In today’s passage we see the organisation and structuring of the nation continuing, this time with the leadership. Nobody is exempt it seems…not even leaders. But isn’t that brilliant too? God recognised that even leadership needed some structure to help them know their purpose and calling. Truth to tell He knew they needed that more than most people.

Right from the start we see that being a priest wasn’t an easy task. It was a life and death existence. If you got it wrong it could quite literally cost your life. It also reminds me of the warnings given to church leaders even in the New Testament.

Matthew 18:6 says, “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck, and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.”

Acts 20:28 says, “Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.” Stern stuff I’m sure you’ll agree.

So clan by clan through the tribe of Levi each group was assigned responsibility for particular aspects of the care and management of the tabernacle. Some seem grander than others but every task was identified precisely and carefully, everyone had a place and knew where it was. Everyone had a purpose. Even more importantly they knew the value of their work. They had all seen what happened to Aaron’s sons. They knew that taking anything you did for God too lightly could result in serious implications.

So there’s the lesson for each of us. Irrespective of whether we’re Priests, administrators, cooks, carpenters or medical consultants we are all called to know our place in the Kingdom and when we’ve worked out where that is, we’re to understand the importance of the call. We are to take it seriously; it’s for the glory of our God and Creator after all. We are to be disciplined in the outworking of our calling and we are to honour God in what we do.

No matter what that calling might look like to us, God never sees it as insignificant. We are to be the leaders in our particular field. We lead by example and, in the way we live out life we lead others to the King of Kings.

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Father God, help me to be the leader that you’ve called me to be. Help me to fulfil my calling as a leader in my field, to inspire others by what I do to follow me into relationship with You. Amen.