I've been reading in Numbers lately, about how God took the Levites to be his own special people among his people of Israel.
13 And you shall set the Levites before Aaron and his sons, and shall offer them as a wave offering to the LORD. 14 "Thus you shall separate the Levites from among the people of Israel, and the Levites shall be mine. 15 And after that the Levites shall go in to serve at the tent of meeting, when you have cleansed them and offered them as a wave offering. 16 For they are wholly given to me from among the people of Israel. Instead of all who open the womb, the firstborn of all the people of Israel, I have taken them for myself. 17 For all the firstborn among the people of Israel are mine, both of man and of beast. On the day that I struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt I consecrated them for myself, 18 and I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the people of Israel
They needed to be cleansed.
They need to be made holy.
But they were God's very own chosen set apart group to serve him in the temple.
I think about that, and I think about how God calls us to be set apart.
To be the very people belonging to him (see the books of Peter).
So do we take the seriously?
The tribe of Levi did.
They needed to be cleansed and purified for service to the Lord.
But you know... Christ died for us.
If we believe in him, he cleanses and purifies us. Through Christ alone God sees us as holy.
Think about that for a moment.
We don't have to be killing bulls, we don't have to presented as a wave offering, we don't have to shave and wash and do all these things demanded in the Old Testament in order to be clean and holy and set apart for God.
ALL we have to do is believe that Christ came for us, that he died for our sins. That's it.
So knowing that... how will you be of service to God today?
How will I?