Greatest. Pep-talk. Evah.

After wandering in the desert for 40 years, the book of Deuteronomy records an amazing speech given by Moses to the people as they are finally poised to enter the promised land.

Moses makes a Vince Lombardi speech seem in comparison like a speech class final presentation gone horribly wrong. This is especially remarkable because when God first called Moses at the burning bush, he thought at the most he was an ineloquent babbler (Exodus 4:10).

While Deuteronomy spans 34 chapters, the essence and heart of his speech is summed up in Deut 7:6-12. In fact, this is a great summary of practically God's entire dealing with Israel in the whole OT:

6 For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession.

7 The LORD did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. 8 But it was because the LORD loved you and kept the oath he swore to your ancestors that he brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the land of slavery, from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt. 9 Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments. 10 But

those who hate him he will repay to their face by destruction;
he will not be slow to repay to their face those who hate him.

11 Therefore, take care to follow the commands, decrees and laws I give you today.

12 If you pay attention to these laws and are careful to follow them, then the LORD your God will keep his covenant of love with you, as he swore to your ancestors.

The pep-talk was absolutely needed, because Israel had just come off a 40 year loosing streak wandering the desert. A season marked by rebellion, complaining, fear, faithlessness, smiting from God of various sorts, fumbles, interceptions, blow-outs, shut-outs, missed field goals, dropped passes, and sacks. Israel was "0-for". Deut chp 9 is the pathetic scouting report of Israel's 40 years, explicitly stating that taking possession of the promised land had nothing to do with the righteousness of Israel (Deut 9:4-6). To the contrary, Moses brings out the laundry list of their failures, and vs 7-29 reads like a rap sheet:

--provocation of the Lord (vs 7, 18)
--rebellion (vs 7, 23, 24)
--wrath-arousing (vs 8)
--idolatry (vs 12)
--sin (vs 16, 18, 21)
--evil deeds (18)
--wickedness (vs 27)
--stubbornness (vs 27)

Many times both Moses and God call them a stiff-necked people (vs 6, 13) which is a great quality for a linebacker, but not so much for the chosen people of God.

[An important aside: before we proudly say to ourselves, "Glad I'm not like them" remember that Jesus suffered and died for our sin and rebellion too. Our own necks can be stiffer than a Louisville Slugger.]

Nevertheless, Moses is pumping them up because now it's time to cross the river Jordan, enter the promised land, and conquer 7 nations that are "larger and stronger" than Israel (Deut 7:1). They have "large cities with walls up to the sky" and the people are Anakites (picture Mixed Martial Arts monsters jacked up on 'roids! Deut 9:1-2).

This is the Sedro-Woolley little league Pop Warner C Team taking on the Yankees. At Yankee Field.

Except for one thing, God Almighty is playing for Sedro. Check out Jehovah's Topps baseball card:

Batting average: 1.000
Pitching earned run average: 0.00
Fielding errors: 0
Missed games: 0
Strike outs: 0
Home runs: each swing of the bat
Years played in the majors: all eternity past, present and future.
Steroid allegations: 0

Moses knew that if the Israelites kept the Lord on their team, they would be undefeated. By being faithful to the commands and covenant with God, they would be wildly successful in battle (Deut 7:17-24), blessed with large families, fruitful in their crops and animals, free of disease, showered with material blessings, and soaked in God's love (vs 13-15).

Moses' battle cry to rouse the Israelites against their enemies rings out in Deut 7:21, 24

Do not be terrified by them, for the Lord your God, who is among you, is a great and awesome God... No one will be able to stand up against you. You will destroy them.

The same principle applies to Christians today. Our enemies, both the Prince of this world and our sin nature, are seemingly insurmountable. At times it appears we are greatly overmatched. But in Romans 8:31-39, Paul delivers an epic halftime locker room talk that mirrors the one by Moses. This just rocks:

31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:
“For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”[a]

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[b] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The key thing to remember is that we do not prevail by our own strength, effort, or work. Jesus is the one who gave 110%. Jesus left it all out on the field. By His blood, sweat and tears we earn the victory. At the end of the day, He gets handed the game ball and all the glory. In fact, he's already won. We just get taken along for the ride in the victory parade.

Alright, everybody huddle up, hands in together. On three....ONE, TWO, THREE! DO THIS THING!!!!!!

Jesus Heals a Leper: Touching the Untouchable

Flipside Message 6/23/11

The Point:
A single touch from the outreached hand of Jesus can make us clean.

Opening Prayer.

Begin Message==>

I'm going to read 5 sentences from the Bible about a man whose life was radically changed by a single touch. This passage is so profound that it can change the entire course of your life too.

Text: Luke 5:12-13

While Jesus was in one of the towns, a man came along who was covered with leprosy. When he saw Jesus, he fell with his face to the ground and begged him, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” And immediately the leprosy left him.

Background to the story:
1) Lepers were not allowed inside the town. He wasn't allowed in Mallards Ice Cream, or the Bagelry, or Bellis Fair Mall. This man was an outcast, untouchable. An object of scorn, but he battled his way through the crowd to meet Jesus.

2) The man who approaches Jesus is not just some guy with the sniffles, or a tummy ache. He's a leper. And the author of this gospel, Luke, was a medical doctor that includes details the other accounts do not. This man was "covered" by leprosy. He was late stage, far gone.


I'm going to show you a few pictures of lepers in order for you to understand the full meaning of this passage in the Bible. But want to warn you that it is intense and you may want to turn aside if you're squeamish. I'm not trying to shock you, but the better you understand the fullness of the story, the more amazing it is and the meaning for your life becomes more important.

Background info about leprosy:
1) It is a bacteria that gets into every portion of the body but attacks the extremities where the body temperature is lower.

2) The disease attacks and destroys nerve endings such that people loose the ability to feel pain. Because they don't feel pain they would hurt themselves and loose body parts to infection. Back in the day people didn't were crocs, or vans, or Ugg Boots, so when they walked they got blisters.

3) Lepers were highly stigmatized and cast out of society in Biblical times. Partly because of OT commands for purity and cleanliness in the camp (Lev 13, Num 5:1). They were said to defile the camp, so they lived apart from the people of God.

4) Lepers could not have any human contact in the later stages. They had to wear signs and shout "Unclean! Unclean! Unclean! " when they were near people. They were untouchable.


What we learn about the Leper who came to Jesus:

Put yourself in this man's position. Imagine this is your life.


A Low Point

1) He was desperate, at the lowest part of his life. He saw a huge crowd, heard murmurs that Jesus was in town. He probably heard news that this Jesus could heal. He dared to approach Jesus in town. Since lepers often travelled in groups, he told his fellow lepers where he was going. They probably tried to talk him out of it. May have had rocks chucked at him on the way into town like some sick dog. Curses were brought down on him by the townspeople, he was likely spit on. But he pressed in to get close, fought the crowd.
He had to see Jesus!



Faith First

2) The leper had faith in Jesus first, then got healed. "Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean." The journey to healing and wholeness starts with faith. Faith is more than belief, it is a deep trust, an investment of all you have into the One who made you all you are. This man trusted in Jesus. The other lepers with him did not approach Jesus. Why? They lacked faith. They didn't think he could do anything. They thought that maybe he was just a good teacher. Or maybe a kook. Maybe they looked at their disfigured hands, their rotting feet, their open sores covering their body and thought, "Jesus can't heal me." Some people today make the same mistakes.


Honest with Himself

3) The Leper understands his unclean, foul condition. He knew he had a serious problem. Some of you don't know the dire condition you're in. Or, perhaps you know, but don't want to change. Sin and leprosy are the same in that they start small but get progressively worse. Leprosy can be in your body for 8 years before it shows up. Sin can be in your life for a while, without the effects being immediately apparent or visible. But it will always eventually take a toll. As leprosy can deaden the body's sensitivity to pain, sin also can make us callus, give us a hard heart insensitive to God's love, or the pain you're causing yourself or others. Sin always grows, gets worse, eats away at our soul unless we come to Jesus for healing, to be made clean.


Humility

4) The leper fell to his knees, fell with his face to the ground in absolute desperation. He was covered in leprosy, had open seeping wounds. Falling face down in the dirt was a big deal. Being touched by God requires humility. Throughout the Bible, when people meet God, they fall to the ground. Sometimes we need to fall on our face in despair before God. In our darkest hour, Jesus is there reaching out to touch you with a hand of comfort.
All of us have times when we are desperate for help. At an absolute low point. Call out to the Lord and fall before him: Psalm 107:4-6.

Some wandered in desert wastelands, finding no way to a city where they could settle. They were hungry and thirsty, and their lives ebbed away.Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.

Spread the News

5) The leper spread the news of his healing. He probably ran back to his family to tell them about his healing! What would your reaction be if you were healed of an incurable, deadly disease? Keep it a secret? Go back to your Xbox game? What about sharing it with the other people who are also lepers? They would need to know this good news too! If you're a Christian, have you told anybody what God's done for you? What would you do with the best news you've ever heard? You know the reason I'm here tonight talking to you? I'm like a leper that was healed.

What we learn about Jesus:

Jesus is God

1) Power to heal reflects his Divinity. Jesus is not just a "good teacher". He is the one who raises people from the dead, gave sight to the blind, read minds, was raised from the dead. He's the same one who flung stars into space at creation. With a touch he could heal. He is the man who is God. He didn't just live thousands of years ago. He's living today. Today he is reaching out.


Jesus is Close to Us

2) He touched the man. An astonishing act that broke all the rules of the religious rulers of the day. While he could have healed without touching, Jesus touched his disgusting, decayed, festering, oozing skin. He could've blinked to heal him, or pointed a finger, or just thought it. Instead he touched the untouchable leper. God taking human form is no less of a stretch. God came to dwell among us, to suffer our conditions, be a man of sorrows. He joined us in the muck and mire.


Loves the Unclean

3) Jesus loved this man before he was clean. He loves the unclean and untouchable. He loves the one who others would spit on. We don't have to "be good" in order for God to love us. The leper didn't need to wash up, put on good clothes to approach Jesus. We don't heal ourselves to go to the doctor. We go to Jesus to get made well. Because he loves us.

What we learn about us?
1) Our sin is like leprosy. The things we do wrong, our disobedience to God, the things we don't do that we should is like leprosy. We are made in God's image but sin works to disfigure and scar that beautiful image. We were't made for war, hate, jealousy, greed, deceit. God didn't create a world where children fear their parents. Or parents abuse their children, but it happens. Too much. This is a scarring of sin, a festering boil on God's humanity. Sin also penetrates deeply to within every cell of our body. It can't be healed or cleaned by soap and water. We are utterly helpless to heal ourselves. It pushes us from the presence of God, alienates us from others. Some people say, "I'm a good person, or at least I'm not as bad as some people." It is meaningless for two lepers to compare their relative conditions, "I'm way better than that other guy, he's lost two feet and a hand. I've just lost 3 toes." So too we can't say, "I'm not a sinner, I'm not as bad as that guy." (Credit Tyler Erikson). Our sin is like leprosy. While there are about 15 million people have the disease today, there are 6 billion people with a sinful condition far worse

2) Like the leper we must acknowledge our condition. If we were to see ourselves in our sin, we'd appear as gross and disfigured as a late stage leper. A leper is separated from people, a sinner is separated from God. But Jesus cleans both! Touches and restored both the leper and the sinner! God wants to bring us back to how He created us: pure, good, whole.

3) To be cleaned we must fall at the feet of Jesus and beg him in repentance.

4) We must approach Jesus in faith and acknowledge Him as Lord. Our personal Lord.

5) Once healed, then talk freely to others about what Jesus has done for you. The leper was cleaned and delivered from his life of suffering and separation from those he loved. When God cleans and forgives us we're delivered from an eternity of suffering and separation from Him.


Making it personal for two groups:

1) You might be the person denying your condition, walking around with oozing wounds but thinking everything is just fine. You can try to cover your condition, but that doesn't help. A leper who puts on a tuxedo is a just a well dressed leper. Some people try to cover their sin with wealth. But a rich sinner is still a sinner. A cool, popular sinner is a sinner. Jesus is nearby but you don't want to fall before him. Perhaps you are like the other lepers traveling with this man who stayed on the outside while the one received healing. Jesus calls you to draw near and be healed. Know that God will receive you with open arms. Today.

2) Your pain is not without purpose. The biggest problem with lepers is that they feel no pain. But that is the very thing that threatens their life. You may be experiencing pain right now. Physical or emotional pain. You might be struggling with mental illness. It might be intense pain and suffering. Some people at this very minute might want to die because of their pain. I want you to know that God has an amazing ability to turn your pain into blessing. Pain can have good purpose, it has been called a gift by Dr. Paul Brand who worked with lepers in India for decades. God can touch our pain and eventually turns it into praise. This is no less miraculous than Jesus healing a leper, but he turns pain into praise, suffering into worship, tears of pain to tears of joy. My co-worker has a son with spina bifida and went through a horrible spell of cancer. Terrible suffering in the family but just today she said that God has turned their pain into pure joy, because she know that God has been with them. Sometimes it takes years, but He is The Healer. He promises to wipe away every tear with the same hand touched and healed the leper.


The Point: There is a loving savior, Jesus, who wants you to be forgiven of a condition that separates you from God. You're utterly helpless to cure yourself. Will you fall at His feet, confess Him as Lord, and be touched by Him? He's reaching out right now. At this very moment, your life can be radically changed, forgiven of sin, with an assurance that you'll be with Jesus forever in heaven.

Concluding prayer.

The Wood Gatherer (Part III)

The Bible has a large number of passages that just make me squirm. These bitter pills don't make me doubt my faith in God, nor question His goodness or love. But they are difficult to swallow nonetheless. In Part 1 I resolved not to deny or diminish such passages, but instead to dig for meaning and Truth.

Currently I'm struggling with Numbers 15:32-36 where God has the assembly of Israelites stone a Sabbath breaker who was collecting wood. In Part II there is good reason to believe that this man was engaging in active, intentional and defiant rebellion against God. It's clearly not a case of unintentional sin, but a man who held contempt for the Living God.

But even if we ascribe the worst intentions, the most malice, the hardest heart of rebellion to the wood gatherer, we're still faced with the stiff reality that God had this man killed. And, even more, God commanded the assembly of people to do the actual deed. This was no fire from heaven episode, supernatural plague, or hailstones cast from the hand of God. But this man died, bloody blow by blow with stones cast from the hands his tribesmen, brethren, people he travelled with. Were family members present? Close friends? How long did the people who participated keep the image of the dying man's face in their minds? Did they see him in their sleep years later?

This passage joins a Biblical pharmacy of other bitter pills that are tough to swallow:

--Nadab and Abihu (Lev 10)
--Korah and company (Num 16)
--Uzzah (1 Chron 13:9-10)
--Anybody not named "Noah" or immediately related in his time (Gen 6:5-8).

And before we broad-brush the New Testament as being the "nice part of the Bible", let's remember:

--Annanais and Saphira (Acts 5)
--Most any moment within the Great Tribulation (Revelation)
--The guy Paul delivered to Satan for the destruction of his flesh (1 Cor 5:1-5)
--Jesus teaching more about hell, eternal torment, weeping, gnashing of teeth than anybody else in the Bible.

So how do we reconcile the God who is love having wrath? Grace with judgement? Heaven with hell? Jesus the gentle Lamb of God also the coming King who will destroy his enemies with His breath?

The answer might come by thinking about what might have happened if God didn't act as He did. What if God let the sin, rebellion, and contempt go unchecked? What if the wood-gatherer went out on the Sabbath and nothing happened? Probably not much would change. For a time. But sin tends to grow, both within the heart/mind of a person and through his community. One broken law leads to another. One law breaker leads to another.

But, we might say, "Well, so what if one sin leads to another? Nobody got hurt when he gathered his sticks. Maybe even some good came out of it, because he could feed and warm his family." But the Lord instituted the Sabbath out of love and concern for his people. Think of the grace involved in dedicating a day to rest and worship. A life without rest and worship is not without consequence, both to communities and individuals. The argument is even more clear with the other commands related to living in community (lying, adultry, murder). If the Sabbath Breaker has no consequence for his sin, he's more likely to move down the list of offenses. If he goes unchecked. We know this in our lives, that sin unchecked breeds more sin. Not until we repent and the Holy Spirit convicts can we bear fruit for the Lord.

Just look at the Philistines to get a picture of sin left unchecked: immorality that stained the very earth (Lev 18:25), sacrificing their own children to the false god Molech (Lev 18:21) as a few examples.

"Well and good," we might say, "But still, isn't stoning too harsh? What about a slap on the wrist? Or a time out? Or taking away the wood-gatherers Xbox for a week?"

To me, the issue comes down to three main points:

The Wages of Sin
Romans 6:23 seems to hit the nail on the head. Not understanding the wages of sin, is to underestimate the true ugly offense of sin, the cost, the insult to a holy God. The price paid for sin is death, both in spiritual separation from God and in the physical destruction of our bodies. The price paid for sin is ruin and discord in families, marriages, between parent/child, siblings, friends. There is separation and alienation between people in any organization greater than 1 in size. The cross of Jesus is the culmination of the wages of sin. God's own Son dying for our sin. The wood-gatherer's death is not the marvel, but the norm. When a sinner dies, it is a "dog bites man" story. But the true wonder and marvel is when mercy is shown to a sinner and he is forgiven by the blood of Jesus and given new life. This is a "man bites dog" story and really worthy of wonder.

"But why wasn't the wood-gatherer shown mercy? Why wasn't God patient with him?" By understanding the passage in context, it is very likely that this wood-gatherer did experience a life of forbearance, patience with God. He was delivered from Egypt and shown miracles that should've turned any heathen to a believer. Yet he decided rebel. And his time was up. The piper must be paid, but from whose pocket? Mine? Yours? Or do we let Jesus pick up the tab for our sin?


The Holiness of God
God's hate for sin is the other side of His love for us. Because He is good, then His very nature is to squash evil. Otherwise, He would not be good. The policeman that allows the bank heist to proceed isn't a good cop. Nor the fireman who turns his back on the blazing inferno, consuming the house with his own family. When the Bible says that "God is Holy" it means that he is entirely separate and set apart from sin. There is no co-mingling. For a time God is allowing sin and evil to proceed for the sake of the salvation of the elect. But a time will come where all evil is destroyed, all unrighteous cast out, every tear wiped away, every hurt healed, even death itself will be cast in the lake of fire. And those who die without faith in the one true living God will also perish. They could not tolerate his majestic glory with the stain of sin. When we are washed clean of sin, rebellion, and evil then will be able to bask in His holiness, see His face, dwell in His full glory. But only because Jesus paid the wages of our sin by his death to satisfy the Holy God and Father.


The Name of God
Though I'm still squeamish about the "smite button" on God's remote control, the resolution of the love/wrath questions also lies in the name of God. Exodus 34:5,6,7 captures it perfectly (and is easy to remember because of the 3, 4, 5, 6, 7!). This is the passage that is commonly called the John 3:16 of the Old Testament:

Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation.”

If the Hebrews played football back in the day, a sign with this verse would be held up behind the goal posts.

I believe that we will spend eternity learning the full meaning of His name, the depth of His character, the breadth of His love, the glory of His holiness. I pray for courage to learn about these things now in His scripture, even in a wood-gatherer.

Korah's Rebellion: Leadership Lessons from Numbers 16

The account of Korah's Rebellion against Moses and Aaron is filthy rich with leadership lessons. In Numbers 16 there is a face off between God's chosen leaders and a large group of ungodly leaders. The story itself could be a Hollywood film because of the twists/turns and high drama. But apart from that, it is a gold mine that gives really practical lessons for leadership.

For everybody with a Dgroup of squirrley kids, a Doxa or Flipside night where the nothing went right, this is a great chapter that makes you thankful for your problems and is good to meditate on and really chew for a while.

Background to the chapter
After God delivered the Israelites from Egypt, the journey to the promised land wasn't pretty. There was more down than up, more chaff than wheat, more manure than fruitful crop.

Picture a nightmare family road trip to Disneyland in Tim Burton style. The parents Moses and Aaron are driving a mini-van filled with many hundred thousand hungry, whiny, bratty kids (the Israelites). The air-conditioner is broken, the windows don't roll down, Timmy got car sick in the 230th row of seats, and everybody is furious because they're tired of eating McManna Happy Meals. In Numbers 14 God's pillar of fire is the TomTom navigation system that just turned the mini-van away from Disneyland (the promised land) and now they are going back to the desert. The kids in the backseat then went from being whiners to vandals and thugs. They are smashing windows, sticking gum in the ceiling mounted DVD players, pulling pig tails, duct-taping the little kids. All the while steam is shooting out of both the car's radiator and the nostrils of Moses in the driver's seat. A tire blows out on the mini-van and they come to a skidding halt in the middle of nowhere on a 100 plus degree day. Then as Chapter 16 opens Korah, with tire iron in hand, decides to fight Moses for the keys.

(Truth be told, this is also the same story of the whole human race where we are the kids and God is the driver. Each one of us has picked up the tire iron and taken a swing at our Heavenly Father by our sin. And it's only by the love, grace and sacrifice of Jesus that we actually do get the ticket to Disneyland and can leave the desert to enjoy the cool, watery Small World ride in heaven. I know the analogy breaks down here because most people would assign the Small World ride to hell.)

Here are some leadership lessons that speak to me from this chapter.

Being Outnumbered and Unpopular
Leadership sometimes means being outnumbered, going against the crowd, swimming upstream while everybody else is going down. This requires great courage. Moses and Aaron were outmanned as Korah came with 250 "well known community leaders appointed to the council" (vs2). And if these were leaders of the council, it is very likely they represented a much larger community that was equally upset with Moses and Aaron in the camp. But Moses and Aaron were being led by God. Knowing His will is a huge source of courage when facing even a rebellious mob. It is worth the price of unpopularity and being outmanned if the Lord is wearing your team's jersey. Because you know who will eventually win.


Reputation isn't King
The people who rebelled had a sterling reputation in the community (vs 3). Today they might have have been senators, mayors, or even a judge on American Idol. But reputation is worthless if not held with integrity and obedience to God. Better to be humble before God than "well known members of the council" and insolent. Moses and Aaron were members of God's council and that's the place to be.

Prayer is the First Step In Leadership
Moses' first reaction to the uprising is to fall face down before the Lord (vs4). I believe that in between vs 4 and 5 is an unrecorded prayer of help and wisdom. Moses did very few things without God's council and for years developed a habit of prayer that turned into a reflex action in this moment. Instead of blowing his top, or making a plan, or sharpening his proverbial sword, he sought the Lord in prayer and humility. As soon as we know trouble is coming down the road, it is a great time to get on our knees. In fact, before trouble arrives is a good time, and while trouble is here. Or after it passes.

Plenty is Enough
Korah was a member if the Kohathite family who God separated out and sanctified for the purpose of carrying the most holy things of the tabernacle (see Numbers 3). Korah was already in a special position of leadership among the Israelites. It's likely that thousands of Israelites watched with jealousy as they saw Korah carrying the golden lampstand in parade fashion. But Korah wasn't satisfied with his blessing and position given by God (vs9). He wanted to kill the golden goose to get the few golden eggs inside. We need to guard our hearts, learn contentment and remember that plenty is enough. Our blessings from God are too many to count and if we despise the position God's given us, we're in for a life guaranteed to be disappointing and miserable. In fact, the rebels were so consumed and twisted by greed that in their minds Egypt had become the promised land "flowing with milk and honey" (vs 13).

Love for Those You Lead
Moses had an amazing love for the rebellious people and acted to save them at the end of the chapter when God opened up a can of whoop*** on them. In vs 42-50 there's yet another rebellion and God releases a plague that starts knocking people down like bowling pins and could decimate the entire population. In an amazing act of grace and love, Moses and Aaron sprint like Usain Bolt to atone for the people's rebellion by offering incense. The plague is stopped, but only after 14,700 people died. I believe it was compassion and love for the people that drove Moses' leadership at this time. If there are rebellious students under our stewardship, we need to remember to love them deeply, pray for them always, intercede on their behalf so that that too might be covered by the atoning sacrifice of Jesus.


Anybody up for Magic Mountain?

The Wood Gatherer (Part II)

In part 1 of looking at Numbers 15:32-36 I decided to dig into a very unsettling passage of the OT rather than deny it exists or somehow diminish it's message:

While the people of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day. And those who found him gathering sticks brought him to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation. They put him in custody, because it had not been made clear what should be done to him. And the Lord said to Moses, "The man shall be put to death; all the congregation shall stone him with stones outside the camp.". And all the congregation brought him outside the camp and stoned him to death with stones, as the Lord commanded Moses.

[taking deep breath, spitting in hands, picking up shovel, beginning to dig...]

To begin with, I want to gather some facts... Wait, backup. To begin with I want to pray to the same God who thousands of years ago issued this judgement on a man to be killed for gathering wood.

Lord God Almighty, Father in heaven, I'm having a very difficult time looking at this passage and then looking at you. I'm frankly more comfortable right now with your Son who saved an adultress from being stoned to death. I'm more comfortable with the Spirit who softens hearts of stone. But you, Father, issued a death warrant to somebody doing light duty work on the Sabbath. Isn't this the type of thing your Son rebuked the Pharisees for? Father, please give me eyes to see and ears to hear. I love you and want to know you more, but I'm more than a bit uneasy with this snapshot of you in your word. Show me the Way, Guide me into the Truth, give me fullness of Life. In Jesus name. Amen.

Now to begin gathering facts from the passage:

The setting: Sinai desert, not far the Jordan River.

The time: An unspecified Sabbath day, soon after the nation of Israel was turned back from the promised for inciting rebellion. Within a few months or perhaps a few years after being set free from Egypt.

The players: 1) wood-gatherer; 2) God; 3) people who found the wood-gatherer; 4) Moses; 5) Aaron; 6) the assembly or congregation of the Israeilites.

The text doesn't give much info up about the wood-gatherer other than he's a man. We can safely assume a Hebrew. Moving beyond that, we need to play Sherlock Holmes with deduction. He most likely endured slavery in Egypt under the torment of the Pharoah. Was there ever blood on his hands from the slaughtered Passover Lamb? Did he peak his head out of the window to see the destroyer killing the Egyptian firstborn sons?

He might have stuck his hand into the wall of water that towered on either side of him as he crossed the Red Sea on dry ground. He likely sang the song of Moses when they reached safety and saw the destruction of Pharoah's army. Did this man also gather wood to melt the gold to make the golden calf idol when Moses was on the mountain? He probably saw the lightening, heard the deafening thunder of God on the mountain.

Did he mourn the deaths of Nadab and Abihu when they were killed by God in the temple for another seemingly minor infraction (Lev. 10)? Did he grumble about not having food in the desert, then grumble about the mana after a time, then grumble about the quail that God brought? He surely saw the pillar of fire and cloud as God led Israel in the desert. Did he tremble in fear when the scouts delivered a bad report of the promised land? Then pick up stones to kill Joshua and Caleb who delivered the good report of the promised land? Did God personally stay the hand of this man to keep Joshua from being stoned?

He heard the reading of the Law by Moses given by the Lord. He saw numerous miracles and knew God's awesome power firsthand. God's holy standards cannot be argued to be a surprise to the wood gatherer. Especially the command to rest on the Sabbath.

To bring these events into clearer focus, let's look at the passages immediately before and after for context.

In the passages before, God gives instructions for unintentional sins committed by the people (Num 15:22-29) and, more importantly, for intentional, defiant sins (vs 30-31):

“ ‘But anyone who sins defiantly, whether native-born or alien, blasphemes the Lord, and that person must be cut off from his people. Because he has despised the Lord's word and broken his commands, that person must surely be cut off; his guilt remains on him.’ ”

The wood-gatherer passage is followed immediately by another horrible episode where Korah leads a rebellion against Moses and Aaron, he gets torched, along with 250 other rebels, then 14,700 people get killed by a plague because they sided against Moses and Aaron and ultimately against God.

These before and after bookends shine interesting light and the author of Numbers is probably sending a message in the arrangement: the wood collector wasn't just some guy who forgot that it was Saturday, an absent minded bumbler who accidentally strayed. If it was unintentional then there would be atonement (vs 22-26).

But the Lord had such a strong reaction that we can conclude that this man was being defiant, knew exactly what he was doing, he's despising the Lord's word. This might have been a regular pattern or habit of breaking the Sabbath. Or perhaps the first time, but with an "in your face God!" attitude.

The man who sees the mighty power of God displayed countlessly, who knows first hand His righteous and holy law yet still spits in God's eye is indeed treading on thin ice. Was he a husband and father, setting a bad example and leading his family into sin? Was he an elder of his tribe and leading the community to despise the Lord's commands?

Is it too much of a stretch to say that what seems like a small, minor infraction (getting wood) was more likely a serious transgression (participating in a wider rebellion against the Holy Living God)? The context certainly draws this conclusion. And from this we can learn quite a lot about this simple wood gatherer. But the next question is what can we learn about God from His reaction to the wood gatherer?

In Part 3 I'd like to chew on what it means that the sovereign God would kill somebody for violating the Sabbath. What does that reveal about His character, His personality, His name? And how does this mesh with His more popular and "likable" qualities of being loving, forgiving, and gracious?

The Wood Gatherer (Part 1)

Some passages in the Bible are bitter pills. Some are bitter pills, dipped in habenero sauce that are difficult to even sniff, let alone swallow. Numbers 15:32-36 is one of those:

While the people of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day. And those who found him gathering sticks brought him to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation. They put him in custody, because it had not been made clear what should be done to him. And the Lord said to Moses, "The man shall be put to death; all the congregation shall stone him with stones outside the camp.". And all the congregation brought him outside the camp and stoned him to death with stones, as the Lord commanded Moses.

My knee jerk reaction when I read this passage is to forget that I just read the passage. Put my hands over my ears, squeeze my eyes shut and blurt, "Nananananananana!!!!! I can't seeing anything!!!! Nanananananananan!!!!!!!!! Can't hear anything!!!!!!!!!" Or whatever the spiritual equivalent is. I like to think of God as the Good Shepherd. Not the Great Smiter. These passages are not taught in Sunday school. Not preached from the pulpit. Chances are that if they are ever mentioned, it's by some guy who is also holding a sign that says, "God hates figs." Or something.

But after reading this passage today I decided to open my eyes, take my fingers out of my ears and look at God's word closely, even if it makes me pucker.

But having set out down the path there is immediately a fork in the road and I must choose one of three routes:

Deny
Deny the validity of the Bible. Simply write off what what written, because it is such an old book and couldn't have any bearing on my life today. Conclude that the author was a sicko painting an image of a sicko deity (after all a good God wouldn't do such a bad thing). Or be generous and say that this was a mistranslation and the original text and meaning has long been lost. Or maybe the cultural gap is too great to understand the meaning back then. Or I might decide to pick and choose which parts of Scripture I like and feel comfortable with, like selecting melons from a fruit stand. Thump it, smell it, squeeze and if it feels good, toss it in the cart. All of these can be reduced to a denial of the authority and sufficiency of the Bible. But this is not an option for me, so I move on to the next.

Diminish
Reduce the importance of the passage by some trick of Xerox, hit the 25% zoom button and make it shrink in substance. So that somehow I convince myself that God didn't really command the stoning of a guy because he wanted to warm his family by the fire some Saturday, or cook his Hungry Man meal. Or maybe the author stuck a figurative tale in the midst of a historical account. Or perhaps the author was ascribing to God the actions of humans to justify his own personal guilt or shame in the murder of an innocent man. The idea is that if I get uncomfortable with a text, I won't outright deny it, but I'll shrink it down to a smaller size. So it can fit into the small cubbyhole in my small head labeled "Brian's Image of God" (with an acronym that is often not appropriate.)

Yet this option also doesn't sit well with me. So I move on to the last option:


Dig
Pick up a shovel and put in some toil and hard work to dig for the significance of the passage. Ask difficult questions, seek answers from multiple sources, starting with the Bible itself. What does the immediate context of passage indicate? Do verses adjoining before and after shed any light or give new information? Dig into the rest of the book of Numbers to see what the larger context is in the book. Dig into the historical context of the Israelites in the desert. What do the previous days, weeks, months, years and centuries say about God's character/actions as related to this wood gatherer? Dig into other books of the Bible to search for passages that deepen our understanding. Then move out of scripture to external sources: commentaries, sermons, biblical scholars. Dig into original language studies. Dig. And pray for the Spirit's guidance to teach us.

But be prepared, at the bottom of the deep hole we've dug, we'll hear the clank of a buried chest. And inside that is a treasure: the Truth. And the truth of the passage might be what our gut told us at the outset. Or the truth might force us to expand our understanding of the Almighty. But even if we don't fully understand it, we should value what was found, not diminish or deny it.

Next post in Part II, I'll try to do this very thing and dig for the truth about the stoning of a man with sticks in his hands.

The Son of Nun

Joshua is famous in the Bible for being only one of two men along with Caleb to enter the promised land, while the rest of the Israelites who started in Egypt died in the desert (Numbers 14:27-38). Joshua was extraordinary simply put. Taking over for Moses, he became the leader of the Israelites and crossed into the promised land, then led numerous successful military campaigns under God's direction.  He remains to this day a model of courage, faith, and godliness.  A stud among spiritual studs.

But it's very interesting that a huge number of the references to him in the Bible are "Joshua son of Nun". And nowhere in the Bible is Nun referred to separately except as being Joshua's dad. So who is Nun? What made him such an amazing father that his son would have faith that could do more than move mountains, but actually pray to stop the sun and moon (Joshua 10:12-13)?

Usually children are known by their parents, "Hey, isn't that Old Man McGillicutty's boy over there?"  But Nun is known only by his son Joshua.

As a dad with a son, I'm really intrigued by Nun.  In the midst of a nation of whiners, grumblers, and rebels, Nun must have done something right to instill rock-solid faith in his child.

Only sparse information is available about Nun, but 1 Chronicles 7:26-29 has some interesting nuggets:

• He was of the Tribe of Ephraim  who was the offspring of Joseph.  There is a history and lineage in Nun's family of delivers, saviors (little "s") and Nun's son would carry the tradition.
• His ancestors' granted territory in the promised land and settlement included Bethel and Shechem.   This is modern day Jerusalem, only the very heart and center of worship for the world's three major religions.  You can tell a lot about the neighbors by neighborhood.  And Shechem is a swank as you can get on the spiritual real estate market.

There are some great lessons that speak powerfully to me from Nun:

1. Your greatest contribution to the world or the kingdom of God might not be your job, your "ministry", your bank account, or your mark on the world.  But instead, might be your child.  The years invested into raising that child to love Jesus have eternal ramifications.
2. People who aren't yet parents, or who will never be parents, have a similar opportunity through their spiritual children they disciple.  Paul often called Timothy  his "son" (Philippians 2:19-23 for example).  Your impact for the kingdom might not be epic missionary work, preaching to thousands, healing the masses, or walking out with big ticket items from God's Costco.  But what if your contribution to the kingdom was faithfully discipling one person who went on to be Joshua?  Wouldn't that be just as glorifying as the work of Joshua?  
3. Your greatest act of leadership in the kingdom, might be modeling and teaching true faith to one person who becomes a leader who then leads thousands.
4. God exercises sovereignty over His creation like potter over the clay.  Perhaps in His matchless wisdom He made you to be Joshua.  Or maybe He made you to be Nun.  Regardless, all glory goes to Him.
5. Nun himself didn't enter the promised land, only his son Joshua.  What shame did Nun feel as he turned back from the River Jordan, walked away from the promised land and back into the desert?  As both literal and spiritual parents, we all have failings, disappointments and sins.  Everybody has baggage with them (some can be carried on, others must be checked at the airport counter).  But despite our failing, God can still use our service to Him for eternal good.  No tool is wrecked beyond repair that the Master can't use to make a masterpiece.   I feel bad for Joshua who probably saw his dad die in the desert, knowing he never entered into the fullness of God's blessing and promise by covenant.  I grieve sometimes at the failings while raising my own son, but take comfort in the majesty of the Almighty who is bringing all of us to the true eternal promised land.  That by the blood of Jesus I won't be turned away from the land flowing with milk and honey.

A Stone's Throw (Numbers 14)

In Numbers 14 God's people were literally a stone's throw from entering the promised land. Their kids were skipping rocks from the east bank of the Jordan River to the west. The promised land was the covenant fulfillment, a place of blessing, exceedingly good (vs 7), flowing with Starbucks and scones. But after a bad report from the scouts, the people rebelled (first against Moses, but ultimately against God). They let fear, anxiety, unbelief, mistrust, and self-preservation rule the day. They picked up stones to throw at Caleb and Joshua, the only two faithful men of their generation who would enter the promised land. Because the people wanted to kill them, God finally washed His hands of the "rabble". The people who were so close to blessing beyond count, would all perish wandering in the desert within 40 years, stale bits of manna and quail stuck in their beards.

Vs 25 is so sad when God said to Moses, "Turn back tomorrow and set out toward the desert along the route to the Red Sea.” This is the thundering thud of a massive door being slammed shut.

Turn back to the land of slavery, turn back from God's covenant promised blessing, turn back from fruitfulness, from the bounty of God's hand. Turn back.

They were so close! But instead the stones they could've thrown to hit the promised land, were directed to God and His faithful ones. And they perished because of it. Why? At the heart of their rebellion was unbelief mistrust.

Only by abiding belief, trust, and love our Lord can we too enter the fulness of His blessing.

Quail out the Nose (Numbers 11)

Numbers 11 records an amazing episode that in the same moment is horrible, hilarious, sad, and convicting.

The Book of Numbers has a building pile of insults against the Lord by the people that God delivered from Egypt. He wants to bring them to the promised land, into the fullness of His blessings, but they return favor with insult, blessing with grumbling, mercy with rebellion. Eventually in Chapter 14:20-24 the people add the last straw that breaks the camel's back and God turns them away from the promised land, vowing that the "wicked" people would perish by 40 years wandering in the desert. So heartbreaking.

But Chapter 11 starts with another piece of straw added to the camel with the Israelites wailing and complaining about their hardships. This elicits the Lord's wrath who makes the outskirts of the camp a golden, toasty brown with fire.

I'm often quick to point the finger at the tribes here, but when I do there's three more fingers pointing back at me. The tribes of Israel were miraculously delivered from the slavery by the mighty hand of God. This group of people arguably saw more miracles and divine acts of power than any in history save for the disciples of Jesus. And yet, it was not enough to cultivate faith, trust and gratitude. And while I haven't seen a pillar of fire or a plague of frogs, I've clearly seen God's hand in my life, delivering me. Yet just like the Israelites, I'm prone to complain that I don't have enough. Prone to want more than what's been provided, to crave what I don't have rather than be thankful for what I do. Contentment and thankfulness is so important to a joyful life.

Instead, look at the litany of unflattering words used to describe the people under Moses' care: wailing, complainers, crying, rabble, cravings, rejecting the Lord. This is serious stuff. They got sick and tired of eating manna (the miracle food provided by God). Instead, they whined for meat and longed for the "good old days" back in Egypt. And so God answers their sniveling cry for meat by sending hundreds of Wal Mart trucks worth of quail, so much that they eat till it comes out their nostrils (vs 20!) and they loathe the meat. There's both great humor and sadness in this. Because the default human condition is to want what we don't have, no matter how full our houses, bellies, or DVRs. And then when we get what we want it becomes loathsome eventually because we want something else.

Sometimes when I'm bummed out I'll count my blessings. Literally. It's humbling to remember how much I'm blessed, even in very difficult and trying "desert experiences". I thank God for blessings great and small:

1) Drinking water that flows at the turn of a faucet.
2) Not just daily bread, but abundance of food.
3) Roads that I can travel without fear of IED explosions.
4) Arms and hands that can hug my son, carry soccer goals to a game, be raised in worship.
5) Socks.
6) Freedom to pray and meet publicly in discussions about the Bible.

...

347) Dozens of personal copies of the Bible.
348) A son that loves Jesus.
349) Blood shed on the cross.
350) Rain.
351) Dirt.

...

795) Plastic, metals and oil that create innumerable products that save lives, fuel industry, facilitate our fun.
796) Alpine meadows.
797) Toothbrushes.
798) Fleece jackets.
799) Grande americanos with cream and two sugars.

And my prayer is that if God should take anything or everything from me, I would still praise him for a rich inheritance reserved in heaven for me, a mansion with a room prepared for me, a coming new heaven and earth, a new body, and an eternity to worship the loving Savior who made it all possible. Pass the manna, please.