Template:Breeches

Do you think God is really concerned with people making breeches or underwear for their ministers or is the Torah speaking through allegory and metaphor about something simple and profound?

Making Linen Breeches

• “And thou shalt make them linen breeches to cover their nakedness; from the loins even unto the thighs they shall reach:” Exodus 28:42

Do you really think that this command in Exodus 28:42 has anything to do with making underwear for your local priest or government official?

The clothing of the nakedness of the Levites with linen breeches was in regards to a covering, not actual underwear.

The word "breeches" is from the Hebrew word miknac (סנכמ) or (dual) (םיסנכמ) Strong's number 04370. It is from the word kamac kaw-mas’ סמכ a primitive root translated laid up in store, meaning to store up, save. What does to store have to do with breeches?

The word miknac is consistently translated breeches five times.

How Naked

Were the Levites really naked?

In the camp of the Golden calf the people had taken their gold and melded into a central city state bank to bind the loyalty of the people together by binding the estate of each individual together as One purse. Gold represented portable land. In truth gold is nothing more than highly refined dirt which you can carry with you.

The way to buy the true title of land is to exchange substance like Gold. Gold represented the estate of the people and when it was in the hands of the people they were free as families to own their own land and be kings of their own castles.

If the Israelite tribes continued in this path of a national purse when they got to the promised land it would have been this city state government who bought the land and owned the milk and honey, the beneficial interest of the land, and the people would have only held the legal title of the land. They would have been back in the bondage of Egypt.

It was illegal for people to own gold in many of the Greek city states. The Spartan made some of their money out of lead and others used clay coins issued by the government. This helped central power because the people could not accumulate real wealth that would make them independent. What they used as money did not belong to the people individually but to the State. By limiting the private estate of the people power was centralized.

We see the same process in Public religion verses private religion When the people are dependent upon the right hand of government to provide their welfare they become virtuously weak and unable to sustain a free society. This conflict with the two welfare types was a major part of the Christian conflict with Rome and other governments.

When Moses called the people out of the Walled camp of the Golden calf many people came out. Most of them were of the tribe of Levites and so the Levites, because of their faith, were given the option of becoming the priests of the Israelite nation.

Because they gave up their personal estate, which was still in the Golden calf, God saw that they were the ones who were best suited for the role of priest to the nation.

The Levites were not really entirely naked when they came out. They could come out with their other stuff, like tools and talents, cloths, tents and other personal possessions, but the gold, which represented their personal estate and hope of owning land as a legal or lawful title was given up.

The plan from the beginning was that every son of Adam formed the Altars of Adam within each Family from generation to generation. These families formed a living Network that provided for the welfare of society in Free assemblies. These are what we see called clay altars.

Exodus 20:24 "An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee."

Within each family the eldest son was usually chosen as the high priest of that family to manage the estate for the family and the benefit of society. They were the priests of each families proverbial altar of clay.

But the Levites were not making up clay altars. They were to be the Altars of stone.

Exodus 20:25 "And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it."

Not hewn means unregulated. These living stones are the government and welfare of the appointed State of the Church in the wilderness. They are to manage the Sacrifices or the Corban of the people so as to make the word of God to none effect. By providing these services through faith hope and charity motivated by love of neighbor rather than the sword of Nimrod or Caesar society is strengthened.

Since the Levites were the public servants of a nation that operated as a free society they managed the daily ministration of the nation both for individuals like widows and orphans and whole sections of the nation in the time of catastrophe and calamities.

Because they had no power to exercise authority one over the other they had to provide this public or religious service with freewill offerings alone.

Their civic altars were built of living stone, which were actually men of charity rather than force or a ruling authority. They did have authority over that which was completely given up but not over the people themselves.

They only had authority over what the people chose to freely give or sacrifice to the minister of their choice. This was called Corban. It was the Corban of God that drew us near God and made His word to effect.

The Levite priest, just like the early ministers of the Church, had no personal estate. They owned all things in common. They were only naked in one sense. They still had families. They were not like the mendicant monks which evolved into the religious beggars like the ascetic sadhus of India.

The reason for no personal estate was to build in a natural governor to prevent the accumulation of wealth and privilege or even power. The people have many ways to relinquish personal power and therefor rights which God wants you to have to learn the virtues of His ways of righteousness.

The highest in the Church, as it was with the Church in the wilderness, were to be servants of servants. That lack of authority over the people was supposed to care over in the living network of stone ministers.

The idea of the people weaving the breeches of the Levites simply meant they went up in this network by the gifts of the people who by their love supported the ministers.

Exodus 20:26 "Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon."

If the ministers continued to supply a covering for each other the power or authority would began to centralize in the hands of Bishops and Archbishops. The Church would become top down and soon be more concerned about its comfort as men sought the power of that office.

There are other dangers such as wealthy lords or kings may choose to support certain ministers giving them more power and control. With that power and control will come the temptation of Saul to exercise influence and therefore power over others.

The warp and weft

The warp and weft of the people weaves a cloth of righteousness if they will come together in love and charity.

Everyday was election day in this form of government which was truly a government of the people, by the people and for the people under God who led the people in their hearts and in their minds. This was the Kingdom of God centered in the hearts and minds of every man and women as they chose to come together in love for one another according to the perfect law of liberty.

As the ministers and benefactors of a nation of free souls under God they are not like the rulers of other nations. They cannot prove they are ministers of the people and servants of God without the testimony of the people they serve. That testimony of the people gives them covering; clothes their nakedness. They cannot prove their liberty in Christ without this chain of testimony.

This began with:

• Exodus 28:40 "And for Aaron’s sons thou shalt make coats, and thou shalt make for them girdles, and bonnets shalt thou make for them, for glory and for beauty. And thou shalt put them upon Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him; and shalt anoint them, and consecrate them, and sanctify them, that they may minister unto me in the priest’s office."

What was this priest's office?

We must understand that the purpose of sacrifice is to bind society together with honor and love, not contracts and the sword. This is Pure Religion.

Not by Steps

Also the ministers do not go up by steps like a pyramid with some going higher over the others because they have no authority to do so. They go up by service because the Levites and the ministers of Christ were to serve one over the other.

• “Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon.” Exodus 20:26

Going up by steps had nothing to do with stairs.

The public offices of the world are offices of power but the public offices of Christ are ones of service. Those who do not want to serve with virtue need to find another line of work. For those who do want to serve they need to work at it, seek it, do it... Of course this is no easy lesson to learn and it may take some time, much patience and much love and forgiveness...

New Underwear

God is the same today and His ways have not changed. Christ did many of the same things as God had done with the Levites.

Unlike the authoritarian benefactors of the Gentile nations, the Church, as the government of God, was to provide their service only by the charity and Freewill offerings of the people. Love, humility and forgiveness are required to make such systems, operating under the perfect law of liberty, a true blessing for both rich and poor alike.

The Levites were also naked of any exercising authority. They could not go up by steps lest they reveal that nakedness and lack of authority. The people were told to make underwear, a covering, for them. Giving them a covering and being naked has nothing to do with the clothes they wear. It is about coverture and the power or authority to act and lead by serving. The Levites had no inheritance, no personal estate, nor any exercising authority.

Their success depended upon the good will of the people who freely gave them their covering by tithing to them according to their service.

Charity is marked by Paul as the greatest of gifts and that personal sacrifice not only saves those who fall on hard times but also frees and matures the grantors of charity in the practice of the virtues, sacrifices and ways of Christ. Those called out ministers of Christ’s were appointed a kingdom at hand. They were restricted by several of Christ’s proclaimed conditions.

They were not to exercise authority in the management and service to the people seeking the kingdom but they were to be benefactors of the people. They were to willingly become new members of His Family, a brotherhood belonging to God.

The ministers of Christ were to give up their personal estate and like the Levites before them they became the Poor Preachers of His Kingdom. Christ was specific in His requirements for the ministry of His Holy Church in Luke 14:33.

Modern ministers often object to the mention of Christ’s clear doctrine. But the word hath in Luke 14:33 is also translated hast in Matthew 19:21.

The word substance is the same in Luke 8:3 and also the word have in Luke 12:33 and goods in Luke 19:8

And Paul has done the same with his goods in 1 Corinthians 13:3

The multitude of the ministers at Pentecost gave up their personal estate and owned all things in common as we see in Acts 4:32.

Taking a position like this today might be called a Vow of poverty. The bonds of the Church is brotherhood under Christ in the service of His appointed kingdom. They cannot rule one over the other but learn to fit together as a functioning body without exercising authority one over the other.

To survive and function in the world but not of the world the people must provide the covering for the Ministers of the Church. That is the purpose of the Sacred Purpose Trust.