Title More important than devotion... (Numbers 8:1~26)
Contents
Today's text is about the cleansing ceremony of the Levites who served in the tabernacle.
Before the Levites went out to serve in the tabernacle, they had to go through a purification ceremony in the way God commanded them.
They had to be cleansed by sprinkling the water of atonement on them, their whole body had to be shaved with a razor to make them clean, and their clothes had to be washed to make them externally clean.
In addition, he had to bring a bull as a burnt offering, fine flour mixed with oil as a meal offering, and a young bull as a sin offering, to offer each sacrifice to purify himself from the sins of his heart. And the Levites were shaken and offered as a wave offering, just as an animal sacrifice was waved before the people. This was to show before the other Israelites that the Levites were completely dedicated to God. Only after completing all these purification ceremonies was I able to do the work of the tabernacle service.
Through today's text, you will realize valuable spiritual lessons.
In many churches today, we see that people do the devotion first without any preparation to participate in God's work. Even in the church, if you just have a talent or a gift, they ask you to dedicate yourself first. Today's text makes us think about how wrong these things are.
The work of devotion or service in the church is distinctly different from the work of the world. It is a spiritual work to establish the church of God. Therefore, it is not something that anyone can do without any preparation. First, those who have been born again as children of God through faith in Jesus Christ can do this work. Just as God specially set apart the Levites to do the work of the tabernacle, spiritually separated Levites, that is, those who are born again as God's children, can work in the church.
Just as being a Levite did not mean that you could unconditionally participate in the service of the tabernacle, but you could do it only after completing the purification rite required by God. have to do it Just as the Levites did the service of the tabernacle after they had been purified by God.
How are you and me now? More important than doing God's work is to keep my own body, mind, and soul clean and pure. We must always keep ourselves clean and well so that we can be used for God's work whenever God wants us to. More important than dedication is a chaste life. Holy life.