humans we have take all this subjective input and make our decisions.  As long as what we decide is not sinful according to God’s moral law, we have liberty to make whatever choice seems best to us – and God’s will is being accomplished.  We pray and ask God for guidance and then move forward in faith certain that He is leading us.  We choose a marriage partner based upon objective and subjective input and Jesus says, “What God has joined together let no man separate.”  Our choices were God moving and joining us together.  In the same way, God’s will is revealed as we make our decisions and history unfolds around us. 

The lust for supernatural guidance from objects like the ephod or infallible Prophets is an attack against the sufficiency of Christ and His revelation.  When scriptures are not enough and we must have “more” then we are in danger of straying and following whoever and whatever seems to fulfill this lust – even “Christian” Ouija boards.

By K. Jentoft Click here for bio and archived articles