Numbers 18:1

Numbers 18:1 says, And the LORD said unto Aaron, Thou and thy sons and thy father’s house with thee shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary: and thou and thy sons with thee shall bear the iniquity of your priesthood.  God told Moses that Aaron and his sons and the Levites would bear the responsibility if the tabernacle was profaned.  Aaron may have been receiving what seemed to be a great honor, but He also bore a great responsibility.  We may receive great honor from God by being followers of Christ, but we also have a great responsibility to keep our life sanctified for Him and to keep His word holy.  Verse two adds, And thy brethren also of the tribe of Levi, the tribe of thy father, bring thou with thee, that they may be joined unto thee, and minister unto thee: but thou and thy sons with thee shall minister before the tabernacle of witness.  Though the Levites were to join Aaron and his sons in the priesthood, only Aaron and his sons were to minister before the tabernacle.  As Christians, we are all a part of the priesthood of believers, but we don't all have the same calling to serve the same way.  Verse three continues, And they shall keep thy charge, and the charge of all the tabernacle: only they shall not come nigh the vessels of the sanctuary and the altar, that neither they, nor ye also, die.  The Levites were to keep the charge of Aaron and the tabernacle, but they were not to come near the vessels of the tabernacle, or they would die.  We should never attempt to claim a role in the church that God has not called us to.  Verse four continues, And they shall be joined unto thee, and keep the charge of the tabernacle of the congregation, for all the service of the tabernacle: and a stranger shall not come nigh unto you.  Though the Levites were to help Aaron and his sons by serving in the tabernacle, they were to keep strangers from attempting to.  Again, we as followers of Christ have a responsibility to keep those who are not from attempting to take over the church.  Verse five states, And ye shall keep the charge of the sanctuary, and the charge of the altar: that there be no wrath any more upon the children of Israel.  Aaron and his sons were responsible for keeping the charge of the sanctuary and the altar so that there would be no wrath from God on the people of Israel.  Though Aaron might have been called to a position that might have been seen as a great honor, it was even more a position of great responsibility.   As followers of Christ, we have been called to a position of great honor as we have been forgiven of our sins and have become a part of the family of God, but this also brings with it great responsibility to keep the kingdom of God holy.  We cannot allow the things of this world to become acceptable in the church if they are 8n opposition to what the Bible teaches us.  Verse six adds, And I, behold, I have taken your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel: to you they are given as a gift for the LORD, to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation.  God told Aaron that He had given the Levites to Aaron to help in the service of the tabernacle.  We need to allow God to call people to their position of service today.  We cannot simply decide what we want to do in the church without knowing that is what God wants us to do.  Verse seven continues, Therefore thou and thy sons with thee shall keep your priest’s office for every thing of the altar, and within the vail; and ye shall serve: I have given your priest’s office unto you as a service of gift: and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.  God told Aaron that He had given the service as priests as a gift to his sons and him.  Whatever God calls us to do today as followers of Christ is a gift from Him, and we must do it humbly and faithfully.   We are not called to any position in the church because we are better than other Christians, but are called simply because God chose that position for us.