20 When they go into the tabernacle of the congregation, they shall wash with water, that they die not; or when they come near to the altar to minister, to burn offering made by fire unto the Lord:

21 So they shall wash their hands and their feet, that they die not: and it shall be a statute for ever to them, even to him and to his seed throughout their generations.

These verses confirm that the laver was to be used to wash the priests as they moved from the courtyard into the tabernacle. The courtyard had no roof, and was therefore open to the world, taking on its regular dust and debris. Going into the tabernacle would separate one from the world, bringing the priest to a clean and holy place. As such, he would have to wash off the dust of the world and leave it behind him.

And so it is for us disciples. Even if we strive to live as good and decent of a life as possible, we still accrue the dust of the world. Even when we do not sin, we are depressed by the stories of cruelty in the world, we are heartbroken by the suffering of an ill family member, and we are hurt by the betrayal of another. None of these things make us guilty, but like the dust of the earth they cloud and obscure our light. They can get in the way of us feeling the love of God, dividing us from Him just the same.

Thus, from time to time, we need to wash the dust off our feet. We need to regularly go to our holy places, set down our burdens at the door, and let God renew us. This isn’t just good to do, it is necessary. If we cannot find refuge from the debris of this world it will accumulate and weigh us down until it drags us down to hell with it. God made this abundantly clear when He said that the priests must wash the dirt off “that they die not!”