Order In The Camp
Daily Old Testament Reading: Numbers 2-5
Daily Focus Passage: Numbers 2
God is a God of order. He provides structure, guidance, and purpose to the ways of humanity. In the book of Numbers, the people take a census in Numbers 1 and calculate all the men of age to participate in the battle. The Lord uses the result of the census to lead Moses to structure the people strategically around the Tabernacle for worship and war. Thus, the Lord demonstrates how he uses order to carry forth his will.
ORDER TO PREPARE FOR WORSHIP
The people of Israel were positioned around the Tabernacle to celebrate and worship the Lord. Later in Numbers, the Lord commands Moses to have silver trumpets forged that will be used to announce moments of worship and war. The gathering around the Tabernacle strategically and in an orderly format allows the people to prepare for worshiping and honoring the Lord.
When order aids in worship, it allows various people to lead and guide in celebrating the Lord. Order can create a dynamic of growing closer to the Lord in a systematic manner. The Lord did not want chaos to dominate their worship, but he wanted his people to approach him with intention, purpose, and order. Today, I think it is important to ask if we come to the Lord in order or allow chaos to distract us from worship.
ORDER TO PREPARE FOR WAR
The Lord placed the people around the Tabernacle for worship, but the Lord also positioned them around the Tabernacle to strategically prepare for war. The placement of the people allowed them to be ready to respond to the attack of the enemies and let them be used as the Lord guided the leaders of Israel. The trumpets used for worship also became instruments of announcing which tribes must participate in the coming battle. The placement created a prepared state of serving the Lord.
At the same time, the order prepared for war by offering a straightforward response to various enemies. The people were structured to respond to multiple attacks from different directions because of their ordered placement. The order provided a method and a structure to follow the Lord’s leading into battle. Thus, the people needed to trust that the Lord placed them in his required area. Today, we must understand that we still live at war in the spiritual realm. We need to trust our placement from the Lord and follow him into battle.
ORDER TO PREPARE FOR TODAY
First, we must understand the importance of order under the guidance of the Lord. Order exists because the Lord is not a God of chaos. This does not mean that chaos is not used for the Lord or by the Lord, but it means that the Lord used ordered chaos for his purposes. Such a moment means that the Lord may cause chaos within his order to carry out his will.
Second, we must recognize that order provides a set structure for our benefit and glory. It benefits us because it gives us the needed order to combat the temptations of the flesh that seek to hinder us from following the Lord and worshiping him without distractions. This does not mean that our order or structure becomes legalistic, but it does mean that we trust living under the order of the Lord.
Numbers 2 provides us with the truth of the importance of order. We need to allow the Lord to structure our lives so that we can faithfully serve him and worship him. When you consider your life, what areas need structure from the Lord? What areas do you need to surrender to the Lord and request his working and order in your life? The Lord seeks to place you in a place of service and worship.
