February 4 - Numbers 19-21
I think it is important to remember the purpose of having an unhurried time with the Lord each day as we read His Word. We are seeking to know God more intimately. We are making sure we are oriented toward life correctly, so that we are seeing things around us from God's perspective. Therefore, when we come to a passage like the ashes of the red heifer here in Numbers 19, we do not do a full blown in-depth Bible study of the passage unless God leads us to do so for our proper understanding of life. Most of the time we are nourished by the meaning of the passage without getting all of the meat off of the bones. It is obvious that God desires for His people to be clean before Him. He even went so far as to command them to sacrifice a heifer and use the ashes to make a holy water for purifying those who had become unclean. Did the ashes have a cleansing or purifying effect? I don't think so. I think the ceremony reminded the people of the need for purification from uncleanness. The main cleansing came from washing in the regular water. The special water was a reminder for them. Again, the concern of the Lord for His people is seen in that He is concerned about spiritual cleansing and physical cleansing. God cares about us as a whole beings, body, soul, and spirit.
Is there some uncleanness in your life today? Go to the Lord for His cleansing power. He is the only one who can cleanse you as white as snow. Do whatever He tells you to do. Stay away from whatever He warns you about. Wash yourself of any dirty thing that is staining you spiritually or physically. God wants you to stand clean before Him today.
It is evident that God was very upset or disappointed with Moses and Aaron because of their actions at Kadesh. Moses disobeyed God when he struck the rock instead of speaking to the rock. God still let the water flow from the rock, but He told Moses and Aaron that because of their lack of faith and the fact that they did not hallow God or give Him credit, they would not enter the Promised Land. Now, that is all we really need to know about this incident. We might ask, "Why was God so upset?", but He is not required to tell us. It was between Moses, Aaron, and God. Moses and Aaron knew exactly how they had disobeyed whether they understood the severity or not is not the issue. God can set the punishment. We must listen to Him in His perfect wisdom.
However, in reading the rest of the Bible it occurs to me that God was so upset for a good reason. The Rock was a symbol of Jesus. The first time the people needed water Moses was told to strike the rock. Now, the second time he is told to speak to the Rock, and the water would flow for the people. It could be that God was teaching an important point for the future. Christ was struck for our sins when He died on the Cross. He provided the Living Water we need for salvation. Once we are saved, we still sin. We need forgiveness to be applied to cleanse those sins and restore a close relationship with Jesus. However, we do not need for Him to be struck again. We need to speak to Him in confession. Then, come the cleansing waters of His forgiveness. Remember, I John 1:9. I think that is why God was so upset, but Moses could not even understand that part of what he had done. He just had to trust that God knew what He was doing. He had to know that God is not going to punish us too much or too little. He is the perfect judge.
Finally, we see the power of faith. It cannot be over stated when it comes to God's blessing. The people complained again. God punished them by sending serpents to kill them. The remedy was a bronze serpent on a pole. Whoever looked at the serpent after being bitten was healed. Why? Because God said that He would do that if the people would respond to His command in faith. It did not have to do with the serpent, so much as it had to do with believing what God told them. The same is true with defeating their enemies. It did not have to do with their ability to fight or their numbers, as much as it had to do with trusting God to deliver them. Have you learned the power of faith? Do you see how much God longs for you to trust Him continually. That is what this unhurried time is all about. We must keep our focus on Him and our faith in Him, not in ourselves.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Numbers 22-24.
Is there some uncleanness in your life today? Go to the Lord for His cleansing power. He is the only one who can cleanse you as white as snow. Do whatever He tells you to do. Stay away from whatever He warns you about. Wash yourself of any dirty thing that is staining you spiritually or physically. God wants you to stand clean before Him today.
It is evident that God was very upset or disappointed with Moses and Aaron because of their actions at Kadesh. Moses disobeyed God when he struck the rock instead of speaking to the rock. God still let the water flow from the rock, but He told Moses and Aaron that because of their lack of faith and the fact that they did not hallow God or give Him credit, they would not enter the Promised Land. Now, that is all we really need to know about this incident. We might ask, "Why was God so upset?", but He is not required to tell us. It was between Moses, Aaron, and God. Moses and Aaron knew exactly how they had disobeyed whether they understood the severity or not is not the issue. God can set the punishment. We must listen to Him in His perfect wisdom.
However, in reading the rest of the Bible it occurs to me that God was so upset for a good reason. The Rock was a symbol of Jesus. The first time the people needed water Moses was told to strike the rock. Now, the second time he is told to speak to the Rock, and the water would flow for the people. It could be that God was teaching an important point for the future. Christ was struck for our sins when He died on the Cross. He provided the Living Water we need for salvation. Once we are saved, we still sin. We need forgiveness to be applied to cleanse those sins and restore a close relationship with Jesus. However, we do not need for Him to be struck again. We need to speak to Him in confession. Then, come the cleansing waters of His forgiveness. Remember, I John 1:9. I think that is why God was so upset, but Moses could not even understand that part of what he had done. He just had to trust that God knew what He was doing. He had to know that God is not going to punish us too much or too little. He is the perfect judge.
Finally, we see the power of faith. It cannot be over stated when it comes to God's blessing. The people complained again. God punished them by sending serpents to kill them. The remedy was a bronze serpent on a pole. Whoever looked at the serpent after being bitten was healed. Why? Because God said that He would do that if the people would respond to His command in faith. It did not have to do with the serpent, so much as it had to do with believing what God told them. The same is true with defeating their enemies. It did not have to do with their ability to fight or their numbers, as much as it had to do with trusting God to deliver them. Have you learned the power of faith? Do you see how much God longs for you to trust Him continually. That is what this unhurried time is all about. We must keep our focus on Him and our faith in Him, not in ourselves.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Numbers 22-24.