“Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.’”

There are many pictures of Jesus in the Old Testament, but few so clear as the one we see today.

Because the Edomites would not let the children of Israel pass through their land, they had to take a detour. As they went back the way they came, the people’s hearts became very discouraged, and they complained against God and against Moses. The Hebrew word translated “discouraged” can also be translated “impatient”. Like children who aren’t getting their way, the Israelites threw a temper tantrum. This time God sent fiery (poisonous) serpents that began to bite the people, and many of the people died. I remember hearing a sermon on this passage by A.E. Wilder Smith, a British scientist and prolific writer. He said, “Whenever we become impatient, we get bitten by the serpent.”

Once again the people cried out to Moses, and Moses prayed. God told him to make a bronze serpent and put it on a pole. Whoever was bitten, if he looked up at the serpent, he would live. What an amazing miracle! A person who was dying only needed to look up in faith and be healed. Do you think there were some people who disbelieved and thought this was too good to be true?

Centuries later, Jesus had a conversation with a Pharisee named Nicodemus. Jesus told him that unless he was born again, he could not see the kingdom of God (John 3:3). Then Jesus said:

“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

John 3:14-16 (NKJV)

Just as the look of faith healed the people in the wilderness from the deadly effects of the serpent’s bite, so the look of faith to Jesus heals us from the deadly and eternal consequences of sin. What an amazing picture of Christ! What a wonderful salvation!

Has impatience with life’s circumstances caused you to be “bitten by the serpent”? Have you tried to manage this yourself rather than looking up to Jesus in faith? How might Christ’s victory over Satan and willingness to forgive affect your life?

Thanks for reading. I’m glad you’re here.

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“Now take Aaron and his son Eleazar up Mount Hor. There you will remove Aaron’s priestly garments and put them on Eleazar, his son. Aaron will die there and join his ancestors.”

Every great ministry must at some point come to an end. Every renowned minister must one day pass from this life. The question is, is there a good succession plan? Has the leader whom God used prepared the next generation? Has he trained others who will effectively carry on the work? While there are many gifted leaders, not every leader is good at training others to take his place.

Moses and Aaron had been mightily used by God to deliver the people from Egypt. They would have brought them into the Promised Land, but after two years in the wilderness, the people failed to go into Canaan because of their unbelief and disobedience. So Moses and Aaron remained with the people in the wilderness for the next 38 years! After this time, they would have been able to enter the Promised Land if they had not rebelled against God’s instructions concerning the water of of Meribah. They failed to honor the LORD before the people. Therefore, they could not go into the land of milk and honey.

Aaron would die first on Mount Hor. But before he passed, his high priestly garments would be removed and placed on his son Eleazar. God had a succession plan. Aaron would die, but the mantle would be passed down to his son.

As people grow older, it is common for them to think about the next generation. Years ago, I saw a documentary about Leonard Berstein, the famous conductor of the New York Philharmonic. As he entered his senior years, he began pouring into younger conductors. He wanted to prepare the next generation to appreciate classical music, and he wanted to pass on what he had learned. This made a big impression on me. I thought if people in the world consider this important, shouldn’t we in the church also prepare the leaders of the next generation?

Whether you are a parent, a grandparent, or a ministry leader, God has given you knowledge, experience, and wisdom. Are you intentionally investing these in the next generation? The day will come when our mantle will be removed and pass to another. Who is that person? Has he or she been equipped for the job? What are we doing to prepare them (and ourselves) for that inevitable day?

Thanks for reading. I’m glad you’re here.

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“Why have you brought the assembly of the LORD into this wilderness, that we should die here, both we and our cattle?”

Undoubtedly, Moses was a marvelous man of God. He was chosen to be God’s instrument to deliver the children of Israel and bring great and awesome plagues on Egypt. The LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend (Exodus 33:11). But Moses was not perfect.

For nearly forty years, Moses had listened to the people murmur and complain against the LORD and against Aaron and him. I cannot imagine listening to two million people bellyache for so long! Once again, the people complained because they did not have enough water.

So Moses went before the LORD to see what to do. This is always a wise move when we don’t know what to do. God told him to speak to the rock, and the water would come forth. This was different from the previous time when God told him to strike the rock. But Moses was at the end of his patience!

“Hear now, you rebels! Must we bring water for you out of this rock?”

Numbers 20:10 (NKJV)

Then he struck the rock twice, and the water came out. At first, everything seemed OK. But then the LORD told Moses that because he didn’t believe Him and honor Him as holy before the people, he would not be able to lead the people into the Promised Land!

There was more going on than Moses losing his temper and misrepresenting God (although that was bad enough). God was setting up a type or foreshadow of the living water we receive through Christ. Like the rock in the desert, Jesus was struck the first time on the cross. But now we merely speak to the Lord, asking Him for the living water, and He provides all that we need (John 7:37-39).

At the time Moses didn’t understand, but he ruined this picture of Christ’s provision of the Holy Spirit.

The practical lesson for us is to trust the Lord no matter what. What is our complaining but a failure to trust God? What is losing one’s temper but a failure to honor God as Sovereign over all circumstances? Our impatience mars the beautiful work that God is doing. It may even cause us to miss out on God’s best blessings.

Consider : How do seasons of grief or prolonged stress affect the way you respond to people and problems?

Thanks for reading. I’m glad you’re here.

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“If the man who is unclean does not cleanse himself, that person shall be cut off from the midst of the assembly, since he has defiled the sanctuary of the LORD. Because the water for impurity has not been thrown on him, he is unclean.”

When I was a child, I hated going to the dentist. I dreaded the taste, smell, and pain of having my teeth drilled! But there was one thing I looked forward to: Highlights for Children magazine. I would always find the “Hidden Pictures” page and try to find the items hidden in the big picture.

As an adult, I discovered that there are hidden pictures of Jesus in the Old Testament. He is in the Old Testament concealed and in the New Testament revealed. I believe we see one such picture of Jesus in Numbers 19 in the red heifer that was used for purification.

Man has a basic problem of being unclean. If a person touched a dead body, he would be considered unclean. It would only be through the ritual washing of purification that he could be ceremonially cleansed. The ashes of the red heifer were needed for this purpose.

Today, we are only cleansed from “dead things” that we touch (or participate in) by the blood of Jesus Christ and the washing with His word. Thankfully, He does this, as we surrender our lives to Him and ask Him to search our hearts. It is Christ’s tender faithfulness to cleanse us that Paul mentions while telling husbands to love their wives.

“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.”

Ephesians 5:25–27 (NKJV)

How we all need this work of our Lord to purify us and make us fit for service! But what if we refuse to come to Him for cleansing? Then not only will we be personally defiled, but we will also defile others. Therefore, let us come often to our Lord Jesus who cleanses us so much better than the ashes of a red heifer.

Thanks for reading. I’m glad you’re here.

“And you and your sons with you shall guard your priesthood for all that concerns the altar and that is within the veil; and you shall serve. I give your priesthood as a gift…”

We’ve all heard the cliché “with great privilege comes great responsibility.” There could be no greater privilege than drawing near to God to offer the sacrifices in the tabernacle. God set apart the priests for this important role. They would bear the responsibility for offenses against the sanctuary and against the priesthood. Now this instruction came on the heels of 250 renowned leaders in Israel, who were not priests, seeking unsuccessfully to offer incense before the LORD. God was making the priests responsible to rule in all matters of the sanctuary.

In compensation for this responsibility, the priests received the Levites as a gift. The Levites helped the priests in their duties, but the Levites were not permitted to draw near to the LORD in offering sacrifices or incense. The priests also received the heave offerings (the portion set aside from the offerings given to the LORD) and several other consecrated things from the Israelites. They would not be given an inheritance in the land, for the LORD was their portion.

Under the New Covenant, the Levitical priesthood has been replaced. Jesus is now our High Priest in the order of Melchizedek, and believers in Christ have been made kings and priests to our God.

“To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”

Revelation 1:5–6 (NKJV)

So, what application does Numbers 18 have for us? Truly it is a great privilege to be considered a king and priest! And with great privilege comes great responsibility.

“For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more.”

Luke 12:48 (NKJV)

This causes me to pause and reflect. Have I been responsible with what God has given to me? Have I ruled well the things over which He has given me authority? God is holy, and those who would draw near to Him must also be holy. This would be overwhelming were it not for the provision of His grace!

“Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”

2 Corinthians 3:5–6 (ESV)

The wonderful thing about serving Christ is that whatever He calls us to do, He also equips us to perform…if we fully trust in Him.

Thanks for reading. I’m glad you’re here.

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“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.”

The LORD said of His people that they were stiff-necked. Today’s story illustrates this. After the earth opened and swallowed Korah, Dathan and Abiram, and fire came from the LORD and consumed the 250 men who offered incense, I think I would have thought twice about questioning Moses and Aaron’s right to lead. But the next day the congregation grumbled against Moses and Aaron, saying, “You are the ones who have caused the death of the LORD’S people.” Did they really think that Moses had the power to split the earth and swallow people?

Once again, the LORD told Moses to step away, and He would consume the congregation. (This tells us what God thinks of murmuring and complaining!) Moses and Aaron fell on their faces, but a plague had already broken out. Moses told Aaron to take fire from the altar and put it on the incense in his censer to make atonement for the people. Now this is interesting because the incense going up before the LORD was symbolic of the people’s prayers. This was yet another example of Moses interceding before the LORD to spare the people.

As the plague struck, Aaron walked among the people, standing between the living and the dead. In one sense, we are each called to do this. We walk among people every day. Some are spiritually alive, and some are spiritually dead. But through our prayers we can intercede for them. We pray that God would spare their lives and open their eyes to see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ so they may be saved (2 Corinthians 4:4).

In doing this, Aaron stopped the plague, but not before 14,700 people perished in addition to those who died in the Korah incident. God’s wrath was stirred because of the people’s continued unbelief. But He had a creative and “fruitful” way of stopping their complaining once and for all!

There is always an easy way and a hard way to learn. May we not be stubborn mules, who must be harnessed with bit and bridle, but rather sheep who hear and obey their Shepherd’s voice.

Thanks for reading. I’m glad you’re here.

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“And he spoke to the congregation, saying, ‘Depart now from the tents of these wicked men! Touch nothing of theirs, lest you be consumed in all their sins.’”

The book of Numbers is full of valuable lessons. During the forty years in the wilderness, the children of Israel tested the LORD, trying His patience. Never had humans seen such visible demonstrations of God. If ever they doubted whether God was with them, all they had to do was to look up at the tabernacle and see the cloudy pillar. God performed mighty miracles to deliver them from Egypt and provided miraculously for them every day. But still they doubted.
 
Now Korah and his associates doubted Moses’ leadership. They didn’t understand why everyone had to do what he said. Didn’t they also hear from the LORD? They accused Moses and Aaron of taking too much on themselves.
 
We are told that Moses was the meekest man on the earth (Numbers 12:3). Rather than becoming defensive, he chose to make the LORD his defense. He knew that neither he nor Aaron took their rolls upon themselves. God called, equipped, and sent them. Tragically, Korah, his friends and the 250 renowned leaders were not content to accept the place God had given them. And their greed would cost them their lives.
 
Once again, the LORD told Moses and Aaron to separate themselves from the congregation, for He would consume them in a moment (v. 21). And once again, Moses and Aaron interceded for the people. Therefore, God told them to separate from the tents of Korah, Dathan and Abiram.
 
There are times when we must separate ourselves from the ungodly. If we do not, then we will be consumed with them. How many people are consumed because they would not separate themselves from sin? Their great potential goes up in smoke.
 
Fortunately, for the congregation, this time they obeyed the LORD and separated themselves from the tents of these ungodly men.
 
Moses proposed a sign by which everyone would know that the LORD had sent him. If the ground opened and swallowed them whole, then everyone would know that these men had rejected the LORD. As soon as Moses spoke these words the ground opened, and these three men, along with their possessions, went down to the pit.
 
What is the lesson? First, know the place to which God has called you. Striving to please God as best you can is good. Striving to take what belongs to someone else is bad. Second, knowing the judgment to come, separate yourself from wickedness, lest you be condemned with the world.

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“They gathered together against Moses and Aaron, and said to them, ‘You take too much upon yourselves, for all the congregation is holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the LORD?’”

It is interesting that the section of Scripture we cover today begins with God telling the people to make blue tassels for the corners of their garments. These were to remind them to keep His commandments and to “not follow the harlotry” to which their own heart and eyes were inclined. But in the very next section we see a group of them leading a rebellion against the LORD and against Moses.

Korah was a Levite who had been assigned the task of helping the priests serve in the tabernacle. He was also a relative of Moses and Aaron. He gathered around himself a posse from the tribe of Reuben. They revolted against Moses and Aaron along with 250 of the renowned leaders of the congregation.

In saying that Moses and Aaron took too much upon themselves and that all the congregation was holy, they were rebelling against God’s appointed leadership. Clearly, Moses and Aaron did not take their roles upon themselves. God called and appointed them. They were not exalting themselves above the congregation. They merely obeyed the LORD.

At the core of this rebellion was jealousy. Korah wanted Moses and Aaron’s job! Korah had already been given the privilege of serving before the LORD in the tabernacle, but that wasn’t good enough. Korah wanted the priesthood as well. He felt entitled and thought that Moses and Aaron were nothing special.

So, how did Moses handle it? He didn’t try to defend himself. Rather, he fell on his face before the LORD and let God be his defense. He allowed Korah and company to act on their ambitions to have the priesthood by offering incense the next day. But Moses also rebuked them for taking too much upon themselves.

When God blesses you, the people closest to you may become jealous and challenge you. That is hard to take, but it happens. How will you handle it?

Thanks for reading. I’m glad you’re here.

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“So the priest shall make atonement for the person who sins unintentionally, when he sins unintentionally before the LORD, to make atonement for him; and it shall be forgiven him.”

Ignorance of the law is never an excuse…or so I’ve been told. While on vacation in North Carolina, I unknowingly violated one of their traffic laws. As I saw the blue lights approaching me, I pulled over to let him pass, thinking he was after someone else. But then he pulled behind me, making it clear that I was his target! My ignorance of the law did not make me innocent, although it was an unintentional sin.

In God’s Law, atonement was provided for unintentional sins. When you became aware of your sin, you had to bring the proper offering. For an individual, this was a female goat. It was sacrificed as a sin offering, and God would forgive you of your sin. However, under the old covenant there was no atonement for presumptuous sins. The person who sinned intentionally would be cut off from his people because he despised the word of the LORD. Ouch!

Thankfully, we live under the new covenant where there is only one unpardonable sin: the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. I believe this is resisting the Holy Spirit’s testimony of Jesus Christ until He finally leaves you alone, saying, “Your will be done.” But we should never take sin lightly–especially deliberate sin. It carries a high price tag.

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“According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land, forty days, a year for each day, you shall bear your iniquity forty years, and you shall know my displeasure.”

Some choices have inescapable consequences. While God is merciful and does not give us what our deeds deserve, there are limits to His patience and mercy. At times He must chasten the children He loves.

Such was the case for the children of Israel. The ten spies who spread a bad report about the Promised Land would die in the plague before the LORD because of their impertinence. The congregation who accused the LORD of bringing them there to fall by the sword and to kill their children would spend the next thirty-eight years in the wilderness. Those adults who were twenty years and older would never enter the land of milk and honey but would die in the desert.

“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” 

Hebrews 12:11 (NIV84)

When God brings out the rod of discipline, the best thing to do is to submit to it. But that was the one thing the children of Israel were unwilling to do. After God declared that they would remain in the wilderness, then they mustered the courage to invade the land of Canaan without the LORD! But their presumptuous plan was doomed from the start.

Yet even in the midst of judgment, God remembers mercy. God judged them for their unbelief in failing to enter Canaan at the right time. Then they were beat up by the Amalekites and Canaanites when they insisted on going in at the wrong time. Nevertheless, God remembered mercy by instructing the children and youth what kind of offerings they should present to the LORD when they entered Canaan thirty-eight years later.

When our son was young, I did not spare the rod for acts of defiance. (Our “rod” was a 5-gallon paint stir stick from Home Depot.) This was initially painful to him, but he recovered physically within a few minutes. However, there were times he made the mistake of trying to stop the “board of education” from contacting the “seat of learning.” In those moments his hand would take the blow and hurt worse than the padded place God prepared for this purpose. I advised him to be brave enough to endure the blow without resistance. It would be better for him.

Likewise, when God brings out the rod, we ought to humbly submit to it. After all, He punishes us far less than we deserve. God may put us in the fire for a time, but this is only to cleanse us from evil so that we are not condemned with the world. In the end, God’s discipline will produce the beautiful fruits of righteousness and peace.

Thanks for reading. I’m glad you’re here.

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