In the context of instructions designed to establish a clear order of responsibility in Israel we are reminded of the thing that places us all on equal footing. We are all mere mortals, unworthy of God’s favour and yet beneficiaries of his grace. The ceremony prescribed in Numbers 19 would have effectively ingrained this truth. Those who had contact with death in some way would, by the law uncleanness described here, be reminded of their fallen state and their need for salvation. The ceremony described in Numbers 19 symbolised the pathway from death back to life. The ‘red heifer’ was a sacrifice that created life-giving water for God’s people. It was a powerful symbol of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ which overcame death for all God’s people. Up to this point the ‘water of cleansing’ in the tabernacle was used only for priests, but here it is extended to the people. In this context it is a poignant reminder that no one, no matter what their role, is on a higher moral-spiritual footing than another. We are all in the same desperate state as each other. We were all as spiritually dead as each other and we are made alive by God’s grace. A leader is not someone who has a higher moral-spiritual status, for no mortal person has such a status. A leader must be the first to understand their need for God’s grace. We are all equally ‘unclean’ and we all have the same access to the one who cleanses. This fact should level out any degree of pride or prejudice in the family of God and unite us in humble praise.
Thank God for his grace to you in Jesus Christ.
Read Numbers 19
