Divine Wisdom for Daily Living by Joanne Colvin

What makes you happy? Depending on your stage in life, it may be your spouse, children, or grandchildren. Your work might be deeply satisfying, as mine was, or it may be retirement, with the freedom to plan your days as you like. Even though earthly happiness is fleeting, we want to have it. Who wouldn’t rather be happy than sad or disappointed? I was visiting with a couple last night at assisted living, as I do most nights with my pup. The wife, who has dementia, is utterly content with her quiet life there. I have another friend, who is a decade older, with senility, who laments about not being able to remember people or events. However, she is not unhappy because she never forgets that she has Christ and He has her. Unfortunately, the one who is so content with life here has nothing appealing when she thinks of life beyond the grave. It occurs to me that she is too happy (i.e., comfortable) with her life here, not thinking that she needs something more—something from heaven. There is absolutely nothing on this earth, including our loved ones, who can give us the joy that the gospel provides because the gospel is from heaven. Only that which has its source in the perfection of heaven can offer us blissful contentment.

The Superiority of Heavenly Thoughts, Ways, and Prayers

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:8-9) “This is an appeal to people to exchange their sinful ‘thoughts’ and ‘ways’ for God’s, which are higher (nobler and more magnificent)…Because God is perfectly wise in all his thoughts and ways, his people can take great comfort amid hardship and when, inevitably, they are unable to understand the mysteries and tragedies of life.” (1) God, in his mercy, has, however, provided us a way to elevate our thoughts and ways. Through prayer, with the help of the Holy Spirit, we can rise out of our mire and confusion for heavenly help. “We asked that God would have mercy upon us, and blot out our sin. He heard us. But when He had blotted out our sins like a cloud, then we had more prayers…for sanctifying grace, for constraining and restraining grace; we have been led to crave for a fresh assurance of faith, for the comfortable application of the promise, for deliverance in the hour of temptation, for help in the time of duty, and for succour in the day of trial. We have been compelled to go to God for our souls, as constant beggars asking for everything. Bear witness, children of God, you have never been able to get anything for your souls elsewhere. All the bread your soul has eaten has come down from heaven, and all the water of which it has drank has flowed from the living rock—Christ Jesus the Lord. Your soul has never grown rich in itself; it has always been a pensioner upon the daily bounty of God…He has heard you in the day of trouble, has strengthened you, and helped you, even when you dishonoured Him by trembling and doubting at the mercy-seat..” (2) Jesus’s salvation is the only way to enjoy heavenly blessings; it is only through the gospel that we can have anything from heaven on earth. Let’s scrap our hope in earthly happiness and put our hope, instead, in that which comes from heaven, especially Jesus and his gospel.

Jesus brings the gospel to us on earth

God supernaturally gave Moses knowledge of the patriarchal family’s dreams. He writes in Genesis 28, “[Jacob] dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! And behold, the Lord stood above it and said, ‘I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac…Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.’ Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, ‘Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.’ And he was afraid and said, ‘How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.'” (Genesis 28:12-17) Perhaps this illustration of the ladder is in Jesus’s mind when he encountered Nathanael for the first time. “‘Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.'” (John 1:51) “When Jesus spoke of the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man, he was saying that he is the ladder. He is the bridge that came from heaven to earth, the only bridge by which it is possible for men and women to pass from earth to heaven…He is the Word, the Light, the Lamb, the Son of God, Rabbi, the Messiah, the King of Israel…[Jesus] was talking about something that is still future, that is still to come. In other words, although no one has seen the fulfillment of this verse yet, all will one day see it when Jesus Christ returns…a moment of great joy and rejoicing for Christ’s followers.” (3) Jesus is the only way to enjoy heavenly blessings; it is only through the gospel that we can have anything from heaven on earth. There is grace and mercy for those who have put their hope in earthly happiness but will surrender themselves to Christ and the gospel before leaving this world.

Heaven Comes Down

“No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.” (John 1:18) “There never had been, nor was, nor could be, any mere man that could go up to heaven, and learn the mysteries of God, and of the kingdom of heaven, and return and instruct men in them: but he that came down from heaven; meaning himself, who is the Lord from heaven, and came from thence to do the will of God by preaching the Gospel, working miracles, obeying the law, and suffering death in the room of his people, and thereby obtaining eternal redemption for them.” (4) “He who comes from above is above all. He who is of the earth belongs to the earth and speaks in an earthly way. He who comes from heaven is above all. He bears witness to what he has seen and heard, yet no one receives his testimony. Whoever receives his testimony sets his seal to this, that God is true. For he whom God has sent utters the words of God, for he gives the Spirit without measure. The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.'” (John 3:31-36) “The Father gives to Jesus the Spirit without measure. Others had been and will be empowered by the Spirit to some extent, but Jesus has a measureless anointing from the Spirit.” (5) “It is impossible for a sharper line of distinction to be drawn between Christ and all human teachers, even when divinely commissioned and speaking by the power of the Holy Ghost. And who does not perceive it? The words of prophets and apostles are undeniable and most precious truth; but in the words of Christ we hear a voice as from the excellent Glory, the Eternal Word making Himself heard in our own flesh.” (6) Jesus is the only way to enjoy heavenly blessings; it is only through the gospel that we can have anything from heaven on earth.

It’s reasonable to want happiness here, to enjoy our children’s weddings, visits with cherished friends, or a great book or movie. But these are temporary pleasures, incomparable with our eternal joy of having Christ and his having us. The gospel reminds us that we can find a superior life and complete satisfaction in God’s dew-like drippings and heavenly overflows. “For this commandment that I command you today is not too hard for you, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend to heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it.” (Deuteronomy 30:11-14)

Related Scripture: Genesis 26:24-25; Exodus 3:4-6; Joshua 5:13-15; Job 33:14-18; Proverbs 30:4; Ezekiel 1:1; Matthew 3:16-17; Mark 14:62; John 1:9-14; 8:23; 1 Corinthians 2:9; Ephesians 4:10; 1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 7:26; 9:24; Revelation 1:7.

Notes:

1. English Standard Version Study Bible Notes, Isaiah 55:8-9, (digital edition), Crossway, 2008.

2. Spurgeon, Charles, Morning and Evening Devotions, Morning 2/6, Barbour Books, 2018.

3. Boice, James, Boice Expositional Commentary Series, Genesis 28; John 1:51, Baker Books, Software version, 1998.

4. Gill, John, John Gill’s Exposition on the Whole Bible, John 3:13, www.studylight.org/commentaries/geb/john-3.html

5. ESV Study Bible Notes, John 3:31-36, Ibid.

6. Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown’s Commentary On the Whole Bible, John 3:31-36, Zondervan, 1999.

February 8, 2024

How do you approach food? We all view food differently, sometimes based on what we have at home or from convenient restaurants. Maybe you like gourmet food that appeals to your taste, health foods like keto, or diet foods that take calories and nutrients into consideration. Do you eat for taste, to satisfy cravings, or for energy to participate in athletic activities? The challenge of combining approaches, such as finding healthy food with a gourmet taste or satisfying our cravings while being on a diet is a real struggle for many of us. Some successfully manage to get these approaches to work together, while the rest of us settle for one without the other, which ruins our enjoyment. Spiritually, God provides us with heavenly food that is meant to satisfy all our needs—our cravings for soul fulfillment and need for healthy spiritual growth, without any imbalance and enough energy to keep us going in service to him. When we are in Christ, we are where heaven and earth meet, so the food of God’s Word and the Spirit’s influence results in our appropriation of a counter-cultural, heavenly perspective on life. Jesus Christ descended from heaven to bring us the gospel, the essence of God’s food, to feed our souls until we join him in heaven.

The Gospel is the Best Food

“[Jesus] said to them, ‘You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world.’ Jesus said to them, ‘Just what I have been telling you from the beginning. I have much to say about you and much to judge, but he who sent me is true, and I declare to the world what I have heard from him.’ They did not understand that he had been speaking to them about the Father. So Jesus said to them, ‘When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me. And he who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to him.’ As he was saying these things, many believed in him.” (John 8:24-30) “The Jews belonged to this present evil world, but Jesus was of a heavenly and Divine nature, so that his doctrine, kingdom, and blessings, would not suit their taste…Nothing but the doctrine of Christ’s grace will be an argument powerful enough, and none but the Spirit of Christ’s grace will be an agent powerful enough, to turn us from sin to God; and that Spirit is given, and that doctrine is given, to work upon those only who believe in Christ. Some say, ‘Who is this Jesus?’ They allow him to have been a Prophet, an excellent Teacher…but cannot acknowledge him as over all, God blessed for evermore.” (1) “Being God omniscient, he knew their persons and actions, their lives and conversations, and all their sins and transgressions, which he could justly have complained of, and charged them with, and proved against them, and judged and condemned them for; but this was not his present business, he came not to judge and condemn, but to save… wherefore he waved these things, and took no notice of them, leaving them to his Father, who would call them to an account…[Jesus] was to be lifted up upon the cross, as the serpent was upon the pole, in the wilderness; and which signified the manner of death he should die, the death of the cross; and suggested, that what the Jews designed for his reproach, shame, and abasement, would be the way and means of his rise and exaltation…and after the death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ, and the pouring forth of his Spirit.” (2) Christ descended from heaven to bring us the gospel, which feeds our souls here until we join him in heaven. We have been given the gospel to feed on, to live with a heavenly perspective on life here.

The Fullness of the Gospel

What do we ask children when they stop eating with food remaining on their plates? “Are you full?” God’s food fills us because it is full of grace. “For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.” (John 1:16) “These words tell us that there is a fullness in Christ. There is a fullness of essential Deity, for ‘in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead.’ There is a fullness of perfect manhood, for in Him, bodily, that Godhead was revealed. There is a fullness of atoning efficacy in His blood, for ‘the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanses us from all sin.’ There is a fullness of justifying righteousness in His life, for ‘there is therefore now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus.’ There is a fullness of divine prevalence in His plea, for ‘He is able to save to the uttermost those who come unto God by Him; seeing ‘He ever lives to make intercession for them.’ There is a fullness of victory in His death, for through death He destroyed him that had the power of death, that is the devil. There is a fullness of efficacy in His resurrection from the dead, for by it ‘we are born again into a lively hope.’ There is a fullness of triumph in His ascension, for ‘when He ascended up on high, He led captivity captive, and received gifts for men.’ There is a fullness of blessings of every sort and shape; a fullness of grace to pardon, of grace to regenerate, of grace to sanctify, of grace to preserve, and of grace to perfect. There is a fullness at all times; a fullness of comfort in affliction; a fullness of guidance in prosperity. A fullness of every divine attribute, of wisdom, of power, of love; a fullness which it were impossible to survey, much less to explore. ‘It pleased the Father that in Him should all fulness dwell.’ Oh, what a fullness must this be of which all receive! Fullness, indeed, must there be when the stream is always flowing, and yet the well springs up as free, as rich, as full as ever. Come, believer, and get all thy need supplied; ask largely, and thou shalt receive largely, for this ‘fullness’ is inexhaustible, and is treasured up where all the needy may reach it, even in Jesus, Immanuel- God with us.” (3)

Getting the Gospel Right

Most dieticians would agree that we need a good balance of protein, fiber, fat, good carbs, and other nutrients in order to function well. And, we need to know how much of these nutrients are contained in the foods we eat. Just so, we need saving faith in Christ and correct doctrine in order to have the right approach to living here with a heavenly spirit. In his little book, “What is the Gospel?” R. C. Sproul writes, “It is important for us as Christians to get the gospel right, because the gospel is the power of God unto salvation, it is revealed to us in sacred Scripture, and it includes within it the person and work of Christ—His sinless life, His atoning death, and His resurrection…Some people say: ‘I don’t need to know any doctrine. All I need to know is Jesus.’ The question is, Who is Jesus? The moment anyone begins to reply to that question, he has engaged in doctrine. Answering that question involves explaining one’s doctrine of Christ…If we have no doctrine, we have no idea what we are to believe. We remember the Philippian jailer crying out in fear and panic to the Apostle Paul after the earthquake broke down his jail. He said, ‘What must I do to be saved?’ (Acts 16:30). He was asking for information. He needed to know what the requirements were for salvation, and the Apostle told him what he needed to do in order to be saved…[But] Our study of doctrine may be motivated by an attempt to build ourselves up in the eyes of other people, and in that sense it can puff us up with pride. That is why it’s important that we understand that doctrine in and of itself has never saved anyone, but Christ and Christ alone is the Savior. We should be zealously and diligently pursuing an understanding of doctrine because that means we are diligently pursuing an understanding of the things that God has revealed to us in His Word.” (4) Jesus descended from heaven to bring us the gospel, which feeds our souls here until we join him in heaven. When Christians are heavenly-minded, feeding on and sharing God’s gospel, we are the most satisfied people on earth.

Have you eaten enough of God’s spiritual food lately to experience its fullness? We only have ourselves to blame if we go about being dissatisfied and hungry for more (of anything) since the gospel is everything we need here to have the satisfaction we crave. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.” (Ephesians 1:3-4)

Related Scripture: Deuteronomy 30:11-14; Job 28:12-23; John 1:3; 3:16-17; 6:38; 14:27-28; Acts 2:33; 5:31; Romans 8:34; 1 Corinthains 15:28; Ephesians 4:8-10; Hebrews 1:3, 13; 1 Peter 3:21-22.

Notes

1. Henry, Matthew, Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary on the Bible, John 8:21-29, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/mhn/john-8.html

2. Gill, John, John Gill’s Exposition on the Whole Bible, John 8:25-30, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/eng/geb/john-8.html

3. Spurgeon, Charles, Morning and Evening Devotions, January 27, Barbour Books, 2018.

4. Sproul, R.C., “What is the Gospel?” Chapter 1, Reformation Trust Publishing, 2020.

February 1, 2024

When you hear the word “authority,” do you have a positive or negative reaction? Maybe you think of the police, a teacher, a judge—or yourself if you are in a position of authority. Even mentioning police may bring up some positive or negative memories— the time you got a speeding ticket or when a kind policeman brought your dog back to you after he ran away. Most of us with adverse reactions have never had the benefit of being blessed by authorities over us or being in a position of authority. When the Pharisees in Jesus’ day heard him teach with authority, they were outraged. They had built their lives around the authority of the Law and all the traditions that they treated as laws. But “Their confession of ignorance…demonstrates that they have no basis upon which to assess Jesus’ ministry.” (1) “One day, as Jesus was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes with the elders came up and said to him, ‘Tell us by what authority you do these things, or who it is that gave you this authority.’ He answered them, ‘I also will ask you a question. Now tell me, was the baptism of John from heaven or from man?’ And they discussed it with one another, saying, ‘If we say, “From heaven,” he will say, “Why did you not believe him?” But if we say, “From man,” all the people will stone us to death, for they are convinced that John was a prophet.”’ So they answered that they did not know where it came from. And Jesus said to them, ‘Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.’” (Luke 20:1-8) “It is cruelty to distrust the ever truthful Jesus. He has done nothing to deserve distrust; on the contrary, it should be easy to rely upon Him…He is interceding for sinners at the right hand of the Father, and for this reason He is able to save them to the uttermost who come unto God by Him…The Father has given Him all power in Heaven and in earth, and he exercises this high endowment in carrying out His work of grace…At His word the soul which is bound by the cords of sin and condemnation can be unloosed in a moment. [Our King] stretches out the silver scepter, and whosoever touches it lives.” (2) Jesus Christ, the subject, author, and broker of the gospel, reigns with superlative and eternal authority over every single being in heaven and earth. I hope that we will appreciate Christ’s authority over all nations, events, and circumstances and yield to his authority in our lives through our values, desires, and choices.

The Gospel Has All Authority Because Jesus Has All Authority.

“When the Bible speaks about heavenly ‘powers’ or ‘authorities,’ it usually means spiritual or demonic powers. When it speaks of Christ’s victory through his death and resurrection, it usually also has those powers in mind. We think of Ephesians 6:12, which says of the Christian’s warfare, ‘For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.’ Or Ephesians 1:20–21, which tells us that God ‘raised [Jesus] from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come’…his authority is superior to and over all other authorities whether spiritual, demonic, or otherwise. His resurrection proves his authority over any power that can possibly be imagined. Consequently, we do not fear Satan or anyone else while we are engaged in Jesus’ service…[And] He has authority over us, his people. How can it be otherwise? If we are truly his people, we have confessed to him that we are sinners, that he is the divine Savior, and that we have accepted his sacrifice on our behalf and have pledged ourselves to follow him as Lord. Such a confession is hypocrisy if it does not contain a recognition of his authority over us in every area. Jesus told his disciples, “You are my friends if you do what I command” (John 15:14). If we do not obey Jesus, we are not his friends. Worse than that, we are not even Christians…Because we are under Jesus’ authority we are to take his gospel to the world and ‘make disciples’ of the nations.” (3) “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 28:18-19)

All Authority Over Unbelievers

“The declaration of Christ’s authority on earth means that he has authority over those who are not yet believers. That is, his authority extends to the people to whom he sends us with the gospel. It follows, on the one hand, that Christianity is to be a world religion. No one is outside the sphere of his authority or is exempt from his call. On the other hand, this is also a statement of Jesus’ ability to bring fruit from our efforts, for it is through the exercise of his authority that men and women actually come to believe and follow him…John Scott summarizes this well…’If the authority of Jesus were limited in heaven, if he had not decisively overthrown the principalities and powers, we might still proclaim him to the nations, but we would never be able to “turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God” (Acts 26:18). Only because all authority on earth belongs to Christ dare we go to all nations. And only because all authority in heaven as well is his have we any hope of success.’” (4) “You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet.” (Psalm 8:6)

One Mediator—Jesus Christ

“For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time” (1 Timothy 2:5–6). “Whatever rule there is, Christ is far above it in authority, whether named as in opposition now or as reigning with Him in the age to come…He holds two headships, one over the universe achieved by His death and exaltation (Phil. 2:9–10) and the other over the Church by its formation into a body at Pentecost (1 Cor. 12:13).” (5) “Not only is Christ at the most exalted position in the universe, He is there representing believers and governing the universe for their sake.” (6) “The crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes…‘that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins’—he then said to the paralytic—‘Rise, pick up your bed and go home.’ And he rose and went home. When the crowds saw it, they were afraid, and they glorified God, who had given such authority to men.” (Matthew 7:28-29, 9:6-8) “The people were amazed at Jesus’ teaching. And rightly so! He had presented himself as ‘the Lord,’ the unique Son of God (calling God ‘my Father’), and the judge at the final day. He had spoken with absolute authority, and what he was requiring was radical submission to his rule as Lord of God’s kingdom. What does this mean to you personally? Do you believe that? Have you committed your life here and your future hereafter to Christ’s care?” (#7)

How much do you appreciate Christ’s gospel? Is the good news of the gospel’s authority evident in your values, desires, and choices? “For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.” (Colossians 2:9-15)

Related Scripture: Exodus 3:14; Psalms 8:6; 110:1; Daniel 7:27; Zechariah 14:9; Mark 12:36; 14:62; Acts 2:34-36; 5:30-32; Romans 8:34; 1 Corinthians 15:25-27; Hebrews 1:13; 2:5-10; Revelation 1:7-8.

Notes:

1. English Standard Version Study Bible Notes, Luke 20:1-8, (digital edition), Crossway, 2008.

2. Spurgeon, CH, All of Grace, #12, Moody Publishers, 2010.

3. Boice, James, Boice Expositional Commentary Series, Matthew 28:18-19, Baker Books, Software version, 1998.

4. Boice, Ibid.

5. Zondervan Bible Commentary, F. F. Bruce General Editor, Eph. 1:20-21, One-Volume Illustrated Digital Edition.

6. The Reformation Study Bible, Ephesians 1:20-21, Reformation Trust Publishing (Ligonier Ministries), Sanford, Fl., 2015.

7. Boice, Matthew 7:28-29, Ibid.

January 18, 2024

The gospel provides our need for soul salvation, which is only possible through the person and work of Jesus Christ, who is God. When we saturate ourselves in the biblical gospel, we can more easily recognize and reject other “gospels” and encourage others to do the same. “The name of Jesus is given to men of every age and nation, as that whereby alone believers are saved from the wrath to come…[and] who desire to know nothing in comparison with Christ crucified. And the followers of Christ should act so that all who converse with them, may take knowledge that they have been with Jesus. That makes them holy, heavenly, spiritual, and cheerful, and raises them above this world.” (1) “There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) “Oh, how the world hates such statements! If you want to be laughed at, scorned, hated, even persecuted, testify to the exclusive claims of Jesus Christ. Say that Jesus is the only Savior, that only by believing in him can one escape hell. The world will fight you to the death, because nothing is so offensive to the natural man as teaching that we cannot save ourselves, that we cannot choose our own way of salvation, and that if we are going to be saved it must be by God in the way he has appointed…You may say, ‘But that sounds so narrow.’ Yes, it is narrow. ‘But it sounds so exclusive.’ Yes, it is exclusive. ‘But it sounds intolerant.’ Yes, in a sense it is intolerant. But it is also true. And any man or woman who turns his back on what is true is simply foolish.” (2) The one true gospel provides our need for soul salvation, which is only possible through the person and work of Jesus Christ, who is God.

Other Gospels?

Unfortunately, referring to the gospel may not be enough for everyone to know the biblical, true gospel. There are many “gospels” that are professed by organizations and churches. As we begin a new year and a new study, I thought it appropriate to address other “gospels” to be sure we’re all on the same page—that of the Bible, any page of the Bible—when we speak of the good news of salvation as the gospel. In my research about these other “gospels,” I came across a helpful description of five, along with the true Kingdom gospel of Jesus Christ. “Most churches intend to produce mature, reproducing disciples, but this is generally not happening in reality. The answer is clear. We are attempting the impossible. We cannot create mature disciples from Christians who believe in a consumer gospel or a legalistic gospel—or any other gospel…except the kingdom gospel. Trying to do so is like pushing a boulder uphill, because we are trying to get people to act in Christlike ways without correcting what they truly believe.” (3)

The Forgiveness “Gospel”

“The proclamation of this gospel makes it damnably difficult to move people into daily interactive relationship with God, because they believe they only need Jesus for his blood. They can’t fathom a reason to follow him now, because they think the deal is simply a contract to stay out of the bad place, payable-upon-death. Discipleship to Jesus simply doesn’t make any sense on this understanding of the gospel.” (4) The lie of this “gospel” is that your only need, to live as a Christian, is forgiveness for rejecting Jesus Christ. This approach views Jesus Christ as someone who once lived and died rather than our living, breathing, active King, who intercedes and prays for us.

A Helping the Needy “Gospel”

Helping people in need is good but not evidence of salvation. Recently, I was talking with a friend about significant policy changes in an organization that is moving away from God. During our conversation, she said that she joined because it was a “Christian” organization. I joined despite knowing it was not necessarily one, but happened to include many Christians. Her characterization of the group as Christian was the fact that the organization’s purpose is to do good works and include prayers and references to God. But many organizations strive to help those who are impoverished but do not promote or support Christianity in any way. I’m sure that you and I could name at least ten right now, including Habitat for Humanity, the Peace Corps, and the Red Cross. The lie of the “helping others gospel” is that a person can achieve their salvation by the good works they do, as most religions teach. This false teaching leads people into deceit and away from God rather than to him. Only the true gospel of Jesus Christ considers good works as the fruit of salvation, not its cause or justification.

The Popular But False Prosperity “Gospel”

“The prosperity gospel is an umbrella term for a group of ideas—popular among charismatic preachers in the evangelical tradition—that equate Christian faith with material, and particularly financial, success. It has a long history in American culture…[but] Its roots…don’t just lie in explicitly Christian tradition. In fact, it’s possible to trace the origins of the American prosperity gospel to the tradition of New Thought, a nineteenth-century spiritual movement popular with decidedly unorthodox thinkers..[who taught that] if you could correctly channel your mental energy, you could harness its material results. New Thought, also known as the ‘mind cure,’ took many forms: from interest in the occult to splinter-Christian denominations like Christian Science to the development of the ‘talking cure’ at the root of psychotherapy…[and] positive-thinking self-help represented by books…[to] See yourself in a prosperous condition and…before long be in a prosperous condition.” (5) The lie in the prosperity gospel is that believing in Jesus Christ will result in a successful, healthy, comfortable, near-perfect life. Jesus’ life was anything but comfortable, so following him would follow suit. His perfect work of atoning for our sins by being executed as a criminal is as far as one can get from comfortable or materially prosperous.

The Great American Lie—The Consumer Gospel

“In his book The Empty Church, historian Thomas C. Reeves says: ‘Christianity in modern America…tends to be easy, upbeat, convenient, and compatible. It does not require self-sacrifice, discipline, humility, an otherworldly outlook, a zeal for souls, a fear as well as love of God. There is little guilt and no punishment, and the payoff in heaven is virtually certain. What we now have might best be labeled ‘Consumer Christianity’” The cost is low and satisfaction seems guaranteed.'” (6) This Consumer orientation leads to the lie that we enter heaven simply by dying and that God’s love is universally equal for believers and unbelievers. But God, the great Judge of all humankind will condemn those whose sin-filled hearts are unchanged, and continue to live however they wish. God loves believers too much to leave us as they are. In Christ, we become new creations, hating the sins that separate us from God.

The Be Right, Legalistic Gospel

This one is especially tempting for believers because we were often raised in an environment of rule-keeping and taught by parent that the greatest obedience is to live by God’s commands. “We wrap rules around ourselves like a blanket in a cold world full of unexpected circumstances. If we can keep our rules, we think we’re okay…But when our rules get threatened by challenging circumstances…the sudden lack of control sends us into a whirlwind of emotions. When our rules and plans are in control, life feels comfortable. Legalism is easier because it only requires us to know about God instead of developing an active, daily reliance on Him. Legalism allows us many of the benefits of Christianity like community, acceptance, and even grace, but it stops short of true salvation. It doesn’t truly penetrate your heart and change your life. It doesn’t accept your complete inability and God’s pervasive glory. It is always easier to know about someone than walk in intimate relationship with them.” (7) We are lying to ourselves when we think our knowledge of God and his expectations is as important as our confessional and dependent relationship upon him

The One True Gospel

The Kingdom Gospel is the only true gospel that will save our souls, to worship, love, obey, and enjoy Jesus Christ. “At the heart of the good news of the New Testament is the message of the cross. In His death, Christ performed a work that effected reconciliation between God and all who put their trust in Christ. The atonement of Christ by which, in his obedience, he offered a perfect sacrifice, propitiating the Father by paying for our sins and satisfying divine justice on our behalf according to God’s eternal plan, is an essential element of the Gospel…[and] answers the most significant dilemma that any human being will ever encounter…How can an unjust human being ever hope to survive the judgment of a just and holy God? The [only] remedy for this problem is found in God’s eternal plan to provide a way of salvation for His people in such a way that their sins will be covered and that God’s own justice will be satisfied. God will not negotiate His own righteousness…The critical work that is in view here is the work of Christ on the cross by which He offered an atonement for His people. This atonement offered in obedience by Christ is a perfect sacrifice that assuages the wrath of the Father by paying for our sins and satisfying divine justice.'” (8) This one true gospel alone provides our need for soul salvation. Will you saturate yourself in the true, biblical gospel to recognize and reject any other gospel and encourage others to do the same? Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

Related Scripture: Matthew 19:23-26; John 4:22-26; 5:35-36, 40; 8:23-34; 20:30-31; Acts 10:37-43; Galatians 1:6-9; 3:20; 4:4-5; 1 Timothy 6:13-15.

Notes:

1. Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary—Acts 4:12

2. Boice Expositional Commentary on Acts 4:12

3. The Six Gospels We Preach Today: Hull, Bill, The Bonhoeffer Project, https://thebonhoefferproject.com/weeklycolumn/2016/12/14/the-six-gospels-we-preach-today-1

4. Sternke, Bill, Forgiveness Isn’t the Whole Gospel, https://bensternke.com/forgiveness-isnt-the-whole-gospel/)

5. Burton, Tara I, https://www.vox.com/identities/2017/9/1/15951874/prosperity-gospel-explained-why-joel-osteen-believes-prayer-can-make-you-rich-trump

6. https://www.thegospellight.com/resources/articles/2020/01/19/consumer-christianity

7. Combs, Maggie, Legalism is Easier, the Gospel is Better, https://www.reviveourhearts.com/blog/legalism-easier-gospel-better/

8. Sproul, R. C., What Is the Gospel?, Reformation Trust Publishing, 2020.

January 4, 2024

The Christmas season is a unique, global phenomenon when the entire world is focused on gift-giving. Most people are thinking of material gifts, but there are other ways we can give—with our time, attention, and service. Setting aside time to connect with those who were neglected during our busy days or doing something special for a neighbor are lovely ways to gift someone. I always look forward to lunch and FaceTime visits with friends over the holiday. As we come to the end of our Numbers study, God, through Moses, will be reminding his people of all he has given them—his guidance, the Promised Land, his power to take the land from a pagan people for his holy purposes, and an orderly plan for its possession and distribution, including cities of refuge and land for daughters. As we conclude the book, there seems to be a smooth transition into Deuteronomy, which is a kind of doctrinal guide for Israel. However, we will be making a transition in 2024 to the doctrine of the gospel from a New Testament perspective. The Lord gives us many lessons and ideas in the history of Israel to prepare us to receive what was a shadow and mystery to his Old Testament people—the good news of forgiveness and reconciliation with him for those who believe in his Son—the ultimate gift of God. We also have the wonderful present of Scripture to learn from the Lord’s work and journey with Israel. Let’s see what God will show us in these last chapters of Numbers. Here is an opportunity for us to continue focusing on the greatest gift of God—his Son, Emmanuel—who is with us by virtue of his humble birth and life of service and sacrifice.

Lessons Of God’s Faithfulness

“These are the stages of the people of Israel, when they went out of the land of Egypt by their companies under the leadership of Moses and Aaron. Moses wrote down their starting places, stage by stage, by command of the Lord, and these are their stages according to their starting places.” (Numbers 33:1-2) “[Chapter 33] is not just a random collection of place names but is a list designed for shape Israel’s perspective on her wilderness wandering as a whole. As such, it had a message also for future generations who, like ancient Israel, are pilgrims and strangers on a journey through the wilderness of this world. When we look closely at the itinerary in Numbers 33, we quickly discover that there are three different kinds of places listed here. Each of these categories has a lesson to teach us. Some are places where they stayed that call to mind the Lord’s faithfulness to Israel in providing for their needs in the desert…We too need to be reminded regularly of God’s faithfulness to us along the way…we need to remember step by step where we have come from and who has brought us safely through the toils and dangers thus far. ‘Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice! Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually!…he brought his people out with joy, his chosen ones with singing. And he gave them the lands of the nations, and they took possession of the fruit of the peoples’ toil, that they might keep his statutes and observe his laws. Praise the Lord!” (Psalm 105:1-4, 43-45) (1)

Lessons of God’s Forgetfulness and Safety

“Other places call to mind Israel’s sinful rebellion against the Lord at a variety of points through their wandering…Yet strangely enough, if you didn’t already know Israel’s history of rebellion, you wouldn’t have known from this account that any of these negative things happened. Whereas the itinerary lists specific reminders of the acts of God’s faithfulness, it passes in complete and total silence over Israel’s unfaithfulness…This fact shows us that we need to be reminded of God’s forgetfulness as well as his faithfulness…Sometimes we are afraid to look over our past for fear of being overwhelmed by the reality of our sin…Yet…when the Lord looks back over our lives, he passes over our sins. He doesn’t keep a record of our wrongs filed away, ready to use agaist us at an opportune moment…If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation: the old is gone, to be remembered no more, and the new has come (2 Corinthians 5:17)…‘As far as the east is from the west, so far does he remover our transgressions from us’ (Psalm 103:12). Still others are places where, as far as we know, nothing particular of note happened…There are far more names in this group than in either of the first two…Their inclusion in the list is a reminder that life is more than simply a collection of high points and low points; it is also what happens in between…Each of them has its own part to play in God’s grand scheme of redemption. God’s faithfulness is shown to us in the little things of life and in the ordinary days just as much as it is in the defining moments…Israel now stood on the brink of…[a] sabbath of rest, as they entered the Promised land. We too may find comfort in the knowledge that our days are numbered by the Lord and that their end is his sabbath rest…the Lord will bring us safely into our heavenly dwelling place, where he has prepared a place of rest for all of his people [in Christ].” (2)

God’s Command to Drive Out the Inhabitants

“And the Lord spoke to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, saying, ‘Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When you pass over the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you and destroy all their figured stones and destroy all their metal images and demolish all their high places. And you shall take possession of the land and settle in it, for I have given the land to you to possess it.”…But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then those of them whom you let remain shall be as barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides, and they shall trouble you in the land where you dwell. And I will do to you as I thought to do to them.'” (Numbers 33:50-53, 55-56) “Now that they were to pass over Jordan, they were entering again into the temptation to follow idols; and they are threatened that, if they spared either the idols or the idolaters, their sin would certainly be their punishment…It was intended that the Canaanites should be put out of the land; but if the Israelites learned their wicked ways, they also would be put out…Let us hear this and fear. If we do not drive out sin, sin will drive us out. If we don’t put to death our lusts, our lusts will be the death of our souls.” (3) “Sadly, Israel never lived up to their calling to persevere in a holy war. By the end of the book of Judges, they had become completely like the peoples of the land in which they lived…The heathens had more determination to cling to their turf than the believers had to dispossess them…Eventually [Israel’s] compromises with the nations around them and among them caught up with Israel: they were exiled from the land because of the idolatrous practices they had learned from the surviving Canaanites. The threat of Numbers 33:56 was not an empty one; like the Canaanites, Israel too would discover that there were consequences to their sin.” (4) God tests our faith, to help us recognize the need to strengthen it by trusting in his power. Only through Christ can we live an empowered gospel-centered life whereby we reject the world’s values and temptations. God helps us to construct good boundaries to protect our focus. “You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it.” (Psalm 139:5-6)

Boundaries and Cities of Refuge

“The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Command the people of Israel, and say to them, When you enter the land of Canaan (this is the land that shall fall to you for an inheritance, the land of Canaan as defined by its borders)…” (Numbers 34:1-2) “Canaan was of small extent; as it is here bounded, it is but about 160 miles in length, and about 50 in breadth…This was the vineyard of the Lord, the garden enclosed; but as it is with gardens and vineyards, the narrowness of the space was made up by the fruitfulness of the soil. Though the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof, yet few know him, and serve him; but those few are happy, fruitful to God. Also, see how little a share of the world God gives to his own people. Those who have their portion in heaven, have reason to be content with a small pittance of this earth. Yet a little that a righteous man has, having it from the love of God, and with his blessing, is far better and more comfortable than the riches of many wicked.” (5) “The cities that you give to the Levites shall be the six cities of refuge, where you shall permit the manslayer to flee, and in addition to them you shall give forty-two cities. All the cities that you give to the Levites shall be forty-eight, with their pasturelands.” (Numbers 35:6-7) The Lord provided cities of refuge for those who had unintentionally taken a life. “And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then you shall select cities to be cities of refuge for you, that the manslayer who kills any person without intent may flee there. The cities shall be for you a refuge from the avenger, that the manslayer may not die until he stands before the congregation for judgment…for refuge for the people of Israel, and for the stranger and for the sojourner among them, that anyone who kills any person without intent may flee there. But…The murderer shall be put to death…on the evidence of witnesses. But no person shall be put to death on the testimony of one witness…You shall not defile the land in which you live, in the midst of which I dwell, for I the Lord dwell in the midst of the people of Israel.” (35:9-34) Here is a picture of God’s mercy through Jesus, who gave his life as a sacrifice and refuge for sinners. Now there is only one remedy for estrangement from God created by sin—the Lord Jesus Christ. He alone reconciles us to holiness through a relationship with God; otherwise, we are polluted and far away from our perfect Ruler. By God’s grace, Israel was given his guidance, the Promised Land, power to capture the land for his holy purposes and cities of refuge. By his grace, we have Christ and his power for our sanctification.

No One Left Out

“‘Every one of the people of Israel shall hold on to the inheritance of the tribe of his fathers. And every daughter who possesses an inheritance in any tribe of the people of Israel shall be wife to one of the clan of the tribe of her father, so that every one of the people of Israel may possess the inheritance of his fathers. So no inheritance shall be transferred from one tribe to another, for each of the tribes of the people of Israel shall hold on to its own inheritance’…These are the commandments and the rules that the Lord commanded through Moses to the people of Israel in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho.” (Numbers 36:8-9, 13) “Back in Numbers 27, we were introduced to Zeopphehad’s daughters, those feisty young women of faith who went to Moses to ask for a share in the inheritance in the Promised Land…this issue was a purely theological question since no land had yet been won…together these episodes bracket the story of the new generation, those who were counted in the census of Numbers 26…They are, if you like, Israel’s ‘Greatest Generation’…Like Zelophehad’s daughters, we find ourselves poised on the ridgeline looking back and looking forward. We look back to the cross, where our salvation was accomplished…[and] the resurrection, the event that guarantees our salvation…At the same time, we still look forward to the day when…Christ will return to set up his final kingdom (1 Thessalonians 4:16). Like [Zelophehad’s daughters] and their generation, therefore, we need to step out in faith, confidently believing in what God has promised us…Like them, we need to seek the Lord’s guidance in all things in the word of the Lord…We too face the constant challenge to live in accord with the faith we possess…The questions that we face may be different, but the fundamental issue of faith versus sight is still the same…The final challenge of the book of Numbers to people like us, people living on the ridgeline, is the challenge to live by faith. If we trust in the Lord and in his Word, we will not be abandoned or put to shame. That does not mean that life on the ridgeline will ever be easy….But as we step out in faith, staking our lives on Jesus Christ as our only hope in life and death, looking onward and upward to our final destination, the inheritance that God has prepared for us, we will find that the Lord is indeed faithful to his promises. The wilderness is not the end of the story. The trials and difficulties of our earthly existence are not all there is. The future belongs to the Lord and to his Christ and to all whom he has called to be his. It is promised to all those who persevere by faith in Christ, and it will assuredly be given to them on the last day. The Lord is faithful, and he will do it.” (6) The Christmas gifts are unwrapped, and the goodies from Monday may be consumed, but God’s gift of grace in Christ is endless. And his Word continues to be relevant until the day we reach the Promised Land. “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” (Psalm 119:105)

Related Scripture: Exodus 11:7; 12:37-39; 14:19-22: Deuteronomy 19:1-7; 32:8; Joshua 3:17; 14:1-4; 15:1-18:10; 20:1-9; Psalm 105; 2 Corinthians 13:1; 1 Timothy 5:19; Hebrews 10:26-30;

Notes:

1. Duguid, Iain M., Numbers—God’s Presence in the Wilderness, Numbers 33-34, Crossway Books, 2006.

2. Duguid, Ibid.

3. Henry, Matthew, Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary on the Bible, Numbers 33:50-56, www.studylight.org/commentaries/mhn/numbers-33.html

4. Duguid, Ibid.

5. Henry, Numbers 34, Ibid.

6. Duguid, Numbers 36, Ibid.

December 28, 2023

Dear Readers, I pray that you will have Christ-centered Christmas celebrations, rejoicing in our Savior’s delight to humble himself to give us the unique gift of his salvation, justification, redemption from sin, and reconciliation with God. Now, we are privileged to have his presence through the Holy Spirit—Emanuel—God with us.

With the Christmas season’s many activities, I am postponing my last devotion for 2023, on the final chapters of Numbers, until next week, December 28. I highly recommend the Christmas devotions by Ligonier Ministries, found at https://www.ligonier.org/search?query=Christmas.

God bless you all!

Joanne

How’s your holiday season shaping up? Have you been shopping online or in the stores to get the perfect gift for someone? Are you, like me, also distracted by the sales for that which you could use for yourself? It’s hard to ignore the email, offers, and ads from familiar companies that you know are reliable and have your perfect size. But allowing ourselves to follow those spaghetti trails hinder our searches for others or distract us from what we were doing in the first place. This world is full of bling and trinkets, not to mention big, alluring, high-ticket items like cars, houses, boats, or heafty retirement accounts. As Israel was about to enter the Promised Land, the nation was clearly distracted by the possibility of “better” or easier possessions. In Numbers 31-32, we read that Israel failed to exterminate all the Midianites for their earlier sin, and two tribes settled in the Transjordan instead of Canaan, compromising on God’s promise. This holiday season, let’s be more determined than they were, to live by faith not sight, refusing to yield to the world’s enticements, rejoicing in our heavenly inheritance from Christ without compromising.

A Holy War for Judgment

Our passage opens with God commanding Moses to perform his final act as leader of the children of Israel—to avenge the Israelites of the Midianites. The Israeli army killed all the Midian kings, males, and even Balaam. But they took the women and young children captives, rather than killing them. “War is hell. There is nothing glorious about war, nor should we have any romantic illusions about it…[and] it is surely never something to be desired or sought; nonetheless there are times in human history when war is necessary, either in self-defense or in pursuit of greater justice. We live in a world where evil regularly rears its ugly head and must sometimes be combated directly by force…When we pray, ‘Thy kingdom come, thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven,’ we are seeking the day when that final war will come to earth, the true war to end all wars. That final war to end all wars is the backdrop against which we need to read Numbers 31. The conflict between Israel and Midian is no ordinary human war. Nor is it an act of ethnic cleansing on Israel’s part, with the Israelites seeking to wipe out every trace of a rival ethnic group, the Midianites…this war is part of God’s larger war on sin and evil…the continuation and completion of God’s judgment on those who were involved in the sins of Numbers 25. At that time the Midianites and the Moabites led Israel astray into the worship of Baal through the strategy of sexual seduction…Having failed to curse Israel directly, Balaam nonetheless found a way to bring the Lord’s curse on his people indirectly—by luring God’s people into idolatry. In that strategy, the Midianites were willing collaborators. The first stage of God’s judgment on that sin occurred at the time of its occurrence…the Lord also declared war on Midian for their part in the sin (25:16-18). Those who lead God’s people astray will be held accountable for their actions, as will those who are themselves led astray. Jesus said: “Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin.” (Luke 17:2)…The comprehensive death of those opposed to God…was designed to demonstrate to the Israelites (and to their neighbors) that the Lord is implacably opposed to evil. All those who set themselves against the Lord are doomed to destruction, especially those who lead his people into sin. Rebellious mankind cannot reasonably expect to persist in their attitude of cosmic treason forever. There will come a day when God declares the list of their sins ‘complete’ or ‘full’ and brings down the curtain on them in judgment. For this branch of the Midianites, that day had simply come a little earlier than it would for the rest of mankind.” (1)

The Confusion of Legalistic Thinking

Since Israel failed to exterminate all the Midianites for their earlier sin, “Moses and Eleazar the priest and all the chiefs of the congregation went to meet them outside the camp. And Moses was angry with the officers of the army, the commanders of thousands and the commanders of hundreds, who had come from service in the war.” (Numbers 31:14) “At issue here was the exact nature of this holy war. In Deuteronomy 20 the rules for holy war describe two distinct kinds of conflict. The first kind involved nations that were ‘far’ from Israel—in other words, people whose homes were not within the boundaries of the Promised Land itself. In the case of these nations, the Israelites were to kill all of the males but might take as captives the women and children of their cities and absorb them into their community. However, in the case of the nations that inhabited the Promised Land—the Hittites, Amorite’s, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—they were to exterminate the entire community, so that those pagan peoples would not remain in the land to be a snare for Israel, leading them astray into idolatry. The conflict in Numbers 31 fell between these two categories…their opponents were Midianites, and the conflict took place in the Transjordan, outside the boundaries of Canaan. Thus it would normally have fallen under the more lenient category of warfare against distant nations. That was presumably why the soldiers initially allowed the Midianite women to live. However, Moses was angry because he rightly pointed out that these women were precisely those who had already led Israel into idolatry…The adult women and the boys were also to be executed.” (2) As soon as we start living by rules rather than by our knowledge of God and his ways, we compromise in our devotion to him. Had Israel remembered God’s words, “Avenge the people of Israel on the Midianites” (Numbers 31:2), they would have known to do what was required as judgment for sin. Here is our lesson: to live by faith in God’s plan for the last judgment, sharing his gospel of mercy, and rejoicing in our heavenly inheritance from Christ without compromising this Christmas.

Gifts for the Lord and His People

“The Lord said to Moses, ‘Take the count of the plunder that was taken, both of man and of beast…and divide the plunder into two parts between the warriors who went out to battle and all the congregation. And levy for the Lord a tribute from the men of war who went out to battle’…Then the officers who were over the thousands of the army, the commanders of thousands and the commanders of hundreds, came near to Moses and said to Moses, ‘Your servants have counted the men of war who are under our command, and there is not a man missing from us. And we have brought the Lord’s offering, what each man found, articles of gold, armlets and bracelets, signet rings, earrings, and beads, to make atonement for ourselves before the Lord.'” (Numbers 31:25-27; 48-5o) “As the leaders of the troops counted their people, they realized that not one of their soldiers had been lost in the conflict, and their hearts were moved to respond to God’s overwhelming grace…they freely brought the gold objects they had plundered…rendering the very best of the booty back to him…‘to make atonement for ourselves before the Lord’…Perhaps they recognized that they…were natural-born rebels against God, by nature children of wrath…[but] the Lord’s wrath upon sin had been poured out on his enemies, and they, by his grace, were all still standing…They reacted to the Lord’s grace with generous offerings…[For us] It is not silver or gold that makes atonement…but the precious blood of the Lamb of God, slain in our place…Jesus has been our substitute, bearing in his body on the cross the full penalty…There at the cross the Lord executed total warfare against sin in the person of Jesus…Through his death, our lives are spared…It is a fresh appreciation of God’s grace that moves our hearts to worship…The cross is a gift from God that demands in response the gift of everything we have and everything we are; our whole lives presented as living sacrifices, wholly devoted—or, rather, holy and devoted—to the service of the God who has loved us this much.” (3) At Christmas, we celebrate our Lord’s birth to begin his loving work of redeeming us through his sacrificial crucifixion and glorious resurrection.

The Land on the Transjordan

The tribes of Gad and Reuben requested the land on the east coast of Jordan, to raise their large herds of livestock. Moses feared that doing so would discourage their brothers. However, the people of Gad and Reuben did not make this decision to avoid removing the Canaanites from the land; they just wanted the land. So, they promised they would fight with their brothers and not return to their houses until every tribe had received their inheritance. Based on this commitment, Moses allowed them to acquire the land east of the Jordan. Half of the tribe of Manasseh joined them. “In this chapter of the book of Numbers, we will see an ancient version of the problem of having too much…The temptation that faced the Reubenites and Gadites was to settle in a place dictated by their possessions, not by the Lord’s promise…The key word in the first verse is the verb ‘They saw.’ Seeing in the Bible…is often the exact opposite of faith…Eve ‘saw’ that the fruit of the tree of knowledge was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and so she ate the forbidden fruit instead of believing God’s Word that the fruit was not good. The result was disaster for humanity. Later, when Lot ‘saw’ that the plain of the Jordanian was well watered, like the Garden of the Lord or like the land of Egypt, he chose to separate from Abraham and settle in the unpromised land to the east of the Jordan (Genesis 13:10). Choosing with our eyes often leads us into spiritually dangerous places—places that may then be hard to leave because our possessions weigh us down and hold us there. Wherever our possessions are, there our heart is also. This was exactly what happened with the Reubenites and Gadites. Their wealth of cattle combined with the grazing potential of the Transjordan plain prompted them to ask if they might receive the area of the Transjordan…rather than crossing the Jordan with the remainder of the people into the Promised Land proper…somewhere other than where God had called them to live because it was more suitable to their lifestyle…This is surely a prime temptation of affluence: the more we have, the more comfortable we become with what we have, and the harder it is to give it up for the sake of others. We become inwardly focused on maintaining our own personal standard of living, and we easily lose sight of the needs of our brothers and sisters. We become self-sufficient and isolated from others…Moses pointed out the likely impact of their desire…[and] reminded the Reubenites and Gadites that their decision might well turn the fears of the remainder of the Israelites away from the Promised Land.” (4) “Why will you discourage the heart of the people of Israel from going over into the land that the Lord has given them? Your fathers did this, when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to see the land.” (Numbers 32:7) “The halfheartedness of the Reubenites and Gadites might become contagious and lead to Israel’s failing to follow through with the conquest. Such an outcome would inevitably have resulted in the Lord’s judgment descending on the whole people, just as it did in Numbers 14. It is the same way with [us]…to settle down comfortably to enjoy what we have, without any thought of God’s call on our lives, never simply affects ourselves…If I am cool toward God, comfortably satisfied with what I already have, then that coolness will dampen my neighbor’s enthusiasm for God. Equally, if I am on fire for the Lord, passionately pursuing a life of holiness and service, then something of that heat will radiate out to those around me. We never live our lives in a vacuum. Our commitment, or lack of commitment, affects the body as a whole…Sight is content with the best that this world has to offer…Faith, however, looks beyond…this world, not merely when life is going badly but even when life is at its very best. Faith’s eyes are always set onward, always looking beyond this , always straining for a glimpse of the land of promise.” (5)

The Ongoing Conflict

But “The Reubenites and Gadites responded to Moses’ rebuke with a fresh initiative that met the desires of both sides…They committed themselves to a ‘No man left behind’ policy. That in itself was an expression of their faith, for if the Lord did not grant his people the land he had promised them, the Reubenites and Gadites would be permanently committed to a life of war…They followed through faithfully on their commitment to stay with Israel throughout that struggle to the very end and were finally sent home with Joshua’s blessing in Joshua 22…[Yet, when] they returned home in Joshua 22, they set up an altar near the Jordan River, at the border between their territory and that of the Israelites. That simple act almost caused a war to break out between the two halves of Israel, until the Reubenites and Gadites clarified the fact that it was not a sacrificial altar but rather an altar to act as a witness to their share in the Lord (Joshua 22:28)…The risk of misunderstanding and miscommunication were constantly present because of the land they had chosen as an inheritance.” (6) When Israel failed to exterminate all the Midianites for their earlier sin, and two tribes settled in the Transjordan instead of Canaan, the nation was in conflict. We will also experience internal and external strife unless we will live by faith, not sight. “How do we keep our eyes fixed on the goal of Heaven and our hearts longing with a holy discontent for the things that are above? The answer is to fix our eyes on Jesus.” (7) “In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.” (Ephesians 1:11-14)

Related Scripture: Genesis 15:12-15; Numbers 25:17; Deuteronomy 20:10-18; Joshua 4:13; 22; 1 Samuel 15:1-3; 30:22-25; Ecclesiastes 2:1-11; Matthew 19:21-22; Luke 12:13-21.

Notes:

1. Duguid, Iain M., Numbers—God’s Presence in the Wilderness, Numbers 31, Crossway Books, 2006.

2. Duguid, Ibid.

3. Duguid, Ibid.

4. Duguid, Numbers 32, Ibid.

5. Duguid, Ibid.

6. Duguid, Ibid.

7. Duguid, Ibid.

December 7, 2023

On Thanksgiving Day, our hearts should be full of thanks to God for all the blessings, provisions, people, and opportunities in our lives. We who have a saving relationship with Jesus Christ should be especially appreciative of his sacrifice, God’s grace and mercy, and the hope he has poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit as we navigate the dark days of life on earth (Romans 5:5). At our Thanksgiving service here yesterday I was impressed by the Thanksgiving notes read aloud, from cards left in a collection box beforehand. Some expressed thanks for salvation in Jesus Christ, while others focused more on the people who live or work in our community. As a group of elderly retirees, many with physical limitations, we gratefully acknowledged the loving work of our staff, who care for us in many ways, sometimes enforcing rules to benefit the community, under the guidance of our executive director and the corporate office leadership. Rosalynn Carter once said, “A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don’t necessarily want to go, but ought to be.” (1) I think her quote is borne out by God’s leadership of the Israelites in the wilderness–especially those who faithfully followed him—Moses, Aaron, Joshua, and Caleb. In Numbers 26-30, we will see how the Lord continued to faithfully lead the new generation of Israelites in the wilderness, provided for the fatherless, and designed ways to commune with him. This Thanksgiving, we have the perfect time to be thankful for God’s leadership through his Word, his eternal, spiritual provisions, and Christ’s fellowship with us through his Holy Spirit.

The Second Generation

Numbers 26 lists the clans and tribes making up the nation. “This was the list of the people of Israel, 601,730…This was the list of the Levites…23,000, every male from a month old and upward…But among these there was not one of those listed by Moses and Aaron the priest, who had listed the people of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai. For the Lord had said of them, ‘They shall die in the wilderness.’ Not one of them was left, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun.” (Numbers 26:51, 62, 64-65) This is a nice-sized military for when they would go to war. After this, God gave the order for the inheritance of land. Numbers 27 begins with the daughters of Zelophehad, of the tribe of Joseph, approaching Moses and Eleazar, saying their father died in the wilderness with no sons. Why would he have his name done away because he had no sons? They wanted possession of the land and inheritance. Moses brought their request to God, who said they were correct and instituted an order of succession. The chapter ends with God preparing Moses to die after he gets a glimpse of the land from the mountain of Abarim. So Moses faithfully asked God to provide a qualified successor for the congregation, and God provided Joshua. “Numbers 26, 27 is about a new beginning: a whole generation was standing on the threshold of a new life…Following the census, several events are recorded that highlight key aspects of the nature of the new generation…The theme that we saw in the [merciful] future given to the sons of Korah in spite of their father’s sin emerges again in the future given to the name of Zelophehad through his daughters…Even if the parents were judged for their sins, the children might still have a future in the Lord, through his grace and mercy.” (2) God never gave up on Israel; he continued providing active, relevant leadership for the new generation of Israelites in the wilderness.

A Faithful Attitude

Zelophehad’s plucky daughters demonstrated a new bold, faithful attitude. “They stood before Moses and before Eleazar, the priest and before the chiefs and all the congregation, at the entrance of the tent of meeting, saying…‘Give to us a possession among our father’s brothers’…And the Lord said to Moses, ‘The daughters of Zelophehad are right. You shall give them possession of an inheritance among their father’s brothers and transfer the inheritance of their father to them.'” (27:2, 4) “They are indeed young women of faith, quite different from their parents…They believed God’s word of promise and acted accordingly, and so they fittingly received what they asked from the Lord. No Israelite would ever have a stronger claim to their land than these daughters of Zelophehad…Here is a challenge to the younger generation to learn from Zelophehad’s daughters to step forward in faith to fill in the failings of those who have gone before. (3) God’s generous, impartial provision for these women is carried through in the New Testament when women were instrumental in the ministry of Jesus Christ, following him, witnessing their faith, and caring for his body before and after his sacrificial crucifixion and burial. Women are mentioned, once again in Numbers 30, in a completely different context, but neither text cancels the other out since God never contradicts himself. He provides for the fatherless in many different ways. As for us, James gives us this helpful instruction: “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” (James 1:27) Devoted followers of Jesus Christ act on God’s instructions and refuse to act on the world’s impulses, thankful for God’s leadership through his Word and the Holy Spirit guidance.

New Leadership for the New Generation

“Moses spoke to the Lord, saying, ‘Let the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation who shall go out before them and come in before them, who shall lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of the Lord may not be as sheep that have no shepherd.’ So the Lord said to Moses, ‘Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit…You shall invest him with some of your authority, that all the congregation of the people of Israel may obey. And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire for him by the judgment of the Urim before the Lord.'” (27:15-18, 20) “Even though Joshua would become a great leader, he was not another Moses. His authority was not his own—it was borrowed from Moses…who uniquely received the Law from God and delivered it to the people. Joshua’s role as a leader was simply to obey that Law given through Moses. Moses spoke with the Lord face to face, while Joshua received guidance from the Lord through Eleazar the priest…Joshua was commissioned to lead the people out to battle and back in afterward, a role that he filled admirably in the conquest of the land, and he was the one who assigned the land to the people.” (4) Another way the Lord would lead Israel would be through his fellowship with them, symbolized by daily, weekly, and holiday offerings made by the Levites for the people. To say that “offering” is the keyword of these chapters is an understatement since the word appears 117 times, emphasizing the need for the people to draw near to God at all times. “Several elements in this context highlight the symbolism of a shared meal between the Lord and his people. The sacrifices are explicitly called ‘the food for my offerings made by fire’ (28:2), and the point is repeatedly stressed that the scent of these offerings ascended to the Lord as an aroma pleasing to him. What is more, these burnt offerings were always to be accompanied by the appropriate grain and drink offerings…a symbolic balanced…communal meal shared with the Lord, a celebration of fellowship between the people of Israel and their Heavenly Father.” (5) God’s people were called to be faithful to his way of life in the Promised Land, and practice had to be started in the wilderness. Just so, we practice our faithfulness here, in this world, as preparation for fellowship and worship with the Lord in our Promised Land with Christ in eternity.

Commitment Expressed Through Thankfulness

“If you do the math, the total [offerings] comes out to an annual obligation for Israel to provide approximately 1,093 lambs, thirty-seven rams, 113 bulls, and thirty goats, along with all the associated grain offerings and drink offerings. That doesn’t include any of the freewill offerings or the purification and sin offerings that were also required to atone for particular offenses. Communion with the true and living God is thus a costly affair…When Paul told the Christians in Rome to offer their bodies to God as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1), he was using the imagery of the whole burnt offering: the sacrifices served as symbols of complete consecration to God. Communion with God will cost us everything we have and everything we are…In fact, it is the costliness of the free gift of Christianity that keeps many seekers from becoming disciples…communion with God is never cheap. It demands everything we have and everything we are.” (6) The Lord established special feasts for particular purposes, especially thankfulness for his faithful leadership. “Through these sacrifices, God was teaching Israel how to view time and how to order their lives in accordance with God’s calendar. The first lesson to learn is the importance of daily fellowship with God…Israel was to begin their day by symbolically offering themselves to the Lord and sharing communion with him, and they were to end it in the same way. The same is true for us as well. If our whole days are to be given to God, then we should begin them by committing them to the Lord in prayer…When the end of the day arrives, thank the Lord for his goodness to you.” (7) Is there any better time to start doing this than Thanksgiving Day?

More Thanksgiving in the Wilderness

“The first celebration, Passover (along with its partner, the Feast of Unleavened Bread), was a time to celebrate Israel’s redemption out of Egypt and their call to be God’s special people…Israel was reminded afresh of God’s grace in sparing their firstborn and bringing them into freedom…[In the Lord’s Supper] Jesus [is] inviting [us] to recognize him as the Passover lamb of the new covenant, the one whose death atones for the sins of the covenant people of God and establishes communion with one another and with God…The Feast of Weeks, which took place seven weeks later at the end of the barley harvest, was a time to celebrate God’s providence…a time to [also] thank God for the gift of his perfect Law, which showed Israel the way to live a wise life that would be pleasing to God. The third and climatic feast, the Feast of Tabernacles, began with the Feast of Trumpets…to acclaim the Lord as Israel’s King…Later on in the same month, it was followed by the Day of Atonement, a national day of repentance and purification…Finally, there was the Feast of Tabernacles proper, a week in which the people would reenact the wilderness wandering by living in shelters. This formed a perpetual and joyous reminder to Israel that even after they possessed the Promised Land, they were not to settle down entirely as if that were their final destination…The Feast of Trumpets was a hosanna moment—a time to acclaim the coming King and to celebrate the prospect of his coming, just as the crowds did for Jesus on Palm Sunday…God wanted the Israelites to learn from the festival calendar to number their days aright, and so gain wisdom. We need to learn the same lessons they did. We need to be constant in our daily devotion and regular in our weekly fellowship with the Lord. We need to be faithful in all of the passing seasons of life to give thanks for our redemption accomplished in Christ and for his ongoing care for us day by day. Above all, we are to be forward-looking believers, neither overly elated nor unduly cast down by the twists and turns of lfie’s fortunes, instead keeping our eyes constantly fixed on Christ, who is our heavenly inheritance.” (8)

Vows to God

Numbers 30 is a brief chapter about vows made to God. If a man vowed a vow to God, that man must not break his word; he must do all that he said out of his mouth. However, when a married woman or daughter living with her parents vowed to God and her husband or father heard her vow, he had the authority to disallow or dismiss her vow before God. In the case he did dismiss her vow, God would disregard her vow; if he did not, God would require their vow of them. The widowed or divorced woman’s vow would stand, and they must perform their vows. “God’s people…are to be people of their word, even when it is costly for them…Why is faithfulness to fulfill what we have vowed so important to God?…The answer is that we are his covenant people who are called to bear his likeness. Satan is a liar and the farther of lies, as Adam and Eve discovered in the Garden of Eden. God, however, is the Author of Truth and the Father of Light. God’s yes means yes, and his no means no. He will surely do whatever he has said he will do. He…has made a covenant with his people, which by definition is a promissory oath…the Lord has sworn by himself to accomplish our salvation, because there is nothing greater he can swear by (Hebrews 6:13-20). The faithful God, whose word by itself it utterly reliable, actually swore an oath to accomplish our salvation, and so we may be sure that he will do it. Our hope for eternity is anchored on the faithfulness of the Lord and his faithfulness to keep his Word…[But you may ask] Why was there this difference in the way young women and married women were treated from the rest of the population?…husbands and fathers were the covenant heads for their families [and God] is eager to ensure that the fundamental principle of male headship was not undermined, even in the name of serving God…God is a God of order, not disorder. As a result, greater dedication to his service must mean greater devotion to the structures that he himself has set up, including male headship in the home…On the cross Jesus bore the punishment for all our broken promises. That is going bar above and beyond the terms of Numbers 30…we are to be truly thankful for the faithfulness of our divine husband and father, whose enduring commitment to his people in life and in death is the solid anchor for our hope of Heaven and our peace in the midst of a wilderness world…Thanks be to God, for his enduring faithfulness!” (9) Just as the Lord faithfully led the new generation of Israelites, provided for the fatherless, and designed ways to commune with him, we have Christ’s leadership, his eternal, spiritual provisions, and fellowship. “Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, or oted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.” (Colossians 2:6-7)

Related Scripture: Numbers 1:1-2, 46; 36:5-12; Deuteronomy 3:27-28; 32:49-52; 34:9-12; Joshua 1:6-9; 11:23; 17:3-4; Ecclesiastes 5:4-7; Job 22:21-27; Psalm 50:14; 116:12-24; Acts 3:1-16; Romans 15:1; Ephesians 6:10; Hebrews 11:23-28; 1 John 2:12-14.

Notes:

1. https://www.bos.com/inspired/75-quotes-on-effective-leadership/

2. Duguid, Iain M., Numbers—God’s Presence in the Wilderness, Numbers 26-27, Crossway Books.

3. Duguid, Ibid.

4. Duguid, Ibid.

5. Duguid Numbers 28-29, Ibid.

6. Duguid Numbers 28-29, Ibid.

7. Duguid Numbers 28-29, Ibid.

8. Duguid Numbers 28-29, Ibid.

9. Duguid Numbers 30, Ibid.

November 23, 2023

I live in a retirement community where transitions, especially those relating to illness, injury, and death, are commonplace. Even when a neighbor passes away in his 100th year or her 105th year, their deaths are sad because we miss their presence among us. But death is also a good reminder to use our days here purposefully and lovingly, especially if we’re those who put our hope and trust in Christ. We are to “walk as children of light” (Ephesians 5:8). Israel was meant to do the same but failed repeatedly. Chapter 20 of Numbers begins with the sad death of Miriam, Moses’ sister. Israel mourned in the desert of Zin, where she was buried. Then they grumbled against Moses and Aaron about having no water to drink and about leaving the “good life” they had in Egypt. God appeared to Moses and Aaron when they interceded for Israel. God specifically told them to take Aaron’s rod and “speak” to the rock in the sight of all the people; God would bring water from the rock. But Moses hit the rock in anger two times and called the people rebels before the water came out, and the congregation drank. The Lord was exceedingly displeased with both him and Aaron. They didn’t honor God in the eyes of the people, and for this, they lost the privilege of leading Israel into the promised land. Before the chapter’s ending with Aaron’s death, “the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ‘Because you did not believe in me, to uphold me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them” (Numbers 20:12). “Moses [and Aaron] too had been caught up in the people’s sinful mindset…First, there was [Moses’s] speech…he termed the people’ rebels…putting himself in the place of judge to make that declaration though the Lord had not authorized him to do so. The Lord told him to extend his mercy and grace to the people by giving them water in a way that demonstrated unequivocally that the source was God; instead Moses set himself up as their judge…[and] their deliverer. [When] He said, ‘shall we bring water for you out of this rock?’ (v. 10)…Moses presented himself as if he were a pagan magician with the ability to manipulate the gods to do his biding. There is more to Moses’ sin than mere self-exaltation though. In the first encounter with the rock in Exodus 17, it was clear that the rock represented God himself (compare Genesis 49:24; Deuteronomy 32:4; Psalm 78:35)…In that awesome picture of grace, the Lord was willing to be struck himself instead of his rebellious people, so that they might receive life-giving water. It is one thing to strike God when he instructs you to do so; it is quite another to smite him (twice!) on your own authority. Moses’ act was thus nothing short of a direct assault on God himself…The irony is that in judging the people and seeking to deliver them on their own, Moses and Aaron became exactly what they accused the people of being: rebels against the Lord…In setting themselves forward as the people’s judges and deliverers, Moses and Aaron publically displayed their own failure to believe in and fear the Lord as a holy God…Like the rest of the first generation, Moses and Aaron would die in the desert…[However] the Lord nonetheless granted his rebellious people the flow of water that they needed…The Lord is far more gracious than we believe him to be—he is far more gracious than we deserve.” (1) “Many times he delivered them, but they were rebellious in their purposes and were brought low through their iniquity. Nevertheless, he looked upon their distress, when he heard their cry. For their sake he remembered his covenant, and relented according to the abundance of his steadfast love.” (Psalm 106:43-45) God was unchanged in his grace to bless them even as they gave into sinful grumbling and lustful temptations.

The Healing Serpent—Numbers 21

After mourning Aaron’s death, “When the Canaanite, the king of Arad, who lived in the Negeb, heard that Israel was coming by the way of Atharim, he fought against Israel, and took some of them captive. And Israel vowed a vow to the Lord and said, ‘If you will indeed give this people into my hand, then I will devote their cities to destruction.’ And the Lord heeded the voice of Israel and gave over the Canaanites, and they devoted them and their cities to destruction.” (Numbers 21:1-3) Yet again, the people complained against God and Moses. This time, God sent fiery serpents among them, and many died. When they confessed their sin, God had Moses make a serpent replica and set it on a pole. Those who looked upon it were healed if bitten; those who didn’t look on it and believe died. “A new day may have dawned, but old habits are not eradicated. The people once again grumble about their food and are punished: this time by poisonous snakes. As an antidote, Moses makes a bronze snake, which cures anyone who looks at it. The Hebrew term translated ‘bronze’ can also mean ‘copper.’ The area through which the Israelites were traveling had copper mines…so it seems likely that copper is meant here. The redness of copper suggested atonement, so symbolically it was well chosen for this occasion.” (2) “In many respects Numbers 20 was the end of the line for the first generation [of Isralites]; it shows us the events of the fortieth year of wilderness wandering, bracketed by the deaths of Miriam and Aaron…Yet in other ways the new generation was not so radically different from their forefathers…Having defeated the Canaanites, the Israelites headed south once again to go around the territory of Edom, back toward the Red Sea..were they still going in circles?…[And] they grumbled against God and Moses, suggesting they had brought them into the wilderness to die there…The aftermath of this grumbling was no different for the new generation than it had been for the old generation…The wages of sin and unbelief continued to be death…[But]…It was not the Lord who had brought them into the wilderness to die, as they alleged. Their death was not due to his power failing to give them that which he had promised. On the contrary, death in the wilderness was the result of their own sin and that of their forefather, Adam. It was their refusal to submit to the Lord that led to bondage to Satan, who is the real hard taskmaster.” (3) Next, Israel journeyed through the wilderness until they came close to the borders of Amor and Moab. When Israel sent messengers to Sihon, King of the Amorites, to ask permission to pass through their land with no harm, Sihon refused. Many nations did not trust the Israelites. In fact, Israel destroyed Sihon and captured the land, settling in the cities of the Amorites and their villages. The same was done to Bashan. Here come the mighty Israelites, finally! Will we fight our urges to grumble and give into impulsive temptations, appropriating God’s blessings in Christ, which he has continually poured out on his chosen people?

Foolish Men—Smart Donkey! Numbers 22-24

“Moab was overcome with fear of the people of Israel…So Balak the son of Zippor, who was king of Moab at that time, sent messengers to Balaam…saying, ‘Behold, a people has come out of Egypt. They cover the face of the earth, and they are dwelling opposite me. Come now, curse this people for me, since they are too mighty for me. Perhaps I shall be able to defeat them and drive them from the land, for I know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed.'” (Numbers 22:3-6) “The idea of a conventional war against the Israelites seemed to have little prospect of success because of their vast numbers, and the thought of seeking a peaceful settlement with this new political reality apparently didn’t arise. What Balak and the Moabites wanted was a non-conventional war involving a weapon of mass destruction…In the ancient world there was only one such weapon of mass destruction: a curse from the gods that would decisively tip the balance of power against your enemies. It was in search of just such a curse that Balak sought out Balaam, a man with an international reputation for dealing in such weaponry…[But] Balaam was a politician as well as a prophet, a man who made a living from his words. Such people do not always say what they mean or mean what they say…Like all politicians, Balaam was quite capable of playing the ‘God’ card when and how it suited him to do so. He obviously knew who the Lord was and apparently received messages from him, but exactly what his relationship to the Lord was has yet to be made clear.” (4) After the Lord told Balaam to follow his desire for riches from Balak, he brought some humorous drama to the story, allowing his donkey to speak to teach him a lesson. “And the donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road, with a drawn sword in his hand. And the donkey turned aside out of the road and went into the field. And Balaam struck the donkey, to turn her into the road. Then the angel of the Lord stood in a narrow path between the vineyards, with a wall on either side. And when the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, she pushed against the wall and pressed Balaam’s foot against the wall. So he struck her again. Then the angel of the Lord went ahead and stood in a narrow place, where there was no way to turn either to the right or to the left. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, she lay down under Balaam. And Balaam’s anger was kindled, and he struck the donkey with his staff. Then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, ‘What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?’ And Balaam said to the donkey, ‘Because you have made a fool of me. I wish I had a sword in my hand, for then I would kill you’…Then the Lord opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way, with his drawn sword in his hand. And he bowed down and fell on his face…I have come out to oppose you because your way is perverse before me. The donkey saw me and turned aside before me these three times. If she had not turned aside from me, surely just now I would have killed you and let her live.’ Then Balaam said to the angel of the Lord, ‘I have sinned, for I did not know that you stood in the road against me. Now therefore, if it is evil in your sight, I will turn back.’ And the angel of the Lord said to Balaam, ‘Go with the men, but speak only the word that I tell you.’ So Balaam went on with the princes of Balak.” (22:23-37)

Balaam’s Blesses Israel

“The Lord was angry not simply because Balaam had gone with Balak’s messengers but rather because he…acted as if he were a free agent, able to control his own destiny as well as that of other nations. The Lord therefore determined that it was necessary to teach Balaam a lesson about who was in control of his life, whether he liked it or not…our words and actions are often at odds, like Balaam…the essence of integrity is someone whose words and thoughts and actions are thoroughly integrated: they are all aligned in the same direction.” (5) Balaam had Balak build altars for him to sacrifice oxen and rams. When that failed, they changed locations as if that would change God’s mind. Balaam told Balak that God is not like us humans; He does not change His mind or say and not do something. Balak then asked if Balaam could tone it down or keep it neutral, without blessing or cursing Israel. Balak became very angry when Balaam prophesied by God’s Spirit on him, “How lovely are your tents, O Jacob, your encampments, O Israel! Like palm groves that stretch afar, like gardens beside a river, like aloes that the Lord has planted, like cedar trees beside the waters…a Star will come out of Jacob and the Sceptre will rise out of Israel and it will destroy Moab.'” (24:5–6, 17) “Israel did not have to pay Balaam or offer special sacrifices to receive a word of blessing from the Lord through him. On the contrary, the Lord had already freely committed himself in advance to bless Abraham and his descendants (Genesis 12:2-3). The Lord had already told the Aaronic priests to pronounce his blessing regularly on the people, without any fee changing hands (Numbers 6:24-27). Balaam’s words of blessing were simply a reflection of the Lord’s settled attitude toward his people…the Lord’s settled purpose to bless his people is a wonderful assurance. The settled assurance of the Lord’s purpose to bless us in Christ enables us in the midst of life’s chaos to sing, ‘Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, “It is well, it is well with my soul”‘…for Christ has died in our place and is now risen from the dead. If we keep our eyes on that reality, then none of the traumatic rises and falls in our temporal fortunes that are an inevitable part of life in this fallen world can ever completely shake us.” (6) God was unchanged in his grace to bless Israel even as they gave into sinful grumbling and lustful temptations. Just so, Christ will continually pour out his grace and mercy on those who put their trust in him.

Moral Assault on Israel

Having failed to directly attack Israel through a curse, the Moabites and Midianites sought to subvert and assimilate Israel through idolatry and immorality—at Balaam’s instigation (Numbers 31:16). “While Israel lived in Shittim, the people began to whore with the daughters of Moab. They invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. So Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel…those who died by the plague were twenty-four thousand.” (Numbers 25:1-3) “The wages of sin is death…Why do we need this truth repeated so often and so vividly? The answer is that the doctrine of the judgment of God is one of the fundamental targets of the devil’s assault…in the Garden of Eden when he said to Eve, ‘You will not surely die’ (Genesis 3:4)…he painted sin as a way to life and fulfillment rather than death and destruction…This is always the way it is with Satan’s snares. They seem to offer comfort but in reality deliver emptiness; they seem to offer peace but in reality deliver turmoil; they seem to offer a fuller life but in reality deliver death…[But] If Israel must be righteous and separate from the nations to enjoy the Lord’s settled blessing, can Israel ever be righteous enough to receive it? The answer to that question must be no if we are speaking of historical Israel…[Only] Jesus Christ…is himself the new, true Israel, the perfect people of God. That is why his death could be accepted in our place as a convenantal offering. “The Apostle Paul tells us that Jesus Christ was actually part of this story in Numbers 20: he was the spiritual rock that accompanied his people through the wilderness and from which they drank (1 Corinthians 10:1-4). In Jesus Christ, God himself took the blows that we deserved for our rebellion…When Jesus met with the Jewish leader Nicodemus, he said, “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life” (John 3:14-15). In other words, just as the bronze serpent was a sign calling for faith to which people could look and be delivered from death, so Christ’s crucifixion would have the same effect…It was precisely on the cross that Jesus won his victory over the ancient serpent, Satan…The road through life is long and hard, and our progress is often slow and hard to measure. Sometimes, it seems…as if we are faced once again toward the Red Sea, going backward rather than forward. In those moments, faith remembers that our arrival at the promised destination depends on God’s faithfulness, not ours, and endures the difficulty…The cross is the surety of the eternal rest that awaits us when our traveling and warring days are done.” (7) “So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf.” (Hebrews 6:17-20)

Related Scripture: Genesis 17:8; 22:15-18; 28:14; Exodus 3:2-3; 17:8-16; Numbers 31:16; Deuteronomy 23:3-5; 32:48-52; 2 Samuel 8:2; 2 Kings 18:4; Proverbs 16:9; 19:21; Isaiah 52:113-15; John 3:14-15; Titus 1:1-2; 2 Peter 2:15-16; Revelation 2:14.

Notes:

1. Duguid, Iain M., Numbers—God’s Presence in the Wilderness, Numbers 20, Crossway Books, 2006.

2. English Standard Version Study Bible Notes, Numbers 21, (digital edition), Crossway, 2008.

3. Duguid, Ch. 21, Ibid.

4. Duguid, Numbers 22, Ibid.

5. Duguid, Numbers 23, Ibid.

6. Duguid, Number 23, Ibid.

7. Duguid, Chapters 20-21, Ibid.

November 9, 2023

Have you ever protested or revolted against an authority, leader, organization, or government? There are times when civil unrest is used productively to get the attention of those who are in authority. When I was young, I protested a couple of times against decisions made by my government for precisely this purpose. Civil disobedience, when conducted properly, harms no one. A coup, however, is a violent attempt to overthrow or alter an existing government by a small group in an attempt to steal power away from them. We have come to a point in Israel’s history after God had sentenced the nation to wander in the wilderness until an entire generation dies off because of their rebellion and grumbling against him. The Israelite leaders revolted, but Moses and Aaron interceded for the nation. In Numbers 16, Moses recounts how Korah led a group of prominent Israelite Levites in an attempted coup against him and Aaron, accusing them of assuming too much authority and arguing that all the congregation is holy. Another group, led by Dathan and Abiram, refused to meet with Moses, accusing him of bringing them out of Egypt, a plentiful land, only to kill them in the wilderness. The glory of the Lord appeared, ready to consume the entire congregation. After Moses and Aaron entreated the Lord to spare the innocent, the earth opened up and swallowed Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, along with their households. Fire from the Lord also consumed 250 rebellious men. Numbers Chapters 16-19 offer a relevant illustration of the need to separate ourselves from sinful movements and trends, to intercede for those involved, and to delight in the miracle of Christ’s sacrifice that cleanses us for devotion to Him.

Disrespecting God’s Sovereign, Providential Plan

Korah “wanted…the priesthood…The second complaint, from Dathan and Abirm, was directed against Moses…arguing that Moses had deliberately deceived the people for his own ends. Danthan and Abirm were people who were disappointed in God. Their experience of his way had not lived up to their expectations, and so they took their disappointment out on the leaders of God’s people…[but] it was the Lord against whom they were really in rebellion…The reason their present circumstances were so dire was the result of their own sin, not the failure of Moses or of the Lord…Unlike Korah, Dathan and Abiram…made no reference to the Lord in their complaint. In fact, they assumed the non existence of the Lord, or at least his practical irrelevance. They assumed that Moses was…a magician who had made startling claims but then was unable to deliver the impressive trick he had promised…[none] of them understood Biblical leadership, which is about divine calling to service. Biblical leaders…serve because God has called them to that position and recognize that sometimes even those whom God has called may not see dramatic visible results…Pragmatic thinking will often find godly leadership unimpressive…[and] The Lord himself had said that anyone apart from Moses and the priestly tribe of Aaron who approached him would be put to death (3:38). Those who believed Korah’s words would inevitably find death instead of the freedom he claimed to bring. That is always the way it is with sin: it offers freedom to those who are ‘liberated’ from God’s law, but in the end all it delivers is death…Those who distanced themselves from this rebellious spirit would live, while those who identified themselves with the rebels would die, alone with their families…The covenantal nature of this separation between life and death is itself a small-scale reenactment of the grand covenantal separation that will take place on the last day. There will be only two family groups in that final judgment—those who are in Adam and those who are in Christ. Those in Adam…are destined for death because of Adam’s rebellion, which they themselves have reenacted in their own lives from the moment of birth onward. However, those who have been born a second time by the Spirit of God are in Christ [and live]” (1)

God’s Sweet Mercy

“In the mercy of God…not all of Korah’s descendants perished. In Numbers 26, when the second census is taken, it becomes clear that even though Dathan and Abiram were completely cut off and left without descendants, this was not the case for the line of Korah. How can this be? The only explanation for this phenomenon is that some of Korah’s family broke out of their natural covenant loyalty to their father and crossed over to the other side…so they lived when the rest of their kinfolk died. It is the same way with you: even if you do not have believing parents of family members…The grace of God is extended to you too, summoning you to come out from those who are condemned to eternal death. The doorway of life is open to you too in Christ: come into his family, receive his righteousness, and you too will live…At the cross, Jesus purchased us to be his servants, giving him the absolute prerogative toorssign us our places in his kingdom, be they small or great…It is our glory to be found obediently doing what God called us to do. The cross is also the answer to our doubts about the Lord’s presence and effectiveness in our lives…in whatever circumstances we find ourselves, God is nether dead nor absent.” (2) “The ruin of others should be our warning…Love will do what fear cannot.” (3) We, who have the love of Christ, should willingly and eagerly separate ourselves from sinful movements, intercede for those involved, and delight in the miracle of Christ’s sacrifice that cleans us for devotion to Him.

More Grumbling!

“But on the next day all the congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and against Aaron, saying, ‘You have killed the people of the Lord’…and the glory of the Lord appeared…and the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Get away from the midst of this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.’ And they fell on their faces. And Moses said to Aaron, ‘Take your censer, and put fire on it from off the altar and lay incense on it and carry it quickly to the congregation and make atonement for them, for wrath has gone out from the Lord; the plague has begun.’ So Aaron took it as Moses said and ran into the midst of the assembly. And behold, the plague had already begun among the people. And he put on the incense and made atonement for the people. And he stood between the dead and the living, and the plague was stopped. Now those who died in the plague were 14,700, besides those who died in the affair of Korah.” (Numbers 16:41, 43, 45-50) “Aaron took up a position between the living and the dead, and by means of the incense that he offered, he drew a line of separation between the two groups. By his faithful ministry, he prevented those who remained alive from joining those already dead. Once again we see the covenantal dimension of salvation. The faithful acts of the one man carrying out the task appointed by God had a life-giving impact on the fate of many.” (4) “‘The wicked man will see and be vexed.’ The wicked cast off all regard to piety, and banish from their minds all thoughts of human affairs being under the superintending providence of God…[and will be] disappointed of their desires. They are never content, but are continually thirsting after something…And hence, in their foolish expectations, they do not hesitate at grasping at the whole world. But…God will snatch from them what they imagined was already in their possession, so that they shall always depart destitute and famishing.” (5) This is why it is so important to separate ourselves from sinful movements, taking delight in God’s providential order and intercession for the good of his chosen body in Christ, who stands between the living and the dead.

A Sign of God’s Continued Grace

“What Israel needed was someone or something that would bring to an end the grumbling and rebellious spirit of the people once and for all…John Piper has rightly argued that God is most glorified when his people are most satisfied in him…When God’s people grumble, they miss out on their chief end in life…neither glorifying God nor enjoying him. In addition, grumbling believers give non-Christians little reason to want to join them. When we grumble against the order that God has set in place, we are robbing him, and distracting others from seeing his greatness. That is why grumbling is such a serious sin.” (6) So, “The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to the people of Israel, and get from them staffs, one for each fathers’ house…twelve staffs. Write each man’s name on his staff, and write Aaron’s name on the staff of Levi…And the staff of the man whom I choose shall sprout. Thus I will make to cease from me the grumblings of the people of Israel, which they grumble against you’…On the next day Moses went into the tent of the testimony, and behold, the staff of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted and put forth buds and produced blossoms, and it bore ripe almonds…And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Put back the staff of Aaron before the testimony, to be kept as a sign for the rebels, that you may make an end of their grumblings against me, lest they die'” (Numbers 17:1-3, 5, 8, 10) “In Jeremiah 1:11 the Lord used an almond branch as a visible symbol of the Lord’s watching over his word…and bringing it to imminent fulfillment. So too the lampstand [fashioned] as an almond tree was a marker of the certain fulfillment of a great blessing that was yet to come. The Lord was watching over his people for blessing, both now and in greater measure in the future…The Lord took Aaron’s dead stick and turned it into a miniature lampstand in the midst of the other twelve sticks, a sign of life and future blessing in the midst of the community. This blooming almond branch was a symbol of the certainty that the Lord would fulfill his promise of a greater blessing for his people through the gift of the priesthood. That is why the sign should have put an end to the grumbling of the rebellious. It should have reminded them that the Aaronic priesthood was God’s chosen channel of blessing and life for the community in the present and a sign of an even greater blessing to come.” (7) Christ, our High Priest, is our supernatural means of eternal blessing and should cause us to put away all grumbling about the Lord’s sovereign providence as we journey through this worldly wilderness.

A Big Solution for a Big Problem

God gave Aaron and his sons the responsibility for any offenses connected with the sanctuary and priesthood, like their grumbling and complaining. The Levites were assigned to assist the priests but couldn’t approach sacred furnishings or the altar. Just as Aaron and the Levites were entrusted with sacred responsibilities and rewarded accordingly, so too are we, as believers, called to fulfill our duties with diligence and integrity. “So the Lord said to Aaron, ‘You and your sons and your father’s house with you shall bear iniquity connected with the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you shall bear iniquity connected with your priesthood. And with you bring your brothers also, the tribe of Levi…And you shall keep guard over the sanctuary and over the altar, that there may never again be wrath on the people of Israel.'” (Numbers 18:1-3) “The priests and the Levites, like the lampstand of the tabernacle, were a sign of the Lord’s favor and determination to bless this people. The goal of their ministry was that the people should not die…This is the central theme in these chapters of the book of Numbers: the Lord himself chooses those who come close to him and serve him…The Lord could legitimately have closed off access for Israel into his presence forever, but he chose not to do so. In the Aaronic priesthood, the doorway to Heaven was still open. The one whom he had chosen could still approach him and serve him safely…The calling of the Aaronic priesthood by the Lord was thus a sign that his plan for his people is life and fellowship with him.” (8)

The Uncleanness of Death

“Whoever touches the dead body of any person shall be unclean seven days. He shall cleanse himself with the water on the third day and on the seventh day, and so be clean…Whoever touches a dead person, the body of anyone who has died, and does not cleanse himself, defiles the tabernacle of the Lord, and that person shall be cut off from Israel; because the water for impurity was not thrown on him, he shall be unclean.” (Numbers 19:11-13) “Why did the law make a corpse a defiling thing? Because death is the wages of sin…The law could not conquer death, nor abolish it, as the gospel does, by bringing life and immortality to light, and so introducing a better hope.” (9) God, in his mercy, provided instructions for Israel’s cleansing and devotion, pointing to a superior and ultimately permanent solution of the miracle of Christ’s sacrifice that cleanses believers eternally. “The constant shedding of blood and burning of flesh kept the reality of the consequences of sin very much in front of the people…This is why our ministry must constantly be centered around the cross of Jesus Christ, which is the culmination of all those Old Testament sacrifices.” (10) “There is an infection of sin in the world, which only the cross and intercession of Jesus Christ can stay and remove…Greatly indeed hath God commended his love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us, Romans 5:8.” (11) Having Perfection on our side, we have nothing to protest! “For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. [Christ] has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily, first for his own sins and then for those of the people, since he did this once for all when he offered up himself. For the law appoints men in their weakness as high priests, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made perfect forever.” (Hebrews 7:26-28)

Related Scripture: Genesis 19:15-26; Exodus 2:11-12; 40:13-15; Leviticus 10:3; Deuteronomy 18:1-5; 2 Samuel 24:25; 1 Kings 8:53; Ezra 10:11; Nehemiah 9:2; 10:35-39; 13:3; Psalms 55:12-16; 65:4; 73:1-19; 106:16-18, 28-31; Haggai 2:10-19; Matthew 14:39; 25:32; 2 Corinthians 7:2-4; Revelation 18:4-5.

Notes:

1. Duguid, Iain M., Numbers—God’s Presence in the Wilderness, Numbers 16, Crossway Books, 2006.

2. Duguid, Ibid.

3. Henry, Matthew, Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary on the Bible, Numbers 16, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/eng/mhn/numbers-16.html.

4. Duguid, Numbers 16:41-17:13, Ibid.

5. Henry, Psalm 112:9, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/eng/mhn/psalms-112.html.

6. Duguid, Numbers 17, Ibid.

7. Duguid, Ibid.

8. Duguid, Numbers 18, Ibid.

9. Henry, Numbers 19, Ibid, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/eng/mhn/numbers-18.html.

10.Duguid, Ibid.

11. Matthew Henry, Ibid.

October 26, 2023