Day 42: Numbers 10, 11 and 12

Miriam and Aaron began to talk against Moses because of his Cushite wife. (Numbers 12:1)

Moses enjoyed a special relationship with God and others not only took notice of it, but became envious. Miriam (Moses’ sister) is an important player in the exodus story: She saved Moses’ life when he was an infant, looked after him even after he was pulled from the Nile by Pharaoh’s daughter, and led the women in a song of deliverance on the heels of their Red Sea crossing.

Only someone we love can betray us, and such a betrayal is a painful wound. Miriam was apparently the impetus behind this attack on Moses, although his African wife was clearly not the real issue. The problem was that she felt like Moses was getting more of the attention than he deserved. She wanted to share the limelight. Notice how, rather than defending himself, Moses left the response to God.

After God schooled her about how Moses was no ordinary prophet, she was afflicted with leprosy. The fact that Aaron was not gives us a hint that Miriam was the ringleader of their little rebellion. Aaron pleaded with Moses to intercede for them (I wonder if he was sincerely thinking about his sister or his own potential punishment). Moses prayed for them and God answered his request.

Have you ever experienced the sting of betrayal? Did you exact your pound of flesh, or did you have the good grace to leave vengeance to God?

Day 41: Numbers 7, 8 and 9

They may assist . . . but they themselves must not do the work. (Numbers 8:26)

If you read chapter 7, you probably join me in being thankful there were only twelve tribes. Am I right? Every day representatives brought offerings on behalf of their tribes. The first day Nahshon brought Judah’s gift. The second day Nethanel brought Issachar’s gift. The third day Eliab of Zebulon, the fourth day Elizur, the fifth day… and day after day another leader, another tribe, another gift for the tabernacle. After 12 tribes in 12 days and 89 repetitive verses, I have to admit I am always ready for chapter 8.

Chapter 8 includes Israel's blueprint for apprenticeship, career, mentoring and retirement. Notice that Levite men could start working at age 25. Then after a 25-year career, they encountered the Levitical retirement requirement. But they didn't move to Florida to play shuffleboard the rest of their lives; they retired to teach. They initiated the age old mentoring formula: 1) I do; 2) I do, you help; 3) you do, I help; 4) you do. Hey, it still makes good sense.

Did someone come alongside you when you were getting your start, or did you just get thrown in the deep end? I know too often that’s the way we do things in the church. Every one of us should be recruiting and training our replacement. Who mentored you? Who are you mentoring?

When you hang up your spurs, who’s going to take your place?

Day 40: Numbers 4, 5 and 6

The Kohathites must not go in to look at the holy things, even for a moment, or they will die. (Numbers 4:20)

Like Leviticus, this section impresses upon the reader the holiness of God. The Kohathite clan (one of three family lines descended from the sons of Levi) was being told, We’re getting ready to move out. It’s your job to pack and carry the Ark of the Covenant, but you’re not allowed to look at it or touch it. Sounds like a disadvantage to me. They were charged with packing and carrying not only the ark, but all the holy furnishings and implements of the tabernacle.

Special instructions were given regarding the Ark of the Covenant. They were to take the curtain that separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place (between the Ark of the Covenant and the Altar of Incense, along with the Table and the Golden Lamp) and use it as the initial covering of the Ark. They would take the curtain and (probably walking backward) drape it over the Ark. Over that went two more layers of coverings: one rainproof and the other ornamental.

Why the drama? Was God being picky? On the contrary, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is no prima donna. This was to highlight the holiness of God and the special nature of anything (including not just things, but also persons, tasks and events) dedicated to his service.

Are you giving the things of God the respect they deserve?

Day 39: Numbers 1, 2 and 3

Take a census of the whole Israelite community by their clans and families, listing every man by name, one by one. (Numbers 1:2)

Many find Leviticus difficult to read with its instructions for endless sacrifices and observances. Upon its conclusion, those who don't know better might breathe a sigh of relief... until they start reading the census in Numbers 1. The first (and last) chapters make Leviticus look like Disneyland.

We've spent the last half of Exodus, all of Leviticus, and now the first portion of Numbers camped at Mt. Sinai. Twelve months have passed since the Israelites left Egypt. Chapters ten through twenty-five cover highlights spanning the next 39 years, including fascinating episodes recounted from wilderness travels. But truth be told the last ten chapters of the book (including a second census) can again get a little tedious.

What's the point? That takes us back to the above verse. Not that long ago, the United States took its most recent census. We would be wise to remember that our country is not just one homogeneous group of people who look, act and think alike, but a nation of individuals. While Ancient Near East cultures were more about the group (clan, village, etc.) than they were the individual, the writer of Numbers reminds us right from the start that the Israelite community is comprised of clans, families and individuals – and every story is important.

What does it mean to you to know you are part of something bigger than yourself?

Day 38: Leviticus 25, 26 and 27

What will we eat in the seventh year if we do not plant or harvest our crops? (Leviticus 25:20)

Why is it so hard for us to trust God? In my fifty plus years there have been times I have been faithful to God and times I have been unfaithful. There have been times I trusted him and times I did not. But I can say with certainty, there has never been any wavering with God - God has always been faithful; God has always been trustworthy.

The Israelite people suffered from that same lack of trust. Even though God had assured them he would provide (they'd seen it with their own eyes), they felt the weight of providing for themselves and their families as if that responsibility rested on their own shoulders. God had shown himself to Abraham as Yahweh-Yireh (God my provider) in Genesis 22:14 – a story treasured by all Abraham's descendants. Traditionally, as this word was being delivered to the people, they were eating their fill of quail and bread every day (including the Sabbath when they were restrained from gathering manna). They had a ready example of God's faithful provision.

And yet whether it's the odd Israelite out collecting manna on the Sabbath, or planting crops in the seventh year, or David counting his fighting men, or us worrying about our bills, lack of trust seems to eclipse even our supposed lack of resources.

How will you show your faith in God’s provision this week?

Day 37: Leviticus 22, 23 and 24

Tell Aaron and his sons to treat with respect the sacred offerings the Israelites consecrate to me. (Leviticus 22:2)

This is God’s command for Aaron and his family to be faithful with the offerings brought to the tabernacle by the people of Israel. There was no denominational governing body to provide oversight, nor was there a Sinai Council for Financial Accountability.

When we bring our tithes and offerings and present them to God via the church, it's good to know that those monies are not taken for granted, but appreciated and stewarded with respect as sacred. Congregations have many of the same bills as do families. They have to pay for water and for trash removal, the light bill and building maintenance costs. As corporations they also have to pay for unemployment, insurance and salaries.

As I have shared in other venues, some of us are dreamers and visionaries, and some of us are nuts and bolts kind of people. That's by God's design. We can be thankful for those business minded men and women who watch over our facilities and finances to make sure we'll be ministering and dreaming well into the years ahead.

Take comfort that God-ordained and equipped stewards are treating as sacred the gifts you bring to the church. It is a holy calling.

Are you a dreamer or a nuts and bolts kind of person? Or maybe somewhere in the middle? What does that say for where you should be serving in your home church?

Day 36: Leviticus 19, 20 and 21

Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy. (Leviticus 19:2)

I used to dread this verse as an impossible command, a requirement with which I could not comply. No matter how good my intentions or committed my effort, it never achieved the desired result. As C. S. Lewis writes in Mere Christianity, “No man knows how bad he is till he has tried very hard to be good.” [1] The more I tried to change my behavior, the more frustrated I became. My efforts seemed doomed to failure.

New Testament scholar Paul Achtemeier writes of Romans 7:15 (…what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.): “What Paul describes in these verses therefore is the dilemma of all human beings who seek to follow God’s will apart from Christ.” [2] This is my experience when trying to conform to Scripture relying only on my own strength.

In his book Rebuilding the Real You, Pastor Jack Hayford invites us to receive this verse as a promise, rather than a threat. He illustrates how a child may inherit a receding hairline, big feet, or a cleft chin, from a parent. God is our parent, and God is holy. Holiness is in God’s DNA (so to speak). As his children, that DNA is our inheritance. [3] We don’t have to scuffle and scheme to be holy; we simply have to receive what, because of our parentage, is rightfully ours.

Do you look like your Father?

[1] C. S. Lewis. Mere Christianity (New York: Harper Collins, 1952).

[2] Paul J. Achetmeier. Romans. “Interpretation – A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching (Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2010.

[3] Jack Hayford. Rebuilding the Real You. rev. ed. (Lake Mary, FL: Charisma House, 2009).