Retirement

 They minister to their brothers in the tent of meeting by keeping guard, but they shall do no service. Thus shall you do to the Levites in assigning their duties."
Numbers 8:26 ESV
https://bible.com/bible/59/num.8.26.ESV

We sometimes say there's no retirement in the Kingdom of God, but that isn't quite true. It's not enough to cite Jesus's parable of the rich fool. The big picture is more nuanced than that.

This verse is about people over the age of fifty. Old Levites retired from active duty. This didn't mean they were inactive. They still helped out.

If we were to apply this old testament principle to the new covenant, perhaps we would allow and even encourage church officers to retire. Elders and deacons shouldn't be expected to serve indefinitely. One generation isn't indispensable.

The idea of this verse is about one generation of God's people passing the baton on to the next generation. For the church to thrive beyond our lifespans, we need to allow for subsequent generations to take over the active service of God. We do well to remember our mortality.

'O Lord, we're mindful of our mortality. May we commend You and Your service to subsequent generations, who didn't come to be served, but to serve, and give Your life as a ransom for many. For Your glory, amen'

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