February 23, 2006 - Numbers 5-6 and Mark 4:1-20
I am happy to report that God blessed our mission trip in many ways, and everyone is safely home today. I pray that you had a great week, too. I will try to post my notes for the days I was away tomorrow. I know God spoke to your heart as He did mine, as you read His Word this past week. One thing is certain. God is still on His throne. We must bow before Him as our King and obey Him as our Lord.
Numbers 5 is an unusual passage, but if we look for the spiritual principles, it becomes more clear. God hates uncleanness, sin, and broken relationships. He wants restoration to come. However, before there can be restoration, there must be cleansing, confession, and restitution. Unclean people were separated from the camp, until they were cleansed, so no one else would become unclean. Those who sinned had to confess sin and pay back those they harmed. Husbands and wives were not to live in a state of jealousy. They were to stand before the Lord and find the truth, so they could have a close relationship again. Can you imagine the convicting power of taking that oath and drinking that bitter water, if the wife was guilty? Can you imagine the repentance it could bring? Then, they could be one flesh again.
Numbers 6 is more straightforward, even though we don't have Nazarites today. We all need to consecrate ourselves to the Lord. We need to separate ourselves from influences that take away our ability to see things clearly like wine can do. We need to go to the extreme of not cutting our own hair or not attending our own parents funeral, if that is what it takes to be fully right with God, and to let Him know He is Lord in our lives. In the Old Testament this was a short term vow or consecration time, but now it should be a principle for all of life. Then, the blessing at the end of the chapter can apply to us all the time. I pray that you desire God's blessing and God's peace so much that you will do whatever it takes to receive it.
Mark 4 shows part of what it takes. It takes drinking in God's Word and allowing it to take root in our lives. That means we read it all and obey it all. That way God grows us and causes us to bear fruit for His glory. This is something everyone can do, if we have access to the Word of God. In fact, I believe we are responsible for God's Word when we hear it or read it. God intends for us to digest it and to live by it. Just think of how much of God's Word you have heard or read in your life. That is amazing, isn't it? What category do you fit into? Are you the wayside, the stony ground, the thorny place, or the good soil? One day God will cause us all to give an account of all we have received. Let's be good stewards of it now.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Numbers 7 - 8 and Mark 4:21-41.
Numbers 5 is an unusual passage, but if we look for the spiritual principles, it becomes more clear. God hates uncleanness, sin, and broken relationships. He wants restoration to come. However, before there can be restoration, there must be cleansing, confession, and restitution. Unclean people were separated from the camp, until they were cleansed, so no one else would become unclean. Those who sinned had to confess sin and pay back those they harmed. Husbands and wives were not to live in a state of jealousy. They were to stand before the Lord and find the truth, so they could have a close relationship again. Can you imagine the convicting power of taking that oath and drinking that bitter water, if the wife was guilty? Can you imagine the repentance it could bring? Then, they could be one flesh again.
Numbers 6 is more straightforward, even though we don't have Nazarites today. We all need to consecrate ourselves to the Lord. We need to separate ourselves from influences that take away our ability to see things clearly like wine can do. We need to go to the extreme of not cutting our own hair or not attending our own parents funeral, if that is what it takes to be fully right with God, and to let Him know He is Lord in our lives. In the Old Testament this was a short term vow or consecration time, but now it should be a principle for all of life. Then, the blessing at the end of the chapter can apply to us all the time. I pray that you desire God's blessing and God's peace so much that you will do whatever it takes to receive it.
Mark 4 shows part of what it takes. It takes drinking in God's Word and allowing it to take root in our lives. That means we read it all and obey it all. That way God grows us and causes us to bear fruit for His glory. This is something everyone can do, if we have access to the Word of God. In fact, I believe we are responsible for God's Word when we hear it or read it. God intends for us to digest it and to live by it. Just think of how much of God's Word you have heard or read in your life. That is amazing, isn't it? What category do you fit into? Are you the wayside, the stony ground, the thorny place, or the good soil? One day God will cause us all to give an account of all we have received. Let's be good stewards of it now.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Numbers 7 - 8 and Mark 4:21-41.