The Great Commission. Miscellaneous Writings of C. H. Mackintosh, vol. IVMackintosh, Charles Henry
Religion
The Great Commission. Miscellaneous Writings of C. H. Mackintosh, vol. IV
Mackintosh, Charles Henry
Theology
"And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Take the Levites
from among the children of Israel, and cleanse them. And
thus shalt thou do unto them, to cleanse them: Sprinkle
water of purifying upon them, and let them shave all their
flesh, and let them wash their clothes, and so make
themselves clean. Then let them take a young bullock with
his meat offering, even fine flour mingled with oil; and
another young bullock shalt thou take for a sin offering.
And thou shalt bring the Levites before the tabernacle of
the congregation: and thou shalt gather the whole assembly
of the children of Israel together: and thou shalt bring the
Levites before the Lord: and the children of Israel shall
put their hands upon the Levites: and Aaron shall offer the
Levites before the Lord for an offering of the children of
Israel, that they may execute the service of the Lord. And
the Levites shall lay their hands upon the heads of the
bullocks: and thou shalt offer the one for a sin offering,
and the other for a burnt offering, unto the Lord, to make
an atonement for the Levites. And thou shalt set the Levites
before Aaron, and before his sons, and offer them for an
offering unto the Lord. Thus shalt thou separate the Levites
from among the children of Israel: and the Levites shall be
Mine."
This passage furnishes us with a very rich and blessed branch of our
interesting subject. We were enabled to see, in looking at Levi by
nature, that such was his character that God would have no fellowship
with him whatever, and that, so far as Levi was concerned, he should
abide forever in _his own habitation_, in company with the
"instruments of cruelty" which were therein. But God will not leave
him there, and therefore God must Himself provide the remedy--God
Himself must cleanse this self-willed, cruel and fierce man. And here
we are invited to recall a thought which occurred to the mind in the
opening of this paper, viz., that man's sin must ever be brought into
the presence of God's grace. Levi had nothing else to look to; his
sin was such as to preclude every thought of human remedy; the law
condemned Levi's nature; and God had pronounced him unfit for His
presence. And what, then, had Levi to do? Could he set himself with
heart and soul to keep the law? Impossible: the law had not only
condemned his works, but pronounced the curse of God upon his very
nature. The law said, "Thou shalt do no murder;" and having said this,
it added, "_Cursed_ is every one that continueth not in all things
that are written in the book of the law, to do them." But Levi had
murder in his nature, therefore Levi's nature was cursed.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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