Hand-Picked by God
Now that the instructions have been given to Moses about the items required for the Tabernacle, God tells him the names of the two men who will be in charge of the project: Bezalel and Oholiab. Bezalel was a well-known and respected member of the community. His family line was prominent and recognized as important in the leadership of the new nation. It was his grandfather, Hur, who helped hold up Moses’ arms during the Israelites’ battle against Amalek (Exodus 17:12). Not only would the people have respected this choice because of the importance of his family and tribe, but the man himself was well recognized as being highly skilled and qualified for the job. His assistant, Oholiab, on the other hand was from one of the smallest, least influential, and least respected tribes of Israel. I believe their appointment as the leadership of the building of the Tabernacle and its instruments gave an important message to the people: God’s calling qualifies a person, not their pedigree or social status.
The battle for who is the greatest is nothing new to humanity. Cain and Abel first had this fight with disastrous consequences. All the men and women who worked on the different parts of the Tabernacle were highly skilled artisans. They each could easily have argued they deserved the position of leader more. Humanity is prone to such arguments, unfortunately. Even the apostles were not free from it. Matthew 18:1-4 records, "At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, 'Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them, and said, ‘Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.’” Such fighting over who is the best or the greatest does not please God. Each of us has been hand-picked by our Creator to perform a certain task in His kingdom. Who is the greatest? The greatest is the one who rejects such questions and happily does what they were created to do without compares themselves to others. The ‘greatest’ would never seek such a title.
By choosing a man of high standing and a man of low standing, God made a point that our qualifications are given by Him and Him alone. Each of us have the gifts and tools to do what God calls us to do. We are not less important because we serve in a less glamorous position. We are not more important because we are placed in a leadership role. As members of the same body, we each carry the same importance – to be a tool for God’s holy purposes.
Before ending the instructions and appointments for building the Tabernacle, God once again reminds the people to honor the Sabbath. They are about to set off on a very important job that would require many, many hours of detailed work. However, God still requires them to rest. No matter how important the job at hand is, God places greater importance on us. We cannot be our best if we are over-worked and spread too thin. God knows we need rest because He created rest. As we do what we were created to do, let us not shun the command of God to take a day of rest and reflection. None of us can pour from an empty cup.
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