When the Israelites departed from Sinai, and thereafter when they traveled in the wilderness, they would need to disassemble and transport the tabernacle. Numbers 4 details how this important task would be divided up among the priests and Levites. The holy articles of the tabernacle needed to be handled carefully. For example, there would be three layers of covering for the ark of the covenant (Num 4:5-6).
The Kohathites, the subset of the Levites who would be transporting the holiest articles of the tabernacle, were cautioned not to directly touch, or even look at, those articles, which were prepared by the priests for transport (Num 4:17-20).
The duties of the Gershonites and Merarites were less sensitive than those of the Kohathites, but those duties were just as important. To transport and reassemble the tabernacle, all the pieces would have to be preserved and organized carefully. Christians can see an analogy with the variety of gifts and callings that are brought together in the Body of Christ (Rom 12:3-8; 1 Cor 12:4-7).
Purity of the camp, both ritual and moral, was another key issue. Both types of purity are addressed in Num 5:1-10.
In a sermon at Church of the Messiah on June 11, 2022, Rob Wilson spoke on the importance of acting according to, and not overstepping, our callings, learning from the example of Nadab and Abihu (Num 3:4). He highlighted some lessons from a teaching by Henri Nouwen on the temptations of Jesus in Matthew 4. Satan tried to tempt Jesus to be relevant, popular/spectacular, and powerful, but Jesus resisted those temptations. Christian leaders should do the same. The path of Jesus is one of "downward mobility," heading to the cross.
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