"When the camp is to move, Aaron and his sons are to go in and take down the shielding curtain and put it over the ark of the covenant law." (Numbers 4:5 NIV)
I’m still working my way through the Old Testament with the Bible Project daily reading plan. Yesterday, I read about the priests’ mandate to take down the Tabernacle when they moved the Israelite camp. God had specific instructions for dismantling the Holy of Holies and covering the ark of the covenant for transport. In fact, the following fifteen verses go into very specific details describing the packing up process. Moving the Tabernacle – even a mile down the road – was no small feat.
The shipping instructions make a lot of sense when we have an understanding of God’s holiness. The Bible Project guys compare the power and purity of holiness to our sun: we all inherently understand that the sun is radiant. We can feel it’s strength on our skin from 92.6 million miles away. We know that the closer we climb to the source, the more readily we burn up. There’s a point where humans can’t tolerate the radiation.
Holiness is similar. God is all-powerful and pure. We are weak and impure. The closer we come, the more purity is a requirement. The Tabernacle with it’s outer court, inner court and Holy of Holies was designed with the radiating power of holiness in mind. The many layers of fabric weren’t intended to keep prying eyes out as much as keeping holiness in, for the sake of the impure Israelites camped around it. The Holy of Holies was essentially a hotspot for God’s presence at the center of the camp; thus the priests households camped directly around it. They protected the Tabernacle, but they also protected the people from the power within the Tabernacle. The Tabernacle was designed so that the Israelites could experience a degree of nearness to God without wasting away in His holiness.
All that said, I’m thinking about Aaron and his sons dismantling the Tabernacle and I’m wondering how they didn’t die of exposure before they accomplished their task. And then, I remember God’s signal fire to His people.
"On the day the tabernacle, the tent of covenant law, was set up, the cloud covered it. From evening till morning the cloud above the tabernacle looked like fire. That is how it continued to be; the cloud covered it and at night it looked like fire. Whoever the cloud lifted from above the tent, the Israelites set out, wherever the cloud settled, the Israelites encamped. At the Lord's command the Israelites set out, and at His command they encamped. As long as the cloud stayed over the tabernacle, they remained in camp. When the cloud remained over the tabernacle a long time, the Israelites obeyed the Lord's order and did not set out. Sometimes the cloud was over the tabernacle only a few days; at the Lord's command they would encamp, and then at His command they would set out. Sometimes the cloud stayed only from evening till morning, and when it lifted in the morning, they set out. Wheterh by day or by night, whenever the cloud lifted, they set out. Whether the cloud stand over the tabernacle for two days or a month or a year, the Israelites would remain in camp and not set out; but when it lifted, they would set out. At the Lord's command they encamped, and at the Lord's command the set out. They obeyed the Lord's order, in accordance with His command through Moses." (Number 9:15-23 NIV)
I know that’s a lot of scripture, but it’s important to note how emphatic God was about His people’s geographical obedience. They were not to move without Him. They were not to stay apart from Him. The sojourning Israelites were to make their way across the wilderness according to God’s timetable and itinerary. Period. There was no room for error.
Compile these explicit instructions with the details about dismantling the Tabernacle and we gain a better picture of what it looks like to follow God. Aaron and his sons could could not casually enter the Holy of Holies with the pillar of cloud or fire above. There were specifications and sacrifices for an annual approach alone. If they attempted entrance into the secret place on any other day and in any other way, they wouldn’t survive the venture. They were only safe to dismantle the Tabernacle when God’s presence had lifted off the camp, signaling the next relocation. For Aaron and his sons, to get ahead of God would be suicide. To stay behind without Him would be equally disastrous.
We may not worship in a Tabernacle and we have definitely lost a healthy fear of God’s holiness since the Temple veil tore, but we are still sojourners making our way to the Promised Land. God is still on the throne and we still live in tents. We still advance or stay put at His behest. If we get ahead or lag behind, we wind up missing His presence altogether.
My word for 2022 remains: still. God is still here. Still good. Still trustworthy. Still sovereign. Still able. And in His wisdom, He has called me to a season of stillness: lack of movement, lack of activity, lack of anxiety. A totality of trust. Still.
We all battle the temptation to get ahead of God and the complacency to stay behind. Christ-followers must match the Father’s pace. All too often, He’s a three-mile-an-hour God. But once in a while, it feels as though He is in an awful hurry. Sons and daughters appreciate His presence profoundly and stay with Him at every speed.
"Remain in Me, as I also remain in you." (John 15:4 NIV)
God, His Son and His Holy Spirit have promised to remain with us, to be with us until the very end. The question is, will we keep pace with His fidelity? Will we stay near when He moves or pauses? Are we willing to sacrifice our sense of autonomy for what we find in God alone? Surely His presence is far more satisfying than our fruitless quest for independence.
Lord, forgive us for getting ahead and falling behind. We tend to rush Your plans and resist our growth. We’re sorry. Help us today to match Your pace. If You are on the move, may we stay in Your footfalls. If You are still, may we be still as well. Spiritual mileage doesn’t matter: prolonged presence is our only success of consequence. May we stay under Your cloud always, determined to remain with You. Amen.