Reflections from April 29, 2011

An interesting lesson in following God today as we read about Balaam and Balak. Balaam was a gentile prophet that was renowned throughout the land and was paid for his services to bless and curse others. Balak, King of the Moabites, wanted Balaam to curse Israel because he was afraid of them. When Balak sent messengers to him with a handsome fee, Balak went to God to determine what he should do, and God told him he will not be permitted to go and curse Israel. So Balaam tells the messengers in Numbers 22:18,
"Though Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of the Lord my God, to do less or more."

Now, had that been the end of it, things would have been fine for Balaam; however, he wouldn't let it go because Balak came back and offered him more, in fact, whatever he wanted! So God eventually granted Balaam permission to go, even though he was angry about it.
In fact, He blocked his way with an angel stopping the donkey that Balaam was riding. The donkey saw the angel, but at first, Balaam didn't, he went to beating the donkey to get it to move. Apparently, he could only think about the plunder that he was going to get. Finally, Balaam saw the angel as well, and the angel reiterated God's command that Balaam will only speak the words given directly by God.

It's important to note that God did not "change His mind" here. It was more that Balaam was out of touch with God. As Chuck Smith says at blueletterbible.com, "It's amazing at how out of tune and out of sorts we get when we're out of God's will. You know, we're wanting to do our own thing and God puts a block in our way and boy, we become angry. We become upset because God is blocking this, which I've got in my mind to do. You get out of the will of God you can really get out of sorts in every area of your life; your whole life just gets out of sorts completely." We do the same thing with our children, we relent and give them permission to do something even though we know they shouldn't. It's almost like letting them learn a lesson the hard way.

Balak meets with Balaam and takes him to high places of Baal to pronounce a curse on Israel, and every time Balaam offers a blessing. He tells Balak in Numbers 23:12,
"Must I not take heed to speak what the Lord has put in my mouth?"

Scripture here offers an unusual twist between Balaam the gentile prophet, Balak the Moabite king, and God. Balaam was caught between God and Balak, but he had no choice except to follow God's command. At times we find ourselves caught up between doing what's right, and doing something for the benefit of another, even though it may be wrong in God's eyes. Like Balaam, we need to recognize this, and ensure we offer honor to God through our actions indicating the He is Lord over us.

In Numbers 24, we see Balak's anger boil over for Balaam's continued blessings on Israel and Balaam replies in Numbers 25:13,
"If Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of the Lord, to do good or bad of my own will. What the Lord says, that I must speak."

Balaam went on to give his final oracle over Israel.

For information regarding these blessings, consider reading secular information in wikipedia by clicking here.

In the end, Balak causes trouble on Israel because he gets them to participate in cult worship, including prostitution. God is extremely angry with them, and orders Moses to kill those responsible. It turns out that Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron, fulfills the wrath of God and receives His blessing in Numbers 25:11,
"Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned back My wrath from the children of Israel, because he was zeolous with My zeal among them, so that I did not consume the children of Israel in My zeal."

Phinehas' actions were like those we should engage in; that is, to not have zeal for activities like religious ceremonies and what not. Our zeal should match God's zeal and be used to perform His works, not ours.

Blessings to all

Reflections from April 27, 2011

In Numbers 19, we can draw the parallel between the ritual of cleansing to the sanctification we receive today from God. We read in Numbers 19:20,
"But the man who is unclean and does not purify himself, that person shall be cut off from among the assembly".

For the Israelite to remain unclean, he had to make a willful choice to do so. We seal our fate when we make a willful choice to remain unholy and sinful in the eyes of God, not receiving the blessing of salvation that He offers through His Son Jesus Christ. Just as the ashes of the red heifer and the purifying water were there for the Israelites to use, so is the salvation of Jesus; we only need to extend our hand and receive His gift.

Speaking of willful choice, we read about the time when Moses willfully set aside the commandment of God and took matters into his own hands. God spoke to Moses to speak to the rock in order to bring forth water. However, in a flash of anger, Moses hit the rock with his rod bringing the water out. So, why did Moses do this? Only he can say, but some thoughts about this include his anger at the Israelites complaining boiled over and came out; he was troubled through the years by his upbringing in the Egyptian palaces and this troubled past came out in this manner. Whatever the reason, Moses act of disobedieance and foolishness had a momentous impact on his life. We read in Numbers 20:12,
"The the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, 'Because you did not believe Me, to hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.'"
A huge blow to Moses and Aaron. Still, they did not give up on the Lord, but accepted His righteous justice and carried on with their duties.

Moses did see a lot of grumbling from the Israelites, and at times it seems that they used God or turned their back on a whim. We read in Numbers 21:2,
"So Israel made a vow to the Lord, and said, 'If you will indeed deliver this people inot my hand, then I will utterly destroy their cities."
God did and they did! But almost immediately, the Israelites say in Numbers 21:5,
"And the people spoke against God and against Moses: 'Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and our soul loathes this worthless bread.'"

Quite the contrast. On one hand, they almost seem to use God for their benefit, but when things don't go their way, they immediately forget that God has delivered them from evil time and time again. God is with us through the good times and through the bad times. We must choose to remain faithful through both and in the end, we will be rewarded with our "promised land" as well.

Blessings to all

Reflections from April 24, 2011

Today is Easter, and we celebrate that Jesus our Lord has risen from His grave to return to His Father. It is by this that we know He is our Lord and we can call on Him for our salvation.

Today we read in Numbers of other ways that the Israelites had to remember their law and their requirements to please the Lord. We read in Numbers 15:39-40,
"You shall have the tassel, that you may look upon it and remember all the commandments of the Lord and do them, and that you may not follow the harlotry to which your own heart and your own eyes are inclined, and that you may remember and do all My commandments, and be holy for your God."

God knew the ways of man, and He knew that there would be times they, (we) would forget what we need to do. Today, we use various types of reminders for ourselves and this was God's way of providing a reminder to them, a visual item to trigger in their minds when they started thinking of things that would be outside of God's ordinances.

Too bad this didn't remind Korah, Dathan and Abiram when they said in Numbers 16:12,
"We will not come up!"

They had the attitude like many do today, "My way or the highway!" and took it upon themselves to be the leaders that God made Aaron and Moses. This insurrection in the community can have a devastating effect, that leads to poor communications and conflict in the group. God ended this problem by putting them and everyone in their household to death by opening the earth and swallowing them whole. We learn to not let things get out of control, to resolve with God's help, or to move away from them.

God made clear He chose Aaron as His priest in Numbers 17:8,
"the rod of Aaron, of the house of Levi, had sprouted and put forth buds, had produced blossoms, and yielded ripe almonds."

This was a pivotal time in the congregation of Israel, in that they now knew God's choice as priest. It would bring to an end all the bickering about who was leading and that Aaron and Moses had not assumed this leadership on their own.

God tells all in Israel of the need to offer parts of their livelihood, not just any part, but the best part. In Numbers 18:29 we read,
"Of all your gifts you shall offer up every heave offering due to the Lord, from all the best of them, the consecrated part of them."

We are to offer our best to God, the first fruits, and to offer it graciously.

We read in Psalms 113:4-6,
The Lord is high above all nations, His glory above the heavens. Who is like the Lord our god, Who dwells on high, who humbles Himself to behold the things that are in the heavens and in the earth?

God is like no other, and we must give all glory to Him in all that we do.

Blessings to all

Reflections from April 22, 2011

Today is Good Friday, the day we recognize the death of Jesus. It is a great day to reflect on our relationship with the Lord and to remember what He did for us and our salvation.

Just as Jesus was recognized by the Father for what He did, God recognized Moses and his efforts and faithfulness. When Moses was challenged by his brother Aaron and his sister Miriam, God spoke up on his behalf and said in Numbers 12:7-8,
"My servant Moses is faithful in all My house. I speak with him face to face; even plainly and not in dark sayings; and he sees the form of the Lord."

Moses' relationship with the Lord was so strong that he was one of the only humans to see God in His form, to hear from God directly as one friend to another. Many times Moses spoke to God to reason in ways that took God in a different direction.

How strong is your relationship with God? Does He speak to you and do you listen? Do you challenge God or do you praise Him for all that He does? God was clear that Moses was favored by Him, but it was because of Moses' belief in God's direction and complete, absolute trust in God.

Moses sent twelve men to the Promised land to check it out; ten were scared by what they saw, and two were ready to go and take what God had promised. We read in Numbers 13:30-31,
"Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, 'Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.' But the men who had gone up with him said, 'We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.'"

This is a fascinating thought given all that God had done for them, especially in saving them from the force of the Egyptians as they chased them to the Red Sea. But two, Caleb and Joshua, trusted in the Lord because of what He did for them, and had the vision to see Israel going in and inhabiting the Promised Land, just as God said they would do. For us the question is, do we look at the data we take in, just like these twelve men did for their forty day journey, and process it according to our own human limitations, or whether we factor in the power and promises of God. God rewards those who trust in Him and He is worthy of our trust.

Because of this lack of trust, God became furious with the children of Israel, and was ready to do away with them. Here is another example of Moses reasoning with God, and interceding on their behalf. Moses says in Numbers 14:18,
"The Lord is long suffering and abundant in mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression; but He by no means clears the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation."

As a result of this griping, and lack of trust that God will deliver them into the Promised Land, God ruled that the people who complained will not see the Promised Land and that their carcasses will rot in the wilderness. We need to take this to heart, and not complain against God's plan, knowing it to be perfect. It's not our timing, but the Lord's timing.

We would do well to keep the words of David in our hearts, from Psalms 28:6-7,
"Blessed be the Lord, because He has heard the voice of my supplications! The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoices, and with my song I will praise Him."

Blessings to all

Reflections from April 15, 2011

God receives the Levites for His service as He says in Numbers 8:17-18,
"For all the firstborn among the children of Israel are Mine, both man and beast, on the day that I struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified them to Myself. I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn of the children of Israel."
Interesting to note that God does not take the Levites and have them do nothing; rather, they are brought into service for God. As Matthew Henry states in his commentary, " God takes them for his own, that they may serve him. All that expect to share in the privileges of the tabernacle must resolve to do the service of the tabernacle. As, on the one hand, none of God’s creatures are his necessary servants (he needs not the service of any of them), so, on the other hand, none are taken merely as honorary servants, to do nothing. All whom God owns he employs; angels themselves have their services. " [From Blueletterbible.com.
Today, we are expected to serve God in a way that provides a service to Him. If we look to God for what He desires, we will provide the service that He desires and has directed us to, just as He did the Levites, and still does for His angels.

The nation of Israel followed God's divine guidance as they traveled through the wilderness. We read in Numbers 9:23,
"At the command of the Lord they remained encamped, and at the command of the Lord they journeyed; they kept the charge of the Lord, at the command of the Lord by the hand of Moses." God was instrumental in giving the direction to Israel for when to move and when to camp. While today, we don't have God's physical presence in the form of a cloud to guide us through life, we do have His word The Bible and we do have our relationship with Him. However, Moses and the leaders of Israel provided guidance and leadership in the everyday facets of life, and we need leaders today that do that as well. For example, take the workplace. Every organization is on a journey, and to successfully manage the ups and downs of growth, leaders need to be sensitive to timing; when to press forward, and when to stay put; or to camp. If we make God our guide, we'll be sure to stay on the right path.

To help Moses with direction and guidance, he called upon his father-in-law to help, and told him in Numbers 10:32,
"And is shall be, if you go with us - indeed it shall be - that whatever good the Lord will do to us, the same we will do to you."

Moses does not make a promise on behalf of God, he makes it on behalf of Israel. Moses was careful not to make promises for God. But Moses had the authority to speak for Israel, and Moses also knew when he needed help, and he went to the most experienced person he knew to get them through the desert. When we need help, we should look to experience people as well; it could be a pastor, a senior, someone that has knowledge of God and can provide practical help, just as Moses knew that Hobab could.

As people began to grumble and complain, God directed Moses to prepare for His resolution. On questioning, God replied to Moses in Numbers 11:23,
"Has the Lord's arm been shortened? Now you shall see whether what I say will happen to you or not."

I find it fascinating the Moses even questioned God and what he should do given all that God had done so far. That is the basis of God's response. Maybe God was surprised as well, but as it turned out, many of those that grumbled ended up dead at the hand of God.
What God provides is for His glory, not necessarily ours. God will provide our needs, and we should consider ourselves blessed with whatever He provides.

Blessings to all

Reflections from April 13, 2011

As the nation of Israel begins to settle into their routines with the tabernacle complete, the orders of the tribes in place, and the Law of God written for all to follow, God spoke to Moses with a blessing for the nation in Numbers 6:24-26,
"The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace."

God has the desire to bless us in good times and bad, to always provide for us a benediction. The blessing of children by their father was a formal passage of time, usually before the father passed away, he would gather his children for their blessings. See January 28, 2011 for Israel's blessing to his twelve children. Blessings can offer refreshment to the recipient and encouragement through words of affirmation. They're easy to do, and have a lot of benefit, both the the giver as well as the receiver. We should bless someone daily, starting with our family members.

The leaders of the tribes brought their offerings on behalf of their tribe to the altar and we read in Numbers 7:10,
"Now the leaders offered the dedication offering for the altar when it was anointed; so the leaders offered their offering before the altar. For the Lord said to Moses, They shall offer their offering, one leader each day, for the dedication of the altar."

These gifts given by each of the twelve tribes of Israel was significant in that they signify their allegiance to God and their dedication to serving Him. They were an important model for Christians to follow as well in the early first century when Paul instructed the Corinthians to take collections (1 Corinthians 16:1-4) as part of a regular pattern of their worship, showing devotion to God in doing so. This continues today, that not only do we give our tithes to God for support of His church, but we give our gifts and offerings out of loving worship to enable others to benefit from His kindness. Even today, we continue with the traditions and rituals that Moses enacted by following the commandments of God, many centuries ago.

Blessings to all

Reflections from April 12, 2011

Previously, God had excluded the Levites from the census because He had specific duties in mind for them supporting the tabernacle and the priests. God to Moses and Aaron in Numbers 3:12-13,
"Now behold, I Myself have taken the Levites from among the children of Israel instead of every firstborn who opens the womb among the children of Israel. Therefore the Levites shall be Mine, because all the firstborn are Mine. On the day that I struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I sanctified to Myself all the firstborn in Israel, both man and beast. They shall be Mine. I am the Lord."
Because God had sanctified the firstborn unto Himself, He had the right to claim them. His instructions for beasts were for Israelites to offer the firstborn of their flock to Him; however, they were not to do what He commanded Abraham to do, offer their firstborn son. Instead, God claimed the Levites as His, to compensate for all the firstborn of Israel. The Levites entered into service of the Lord from a very early age, working with Aaron and the priests in the care of the tabernacle. They became a special possession of the Lord; part of a special nation to the Lord.

These services are described in Numbers Chapter 4 and we summarize in Numbers 4:49,
"According to the commandment of the Lord they were numbered by the hand of Moses, each according to his service and according to his task; thus were they numbered by him, as the Lord commanded Moses."
Each family within the tribe of Levi were given specific duties related to the tabernacle itself as well as the holy items. This was a huge effort, and required lots of organizing. And that is what God did through Moses; organized the work. Recall from Reflections from February 22, 2011, how intricate and delicate and detailed the construction of the sanctuary is; thus, it takes a lot of effort to dismantle, and reassemble when breaking camp and moving to a new location. This lesson of task organization was used by Paul in using the natural abilities of the congregation's members. We can learn as well by working together, planning systems and assignments carefully, and overcoming tendencies toward competition and conflict, thus rising to the challenge of managing projects in a way that honors the Lord.

Then God gives a major lesson to Moses, that serves us well today; Revenge belongs to God! Through His instructions on dealing with a woman that commits adultery, He takes the responsibility to invoke justice on the person, rather than the spouse. God effectively removes jealousy from the situation, and thus removes the desire for revenge. We read in Numbers 5:30,
"When the spirit of jealousy comes upon a man, and he becomes jealous of his wife; then he shall stand the woman before the Lord, and the priest shall execute all this law upon her."
When people are hurt, angry or jealous, they are not likely to exhibit must justice. When wounded love is involved, a person is tempted to invoke vengeance rather than justice. Yet God says vengeance is His, and this can only belong to a holy righteous God. He is the only one that can be trusted to mete out an absolutely fair judgement.

Blessings to all