The eloquent speaker for Moses, Aaron, along with his sons become the first official priests for the Israelites. The ceremony requires a series of required steps for consecrating, purifying, etc., all of which required Moses to perform with precision as detailed in the previous chapters. Moses did these things, not servants or those that worked “for” Moses–he did them himself–in front of the assembly of people.
The Lord was pleased with the process, apparently everything was performed exactly as prescribed.
…and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown. Leviticus 9:24
There was joy in the camp.
Reading through the processes followed by Moses, I have a better appreciation for the Roman Catholic church, for their adherence to rituals, robes, ornaments and the like. I’ve personally known many who love Jesus, who fully profess Christ as King. They are indeed our brothers and sisters in Christ. Following rituals doesn’t make me a Christian, I get that, and I hope that is clear, but there is something to be said about being obedient. Perhaps the point of reading these relatively ancient stories is to appreciate they were, in their time and in their space, being completely obedient to what God called them to be and do.
Todd Wilson echoes this theme in his excellent work, More, and the Be-Do-Go framework he built on Ephesians. Lord, help me to hear your voice clearly, to be who you called me to be, to do what you want and to go where you called me.
Thoughts about serving others
This link includes a list of posts about Serving the Least, the Lost, and the Lonely.
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Let the Word evoke words. May your life encourage lives.