The High Priest’s breastplate shows us that we’re precious to God, that we’re close to Him and that He doesn’t forget about us. So how does this impact our lives? It doesn’t mean we can go around thinking it’s okay to live any way we want, because God will accept and forgive us no matter what. Knowing these truths about who we are to Him, and His promises about who He is to us, can actually shape how we choose to live. When we truly know Jesus, we understand how precious He is. ‘Now to you who believe, this stone is precious.’ The Bible says that Jesus is ‘chosen by God and precious to him’ (1 Peter 2:4 NIV). And this can be seen right back in Isaiah 28 when it says, ‘a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation’ (v.16 NIV). Of all the stones, the cornerstone is the most important. It’s the first to be laid, and the positioning of all the other stones is dependent on this one stone. Knowing how precious He is, means we should value our relationship with Him even more and want to protect this relationship and put it above everything else. We’ll want to please Him and live His way. We’ll want Him to be the cornerstone that sets the direction for our lives. Knowing our true, righteous, and precious-to-God identity in Christ lifts us above the desire to give in to sin. Holy living is the result of seeing ourselves as God sees us – ‘in Christ’. Instead of giving into temptation, we ask: ‘What would Jesus do in this situation?’ Basically, a true understanding of God’s grace doesn’t prevent holiness, it produces it.

What Now?

Next time you’re in a tempting situation, ask yourself ‘What would Jesus do if He was facing this?’