Numbers 8:11

Numbers 8:11 says, And Aaron shall offer the Levites before the LORD for an offering of the children of Israel, that they may execute the service of the LORD.  Aaron was to offer the Levites as an offering before God so that they might execute the service of God.  As followers of Christ, we offer ourselves the same way today, and no one else can offer for us. Verse twelve adds, And the Levites shall lay their hands upon the heads of the bullocks: and thou shalt offer the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering, unto the LORD, to make an atonement for the Levites.  The Levites were to lay their hands on the heads of the bulls, and Moses was to offer one as a sin offering and one as a burnt offering to make atonement for the sins of the Levites.  We today have our sins atoned for by the blood of Jesus Christ, as was theirs really.  Verse thirteen continues,  And thou shalt set the Levites before Aaron, and before his sons, and offer them for an offering unto the LORD.  After Moses made the sacrifices of atonement for the Levites, they were to be brought before Aaron and his sons for service to God.  Though we may serve under other leaders in the church, we are all dedicated to the service of God as Christians.  Verse fourteen adds, Thus shalt thou separate the Levites from among the children of Israel: and the Levites shall be mine.  The Levites were to be separated from the rest of the people of Israel, and were to be God's alone.  As followers of Christ, we are to separate ourselves from the rest of the world, and some are called to separate themselves from the rest of us to do the work of God exclusively.  Verse fifteen continues, And after that shall the Levites go in to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation: and thou shalt cleanse them, and offer them for an offering.  After the Levites were offered to Aaron and his sons, Moses was to cleanse them for service to God.  Once we accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, we are already cleansed for His service.  Verse sixteen says, For they are wholly given unto me from among the children of Israel; instead of such as open every womb, even instead of the firstborn of all the children of Israel, have I taken them unto me.  The Levites were to replace all the firstborn of the people of Israel before God. They were to be a substitute for all the firstborn, and Jesus Christ is the only substitute available to bear the penalty for our sins today.  Verse seventeen adds, For  all the firstborn of the children of Israel are mine, both man and beast: on the day that I smote every firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified them for myself.  God told Moses that all the firstborn were His since He had spared them in Egypt.  Verse eighteen continues,  And I have taken the Levites for all the firstborn of the children of Israel.  Then God told Moses that He had now taken the Levites instead.  As Christians, we are all taken into the service of God, and no one else can really take our place.  We mat dedicate babies to God, but this will not save  them.