God Knows The Hands and Feet! Numbers 1-4

Numbers 4:29-32 (ESV)

“As for the sons of Merari, you shall list them by their clans and their fathers’ houses. From thirty years old up to fifty years old, you shall list them, everyone who can come on duty, to do the service of the tent of meeting. And this is what they are charged to carry, as the whole of their service in the tent of meeting: the frames of the tabernacle, with its bars, pillars, and bases, and the pillars around the court with their bases, pegs, and cords, with all their equipment and all their accessories. And you shall list by name the objects that they are required to carry.

When God instructed Moses to have the Tabernacle built He did so in the context of the nation of Israel moving from one spot to another throughout the wilderness.   Whenever they left camp the Tabernacle would be taken down and carried to the next place.  It would be reassembled, in the center of the tribes tents, in the next place.  Someone had to carry all the Tabernacle when the nation moved.   The above passage talks about that aspect of Israel’s journey.  It might be wise to consider this Tabernacle and the difficult of such a task.  Let’s consider some facts:

1. Remember, they were in the wilderness for 40 years.  In that time they stopped and moved and reassembled the Tabernacle around 40 times. So, once per year on average.  
2. The Tabernacle was 1/2 as long and 60 feet wider than a football field. 
3. They had six carts with two bulls per cart to transport some of the material. 
4. The Ark of the Covenant was carried by four priest with two poles on each side of the Ark. 
5. The other furnishings from the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies would take an additional 20 people to carry by poles.   

This family (Merari) was responsible for portions of this transportation effort.   The curtains, poles, frames, bars and other pieces had to be meticulously taken apart, transported and put back together in perfect order.  You only have to move from one house to another to realize the enormous nature of this task.   But this Tabernacle had to look exactly the same each time.  We don’t think of all the people responsible for such tasks.  God listed them out for us in this text.  He wanted us to know who does this type of work for Him.  Yes, Aaron was the priest.  That is who we talk about, but there were numerous people who did the work to get the Tabernacle where it had to be to make sure the offerings were not disrupted.   The same is true to today in our worship services.  Whether it is the sound person, the video person on camera, the coffee and donut person, or the janitor who takes the trash out after the service, there are numerous people making sure a church service goes off with no disruptions.   God remembers their roles and knows their names.   One person in the body is no more important than they other:

1 Corinthians 12:14-20 (ESV)

For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.