The God of Logic

Scripture: The Lord spoke to Moses: "See, I have taken the Levites from the Israelites in place of every firstborn Israelite from the womb. The Levites belong to Me, because every firstborn belongs to Me. At the time I struck down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, I consecrated every firstborn in Israel to Myself, both man and animal. They are Mine; I am Yahweh." Numbers 3:11-13

Observation: To complete the census of the tribes, Moses is to count the Levites. Instead of just counting the military, this time he is to count all males, and compare them to the number of firstborn males in all the rest of Israel, as they are to take the place of all those other males - they are to redeem the debt owed to God when he spared the firstborn of Israel by taking their place in consecrated and special service to God.

It is in this manner that God improves both the lives of Israel, and their service and worship to the Lord. Declaring that all first born males must become priests would have created chaos, as every family would have been impacted, and organizing and training those serving would be difficult. Effectively, God 'centralized the function' into the tribe of Levi. It is this one tribe that will serve, becoming trained as priests and caretakers and craftsmen. The result will be superior service, superior worship, superior coordination. At the same time the family structure of all of Israel will be maintained, creating superior happiness, superior love, superior prosperity.

Application: I do not understand God's ways ... I do not understand why God required redemption and ownership of the firstborn of Israel in the first place. However, I appreciate his methods. God is a strategist, a mathematician, an astronomer, a chemist, a poet, a physicist, an artist. God designs complex biological structures and chemical compounds, and paints awe inspiring sunrises. He calculated the speed of light and the force of gravity, and invented the harmonizing of music. And when God declared the service of the firstborn of Israel, he designed a plan that maximized the value of that requirement.

I often don't understand God's commands, but I find I do understand some of his methods. To call them "earthly" methods is of course backwards, as it is more likely that when I develop quality plans that aid others I am actually emulating God's logical mind. I find that seeing God's orderly approach strengthens my faith, as it creates a bridge to God I can understand.

Prayer: Dear Lord, Abba, you are my guide and teacher. I see your hand moving in both inexplicable miracles, and in the daily order of this world. You are in control, on your throne. May I release more and more to you every day. Amen.