THE SUPREME ORGANIZER

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron: "The Israelites are to camp around the Tent of Meeting some distance from it, each man under his standard with the banners of his family."

“On the east, toward the sunrise, the divisions of the camp of Judah are to encamp under their standard. The leader of the people of Judah is Nahshon, son of Amminadab.  His division numbers 74,600. The tribe of Issachar will camp next to them. The leader of the people of Issachar is Nethanel, son of Zuar. His division numbers 54,400. The tribe of Zebulun will be next. The leader of the people of Zebulun is Eliab, son of Helon. His division numbers 57,400. All the men assigned to the camp of Judah, according to their divisions, number 186,400. They will set out first.”

“On the south will be the divisions of the camp of Reuben under their standard. The leader of the people of Reuben is Elizur, son of Shedeur. His division numbers 46,500. The tribe of Simeon will camp next to them. The leader of the people of Simeon is Shelumiel, son of Zurishaddai. His division numbers 59,300. The tribe of Gad will be next. The leader of the people of Gad is Eliasaph, son of Deuel. His division numbers 45,650. All the men assigned to the camp of Reuben, according to their divisions, number 151,450. They will set out second.”

“Then the Tent of Meeting and the camp of the Levites will set out in the middle of the camps. They will set out in the same order as they encamp, each in his own place under his standard.”

“On the west will be the divisions of the camp of Ephraim under their standard. The leader of the people of Ephraim is Elishama, son of Ammihud. His division numbers 40,500. The tribe of Manasseh will be next to them. The leader of the people of Manasseh is Gamaliel, son of Pedahzur. His division numbers 32,200. The tribe of Benjamin will be next. The leader of the people of Benjamin is Abidan, son of Gideoni. His division numbers 35,400. All the men assigned to the camp of Ephraim, according to their divisions, number 108,100. They will set out third.”

“On the north will be the divisions of the camp of Dan, under their standard. The leader of the people of Dan is Ahiezer, son of Ammishaddai. His division numbers 62,700. The tribe of Asher will camp next to them. The leader of the people of Asher is Pagiel, son of Ocran. His division numbers 41,500. The tribe of Naphtali will be next. The leader of the people of Naphtali is Ahira, son of Enan. 30 His division numbers 53,400. All the men assigned to the camp of Dan number 157,600. They will set out last, under their standards.”

These are the Israelites, counted according to their families. All those in the camps, by their divisions, number 603,550. The Levites, however, were not counted along with the other Israelites, as the Lord commanded Moses. So the Israelites did everything the Lord commanded Moses; that is the way they encamped under their standards, and that is the way they set out, each with his clan and family.

Numbers 2

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Call me weird but as an adult, I love animated movies. Unfortunately, it seems they, with a few exceptions, are the only decent movies available to watch, ones that so often espouse morals and values without needless profanity or excessive violence.

Some time ago, I watched a very good animated movie, Chicken Run, unique in that it used “claymation”. It was about a group of chickens who were trying to escape from what was sure death while in the hands of a husband and wife chicken farmer team. This couple, the Tweedy’s, had grand visions of making a fortune by making chicken pies out of the captive birds.

Well, during the movie, Mr. Tweedy witnesses the chickens assembling and making preparations to escape, immediately going to his wife with the matter. When he insists that the chickens were getting organized, she chastises him, saying:

"They're CHICKENS, you dolt. Apart from you, they're the most stupid creatures on this planet. They don't plot, they don't scheme, and they are NOT organized."

Little did she know that her husband was right. The chickens were organizing and about to find their way to safety, averting disaster and destruction.

Well in today’s scripture passage from Numbers, chapter 2, we find the Lord showing His interest in making sure His people were organized. For after the census was performed in the first chapter of this book, we see where God provides guidance on how the tribes of Israel were to arrange themselves while encamped, to include the order these groups would be in once they broke camp and moved on.

We see where the twelve tribes were positioned around the tabernacle and the Levites, three on each side (the east, south, west and north). This arrangement ensured there would be full protection for God’s worship place and the priests who worked within it.

Today, the Lord organizes His believers as well, gathering them in churches around the world to commune with Him, learn more about His will for their lives, and then go forth to make disciples (Matthew 28:18-20). Consider this passage from the first chapter of Colossians:

"We look at this Son and see the God who cannot be seen. We look at this Son and see God's original purpose in everything created. For everything, absolutely everything, above and below, visible and invisible, rank after rank after rank of angels—everything got started in Him and finds its purpose in Him. He was there before any of it came into existence and holds it all together right up to this moment. And when it comes to the church, he organizes and holds it together, like a head does a body." The Message Colossians (15-18, The Message).

Our God, the Supreme Maker of everything, is the Master Organizer. Everything has a place in the order of the Creation which He holds together, and He is the chief Head of the body of Christ (the church). Friends, what an awesome privilege it is to be part of that body and to be used by the Lord in powerful ways as He organizes us and puts us in places He wants us to be so to accomplish His amazing, holy purposes.

Let’s take time today to give thanks to the Lord who always puts us where we’re supposed to be when we submit to His will and way.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.