“They shall go hindmost with their standards.” — Numbers 2:31
The camp of Dan brought up the rear when the armies of Israel were on the march. The Danites occupied the hindmost place, but what mattered the position, since they were as truly part of the host as were the foremost tribes; they followed the same fiery cloudy pillar, they ate of the same manna, drank of the same spiritual rock, and journeyed to the same inheritance. Come, my heart, cheer up, though last and least; it is thy privilege to be in the army, and to fare as they fare who lead the van. Some one must be hindmost in honour and esteem, some one must do menial work for Jesus, and why should not I? In a poor village, among an ignorant peasantry; or in a back street, among degraded sinners, I will work on, and “go hindmost with my standard.” – Charles Spurgeon, Morning and Evening, July 18 (emphasis added)
There are instances when we think we are better than others and therefore deserve to be frontrunners, other times we think that being placed on the hindmost part or level is degrading and embarrassing.
Take for instance our functions as members of our churches. Should we feel bad about ourselves and see ourselves less if we were assigned to serve the food and not lead a cell group? Don’t we have the same purpose as the cell group leader which is to worship, glorify and wait on the Lord? We may be doing the ‘menial’, but it does not leave us out of God’s army. We are still a part of it, and no matter how ‘lowly’ by human standards our functions are, we are still considered a vital part of the whole congregation.
Should I be assigned to preach Christ in a poverty-stricken area and Warren gets a similar assignment but in a more progressive village, should I feel less of a person and much more, less of a Christian? Aren’t we just doing the same work, marching the same march, gearing ourselves up for the same purpose?
Christ Himself occupied the hindmost place, he was born in the most unlikely fashion into the most ordinary family. When he began his three year ministry, He served more than He was served. He had no permanent bed to sleep on, no permanent home to retire to at the end of a long day of healing the sick, preaching the Word and saving souls. He walked on foot, no carriage carried Him to His destinations and He washed the disciples’ feet! And then, as we all know, He is the King of Kings, and yet He died a gruesome death, the kind that was reserved for the lowliest of the low in the society. Oh yes, Jesus Christ occupied the hindmost place. He was last, He bore all of our sins and died in our place. He saved us from eternal condemnation by positioning Himself on the hindmost place.
“What mattered the position… they were as truly part of the host as were the foremost”. Indeed, now what if we are placed at the last? For as long as we are a part of God’s army, there is every reason to keep our hearts joyful!
