These had as their appointed duty in their service to come into the house of the LORD according to the procedure established for them by Aaron their father, as the LORD God of Israel had commanded him.
1 Chronicles 24:19
Ministry has its demands. And the priestly work of the levitical priesthood in Israel was not only spiritual but also hard physical labor. It required teamwork and organization. And David took all of the families of the priests and organized them into 24 different divisions. Then those divisions were organized into work teams arranged on a 48 month lunar calendar and assigned various levitical duties in the house of God. Each division served publicly two months out of each year. The rest of the year was filled with behind-the-scenes responsibility.
The levitical duties were diverse. The duties at the house of the Lord including being bakers (the grain offerings and the shewbread were regular requirements). They were incense makers. They were butchers (some sacrifices let the person offering the sacrifice take home a portion of the meat. Other portions of sacrifices went to feed the Levites and their families. Every day numerous goats, sheep, and oxen were slaughtered on the grounds of the temple). All this physical labor was shared through this unique service roster.
The priests and Levites benefitted from team ministry. And the ministry itself was strengthened by the organization and administration of these teams. David was a wise king to ensure that those who led Israel's worship did so in an atmosphere of organization and mutual ministry. So team ministry is not just a New Testament concept. It is a biblical concept. There are no "Lone Rangers" in the plans that God has for His worship.
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