2 Chronicles 35:8

2 Chronicles 35:8 says, And his princes gave willingly unto the people, to the priests, and to the Levites: Hilkiah and Zechariah and Jehiel, rulers of the house of God, gave unto the priests for the passover offerings two thousand and six hundred small cattle and three hundred oxen.  The princes, or those in positions of power in Judah gave generously to the celebration of the Passover.  We may not be in a position of power in the church, but whether we are or not, we need to give generously so that God's work can be accomplished and we can let the world know that we are worshiping the one true God.  Verse nine adds, Conaniah also, and Shemaiah and Nethaneel, his brethren, and Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad, chief of the Levites, gave unto the Levites for passover offerings five thousand small cattle, and five hundred oxen.  The great men of the Levites, some of the chief Levites, also contributed to the supplying for the Passover.  We should hope that religious leaders today will always be willing to contribute to the work of the church and to special times of worship.  Verse ten continues, So the service was prepared, and the priests stood in their place, and the Levites in their courses, according to the king's commandment.  The service was carried out by the priests and Levites doing what God had said they should do, even if it also says they did it according to the king's commandment.  They should have been doing what God called them to do whether the king commanded them to do so or not, and so should we as followers of Christ whether the government tells us to or not.  As a local congregation and as the church as whole, we all need to obey the calling of God in our lives.  Verse eleven states, And they killed the passover, and the priests sprinkled the blood from their hands, and the Levites flayed them.  After all the offerings and preparation for the Passover, the Passover animals were killed, and the priests sprinkled the blood from the sacrifice from their hands onto the altar.  The Levites also flayed the Passover animals and gave the meat to the people according to their families.  As important as worship service is, we need to also work under the leadership of the Holy Spirit to meet the needs of people in the church and community.  The sacrifice has already been made for us, so once we accept it, then we just need to be about doing what God has called us to do. Verse twelve adds, And they removed the burnt offerings, that they might give according to the divisions of the families of the people, to offer unto the Lord, as it is written in the book of Moses. And so did they with the oxen.  The Levites also gave what was left of the burnt offerings to the people to eat in accordance with God's will.  If we have an overabundance of material blessings today, we should be willing to use them to help other people.  Verse thirteen continues, And they roasted the passover with fire according to the ordinance: but the other holy offerings sod they in pots, and in caldrons, and in pans, and divided them speedily among all the people.  They roasted the Passover sacrifice with fire, but they also prepared what was left over for a quick distribution to the people.  Once we know what God wants us to do, we should do it quickly.  Verse fourteen says, And afterward they made ready for themselves, and for the priests: because the priests the sons of Aaron were busied in offering of burnt offerings and the fat until night; therefore the Levites prepared for themselves, and for the priests the sons of Aaron.  The priests were so busy offering burnt offerings that the Levites had to prepare food for themselves and for the Levites.  We may get very busy doing the work of God, especially ministers, but they we need to take care of our bodies as well, and need to make sure that ministers do as well.  We cannot serve God effectively if we are physically beaten down because we have neglected our own wellbeing.  Verse fifteen adds, And the singers the sons of Asaph were in their place, according to the commandment of David, and Asaph, and Heman, and Jeduthun the king's seer; and the porters waited at every gate; they might not depart from their service; for their brethren the Levites prepared for them.  The Levites also prepared food for the singers, who were also too busy to prepare it for themselves.  I don't think we ever get that caught up in doing the work of God in accordance with His word, but it might be good if we did, and others were there to ensure our physical needs were taken care of.  Verse sixteen continues, So all the service of the Lord was prepared the same day, to keep the passover, and to offer burnt offerings upon the altar of the Lord, according to the commandment of king Josiah.  Everything was completed in one day to keep the Passover.  We are told that this was in accordance to the commandment of Josiah, but it really was done according to the commandment of God.  We may worship and witness for God because someone has insired us to, but it should still always be done in accordance with the commandments of God.