1 Chronicles 24 : Priests and Casting Lots
1 Chronicles 24 <Priests and Casting Lots>
"These were the divisions of the descendants of Aaron: The sons of Aaron were Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar." (v.1)
"They divided them impartially by casting lots, for there were officials of the sanctuary and officials of God among the descendants of both Eleazar and Ithamar." (v.5)
"These men also cast lots, just as their relatives the descendants of Aaron did, in the presence of King David and of Zadok, Ahimelek, the heads of families of the priests and of the Levites. The families of the oldest brother were treated the same as those of the youngest." (v.31)
◇ David appointed those who would serve in the priestly office. Among the tribe of Levi, he specifically entrusted the priestly duties to Aaron's descendants (Numbers 3:3,10).
He used a unique method for assigning these positions. He cast lots to determine who would serve as priests. The result was that both the eldest and youngest family lines were chosen without distinction (v.31).
If we were to apply this to our modern context, it would be like selecting elders, deacons, and other church officers by drawing lots.
Once someone is registered as a church member, they have equal rights and responsibilities to serve the church. It doesn't matter how long they've attended church, how faithfully they tithe, how well they keep the Sabbath, whether they attend early morning prayer meetings, or if they show up for Wednesday evening services even when it's raining. They wouldn't even ask how much thanksgiving offering someone would give upon receiving their position—they would simply cast lots.
This would be challenging in practice, wouldn't it? Surely there should be some standards for appointing church officers. We can't just appoint anyone. We should at least examine the qualifications outlined in 1 Timothy 3 for overseers and deacons. This would help us build and lead our communities properly, wouldn't it?
Yet nowadays—or rather, this has been a long-standing practice—churches require substantial thanksgiving offerings when appointing officers. These amounts range from hundreds of thousands to tens of millions of won, and I've heard some cases exceed a hundred million won. This isn't right, is it? While it's understandable that someone might voluntarily offer a donation out of gratitude for being appointed as God's co-worker and as a pledge of faithful service, it's wrong for churches to demand amounts ranging from hundreds of thousands to tens of millions.
Just as lots were cast among qualified priestly families to assign temple duties, it would be wonderful if churches would appoint qualified individuals as officers and celebrate with them, without financial requirements.
Good and righteous God, help us to appoint Your co-workers and church servants without partiality. Help us establish officers who will build and lead the church according to Your will. Holy Spirit, make us strong and bold. Amen.