The Liturgy of Obedience: God's Tools for God's Work Text: Numbers 7:1-9
Introduction: The Grammar of Worship
We live in an age that believes enthusiasm is a substitute for obedience. Our modern worship is often a frantic search for whatever "works," whatever generates the right feeling, the right mood, the right emotional response. We treat the worship of the living God like a focus group for a new brand of soda. But the book of Numbers, and this chapter in particular, lands on that entire approach like a ten-ton anvil. God is not looking for our creative suggestions. He is not interested in our liturgical innovations. He is interested in our glad-hearted, meticulous, and thoughtful obedience. This is what we call the regulative principle of worship: God is to be worshipped only in the ways He has appointed in His Word. Every act of worship not positively enjoined by Him is thereby forbidden.
Now, to the modern ear, this sounds restrictive, even legalistic. But this is because we have been trained to think of freedom as autonomy from God, rather than freedom in God. True freedom is found within the glorious constraints of God's perfect design. A fish is free in the water, not on the pavement. A musician is free when he masters the rules of harmony, not when he bangs on the piano with his elbows. And a worshipper is free when he joyfully submits to the grammar of worship that God Himself has written.
In our text today, the tabernacle has just been completed. It has been anointed, consecrated, and set apart. It is a holy space, God's tent pitched in the middle of His people. And the moment it is ready, the leaders of Israel, the heads of the tribes, come forward with a spontaneous, generous, and entirely appropriate offering. They bring carts and oxen to help with the work. But notice what happens. This is not a free-for-all. God immediately steps in to regulate this offering. He tells Moses exactly how these tools are to be distributed and used. This passage teaches us a foundational lesson: our worship, our service, and our giving must be governed not by our good intentions, but by God's explicit instructions. God provides the tools for His work, and He tells us how to use them.
The Text
Now it happened on the day that Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle, that he anointed it and set it apart as holy with all its furnishings and the altar and all its utensils; he anointed them and set them apart as holy. Then the leaders of Israel, the heads of their fathers’ households, brought an offering near (they were the leaders of the tribes; they were the ones who were over the numbered men). And they brought their offering before Yahweh, six covered carts and twelve oxen, a cart for every two of the leaders and an ox for each one, and they brought them near before the tabernacle. Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, “Accept these things from them, that they may be used in the service of the tent of meeting, and you shall give them to the Levites, to each man according to his service.” So Moses took the carts and the oxen and gave them to the Levites. Two carts and four oxen he gave to the sons of Gershon, according to their service, and four carts and eight oxen he gave to the sons of Merari, according to their service, under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest. But he did not give any to the sons of Kohath because theirs was the service of the holy objects, which they carried on the shoulder.
(Numbers 7:1-9 LSB)
Consecration Precedes Service (v. 1)
We begin with the setting. The work is done, and now it is dedicated.
"Now it happened on the day that Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle, that he anointed it and set it apart as holy with all its furnishings and the altar and all its utensils; he anointed them and set them apart as holy." (Numbers 7:1)
Before any service can happen in the tabernacle, the tabernacle itself must be set apart. This is the principle of consecration. The word "holy" means to be set apart for a particular, divine purpose. Moses anoints everything with oil, which is a symbol of the Holy Spirit's presence and power. This act declares that these ordinary materials, wood, fabric, metal, are no longer common. They now belong to God in a special way. They are His.
This is a foundational truth for us in the New Covenant. Before we can offer any acceptable service to God, we ourselves must be consecrated. We must be set apart. This is what happens at our conversion. Through faith in Jesus Christ, we are anointed not with literal oil, but with the Holy Spirit Himself. We are declared holy, not because of our own inherent goodness, but because we have been united to the Holy One, Jesus Christ. "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession" (1 Peter 2:9). Your life, your body, your time, your resources, are no longer common. They have been set apart as holy. You are God's tabernacle now. This means that your service to God does not begin with what you do, but with who you are in Christ. You are holy before you do a single holy thing.
Leadership That Gives (v. 2-3)
The moment the tabernacle is consecrated, the leaders respond with generosity.
"Then the leaders of Israel, the heads of their fathers’ households, brought an offering near... And they brought their offering before Yahweh, six covered carts and twelve oxen, a cart for every two of the leaders and an ox for each one, and they brought them near before the tabernacle." (Numbers 7:2-3 LSB)
Notice who acts first. It is the leaders, the heads of the tribes. True leadership is not about commanding others to give; it is about leading the way in giving. These men understood that their position was one of service, not of privilege. They saw a practical need, the transportation of this heavy and glorious tabernacle, and they met it. Their offering was both corporate and individual. They partnered together, two leaders per cart, but each one provided an ox. This is a model for the church. Our giving should be both a corporate act of worship and an individual act of cheerful obedience.
They brought their gift "before Yahweh." They understood that their offering was ultimately to God, not to Moses or to the Levites. All our giving, whether it's in the offering plate, to a ministry, or to a neighbor in need, must be done with this mindset. We are not giving to a budget; we are worshipping the living God. Their gift was practical, thoughtful, and substantial. They didn't bring trinkets; they brought heavy-duty equipment for the work of the ministry. This is a rebuke to all forms of sentimental, useless piety. Our worship should result in tangible, practical, roll-up-your-sleeves service to the kingdom.
Divine Regulation of Human Generosity (v. 4-5)
The leaders bring the gift, but God gives the instructions for its use. This is the central point of the passage.
"Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 'Accept these things from them, that they may be used in the service of the tent of meeting, and you shall give them to the Levites, to each man according to his service.'" (Genesis 7:4-5 LSB)
This is crucial. The leaders did not get to dictate how their gift was used. They brought it and laid it before the Lord, and the Lord, through His appointed mediator Moses, determined its purpose and distribution. God accepts the gift, but He immediately regulates it. He says to give it to the Levites, but not indiscriminately. It is to be given "to each man according to his service."
This is God's principle of stewardship. God gives gifts and resources to the church, but they are to be distributed according to function and need, as determined by His Word. We are not free to do whatever we want with what God has given. The church is not a democracy where we vote on how to worship. It is a kingdom, and the King has given us His law. Our good intentions are not enough. Cain had intentions, but his offering was rejected. Uzzah had good intentions when he tried to steady the ark, but he was struck dead. God is holy, and He defines the terms of our service. Our generosity must be channeled through the grid of His commands.
Wisdom in Distribution (v. 6-9)
Moses then carries out God's specific instructions, and we see the divine wisdom in them.
"So Moses took the carts and the oxen and gave them to the Levites. Two carts and four oxen he gave to the sons of Gershon, according to their service, and four carts and eight oxen he gave to the sons of Merari, according to their service... But he did not give any to the sons of Kohath because theirs was the service of the holy objects, which they carried on the shoulder." (Numbers 7:6-9 LSB)
Here we see the principle of "according to his service" fleshed out. The Levites were divided into three clans, each with a specific job related to the tabernacle. The Gershonites were responsible for the tabernacle's curtains, coverings, and screens. This was a significant but relatively light load. They received two carts and four oxen.
The sons of Merari had the grunt work. They were responsible for the heavy framework of the tabernacle: the boards, the bars, the pillars, the bases. This was the heaviest load by far. Consequently, they received double the equipment: four carts and eight oxen. The distribution was not equal, but it was equitable. It was based on need and function. God equips His people for the specific tasks He assigns them.
But then we come to the Kohathites. They received nothing. No carts, no oxen. Why? Because they had the most important job of all. They were responsible for carrying the most holy objects: the ark of the covenant, the table of showbread, the lampstand, the altars. And God had given a very specific command about these items: they were to be carried on the shoulder using poles (Numbers 4:15). They were not to be put on a cart. This was a matter of high honor and high responsibility. To carry the immediate symbols of God's presence was a sacred privilege that could not be delegated to an animal or a machine. It required human shoulders, human strength, and human hearts engaged in the work.
This is a powerful lesson. Some ministries in the church require heavy equipment, big budgets, and complex logistics, like the work of the Merarites. Other ministries require less, like the Gershonites. But the central, most holy task, the ministry of the Word and sacrament, the bearing of the gospel itself, must be carried on the shoulders of faithful men. It cannot be outsourced. It cannot be automated. It requires the personal, sacrificial, shoulder-work of pastors, elders, and all believers who bear the name of Christ to the world. There are some burdens that are a holy privilege to carry.
Conclusion: Equipped for His Service
What does this mean for us? First, it means that all our service must flow from our identity in Christ. We are consecrated, set apart as holy. Our work for God is the result of our relationship with God, not the cause of it.
Second, we are called to be like the leaders of Israel, leading the way in generous, practical, and thoughtful giving. We should see the needs of the church and joyfully bring our resources to bear.
Third, we must submit our generosity and our service to the Word of God. We bring our gifts to the tabernacle, but God determines how they are used. We must not lean on our own understanding or our own good intentions. We must ask, "What has God commanded?" and do that, with gladness and precision.
Finally, we must recognize the different callings within the body of Christ. Some are called to the heavy lifting of Merari, others to the work of Gershon. And all of us, in a fundamental way, are called to be Kohathites. We are all called to bear the presence of God, to carry the truth of the gospel on our shoulders into our homes, our workplaces, and our communities. This is not a burden to be offloaded onto a cart. It is our highest honor, our most sacred duty. God has equipped us all, according to our service. Let us therefore take up our assigned tasks, whether with carts or on our shoulders, and do the work He has given us to do, for His glory alone.