Saved for service
Text Numbers 3, 4 Time 29/01/12 Place Childs Hill Baptist Church
I want us to look this
evening at Numbers 3 and 4. Now once again, as in the first two
chapters, the material looks quite unpromising. It appears to be
just another list of names and such like but just as with the first
two chapters there were things to learn such as remembering that God
is in our midst and that God's people are on the move and need
discipline and order, so there are lessons to learn here too.
In the previous two
chapters, the Tribe of Levi has been pretty much left out of the
reckoning because they were the priestly tribe. Now in these two
chapters they come into their own and we are told the important role
that they had in connection with the tabernacle or tent of meeting where
God was worshipped. First, we have some background then the names and
the duties with something on the redemption of the first born in
3:40-51. We want to say three things from these chapters
1. Consider sin –
its judgement and forgiveness
The chapter begins by talking about Aaron and Moses and their
immediate family. The Levites were the priestly tribe and they were
all to serve in the Temple in some way or as priests of some sort.
As the old adage goes “All priests are Levites but not all Levites
are priests”. Within Levi there was the priestly family from which
the High Priest himself, Aaron and his successors, were to come. So
Moses writes (1-40) This is the account of the family of Aaron
and Moses at the time the LORD talked with Moses on Mount Sinai.
This is a brief genealogy or
family tree then. The names of the sons of Aaron were
Nadab the firstborn and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. Those were the
names of Aaron's sons, the anointed priests, who were ordained to
serve as priests. But then he
has to remind us of something that we can read about back in
Leviticus 10. In part it prepares us for what we read later in
Numbers 16 of Korah's rebellion. Nadab and Abihu, however,
fell dead before the LORD when they made an offering with
unauthorised fire before him in the Desert of Sinai. They had no
sons; so only Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests during the
lifetime of their father Aaron.
It
is quite a shocking story. The way that it is written up in
Leviticus suggests that the men got drunk and that is partly why
they did what they did but that is not an excuse - rather a warning
to us all of the danger of alcohol or of any other kind of drug.
What they did was to offer unauthorised fire on
God's altar. God himself has lit the fire on that altar and it was
not for them to add to it, as they clearly did. The punishment was
that God struck them dead. They thought they could add something to
what God was doing but we cannot add or subtract or tinker with the
worship of God without putting ourselves in danger of his wrath. We
may think God was harsh here but if we do we fail to see how
important right worship God is. Just because God has overlooked
such sins many times should not blind us to the fact that such
blasphemy deserves his judgement every time. The Lord often chooses
to make an example of transgressors right at the beginning of
something or at some crucial moment. When we think of Nadab and
Abihu we remember too Uzzah in David's time who was struck dead for
touching the ark and of how in the New Testament Ananias and
Sapphira were struck dead when they lied to the Holy Spirit in the
early days of the church (Acts 5).
So
let's remind ourselves of
1.
Sin's judgement. In this case Nadab and Abihu suffered immediate
judgement for their sin. It's not always like that. We must not
forget though that every sin will be judged. Jesus reminds us that
even our idle words will be judged. Nothing escapes God's attention.
If we do not repent and find forgiveness, we too will be judged like
these men.
2.
Sin's universality. It is perhaps discouraging to think that right
at the beginning two apparently holy men set apart to priesthood should fall
into sin so quickly and so easily. Sadly, sin can often be found at
the very heart of the most holy places. We must not assume that
because a man is a priest or a minister he cannot sin. No, even the
most holy sin and even those who make the highest claims to holiness
can fall into open sin. Such sin must be judged. As Peter say (1
Peter 4:17) It is time for judgement to begin with the
family of God. James reminds us
(3:1) how those who teach will be judged more strictly. We know that
many will claim to know Jesus but on that final day he will tell
them he never knew them. Let's assume nothing about ourselves but be
ready to be judged.
3.
Sin's consequences. That phrase They had no sons is
easily missed but it is new information. What a tragedy! Not only
were they killed but their family line was cut off too. Sin has
consequences. We ought to remember that too.
Sin, however, can be dealt with and
does not have to have its devastating effects. The Levitical system
was designed to demonstrate this very fact in vivid form. And so in
3:14-39 we are told how The LORD said to Moses in the
Desert of Sinai, Count the Levites by their families and clans.
Count every male a month old or more. He
counted them, as he was commanded by the word of the LORD.
We then have the names in
verses 17ff. Levi's sons were Gershon, Kohath and Merari
and so these were the three
main divisions.
In verse 39 we read that The
total number of Levites counted at the LORD's command by Moses and
Aaron according to their clans, including every male a month old or
more, was 22,000.
Before
that we are told the numbers of each clan:
Gershonite clans, … 7,500. The Gershonite clans were to camp on
the west, behind the tabernacle … At the Tent of Meeting the
Gershonites were responsible for the care of the tabernacle and
tent, its coverings, the curtain at the entrance to the Tent of
Meeting, the curtains of the courtyard, the curtain at the entrance
to the courtyard surrounding the tabernacle and altar, and the ropes
- and everything related to their use.
Kohathite clans … 8,600. The Kohathites were responsible for
the care of the sanctuary. The Kohathite clans were to camp on the
south side of the tabernacle. … They were responsible for the care
of the ark, the table, the lampstand, the altars, the articles of
the sanctuary used in ministering, the curtain, and everything
related to their use.
Merarite clans … 6,200 … they were to camp on the north side
of the tabernacle. The Merarites were appointed to take care of the
frames of the tabernacle, its crossbars, posts, bases, all its
equipment, and everything related to their use, as well as the posts
of the surrounding courtyard with their bases, tent pegs and ropes.
Finally we are told that
Moses and Aaron and his sons were to camp to the east of the
tabernacle, towards the sunrise, in front of the Tent of Meeting.
They were responsible for the care of the sanctuary on behalf of the
Israelites. And then we have
this ominous word again Anyone else who approached the
sanctuary was to be put to death. Matthew
Henry says that the Jews had this verse inscribed on a golden sword
that was hung at the entrance to the Temple in later times.
Sins
can all be forgiven but they have to be forgiven in God's way. He is
the one who provides the way to forgiveness.
In the rest of Chapter 3
(5-13, 40-51) we learn about how God set the Levites apart to
himself and how they then served to symbolically redeem the whole of
Israel. There are very important concepts here that come up
elsewhere in the Bible and that are important for us to understand.
1. Belonging to the Lord
as the firstborn
In verses 5-13 we hear how The LORD said to Moses, Bring the tribe of
Levi and present them to Aaron the priest to assist him. That
is their work They are to perform duties for him and for
the whole community at the Tent of Meeting by doing the work of the
tabernacle. They are to take care of all the furnishings of the Tent
of Meeting, fulfilling the obligations of the Israelites by doing
the work of the tabernacle. It
is on their behalf that they work. Give the Levites to
Aaron and his sons; they are the Israelites who are to be given
wholly to him. They are under
his supervision. Appoint Aaron and his sons to serve as
priests; anyone else who approaches the sanctuary must be put to
death. This is because as the
LORD also says (12ff) I have taken the Levites from among
the Israelites in place of the first male offspring of every
Israelite woman. The Levites are mine, for all the firstborn are
mine. When I struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, I set apart for
myself every firstborn in Israel, whether man or animal. They are to
be mine. I am the LORD.
You
see the logic – when God struck down all the firstborn
in Egypt, he set
apart for myself every firstborn in Israel, whether man or animal.
At some point the Levites were
chosen in their place. This choosing of the first born implies an
unbreakable covenant love. That is why Jesus is spoken of as the
firstborn and in Hebrews 12:23 it speaks of believers as the
church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. The
firstborn is a favoured son in biblical culture. (Think of Joseph who is
singled out as such by Jacob). Here we see symbolically how God sets
his firstborn aside to himself to serve him. Under the new covenant
we are all priests of that sort.
Later in the chapter (40-51) the
subject of redemption comes up. There Moses is told to Count
all the firstborn Israelite males who are a month old or more and
make a list of their names. He
is also to Take the Levites for me in place of all the
firstborn of the Israelites, and the livestock of the Levites in
place of all the firstborn of the livestock of the Israelites. I am
the LORD. So Moses does this and
finds (43) that The total number of firstborn males a month
old or more, listed by name, was 22,273. That
is 273 more than the number of Levites. The same thing is done with
the animals. Moses is then told (46) To redeem the 273
firstborn Israelites who exceed the number of the Levites, he
is to collect five shekels for each one, according to the
sanctuary shekel, which weighs twenty gerahs. He
is then to Give the money for the redemption of the
additional Israelites to Aaron and his sons. This
Moses does as commanded. And so the idea of redemption and paying a
ransom is brought out very clearly. It involves substitution. Of
course, when we come to the New Testament we learn that Jesus is the
Great Redeemer it is the payment of his precious blood that secures
salvation for all who trust in hum.
God
claims every Christian and all that he owns (the animals too). As
Paul reminds the Corinthians you are not your own, you have
been bought with a price.
3.
Consider working as a team
In Chapter 4 you have the census of the three divisions of Levi and
their work. Obviously things are very differently organised today and
the work is very different. Nevertheless there are lesson to learn
about serving the Lord. Not the least is the need to work together.
1.
Maturity is important for effective service
Verses 3, 23, 30 Count all the
men from thirty to fifty years of age who come to serve in the work
in the Tent of Meeting.
2. We
must be ready for spiritual warfare
This
is still a census of fighting men. The word used for service implies
that. They serve the war effort but by a different means. We too are
in a war – a spiritual war and we need to be ready for that.
3.
The greatest care should be taken with the things of God
See verse 6 Then they are to
cover this with hides of sea cows, spread a cloth of solid blue over
that and put the poles in place. 12 They are to take all the articles
used for ministering in the sanctuary, wrap them in a blue cloth,
cover that with hides of sea cows and put them on a carrying frame.
What
care. We can't be casual or careless when it comes to anything to do
with God. Things must be done in order and according to the order.
4.
God's people are to value the ministry as God's gift
Another lesson. Verses 17-20 The LORD said to
Moses and Aaron, See that the Kohathite tribal clans are not cut off
from the Levites. How could that happen? So that they may live and not die when they come
near the most holy things, do this for them: Aaron and his sons are
to go into the sanctuary and assign to each man his work and what he
is to carry. But the Kohathites must not go in to look at the holy
things, even for a moment, or they will die.
The
lesson here is that there must be care over such holy things. We must
see where there is danger to others and take care not to expose them
to that danger. What affect is this going to happen on the other person? We could say more but time is gone.
5. Do
not forget the open access to God that we now have
How
easy it is for us today. You may be thinking to yourself I don't really follow of this - Levites and altars, etc. Well, don't worry, we no longer need to know such details. Christ has done it all for us and Christianity is the easiest religion in the world. God is full of grace to all who trust in him.
6.
Look at the example of teamwork and interdependence seen here.
Each man had a job to do and each man did it. That was how it was. That is how it should be with us too. See 1 Corinthians
12.
