By Numbers 10, the Lord’s army is numbered, purified, organized, and sets out on march to occupy the promised land. But already in Numbers 11, the people begin to grumble. They complain about their hardships. They complain about the Lord’s provision of food; even Moses is overwhelmed and complains that the leadership the Lord has entrusted to him is too much for him to bear. The Lord sent his Spirit out on seventy of the elders of Israel to share the burden of spiritual leadership alongside Moses. The Lord gave them meat until it came out at their nostrils, and sent a plague among them. The Lord sent a burning into the outlying parts of the camp.

Personal Attack; The Cushite Woman

In chapter 12 we see another complaint arise:

Numbers 12:1 Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married, for he had married a Cushite woman.

This is personal. This is painful. When someone who is supposed to have your back sticks a knife in it, that cuts deep. The people who are closest to us have the ability to injure us most deeply. Miriam is Moses’ older sister (Nu.26:59), who cared for him as a baby (Ex.2:3-7). She objects to Moses’ wife, it seems because of her ethnicity. Could it be that she is seizing this opportunity after chapter 11, where it was the rabble, the mixed multitude that came with the Israelites out of Egypt, who initiated the complaint about the lack of meat and vegetables in the Lord’s provision of food? Cush is traditionally identified with Ethiopia, although there is some evidence that the Midianites may have been known as Cushites as well.

We know nothing about Moses’ marriage to a Cushite woman. All we know is that Moses married Zipporah, one of the daughters of Reuel or Jethro, the priest of Midian, after he fled Egypt, and he had two sons by her. At some point, likely during the confrontations with Pharaoh, he had sent her back to her father, who then brought her and her sons back to Moses at Mount Sinai. It could be that Moses took a second wife at some point, either after Zipporah died, or while she was still alive, or it could be that this is a derogatory reference to Zipporah herself. The text simply doesn’t answer all our questions. What is clear, is that this was not the main objection, because this is not brought up again or addressed by the Lord in the narrative. It seems this was a smokescreen, an ad hominem argument, a personal attack, attempting to undermine or discredit Moses’ character.

Perspectives on Power; The Lord Speaks Through Us Too!

The real issue was the unique office and authority of Moses.

Numbers 12:2 And they said, “Has the LORD indeed spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us also?” And the LORD heard it.

In the last chapter, Moses had complained to the Lord ‘that you lay the burden of all this people on me …I am not able to carry all this people alone; the burden is too heavy for me’ (11:11,14). The difference in perspectives is instructive; the ones who don’t have the primary position of authority are jealous and jockey for more power, and the one who has been entrusted with that position of authority feels overwhelmed and inadequate and is glad to share it with others.

This may also have been a reaction to what happened just before; the Lord poured out his Spirit on 70 of the elders of Israel, and they prophesied. This may have felt like a threat to their positions, as Miriam was called a prophetess in Exodus 15:20, and leads the women of Israel in a song of worship. Aaron was the high priest of Israel, responsible to oversee the entire tabernacle and everything related to it. The later prophet Micah refers to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam as the ones who led Israel out of Egypt (Mic.6:4).

Why did Moses feel overwhelmed if he had Aaron and Miriam by his side? Did their jealousy prevent them from doing what they could to help Moses bear the burden of the people, because they didn’t have the primary role? Did they feel threatened in their own positions when God poured out his Spirit on the 70 elders and enabled those men to prophesy? Or were they leveraging this opportunity to give credibility to their allegation that Moses is not unique and should not be given exclusive authority?

Moses’ Humility

We are not told who they spoke to; only that they spoke against Moses, spreading rumors to anyone who would listen. We are not told if they ever spoke to Moses or if he had even caught wind of what they were doing. If Moses did hear of it, he did nothing to defend himself,

Numbers 12:3 Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all people who were on the face of the earth.

Moses was very meek. This word can mean ‘humble, lowly, meek, poor; depressed in mind or circumstances; even afflicted or miserable’ We see this word in the Psalms and Proverbs and the prophets of those who look to the Lord alone because they cannot defend themselves. Those who are weak and destitute must depend on another.

The Lord Spoke

Moses did not defend himself. But YHWH heard. And he came quickly to Moses’ defense.

Numbers 12:4 And suddenly the LORD said to Moses and to Aaron and Miriam, “Come out, you three, to the tent of meeting.” And the three of them came out. 5 And the LORD came down in a pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance of the tent and called Aaron and Miriam, and they both came forward.

Miriam and Aaron said: ‘Has the LORD indeed spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us also?’ Now the Lord called them out, spoke to them directly, gave them a talking to.

Numbers 12:6 And he said, “Hear my words: If there is a prophet among you, I the LORD make myself known to him in a vision; I speak with him in a dream. 7 Not so with my servant Moses. He is faithful in all my house. 8 With him I speak mouth to mouth, clearly, and not in riddles, and he beholds the form of the LORD. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?”

Prophets Prophesied Beyond Themselves

YHWH defends the uniqueness of Moses. He is not like any other prophet. The Lord speaks to Moses directly, mouth to mouth, clearly, he beholds the form of YHWH. Prophets are given visions, dreams, sometimes riddles; it is not direct, and it is not always clear. This helps us understand the prophets. Sometimes they see things, they describe what they see, but they may not even fully understand what it all means. Peter says, talking about the salvation in Jesus we now enjoy:

1 Peter 1:10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, 11 inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. 12 It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.

Prophets prophesied beyond what they understood. They had to study. They asked for understanding. Sometimes they were told ‘this is not for you or your time’ (Dan.9:2; 12:8-9).

Miriam’s Leprosy; Aaron’s Confession

Not so my servant Moses. He is faithful in all my house. Why were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?

Numbers 12:9 And the anger of the LORD was kindled against them, and he departed. 10 When the cloud removed from over the tent, behold, Miriam was leprous, like snow. And Aaron turned toward Miriam, and behold, she was leprous. 11 And Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord, do not punish us because we have done foolishly and have sinned. 12 Let her not be as one dead, whose flesh is half eaten away when he comes out of his mother’s womb.” 13 And Moses cried to the LORD, “O God, please heal her—please.” 14 But the LORD said to Moses, “If her father had but spit in her face, should she not be shamed seven days? Let her be shut outside the camp seven days, and after that she may be brought in again.” 15 So Miriam was shut outside the camp seven days, and the people did not set out on the march till Miriam was brought in again. 16 After that the people set out from Hazeroth, and camped in the wilderness of Paran.

The Lord withdrew his presence. Sin has consequences. Sin causes separation. But why single out Miriam? Wasn’t Aaron equally guilty? In the first verse, Miriam is named before Aaron, and the verb in that sentence is feminine, so we could translate it awkwardly ‘Miriam and Aaron, she spoke against Moses’. It seems that Miriam initiated the complaint and persuaded her brother (who it seems was easily persuaded; remember the golden calf incident?) to go along with her. But Aaron owns his own sin in it all; he is quick to confess. ‘We have done foolishly and have sinned’. Remember, God is always just, and the punishment fits the crime. When we feel like a punishment God gives is too severe, we would do well to look back at what we have done in light of how God sees it. If her Cushite comment was an ethnic slur, her own skin became white and flaky like snow, flesh half eaten away. She was seeking glory, claiming equal access to God, and the Lord withdrew, and she would be put outside the camp, far away from the place where God revealed his presence. Later (2Chr.26) a good king of Judah presumed to offer incense in the temple and the LORD struck him with leprosy for his pride.

Both Miriam and Aaron are humbled. Aaron now addresses the one they sought to undermine as ‘my lord’, and he pleads with him to intercede for Miriam. Aaron is the high priest of Israel, and as priest he is authorized to examine and diagnose leprosy, to isolate the one with a skin disease, and to pronounce them clean if it goes away, but he is powerless to heal (Lev.13:4, 45-46).

Moses doesn’t hold a grudge; he isn’t glad she is getting what she deserves. He immediately cries out to the Lord for healing. And we assume she was immediately healed, but still required to follow the seven day cleansing period for one who came in contact with the dead (Num.19) as her own flesh was ‘as one dead’. We are not told if she was required to go through the elaborate cleansing procedure for one healed of leprosy as outlined in Leviticus 14.

Miriam was still a respected leader, and the camp didn’t move until she was restored to them.

My Faithful Servant/ The Faithful Son

Hebrews 3 quotes Numbers 12:7 twice; “Not so with my servant Moses. He is faithful in all my house.” Hebrews is comparing and contrasting Moses and Jesus.

Hebrews 3:1 Therefore, holy brothers, you who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession, 2 who was faithful to him who appointed him, just as Moses also was faithful in all God’s house. 3 For Jesus has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses—as much more glory as the builder of a house has more honor than the house itself. 4 (For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.) 5 Now Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant, to testify to the things that were to be spoken later, 6 but Christ is faithful over God’s house as a son. And we are his house if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.

Moses was a faithful servant entrusted with overseeing all God’s house; but Jesus has greater glory; he is the Son over God’s house.

Moses is unique among the prophets, as one to whom the Lord spoke mouth to mouth, who beheld the form of the Lord. But even that had limits; when Moses asked to see God’s glory, he was allowed to see his form, his back, ‘But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live”’ (Ex.33:20).

John 1:18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.

Jesus is:

Hebrews 1:3 …the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power….

Colossians 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

YHWH spoke clearly to Moses, but Jesus is the very Word of God made flesh;

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. … 14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, …

Moses was not only a prophet, but the sole mediator of the old covenant, who stood between God and man. Moses predicted in Deuteronomy 18 that ‘The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me.’ Jesus is ‘the mediator of a new covenant (Heb.12:24).

Hebrews 8:6 …Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises.

Moses was very humble, lowly; ‘more than all people who were on the face of the earth’; Jesus said:

Matthew 11:28 ​Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Moses did not speak in his own defense. Jesus:

Isaiah 53:7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.

1 Peter 2:23 When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.

We see Moses regularly interceding for sinners; here he prays for his sister Miriam. Jesus

Isaiah 53:12 … bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.

Jesus

Hebrews 7:25 …is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.

Moses consistently points us beyond himself to the one who was to come, to Jesus.

If speaking against Moses brought serious consequences, how much greater if we speak against the Son of God.

Cults and false teachers speak against Jesus; they dishonor him, bring him down. Some say he is a created being, a mere angel. Some say he is just like us, merely human, an exalted man, our brother. They may use his name and say they honor him, but they redefine him in such a way that they speak against him.

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Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Last week we looked at the people’s grumbling over God’s provision of food, and God’s response of ‘giving them the thing they craved, but sending a leanness into their souls’ (Ps.106:14). Interwoven with that is Moses’ own complaint and God’s gracious gift to him.

Anger of YHWH; Displeasure of Moses

The people set out from Sinai in formation, in obedience to the Lord’s direction, but after a three-day march, grumbling spread through the camp like a wildfire. They became discontent with the consistent repetitive nature of God’s faithful provision of bread from heaven; a longing for the good old days of slavery in Egypt. Moses heard, and YHWH heard.

Numbers 11:10 Moses heard the people weeping throughout their clans, everyone at the door of his tent. And the anger of the LORD blazed hotly, and Moses was displeased.

Both Moses and YHWH were angry. Rightly angry. Ingratitude for God’s salvation, God’s faithful provision, is wicked. Unbelief, even attempting to manipulate God to satisfy their desires, is sin. The Lord’s nostrils blazed with hot vehemence. And Moses’ eye was evil.

Numbers 11:11 Moses said to the LORD, “Why have you dealt ill with your servant? And why have I not found favor in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people on me? 12 Did I conceive all this people? Did I give them birth, that you should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom, as a nurse carries a nursing child,’ to the land that you swore to give their fathers? 13 Where am I to get meat to give to all this people? For they weep before me and say, ‘Give us meat, that we may eat.’ 14 I am not able to carry all this people alone; the burden is too heavy for me. 15 If you will treat me like this, kill me at once, if I find favor in your sight, that I may not see my wretchedness.”

Human Inability

Moses is rightly frustrated. He acknowledges his own weakness, his own inability. This is reminiscent of when the Lord told Moses that he was sending him to speak to Pharaoh and to set his people free.

Exodus 3:11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” 12 He said, “But I will be with you…

Exodus 4:10 But Moses said to the LORD, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.” 11 Then the LORD said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? 12 Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.”

Moses is acutely aware of his own shortcomings, his own inability for the task God is calling him to. Moses is humble, but this can border on unbelief in God’s sufficiency, as in Exodus 4 where the Lord became angry with Moses because he asked God to please just send someone else.

Moses speaks much truth, but it is flavored with strong emotion, even accusation against the Lord. Moses is overwhelmed, he is out of resources, at the end of himself, and that’s not a bad place to be. He brings his human inability, his discouragement, his despair, even his depression to the Lord, and that’s exactly the right place to bring it.

And the Lord is incredibly merciful with his servant Moses. There is no rebuke, no reprimand, no word of correction toward Moses.

The LORD Supplies Spiritual Help

Moses asks for death, but God gives him help.

Numbers 11:16 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Gather for me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them, and bring them to the tent of meeting, and let them take their stand there with you. 17 And I will come down and talk with you there. And I will take some of the Spirit that is on you and put it on them, and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, so that you may not bear it yourself alone.

Already in Exodus 18 there were chiefs appointed at Jethro’s suggestion; Moses appointed able men over thousands and hundreds and fifties and tens to help bear the burden of settling legal disputes between the people. Already in Exodus 24, 70 of the elders of Israel came up with Moses and Aaron to meet with God on the mountain. Already in Numbers 1, twelve men, heads of each tribe were named to assist in taking a census of the people, in representing each tribe before the Lord, and in organizing and leading the tribes on the march.

But this is different. These seventy were to stand with Moses before the tent of YHWH, and YHWH would put on them a portion of the Spirit to equip them to bear the burden of the people alongside Moses. This was to be spiritual help to share the load, so that Moses would not have to bear it alone. Moses was feeling isolated and out of his depth, so God promised to provide Moses with a Spirit-filled fellowship of leaders.

Is the Lord’s Hand Shortened?

In verses 18-20, the Lord gives Moses a message for the people; he would cure them of their craving by giving them meat for a month until it came out at their nostrils and became loathsome to them.

Moses is incredulous; meat for a month? how is that even possible?

Numbers 11:23 And the LORD said to Moses, “Is the LORD’s hand shortened? Now you shall see whether my word will come true for you or not.”

Moses is beyond himself, stuck in unbelief. He can’t possibly imagine how this could happen. YHWH invites him to look beyond himself to who God is. He reminds him of his own proven character, demonstrated in the Exodus.

Exodus 7:5 The Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring out the people of Israel from among them.”

Egypt knows the power of my hand. Have I changed? Has my power diminished? Moses, do you remember who I AM?

Initial Manifestation of the Spirit

Numbers 11:24 So Moses went out and told the people the words of the LORD. And he gathered seventy men of the elders of the people and placed them around the tent. 25 Then the LORD came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the Spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders. And as soon as the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied. But they did not continue doing it.

In 1 Samuel 10, Samuel anointed Saul king of Israel and said that he would prophesy as supernatural evidence of his calling (cf. 1Sam.19).

1 Samuel 10:10 When they came to Gibeah, behold, a group of prophets met him, and the Spirit of God rushed upon him, and he prophesied among them.

We see a similar kind of observable evidence of the Holy Spirit happen to believers in the book of Acts:

Acts 19:6 And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying.

This seems to be what is happening here in Numbers 11; an initial observable manifestation as evidence that the Spirit of God has come upon these men.

Numbers 11:26 Now two men remained in the camp, one named Eldad, and the other named Medad, and the Spirit rested on them. They were among those registered, but they had not gone out to the tent, and so they prophesied in the camp.

We aren’t told why these two didn’t appear in the tabernacle courts, but the Spirit of God is not limited by location, and he evidenced his presence by their prophesying in the camp.

John 3:8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

The names of these two, by the way, mean ‘God has loved’ and ‘Affectionate’

Ministry Multiplied

Numbers 11:27 And a young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.” 28 And Joshua the son of Nun, the assistant of Moses from his youth, said, “My lord Moses, stop them.” 29 But Moses said to him, “Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the LORD’s people were prophets, that the LORD would put his Spirit on them!”

Joshua desires to defend the unique leadership role of Moses, (we will see that challenged in the very next chapter), but Moses is not defensive of his own leadership. He understands that all authority belongs to the Lord, and he entrusts it to whomever he chooses. He views leadership as less a position of power and authority to be held on to, and more a weight of responsibility to lead and to provide for those under his care, and is happy to share that responsibility with others.

This is in line with what Jesus taught on leadership:

Mark 10:42 And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 43 But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Jesus himself gave us the ultimate example:

Philippians 2:5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

So Peter exhorts the elders:

1 Peter 5:2 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 3 not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.

Joshua desires to defend Moses’ leadership. He was afraid that the Spirit being poured out on others in the camp would diminish Moses’ authority.

One Bible teacher observed “Even as a flame of fire increases as it reaches out and embraces further objects, so the Holy Spirit is not diminished by his extension to others’ lives, but rather is made more effective.” [Jensen EBC, p.54].

Leadership is not diminished; rather ministry is multiplied.

Pour Out Your Spirit on All Flesh!

Moses’ prayer is prophetic; ‘Would that all the LORD’s people were prophets, that the LORD would put his Spirit on them!’

Much later Joel prophesied:

Joel 2:28 ​“And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. 29 ​Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit.

In John 7,

John 7:37 On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” 39 Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

Jesus promised his disciples that the Holy Spirit, who had been with them, would soon live in them (Jn.14:17). On the day of Pentecost in Acts 2, Peter quotes the prophecy of Joel as being fulfilled. Because of the finished work of Jesus, the Lord has now poured out his Spirit on all his people, on every believer.

All The LORD’s People Prophets

‘Would that all the LORD’s people were prophets, that the LORD would put his Spirit on them!’ In 1 Corinthians 14, teaching about the gifts of the Spirit, Paul tells all the believers in Corinth:

1 Corinthians 14:1 Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy.

And then he tells them why prophecy is superior to tongues;

1 Corinthians 14:2 For one who speaks in a tongue speaks not to men but to God; for no one understands him, but he utters mysteries in the Spirit. 3 On the other hand, the one who prophesies speaks to people for their upbuilding and encouragement and consolation. 4 The one who speaks in a tongue builds up himself, but the one who prophesies builds up the church.

Prophecy is meant to build up the church; it is speaking that builds up and encourages and consoles people. It also brings the conviction of the Spirit and can lead to the salvation of unbelievers.

1 Corinthians 14:24 But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all, 25 the secrets of his heart are disclosed, and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you.

‘Would that all the LORD’s people were prophets, that the LORD would put his Spirit on them!’ Has God given you a word to build up, to encourage, to console? To bring the conviction of the Spirit that leads to salvation? Moses’ prayer is being realized in us, in the church today!

Spirit Judges; Spirit Empowers

Numbers 11:30 And Moses and the elders of Israel returned to the camp. 31 Then a wind [Ruach] from the LORD sprang up, and it brought quail…

The Hebrew word for wind is ‘Ruach’, and it can be translated ‘wind, breath or spirit’. The same word is translated ‘Spirit’ in verses 17, 25, 26, and 29. God’s wind or breath or Spirit brought quail from the sea to judge the craving of the people, and also empowered burden-bearers to come alongside Moses in his time of need.

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Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

According to the Command of YHWH so they did

Thus far in Numbers, the account is punctuated by ‘as the LORD commanded Moses, according to the commandment of the LORD, so the people of Israel did. They numbered the people, numbered the Levites, paid the redemption money, assigned tasks to the Levites, purified the camp, set up and dedicated the tabernacle, consecrated the Levites, celebrated the Passover, and set out on the march ‘according to the command of the LORD’.

In chapter 10, as they set out on their journey, Moses invited his brother-in-law Hobab to join them;

Numbers 10:29 … “We are setting out for the place of which the LORD said, ‘I will give it to you.’ Come with us, and we will do good to you, for the LORD has promised good to Israel.” … 32 And if you do go with us, whatever good the LORD will do to us, the same will we do to you.”

At the end of chapter 10,

Numbers 10:35 And whenever the ark set out, Moses said, “Arise, O LORD, and let your enemies be scattered, and let those who hate you flee before you.” 36 And when it rested, he said, “Return, O LORD, to the ten thousand thousands of Israel.”

The people were walking in obedience, following the manifest presence of God among them, doing everything ‘according to the command of the LORD’, expectant of the blessing of the Lord and all his good promises. In this context, chapter 11 shocks us:

Numbers 11:1 And the people complained in the hearing of the LORD about their misfortunes, …

Complaint-Judgment-Prayer-Grace-Memorial

The word ‘misfortunes’ is literally the term ‘evil’. God had set them free from slavery, brought them through the sea on dry land, defeated their enemies, fed them bread from heaven, gave them water in the desert, revealed himself from the mountain and entered into a covenant relationship with them, promised to go with them and do good to them, and they complain about all the bad that happened to them.

Unbelievable! If we experienced all that, we would never grumble, never complain, be only ever overwhelmed by gratitude and joy in his presence – right? We, who have experienced so much more of his grace, we who have been bought with a price, the precious blood of Jesus, who have been forgiven of all our sins and welcomed in to relationship with a God who loves us that much; we would never grumble or complain about our circumstances, would we?

The Hebrew title for Numbers is Bamidbar; ‘In The Wilderness’; they were literally in the wilderness, but their circumstances were also exposing the dry and barren condition of their hearts. They had experienced so much of God’s faithfulness, his character, his blessing, and yet they grumbled. They complained. Instead of looking at all the good the Lord had done, was doing and promised to do, they found things to complain about. They were characterized by ingratitude, unbelief.

Numbers 11:1 And the people complained in the hearing of the LORD about their misfortunes, and when the LORD heard it, his anger was kindled, and the fire of the LORD burned among them and consumed some outlying parts of the camp. 2 Then the people cried out to Moses, and Moses prayed to the LORD, and the fire died down. 3 So the name of that place was called Taberah, because the fire of the LORD burned among them.

This is a pattern in the wilderness; the people complain; the Lord responds in judgment, the people cry out, Moses prays to the Lord, the Lord gives grace, and they name the place as a memorial. And then they do it all over again. They don’t remember. They don’t change.

This is not new. The short journey from Egypt to Sinai was also characterized by complaining. Complaining that their work became harder and God saved them by mighty acts of power (Ex.5-6. Complaining that they were trapped between Pharaoh’s army and the sea, and God parted the sea and destroyed the Egyptian army (Ex.14). Complaining that the water was bitter, and God made the water sweet (Ex.15); complaining of no food to eat, and God sent bread from heaven (Ex.16). Complaining of no water to drink, and God brought water from the rock (Ex.17), complaining about Moses’ delay on the mountain and they made idols to worship, and even this God forgave and promised to go with them (Ex.32-33).

Here they were, having made a covenant with God, having promised

Exodus 24:7 …“All that the LORD has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.”

Setting out from Sinai in obedience to the Lord, and yet their hearts were unchanged.

Craving Wages; Despising Grace

Numbers 11:4 Now the rabble that was among them had a strong craving. And the people of Israel also wept again and said, “Oh that we had meat to eat! 5 We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. 6 But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.”

Back in Exodus 16, although their grumbling was no less grievous, at least it was rooted in a real need;

Exodus 16:2 And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, 3 and the people of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

There, a month away from Egypt, they were hungry and didn’t know where their next meal was coming from. God rained bread from heaven. The next verses describe it:

Numbers 11:7 Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its appearance like that of bdellium. 8 The people went about and gathered it and ground it in handmills or beat it in mortars and boiled it in pots and made cakes of it. And the taste of it was like the taste of cakes baked with oil. 9 When the dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell with it.

Bread from heaven, daily bread, as much as they needed. And it tasted good, like pastries baked with the cream of the oil. Wouldn’t you love to taste manna? But God had provided their daily bread for a year now, and they were discontent. They wanted something different. They began to reminisce about the good ole’ days as slaves in Egypt with cruel taskmasters, whose wages were enough fish and vegetables to sustain them for another day’s hard labor. God gave them a free gift, his grace, and they craved their wages, what they earned by their suffering and sweat. They wanted to feed the flesh. How sadly our sinful hearts twist the truth and long for that which costs us more than we know!

Contagious Complaining

Notice, complaining is contagious. The rabble that was among them had the strong craving; this is likely the diverse ethnic group that left Egypt with the Israelites (Ex.12:38). But the grumbling spread like a wildfire out of control through the people of Israel. It even spread to their leader, Moses;

Numbers 11:10 Moses heard the people weeping throughout their clans, everyone at the door of his tent. And the anger of the LORD blazed hotly, and Moses was displeased. 11 Moses said to the LORD, “Why have you dealt ill with your servant? And why have I not found favor in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people on me? 12 Did I conceive all this people? Did I give them birth, that you should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom, as a nurse carries a nursing child,’ to the land that you swore to give their fathers? 13 Where am I to get meat to give to all this people? For they weep before me and say, ‘Give us meat, that we may eat.’ 14 I am not able to carry all this people alone; the burden is too heavy for me. 15 If you will treat me like this, kill me at once, if I find favor in your sight, that I may not see my wretchedness.”

Even Moses has a complaint. The people complain about their misfortunes, the evil that they experienced; now Moses accuses the Lord of dealing in an evil way with him.

We are going to come back to this part of the story next week to see how God answers Moses’ complaint, to give that the time it deserves.

God instructs Moses:

Numbers 11:18 And say to the people, ‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you shall eat meat, for you have wept in the hearing of the LORD, saying, “Who will give us meat to eat? For it was better for us in Egypt.” Therefore the LORD will give you meat, and you shall eat. 19 You shall not eat just one day, or two days, or five days, or ten days, or twenty days, 20 but a whole month, until it comes out at your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you, because you have rejected the LORD who is among you and have wept before him, saying, “Why did we come out of Egypt?”’”

God promises to give the people what they crave, and even Moses is incredulous;

Numbers 11:21 But Moses said, “The people among whom I am number six hundred thousand on foot, and you have said, ‘I will give them meat, that they may eat a whole month!’ 22 Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, and be enough for them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, and be enough for them?”

Moses too is infected with unbelief. He is not looking at God, at his character, at his nature, at his past proven faithfulness. He is overwhelmed by the noise of the now. He is frustrated, overwhelmed, looking around at the impossibility of the situation, not at the nature of the wonder working God who has faithfully walked with them this far.

God has a simple word for him:

Numbers 11:23 And the LORD said to Moses, “Is the LORD’s hand shortened? Now you shall see whether my word will come true for you or not.” 24 So Moses went out and told the people the words of the LORD. …

Is YHWH’s hand shortened? You are forgetting who I AM, who is with you. It’s not you, it’s not on you. It’s on me. Look up. Look at me. I am your provider, your everything. You are not enough; I am more than enough. Jump ahead to verse 31

God Gave What They Craved

Numbers 11:31 Then a wind from the LORD sprang up, and it brought quail from the sea and let them fall beside the camp, about a day’s journey on this side and a day’s journey on the other side, around the camp, and about two cubits above the ground. 32 And the people rose all that day and all night and all the next day, and gathered the quail. Those who gathered least gathered ten homers. And they spread them out for themselves all around the camp.

God’s provision of quail is not new; in Exodus 16:12-13 the Lord provided quail along with the manna for the people to eat.

By the way, a homer is not a cartoon character; the footnote in my Bible says that a homer was about 6 bushels or 220 liters; it’s the biggest measure of volume; 10 homers was a gluttonous 60 bushels or 2,200 liters of bird meat. I wanted to understand a little better what we are talking about, so I found out a bushel is about 2,150 cubic inches. If I did the math right, if you imagine a crate that’s a little over 4 foot square, that would hold about 60 bushels or ten homers. Or if you fill up almost nine 55 gallon drums with dead quail, that’s the low end of what each one; maybe each family gathered? It does say they gathered quail ‘all that day and all night and all the next day’. When you think a camp of 600,000 men, that’s a lot of dead birds. God said it would be enough to eat for a whole month. How long does the leftover thanksgiving turkey last in your family? Turkey sandwiches, turkey soup, turkey hash, cold turkey…

Numbers 11:33 While the meat was yet between their teeth, before it was consumed, the anger of the LORD was kindled against the people, and the LORD struck down the people with a very great plague. 34 Therefore the name of that place was called Kibroth-hattaavah, because there they buried the people who had the craving. 35 From Kibroth-hattaavah the people journeyed to Hazeroth, and they remained at Hazeroth.

What’s going on here? The people grumble, longing for meat, for the foods of slavery. God hears and he is angry, he promises to give them a month’s worth of meat, he makes good on his promise, and then his anger strikes down the people with a very great plague.

Psalm 78 is a commentary on this; Asaph rehearses the dark history of Israel, lamenting their unbelief, their forgetfulness, their stubborn rebellion as a warning to the coming generations not to be like their fathers. Verse 17 picks up at this point in the story:

Psalm 78:17 Yet they sinned still more against him, rebelling against the Most High in the desert. 18 They tested God in their heart by demanding the food they craved. 19 They spoke against God, saying, “Can God spread a table in the wilderness? 20 ​He struck the rock so that water gushed out and streams overflowed. Can he also give bread or provide meat for his people?” 21 Therefore, when the LORD heard, he was full of wrath; a fire was kindled against Jacob; his anger rose against Israel, 22 because they did not believe in God and did not trust his saving power. 23 Yet he commanded the skies above and opened the doors of heaven, 24 and he rained down on them manna to eat and gave them the grain of heaven. 25 Man ate of the bread of the angels; he sent them food in abundance. 26 He caused the east wind to blow in the heavens, and by his power he led out the south wind; 27 he rained meat on them like dust, winged birds like the sand of the seas; 28 he let them fall in the midst of their camp, all around their dwellings. 29 And they ate and were well filled, for he gave them what they craved. 30 But before they had satisfied their craving, while the food was still in their mouths, 31 the anger of God rose against them, and he killed the strongest of them and laid low the young men of Israel.

This was rebellion, testing God, making demands of God, even slandering God. It was rooted in unbelief and ingratitude. They were treating God as if he exists simply to fulfill all their desires.

Numbers 11:18 …the LORD will give you meat, and you shall eat. …20 …a whole month, until it comes out at your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you, because you have rejected the LORD who is among you and have wept before him, saying, “Why did we come out of Egypt?”’”

[KJV] Psalm 106:14 But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, and tempted God in the desert. 15 And he gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul.

Sometimes getting what we crave is the punishment we deserve.

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Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

God’s people have been delivered from slavery, brought to Mount Sinai, where they entered into a covenant relationship with YHWH God, constructed the tabernacle where the Lord manifested his presence among them, they celebrated the Passover on the first anniversary of their exodus from Egypt, and now, a month later, they are organized and ready to set out to the promised land.

In Numbers 9, the Lord promises to be with them, to lead and guide them through the wilderness in cloud and fire, and they walk in obedience to God’s guiding cloud. In 10:1-10, God instructs them to use two silver trumpets, a tool to summon the leaders, assemble the camp, to signal the tribes to set out in sequence.

God’s People on the March

In Numbers 10:11 after about 11 months at the foot of Mount Sinai, the cloud of YHWH lifts, signaling them to break camp and set out from Sinai to the promised land. This is a momentous day.

Numbers 10:11 In the second year, in the second month, on the twentieth day of the month, the cloud lifted from over the tabernacle of the testimony, 12 and the people of Israel set out by stages from the wilderness of Sinai. And the cloud settled down in the wilderness of Paran. 13 They set out for the first time at the command of the LORD by Moses.

God’s glory cloud lifted, the signal was given; the million plus camp sprang into action. Each family packed up and got ready to move at the signal; Aaron and his sons carefully prepared God’s holy furniture for transport according to Numbers 4, and entrusted these items to be carried on the shoulders of the Kohathites. The Gershonites took down the layers of curtains of God’s tent and loaded them on their two ox carts, and the Merarites disassembled the structure, the frames and bases and loaded them on their four carts to be transported (Nu.7:7-8).

The trumpets sounded the alarm, and the tribes under the standard of Judah, camped to the east, at the entrance to the tabernacle set out.

Numbers 10:14 The standard of the camp of the people of Judah set out first by their companies, and over their company was Nahshon the son of Amminadab. 15 And over the company of the tribe of the people of Issachar was Nethanel the son of Zuar. 16 And over the company of the tribe of the people of Zebulun was Eliab the son of Helon.

In chapter 2 the camps of the tribes were arranged facing the tabernacle, on each of the four points of the compass. The tribes on the east and south were to set out first, and the tent of meeting was to set out, carried by the Levites, in the midst of the camps, each in its position (Nu.2:17). Here we see that the tent itself was to be transported on the carts from chapter 7 in between the standard of Judah and the standard of Reuben.

Numbers 10:17 And when the tabernacle was taken down, the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari, who carried the tabernacle, set out. 18 And the standard of the camp of Reuben set out by their companies, and over their company was Elizur the son of Shedeur. 19 And over the company of the tribe of the people of Simeon was Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai. 20 And over the company of the tribe of the people of Gad was Eliasaph the son of Deuel.

Now we are told why the Gershonites and Merarites carried God’s tent ahead of the tribes under Reuben.

Numbers 10:21 Then the Kohathites set out, carrying the holy things, and the tabernacle was set up before their arrival. 22 And the standard of the camp of the people of Ephraim set out by their companies, and over their company was Elishama the son of Ammihud. 23 And over the company of the tribe of the people of Manasseh was Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur. 24 And over the company of the tribe of the people of Benjamin was Abidan the son of Gideoni. 25 Then the standard of the camp of the people of Dan, acting as the rear guard of all the camps, set out by their companies, and over their company was Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai. 26 And over the company of the tribe of the people of Asher was Pagiel the son of Ochran. 27 And over the company of the tribe of the people of Naphtali was Ahira the son of Enan. 28 This was the order of march of the people of Israel by their companies, when they set out.

Lists of Leaders; Heads of Houses, Chiefs of Tribes

This is the fourth and final listing of the names of the chiefs, the heads of the tribes. Back in chapter 1, where God instructed Moses to take a census of the tribes, he said:

Numbers 1:4 And there shall be with you a man from each tribe, each man being the head of the house of his fathers. 5 And these are the names of the men who shall assist you.

At the end of the list of each tribe with its head,

Numbers 1:16 These were the ones chosen from the congregation, the chiefs of their ancestral tribes, the heads of the clans of Israel.

In chapter 2, where the tribes are grouped under four standards and assigned their camping spots around the tabernacle, the chief of each tribe was listed. In chapter 7, at the dedication of the newly erected tabernacle, each of the tribes on twelve successive days presented offerings to God;

Numbers 7:2 the chiefs of Israel, heads of their fathers’ houses, who were the chiefs of the tribes, who were over those who were listed, approached 3 and brought their offerings before the LORD, … 10 And the chiefs offered offerings for the dedication of the altar on the day it was anointed; and the chiefs offered their offering before the altar. 11 And the LORD said to Moses, “They shall offer their offerings, one chief each day, for the dedication of the altar.”

Leaders and Fathers, Authority, Responsibility, Accountability

In each of these four passages, the name of the tribe, with the name of the chief and the name of his father is rehearsed. That’s three names for each of the twelve tribes in each of these four lists. That’s a lot of repetition, a lot of names (144), a lot of wasted ink on vellum or parchment or paper. A lot of us, when we’re reading our Bibles, and we get to a list of names, our eyes glaze over, our minds tune out and its blah blah blah until we get back into the story. But we believe ‘all Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable’ (2Tim.3:16). So why the repetition? Why the lists of names?

First, it’s a reminder that these are real people. These lists provide a great resource for unique baby names, but remember, these are real people who lived real lives, who had relationships, who raised families, who faced struggles, who worked hard. We see their father’s names because back then they didn’t have last names and social security numbers to distinguish which ‘John Johnson’ we’re talking about. Johnson by the way is means John’s son or son of John. So that’s simply a way to distinguish two different people with the same name. But it’s bigger than that. There’s a legacy. The way parents raise their children matters, and the conduct and character of the kids reflect on their parents. That’s not a guarantee, but it is a general rule;

Proverbs 22:6 ​Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.

Proverbs 29:17 ​Discipline your son, and he will give you rest; he will give delight to your heart.

Sometimes good parents have rebellious rotten kids, and sometimes that is only for a time. And some kids with rotten parents turn out great. Fathers, it matters how you invest in the lives of your children. And moms, you aren’t off the hook either; several times in the lists of the heroes or villains of the Bible, the mom is also listed, to give credit (or blame) where credit is due.

But these repeated lists are lists of the twelve leaders of the twelve tribes of Israel. Leaders are listed by name because leaders are important. Leaders lead, for good or for ill. They are responsible for people, and they will be held accountable for how they lead. This is the last time these twelve are listed, but it’s not the last time they show up in the story. In Exodus 13, we see a list of twelve different representatives of the tribes chosen to spy out the land. But back in Exodus,

Exodus 18:25 Moses chose capable men from all Israel, and he made them heads over the people, rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.

So there were a lot of leaders to choose from. In Numbers 16, Korah, a Kohathite Levite, led a rebellion of 250 leaders of the community against Moses, and the Lord destroyed them. In chapter 17, the community continued grumbling against Moses and Aaron, so the Lord instructed them to take the staff of each of the 12 tribal leaders, write their names on their staffs and place them before the Lord. By the next day Aaron’s staff had blossomed and bore fruit!

In Numbers 25, in response to the immorality and idolatry of the people in the matter of Baal Peor,

Numbers 25:4 And the LORD said to Moses, “Take all the chiefs of the people and hang them in the sun before the LORD, that the fierce anger of the LORD may turn away from Israel.”

Leaders are called to lead, to represent the people before God, and with that great responsibility comes great accountability. These lists of names are men who were chosen by God to lead, who started well, who gave generously to the Lord, who had a lot of people who were looking up to them for leadership, who led those people out toward God’s promised land in obedience to God’s command, but whose promising start didn’t persevere; instead they led God’s people in disobedience and rebellion, and fell in the wilderness, and their names are now remembered as those who led in unbelief. Be careful how you lead, and be careful who you follow. Follow God, and submit to your leaders insofar as they are submitting to Christ. Remember, Jesus is the head of his church.

Evangelizing the In-Laws

Numbers 10:29 And Moses said to Hobab the son of Reuel the Midianite, Moses’ father-in-law, “We are setting out for the place of which the LORD said, ‘I will give it to you.’ Come with us, and we will do good to you, for the LORD has promised good to Israel.” 30 But he said to him, “I will not go. I will depart to my own land and to my kindred.” 31 And he said, “Please do not leave us, for you know where we should camp in the wilderness, and you will serve as eyes for us. 32 And if you do go with us, whatever good the LORD will do to us, the same will we do to you.”

Back in Exodus 2 we seek Moses fleeing from Egypt, coming to the land of Midian, meeting the daughters of Reuel, priest of Midian, who in Exodus 3 is called Jethro, who became Moses’ father-in-law. In Exodus 18, after Moses had led the people out of Egypt, Jethro brought Moses’ wife and sons to him, and it appears he became a believer in YHWH;

Exodus 18:8 Then Moses told his father-in-law all that the LORD had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, all the hardship that had come upon them in the way, and how the LORD had delivered them. 9 And Jethro rejoiced for all the good that the LORD had done to Israel, in that he had delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians. 10 Jethro said, “Blessed be the LORD, who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of Pharaoh and has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians. 11 Now I know that the LORD is greater than all gods, because in this affair they dealt arrogantly with the people.”

Jethro also gave him wise advice about delegating leadership, which Moses followed.

Here in Numbers 10, Hobab, Moses’ brother-in-law, son of Reuel, is with Moses, and Moses invites him to join them on the journey to the promised land. To be connected with God’s people is to enjoy God’s blessing. But Hobab declines. The draw of land and family is strong. But Moses persists; we need your wisdom in the wilderness; God would lead his people, and trumpets were a practical way to communicate to the people. God would guide his people, and a guide who knew how to shepherd flocks in that wilderness, how to find the resources they needed wherever God led, would be a blessing, and in return he would be blessed by God. Numbers doesn’t record his answer, but in Judges we do see the descendants of Moses’ father-in-law, the descendants of Hobab in the land (Jud.1:16; 4:11,17; cf. 1Sam.15:6), so apparently Hobab was persuaded to join them. Moses was leading God’s people, but he also had family relationships; he was evangelizing his in-laws, inviting non-Jews to believe in and follow YHWH. He was sharing his own testimony; how he had experienced God’s deliverance, how God had been good to him even through hardships, and how God had promised good to them. He was sharing the blessings of YHWH with outsiders, inviting them in, including them in the promises. Remember, the exodus was pointing us to Jesus. Have you experienced all the good promises of God in the gospel, in Jesus? How has Jesus set you free? Invite others to come with you as you experience his goodness.

Moses’ Blessing

Numbers 10:33 So they set out from the mount of the LORD three days’ journey. And the ark of the covenant of the LORD went before them three days’ journey, to seek out a resting place for them. 34 And the cloud of the LORD was over them by day, whenever they set out from the camp. 35 And whenever the ark set out, Moses said, “Arise, O LORD, and let your enemies be scattered, and let those who hate you flee before you.” 36 And when it rested, he said, “Return, O LORD, to the ten thousand thousands of Israel.”

God’s people were on the move to the promised land, following the Lord’s leading, enjoying God’s sheltering covering. God was leading them toward their rest. We learn here that although the Kohathites were arranged in the middle of the tribes on the march carrying the holy furniture of God’s tent, the ark itself was out front, the container of their covenant relationship with God, the meeting place of God with man, and he was visibly with them, leading them.

Moses’ blessing, Moses prayer whenever the ark set out, was a verbal reminder of God’s presence and protection: ‘Arise, O LORD, and let your enemies be scattered, and let those who hate you flee before you.’ The sovereign warrior King was leading his troops into battle, advancing into enemy territory, and when God is on the move, his enemies have no chance. When the ark came to rest and the people encamped, he prayed ‘Return, O LORD, to the ten thousand thousands of Israel.’ You are our Shepherd, our protector; we are your army, but we are needy sheep. As you promised to Abraham, we have become a countless multitude, but we are nothing without you, without your defining presence with us. We need you. Return, encamp in our midst, cover us, dwell with us and be our God and we will be your people.

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Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Where We Are in the Story

We are jumping back in to our study through the Old Testament book of Numbers. Because we’ve taken a break for the holidays, we’ll start with a brief review to see where we are in the story. Numbers is the fourth book in the Torah, the five books of Moses.

Genesis begins at the beginning, and takes us through creation and rebellion, through God’s gracious preservation of humanity through his judgment in Noah, through his choosing to bless Abraham’s descendants, and to bless the world through them. It takes us through Abraham’s descendants Isaac, and Jacob, and Jacob’s twelve sons, preserved through famine because God sent Joseph to Egypt.

Exodus picks up 400 years later, the descendants of Jacob (or Israel) now a significant slave force in Egypt, oppressed by the Pharaoh, cry out for rescue, and God hears, and God sends Moses to be his instrument to deliver them from slavery through 10 mighty acts of judgment on Egypt. Exodus brings the people through the sea and to the foot of Mt. Sinai, where God gives them the terms of his covenant with them, and instructions to build a tent for him to dwell with them as they journey to the promised land. After their immediate rebellion, God shows grace and they spend the second half of Exodus building God’s worship tent according to plan.

Leviticus recognizes God’s presence among sinful, rebellious, wayward people is dangerous. God is holy, and must judge every sin. We are sinners, so Leviticus gives animal sacrifices as a way for the sins of God’s people to be covered, and instructions on how those who have become unclean may be cleansed and restored to a condition fit to be part of God’s people.

Numbers begins with a census of the people at Sinai, organizes their camp and their marching order, and then follows their journey through the wilderness to the border of the promised land, where (spoiler alert) they rebel, and want to return to slavery, and follows them as that generation perishes in the wilderness, up to the next generation again at the border of the promised land poised to enter in.

Deuteronomy is Moses’ second giving of the law, preaching to this next generation who would enter and possess the promised land under Joshua, exhorting them to obey God, unlike their fathers.

We are in the middle of Numbers 9. So far in Numbers, chapter 1 God commands Moses to take a census of the men, those who would fight to possess the promised land. Chapter 2 God organizes the camp around his own tent, which is the central focus of the people. Chapters 3 and 4 the tribe of Levi is numbered as substitutes in service to YHWH in place of the firstborn who belong to God, and the families of Levi are assigned their duties in setting up, taking down and transporting God’s tabernacle. Chapter 5 they are instructed to cleanse the camp to prepare for the presence of God among them. Chapter 6 gives instructions for cleansing the Nazirite when he or she violates or completes this special vow, and concludes with the blessing of Aaron on all the people. Chapter 7 chronicles 12 days of giving as each of the tribes presents a gift to God for his sanctuary. Chapter 8 instructs how the light from the lampstand is to be focused in God’s tent, and how the Levites are to be focused on serving the Lord. Chapter 9 begins with a reminder to keep the Lord’s Passover at its appointed time, and gives allowance for those who are prevented from keeping it due to uncleanness to keep it one month later.

Numbers 9:15 and the Chronology of Exodus

Numbers 9:15 starts this way ‘On the day that the tabernacle was set up’; giving us a clue to where we are in the sequence of events. This is parallel to Numbers 7:1, which puts the offerings of the tribes ‘On the day when Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle’. We have to go back to Exodus 40:17 to see that the tabernacle was erected ‘in the first month, in the second year, on the first day of the month’, which was 14 days short of one year after that first Passover and the exodus out of Egypt (Ex.12:1-50). Here’s a list in chronological order of those passages that give us a date counting from the birth of the nation as they emerged out of Egypt. From this we see that Numbers 7-9 jump back one month before Numbers 1-6, giving us some back story to make sense of what’s going on now.

The Glory Cloud and the Guiding Cloud

Numbers 9:15-23 is parallel to the end of Exodus, 40:34-38.

Exodus 40:34 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. 35 And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. 36 Throughout all their journeys, whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out. 37 But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out till the day that it was taken up. 38 For the cloud of the LORD was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their journeys.

There, at the end of Exodus, the focus was on the glory of YHWH’s presence filling the tabernacle, in the midst of his people. Here in Numbers 9, the focus is on the guidance of YHWH directing the steps of his people through the wilderness.

Numbers 9:15 On the day that the tabernacle was set up, the cloud covered the tabernacle, the tent of the testimony. And at evening it was over the tabernacle like the appearance of fire until morning. 16 So it was always: the cloud covered it by day and the appearance of fire by night. 17 And whenever the cloud lifted from over the tent, after that the people of Israel set out, and in the place where the cloud settled down, there the people of Israel camped. 18 At the command of the LORD the people of Israel set out, and at the command of the LORD they camped. As long as the cloud rested over the tabernacle, they remained in camp. 19 Even when the cloud continued over the tabernacle many days, the people of Israel kept the charge of the LORD and did not set out. 20 Sometimes the cloud was a few days over the tabernacle, and according to the command of the LORD they remained in camp; then according to the command of the LORD they set out. 21 And sometimes the cloud remained from evening until morning. And when the cloud lifted in the morning, they set out, or if it continued for a day and a night, when the cloud lifted they set out. 22 Whether it was two days, or a month, or a longer time, that the cloud continued over the tabernacle, abiding there, the people of Israel remained in camp and did not set out, but when it lifted they set out. 23 At the command of the LORD they camped, and at the command of the LORD they set out. They kept the charge of the LORD, at the command of the LORD by Moses.

God is present as sovereign over his people, even in the wilderness. He is guiding their every step, directing them when to move, where to stop, how long to stay, and when to move on.

We first saw this glory cloud of God’s presence as the people left Egypt.

Exodus 13:21 And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. 22 The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people.

Then, in Exodus 14, when God led them to a place where they were trapped between Pharaoh’s pursuing army and the sea,

Exodus 14:19 Then the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them, 20 coming between the host of Egypt and the host of Israel. And there was the cloud and the darkness. And it lit up the night without one coming near the other all night.

God’s glorious presence, God’s protecting presence, God’s illuminating presence, God’s guiding directing presence.

God’s Supernatural Direction and God’s Will

Many of us might wish for such clear direction in our lives today. If God would just show up, give me a message in the clouds, then I would know what to do, I would follow his leading. This is kind of like Jesus’ story about the rich man and Lazarus (Lk.16:19-31). The rich man, in torment in Hades, asks Abraham to send Lazarus back from the dead to warn his family to repent so that they don’t end up where he is.

Luke 16:29 But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ 30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’”

We think if we only had God’s clear direction in the clouds, we would surely follow, but we have God’s word and God’s will written on paper in our hands, and how often are we reluctant to follow? What is God’s will for my life? Here’s just a few explicit examples:

1 Thessalonians 4:3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality;

Jesus makes it clear this extends even to our private thought lives. This is God’s will; your sanctification.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

God’s will for you is that you cultivate gratitude in both the good times and the bad. How are you doing following God’s will for you in this? One more:

1 Peter 2:15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.

Live above reproach. Do what is right and good. This is the will of God for you.

We tend to want to know things like what school I should go to, who I should marry, where I should live, what job I should take. Those are important decisions for which we should seek God’s direction and wise counsel, but God’s revealed will is our character in the midst of whatever circumstance we are in.

Outward Obedience and God’s Presence

Here in Numbers 9, the picture is painted of God directing and the people obeying; this passage is punctuated with ‘at the command of YHWH they camped, and at the command of YHWH they set out’ (v.18,20,23), and in between we see them immediately obeying, remaining as long as the cloud remained, and moving as soon as the cloud moved, stopping wherever the cloud stopped.

Numbers 9:23 At the command of the LORD they camped, and at the command of the LORD they set out. They kept the charge of the LORD, at the command of the LORD by Moses

But even as we see them obeying outwardly, following God’s physical leading, the story we see unfold through Numbers shows us that ‘their hearts were far from him’ (Is.29:13; Mt.15:8). It is a tragic chronicle of a people who had God’s visible presence manifest among them, and yet they walked in unbelief, disobedience, grumbling, complaining, rebellion.

But here’s the amazing thing. God’s presence never left them throughout their wilderness wandering. Sometimes God’s presence meant judgment on those who disobeyed, but God had promised to go with his people (Ex.33:14), and in his great grace, his holy fire and covering cloud never left them or forsook them. God’s glorious, protecting, illuminating, guiding and directing presence was continually with them.

Jesus promised even more to us. Jesus said in John 14

John 14:16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. 18 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

God’s Holy Spirit was with his people through the wilderness, but Jesus promises that the Spirit will live in us, his followers!

The Silver Trumpets

Numbers 10:1-10 YHWH gives instructions for two silver trumpets to be used in summoning the congregation and in breaking camp. God’s guiding presence was with them, and God gave them a way to communicate with the 603,550 fighting men, plus Levites, plus women and children. Both trumpets summoned the congregation; one trumpet gathered the heads of the tribes. The first alarm signaled the tribes under the first standard camped to the east of the tabernacle to set out; the second alarm the tribes under the second standard to the south, and so on as arranged in chapter 2. The use of these trumpets was restricted to the priests, the sons of Aaron.

But the trumpets had a purpose beyond the wilderness encampments. They also looked forward to the promised land, where they would be used to gather the troops to defend themselves in the land, and they would be used ‘on the day of your gladness’ and your appointed feasts, over your burnt offerings and peace offerings. They were given to the people as a form of prayer. In times of battle, ‘you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, that you may be remembered before the LORD your God, and you shall be saved from your enemies’ (v.9). And at all the feasts and offerings and appointed times, ‘They shall be a reminder of you before your God: I am the LORD your God’ (v.10). They were a signal to the Lord to remember his people, and they were to be a regular reminder to all the people that God was paying attention to them. As in the exodus,

Exodus 2:23 …the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. 24 And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 25 God saw the people of Israel—and God knew.

Exodus 3:7 Then the LORD said, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, 8 and I have come down to deliver them…

You are seen, heard, known; God has come down to save you.

***

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Today is our annual church business meeting. It is where our voting members receive new members, review our spending, approve our budget, vote to approve officers and elders to serve this local church, discuss some of the things that keep this church functioning, and entrust ourselves to God for the future. This is a time to celebrate the faithfulness of God, what God has done and continues to do in us and through us for his glory. It’s a business meeting, but it’s also worship, thanksgiving, and prayer.

Last week we looked at what the Bible has to say about baptism, and we got to witness 6 people publicly proclaim Jesus as Lord by being baptized in his name.

The week before, we looked at what the church is, how Jesus builds his church on the solid foundation of his own identity as Messiah, God come in the flesh, and gives us as his church authority to recognize other members of his church. This week, I’d like to look at some of the things the Bible has to say about members of the local church.

In our meeting today, we’ll be introducing an annual member affirmation, a tool we will use to remind ourselves what it means to be a member, to clarify what we are committing to and signing up for as members of this local body of believers.

Who the Church Is; Pictures of the Church:

-Members of a Club? No, of a Body

When we talk about being members of a church, it is important to understand what we mean, and what we don’t mean. One of the main pictures of the church in the New Testament is the picture of a body; a church is often called a body of believers.

Ephesians 1 points us to Jesus as Lord, sovereign over the church;

Ephesians 1:22 And he [the Father] put all things under his [Jesus’] feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

Jesus is the head of the church; we the church are his body.

Ephesians 4 continues this body metaphor. It exhorts us to humility, gentleness, patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain unity and peace, to maturity (4:1-3, 13)

Ephesians 4:15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. … 25 Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.

When we talk about members of a church, don’t think membership in a club; think interconnected members of a body, body parts.

Romans 12:4 For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, 5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. 6 Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: …

A body is one organism made up of many body parts; each part has a specific purpose and function.

-Body Parts With God-given Functions

1 Corinthians 12:12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body— Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit. 14 For the body does not consist of one member but of many. 15 If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? 18 But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. 19 If all were a single member, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.

1 Corinthians 12 lists the foot, hand, ear, eye; the functions of hearing and smell. Different body parts are designed to have different functions.

Think about an activity like swimming. In order to swim, there needs to be coordination and cooperation between all the body parts; feet and legs kick, shoulders, arms and hands pull, nose, mouth, head, neck and lungs all coordinate when to take a breath, so that the heart and circulatory system can supply all those other parts with oxygenated blood to keep the body going. Imagine if one of those parts decided not to function. Have you ever been in the deep end and you get a muscle cramp in your leg? That’s a serious situation, and the rest of the body has to over-compensate to protect itself and care for the injured part!

Maybe you’ve heard of the 80 – 20 rule. It’s a statistic that says 20 percent of the people do 80 percent of the work in a church. That might pass for sitting on the couch using your thumb to click the remote or scroll on your phone, but it doesn’t work if we as a church body want to accomplish something great, and we have been called by Jesus to make disciples of the nations! We need the body, the whole body, all the members of the body to function as each is designed to operate so that together we can do what God is calling us to do.

**I want to invite you to prayerfully reflect; what kinds of things do you think God has equipped you to do as a part of this body? Take time this week before God, ask him how he’s gifted you to serve, connect with one of our Elders or an Elder’s wife, ask them for guidance. Get plugged in.

1 Corinthians 12:24 …But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, 25 that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. 26 If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. 27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.

This picture of the church as a body emphasizes the interconnection, interdependence, unity and diverse function and gifting that make up a body.

-Living Stones in God’s Temple

But the body is just one of several pictures the Bible uses to describe the church. Both Paul and Peter picture the church as a building, or a temple, and they were not talking about where we meet; they were talking about us, the people who make up the church.

Ephesians 2:19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

This building has a foundation; we don’t just build on sand. Jesus himself sets the shape and direction of the building. Peter calls us ‘living stones …being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood’ (1Pet.2:4-5). Living stones must be closely connected. Think of the tumbling tower game ‘Jenga’; remove one block and it leaves a gaping hole and the tower teeters. You can only remove so many blocks before the whole tower collapses. We need to support each other. As God’s temple, we are called to be holy, set apart for God.

1 Corinthians 3:16 Do you not know that you (plural) are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you (plural)? 17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you (plural) are that temple.

1 Corinthians 6:19 Or do you not know that your (plural) body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you (plural), whom you have from God? You (plural) are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your (plural) body.

The church (which is made up of people) is a temple, a holy dwelling place for God by the Spirit; as living stones we are joined together to enjoy the presence of God among us.

-Born (Again) into the Family; Siblings in a Household

John focuses our attention on being born again; birth and new life connect us to a family.

John 1:11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

Jesus said in John 3 ‘You must be born again.’ (3:7). In 1 John 3,

1 John 3:1 See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. … 10 By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.

Paul uses the picture of our adoption as sons into God’s family (Romans 8:14-17), clarifying the distinction between the only begotten Son of God and we who are adopted in, who as adopted sons now share the legal right to Jesus’ own inheritance!

Because we have been born of the Spirit, adopted as children of God, we have become part of a family, a household, with siblings.

Galatians 6:10 So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.

1 Timothy 3:15 if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth.

The church is a family, siblings called to love one another and seek to uphold the family name.

-One Flock under the Good Shepherd

In John 10, Jesus calls us sheep:

John 10:11 ​I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. … 14 ​I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 ​just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.

Jesus draws a contrast between a hired hand who doesn’t know or care about the sheep and abandons them when danger threatens, and himself, the owner of the flock, who knows the sheep by name and is willing to lay down his own life for his sheep. Jesus is passionate about the unity of his flock.

One characteristic of sheep is that they are defenseless and prone to wander into trouble. Peter says:

1 Peter 2:25 For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

He goes on to exhort the elders:

1 Peter 5:2 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 3 not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. 4 And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

The church is a flock, stray sheep brought into the fold by the good Shepherd, those who know the voice of the Shepherd and follow him. As sheep we are prone to wander; we are to hold one another accountable and go after the strays, those who begin to wander away from their Shepherd.

-The Bride of Christ

Jesus refers to himself as the bridegroom (Mat.9:15; cf. Jn.3:26-30), and at the wedding in Cana he said “what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come” (Jn.2:4).

Paul tells the church in Corinth:

2 Corinthians 11:2 For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ.

Ephesians 5 gives instructions to husbands and wives, but throughout he is comparing that relationship with the greater relationship of Christ to his church.

Ephesians 5:22 …Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. 25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. …32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.

Revelation 19 says:

Revelation 19:7 Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; 8 ​it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.

The church is the betrothed bride of Christ; Jesus purchased us with his own blood, he is washing us, purifying us, sanctifying us, so that our affections are only for him, as we eagerly anticipate his return for us to take us to be with him forever.

-The Church is Committed to One-Another Ministry

In Ephesians 4, Jesus

Ephesians 4:11 …he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

Jesus gave leaders and teachers to the church to equip the saints for ministry, for building up the body of Christ. All the saints are called to build up the body, to minister to one another. There is an essential ‘one anothering’ that must go on in the church. We need each other. We need to meet together. We need to encourage one another. We need to stir up one another to love and good works. We need one another.

There are a lot of commands to this kind of one-another ministry.

Here’s a list to consider:

be at peace with one another (Mk.9:50)

live in harmony with one another (Rom.12:16; 14:19; 15:5)

have fellowship with one another (1Jn.1:7)

wash one another’s feet (Jn.13:14)

love one another (Jn.13:34-35; 15:12,17; Rom.12:10; 13:8; 1Thes.4:9; 1Jn.3:11,23; 4:7,11,12; 2Jn.1:5)

increase and abound in love for one another (1Thes.3:12; 2Thes.1:3)

love one another earnestly (1Pet.1:22)

keep loving one another earnestly (1Pet.4:8)

you are members of one another (Rom.12:5; Eph.4:25)

show honor to one another (Rom.12:10)

don’t judge one another (Rom.14:13)

don’t stumble one another (Rom.14:13)

don’t sue one another (1Cor.6:7)

don’t bite or devour one another (Gal.5:15)

don’t provoke one another (Gal.5:26)

don’t envy one another (Gal.5:26)

don’t lie to one another (Col.3:9)

don’t neglect to meet with each other (Heb.10:25)

don’t speak evil against one another (Jas.4:11)

don’t grumble against one another (Jas.5:9)

build up one another (Rom.14:19; 1Thes.5:11)

welcome one another (Rom.15:7)

greet one another (Rom.16:16; 1Cor.16:20; 2Cor.13:12; 1Pet.5:14)

show hospitality to one another (1Pet.4:9)

wait for one another (1Cor.11:33)

care for one another (1Cor.12:25)

comfort one another (2Cor.13:11)

agree with one another (2Cor.13:11)

instruct/teach one another (Rom.15:14; Col.3:16)

admonish one another (Col.3:16)

exhort one another (Heb.3:13)

encourage one another (1Thes.4:18; 5:11; Heb.10:25; Rom.1:12)

through love serve one another (Gal.5:13)

use gifts to serve one another (1Pet.4:10)

bear one another’s burdens (Gal.6:2)

bear with one another in love (Eph.4:2; Col.3:13)

be kind to one another (Eph.4:32)

forgive one another (Eph.4:32; Col.3:13)

address one another in psalms, hymns, spiritual songs (Eph.5:19)

submit to one another (Eph.5:21)

show humility toward one another (1Pet.5:5)

consider one another more important (Phil.2:3)

stir one another up to love and good works (Heb.10:24)

confess your sins to one another (Jas.5:16)

pray for one another (Jas.5:16)

do good to one another (1Thes.5:15)

glorify God together (Rom.15:6)

***

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Today we get to witness 6 people publicly proclaim Jesus as Lord by being baptized in his name, so I want to look today at what the Bible has to say about baptism, what it is all about.

What is Baptism?

First, a word about the word ‘baptize’; [βαπτίζω] is a Greek word that means ‘to dunk, dip, plunge, or immerse’, so in some of the verses we will look at today, I will use ‘immerse’ as an alternate translation of the Greek word to help clarify.

Water Baptism and Spirit Baptism

John the Baptist said:

Matthew 3:11 “I [John] baptize you with [immerse you in] water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He [Jesus] will baptize you with [immerse you in] the Holy Spirit and fire.

In Acts 1, after the resurrection but before Jesus ascended to the right hand of his Father,

Acts 1:4 And while staying with them he [Jesus] ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; 5 for John baptized with [immersed in] water, but you will be baptized with [immersed in] the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” … 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

John said he was immersing people in water as a sign of repentance. But he pointed ahead to the coming one; God come in the flesh, who would immerse people in the Holy Spirit.

In John 3 Jesus had taught about this powerful work of the promised Holy Spirit.

John 3:3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

Jesus’ teaching is rooted in the promises of the New Covenant in Ezekiel 36; promises to cleanse you with water, and give you a new heart and put a new spirit, God’s Holy Spirit, in you.

Jesus says we must experience this new birth, birth from above, new life given by the Holy Spirit.

This connects back to what John said in Matthew 3; this being born of the Holy Spirit is described as being baptized in or immersed by Jesus in the Holy Spirit. This also connects to Jesus’ promise to his followers in Acts 1, that the Holy Spirit would come upon them, and they would be immersed in the Holy Spirit.

Back in John 7 Jesus said:

John 7:37 On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ 39 Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

Notice, Jesus invites the crowds to come to him to have their thirst satisfied. It is those who believe in Jesus who are given the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Pentecost

Acts 2 describes the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise:

Acts 2:1 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

The apostles were filled with God’s Holy Spirit. Just as the glory of God came down in fire on Mount Sinai (Ex.24:17); as the glory of God came as a pillar of fire to inhabit the tabernacle in the wilderness (Ex.40:34,38), so now God’s glory rested on his people, and his Holy Spirit inhabited his new dwelling place.

Peter preached the gospel to the crowds gathered there that day:

Acts 2:23 this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. …32 This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. 33 Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing.

The Holy Spirit was poured out on his apostles in fulfillment of John’s prediction and Jesus’ promise.

Response: Believe and Be Baptized

The crowds are cut to the heart by the gospel, convicted of their sins by the Holy Spirit, and ask ‘what shall we do?’

Acts 2:38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized [immersed] every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

To repent is to have a change of heart and mind; you were believing one thing, but you realize what you were trusting in cannot save, so you turn from what you were trusting in and grab on to the only one who is truly able to save.

Here’s how the people responded that day:

Acts 2:41 So those who received his word were baptized [immersed], and there were added that day about three thousand souls. 42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

The people received his word; they had a change of heart about Jesus; they came to believe that he is who the apostles were proclaiming him to be, and they put their trust in this Jesus.

According to these passages, those who repent and believe the gospel are baptized [immersed] by Jesus in the Holy Spirit (the new birth), and all those believers should then be baptized [immersed] in water as a public and visible way of being identified as belonging to Jesus’ church. Baptism with water is the public ceremony of swearing allegiance to King Jesus, and to his church.

Added to the Church; Gathered on Sunday

Verse 41 says three thousand souls were added that day; to what were they added? Verse 47 says that ‘the Lord added to them those who were being saved.’ Acts 5:11 describes ‘them’ as ‘the whole church’ and 5:14 says “believers were added to the Lord”. People were being saved, publicly confessing Jesus as Lord in baptism, and were being added to the Lord, to his people, to his church.

By definition the church is a gathering of people for a common purpose. The word [ἐκκλησία] means those who are called out to assemble together. Acts 2:1, where this all started, the apostles were all together in one place; and it was on the day of Pentecost. The Jewish feast of Pentecost, according to Leviticus 23:16 was the day after the Sabbath; or the first day of the week, a new beginning, Sunday. The church was born that Sunday, and we see this pattern of gathering continue, especially on Sunday.

People were being saved by Jesus, born again, made new by the Holy Spirit, and they were publicly identified with the church through immersion in water. And their lives changed. They devoted themselves to (Acts 2:42) learning more about Jesus through the apostles’ teaching. They devoted themselves to enjoying their new connection with the community of believers, with the church, loving and serving one another. They devoted themselves to remembering Jesus by breaking bread together. They devoted themselves to enjoying together their newfound access to God through prayer.

The gathered church was devoted to teaching, fellowship, communion, and prayer. They were characterized (v.43-47) by awe, generosity, community, gratitude, and worship. These new believers belonged to a new community; so they gathered. They prioritized time together, but they didn’t spend all their time together, they also scattered into their local communities.

Jesus’ Command to Baptize [The Great Commission]

But I want to back up to look at why the apostles baptized [or immersed in water] new believers. The disciples were following Jesus’ command given in Matthew 28. In Matthew 16 Jesus promised to build his church on the confession of his own identity as Messiah and God. In Matthew 18, Jesus gave his church authority to affirm other people as members of his church as they upheld the family code of repentance and forgiveness. Here in Matthew 28, after his death and resurrection,

Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

These verses have been called ‘the Great Commission;’ Jesus is commissioning his disciples to make disciples. Jesus claims to possess all authority, and he promises that his authoritative presence will be with his disciples to the end of the age. His disciples are to make disciples who will in turn make disciples, who will make disciples, who will make disciples… to the end of the age.

Jesus’ command is simple: ‘make disciples;’ a disciple is a student, a learner, or a follower. There are two primary things Jesus commands that we do with his disciples. We are to baptize them and teach them. Baptizing [or immersing in water] is the initiatory rite that indicates to everyone that they are beginning the life of a disciple, following a new master. Teaching them what Jesus taught is the ongoing process of disciple making.

Jesus is clear as to what his disciples are to be baptized into. In that day it was common for someone who was not Jewish by descent but wanted to worship the God of Israel to be baptized into Judaism as an indication that they had left their old gods behind and had turned to YHWH. John, who was know as ‘the baptist’ or the one who baptized, came with a radical message. He preached a baptism of repentance – calling Jews to turn from their formal outward religion and prepare their hearts for radical transformation.

Jesus here tells his followers to baptize [or immerse] disciples ‘in (or into) the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit’. Jesus does not tell us to baptize into an -ism or a group, but into a name; into a person, into a relationship. One’s name stands for their character, nature or reputation. The word ‘Name’ is singular, as Israel was so clearly taught that ‘YHWH our God is one YHWH’.

Deuteronomy 6:4 “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.

There is one name, one character or nature, one God. And yet Jesus tells us that we are to baptize into the name of three distinct persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. This is one of many reasons why historic Christianity since the time of Jesus has held to the truths that there is only one true God, and that this one God exists eternally in three distinct persons; Father, Son and Spirit. Later this Biblical teaching was given the name ‘trinity’ as shorthand to describe the one God who eternally exists in three persons. We baptize believers into the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

A Word About The Trinity; One What, Three Who’s

Here are some categories that might help in our thinking about what the Bible teaches about God;

– If we ask ‘what is God’, we could describe the kind of being God is, his character and nature; God is spirit (not flesh); holy (set apart, one-of-a-kind, unique); sovereign, all powerful, all knowing, love, just, faithful, gracious and compassionate…

– If we ask ‘who is God’, the Scriptures clearly tell us that the Father is God; Jesus prays to his Father as God. Jesus claims to be God (but he is distinct from his Father, and enjoys relationship with his Father), and the Holy Spirit is referred to as God, possesses all the divine attributes, and has all the traits of personality (he thinks, feels, and acts).

– There is only one God, one being that possesses all the attributes or characteristics of God. There can only be one absolute sovereign, only one all-powerful being. But the Bible reveals that this being we call ‘God’ has existed forever in three distinct persons in relationship; Father, Son and Spirit. This makes sense of the biblical teaching that ‘God is love’ (1Jn.4:8,16) There is one singular ‘Name’ (in the Bible a name points to character), and three persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Although the word ‘trinity’ is not found in the Bible, Christians throughout most of church history have used this word as shorthand for the Biblical understanding that the one true God eternally exists in three persons in loving relationship with one another.

Conclusion:

Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Disciples are those who believe the good news about Jesus and receive the salvation he purchased; who commit to follow him, who identify publicly with the one true God through baptism, as belonging to him, and to the church he promised to build. Water baptism illustrates our baptism by Jesus with the Holy Spirit when we believe in him. It pictures our connection with Jesus in his death and resurrection, demonstrating that we are dead to sin and have new resurrection life so that we can live pleasing to God.

***

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Bought to Belong

Jesus came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many (Mk.10:45). He came not for the righteous but sinners (Mt.9:13), he came to seek and to save the lost (Lk.19:10).

Jesus came to save us from the wrath of God, from the consequences of our sins. But he saves us for a much higher purpose. He buys us out of slavery, he brings us into right relationship with himself, he makes us new, all for greater things.

Titus 2 points to the price he paid for us, the identity he gives us, and the purpose he has for us.

Titus 2:13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

Titus 2 tells us that we are redeemed from and purified for; in order to belong; we were redeemed from lawlessness, purified for himself, to be a people for his own possession. God wants a people who belong to him.

Romans 7 addresses the same:

Romans 7:4 Likewise, my brothers, you also have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who has been raised from the dead, in order that we may bear fruit for God.

We died to the law so that we can belong to Jesus, in order to live fruitful lives and bring pleasure to God.

Ephesians 5, using the metaphor of the marriage relationship also points us to the price he paid, to whose we are, and to what we are to be like.

Ephesians 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. … 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church,

Notice who is it that Christ loved and gave himself up for? Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.

Acts 20 instructs the elders who they are responsible to care for:

Acts 20:28 Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.

God paid the ultimate price; he bought the church with his own blood.

Salvation is an individual and personal thing; each one of us must put our trust in Jesus, but each of us are saved for something greater, to be part of something bigger than ourselves. We are saved to be a people for his own possession; we are not our own, we were bought with a price. Christ loved the church, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, Christ nourishes and cherishes the church. And elders are to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. We were bought to belong.

To God Be Glory In The Church (Ephesians 3:21)

We looked last week at Ephesians; Ephesians is a letter about the glory of God on display in the church.

Ephesians 3:21 to him [God] be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

The church is a primary means God uses to bring glory to himself. We, the church, believers in Jesus, have a high and holy calling, to be the body, to give grace, to build one another up in love, to know and display together the immeasurable riches of God’s grace, to bring God glory in his church.

The Foundation of Jesus’Church

Jesus used the word ‘church’ only twice. Today I’d like to go back and look at what Jesus taught about the church. In Matthew 16, Jesus was asking his disciples what the word on the street was about his identity.

Matthew 16:13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

Then he asked them personally:

Matthew 16:15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

This is all about the identity of Jesus. It matters that we get Jesus right. It matters for a building to get the foundation right. Something built on the wrong foundation will crumble or collapse. Jesus is talking about building his church for eternity, so that even hell can’t prevail against it. Peter was given wisdom from God to perceive who Jesus really is. Jesus is who the entire Scriptures were pointing toward, the Messiah, the Christ, the fulfillment of all the law and the prophets. Jesus is the God-man, the Son of the living God, God with us, God in human form, God with flesh on. This is the solid foundation on which Jesus promises to build his church. Jesus will build his church on the truth of who he is. The Father revealed to Peter who Jesus is, and Jesus will build his church on all those who like Peter acknowldege Jesus for who he is.

It’s not Peter himself; in the next breath Peter gets it wrong and tells Jesus he can’t be killed, and Jesus says “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man” (Mt.16:23). It’s not Peter in and of himself, but the truth the Father revealed to Peter about his only Son.

The Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven

Jesus goes on to promise something great to Peter;

Matthew 16:19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

What are keys usually used for? If you are entrusted with the keys to your place of work, what does that mean? What does that give you the responsibility to do? Keys imply authority. Keys lock doors and unlock doors. You get to let people in or keep people out. Keys to the kingdom of heaven grant people access to enter Jesus’ church, the visible outpost of the kingdom of God here on earth.

It is on the solid foundation of the divine identity of Jesus as Messiah, Son of God, that Jesus promises to build his church, the visible outpost of the kingdom of God. And Peter is given authority to proclaim the good news about who Jesus is, unlocking the kingdom of heaven to grant access to sinners otherwise destined for hell.

In Acts 2, Peter proclaimed the good news about Jesus to the devout Jews assembled in Jerusalem, and three thousand souls believed and entered the kingdom of God. By Acts 4, the number of believing men had grown to about five thousand (4:4), and the Jewish leaders arrested Peter and John. But Peter responded by boldly proclaiming the good news about Jesus;

Acts 4:11 This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

By their own rejection of the only way of salvation, the kingdom of heaven was locked to them.

By the end of Acts 4, the Holy Spirit was working mightily in the church, the believers were walking in unity, giving generously to the poor, even selling their land and possessions to give to the church. But in Acts 5, a couple conspired together to lie about their gift, keeping a portion for themselves (there was nothing wrong with that) but pretending to give it all. At Peter’s word, they were exposed as frauds and fell down dead. You can’t buy your way into God’s kingdom.

In Acts 10, at God’s clear direction (and even then a bit reluctantly), Peter proclaimed the good news about Jesus and unlocked the door of God’s kingdom to a Gentile Roman centurion who believed and was welcomed into the church.

It was the proclamation of who Jesus is, the good news that there is salvation only in him, that either locked or unlocked the kingdom of heaven to people, depending on whether they believed in the true identity of Jesus, or rejected him.

Discipling Discipline

Back to Matthew, what Jesus said about his church. Two chapters later, in Matthew 18, Jesus connects the authority of the keys to the authority of the church to recognize or exclude members in the context of disputes between brothers.

Matthew 18:15 “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. 16 But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. 17 If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. 18 Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 19 Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”

In this passage, the church is described as those (even two or three) who officially gather in the name of Jesus, and Jesus says that the church has authority to seek reconciliation between brothers (this must always be the goal), and for those who refuse to listen even after repeated confrontation, to treat them as outsiders. The church is given the authority to determine who legitimately belongs to the church, and who by their life and attitude demonstrate that they are not following or submitting to Jesus. We can’t see the true condition of someone’s heart, but we can with relative accuracy evaluate the condition of the heart based on how someone responds to loving correction.

The process is clear; if your brother sins against you, tell everybody who will listen, tell the elders of the church, post it on social media, make it public. No, you go talk to him, between you and him alone, with the hope of repentance, forgiveness and restoration. Only if he does not listen do you involve one or two others in the confrontation, again with the hope of reconciliation. Only if he refuses to listen does it then become a church issue, but still with the goal of restoration. Only if he refuses to listen to the church does the church then treat him as a Gentile and a tax collector.

This process is often referred to as church discipline, which is the corrective part of disciple-making. The final step, affirming that someone who refuses loving correction and persists in acting like an unbeliever ought to be treated as one, is often called ex-communication; removing from communion or fellowship. Removing someone from Christian fellowship is serious, but it is out of love for that person, for the truth, and for the church, and it is done always with the goal of ‘winning the brother’ and seeing them turn from their sin and be welcomed back into fellowship.

Keep in mind, ‘we all stumble in many ways’ (James 3:2); ‘If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves’ (1Jn.1:8); but genuine believers want to please Jesus, have remorse for their sin, and respond positively to correction. We are not called to be the morality police looking for wrongdoers to punish; we don’t remove someone from fellowship without careful and prayerful consideration and personal confrontation, in humility recognizing our own inclination to wander. But we must not blur the lines and pretend that unbelievers are believers when they are not.

We have gospel conversations with unbelievers, and we invite them to attend church, to hear the gospel preached. But we do not encourage unbelievers to take communion with us.

Communion for the New Covenant Community

Communion means fellowship; something we have in common. If I haven’t owned the fact that I am a sinner whose only hope is the once-for-all sacrifice of Jesus in my place, if I haven’t put my trust in Jesus only and completely, if I haven’t been born anew and don’t have the Spirit of God living inside me, then I may have some superficial things in common with believers, like moral values or music preference or even a love for the Bible and great respect for Jesus, but I don’t have the most important thing in common. Partaking of the bread and the cup when we don’t really have the core essentials in common with the church is an empty ritual and dangerous to our souls.

Paul reminds the church of Jesus’ words at that last Passover meal:

1 Corinthians 11:23 For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

This is the family meal for the New Covenant community, which rehearses and reminds us of the gospel we are trusting in.

He goes on to warn:

1 Corinthians 11:27 Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. 28 Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. 31 But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged.

In baptism, believers are immersed into or identified with the name of the one true God. ‘Name’ in the Bible expresses identity; character, nature, or reputation. To uphold the family name is to live consistent with the family values; to represent the family well. Where baptism is the way we identify ourselves as belonging to Jesus and the way the church recognizes a new believer as a member of the body; communion is the regular ongoing identification of those who belong as members to the church.

Communion is for born again baptized believers, those who have been publicly identified as members of Christ’s body, the church; who are living as siblings and seeking to uphold the family name.

***

2026.01.11 Sermon Notes

Jesus Builds His Church (Matthew 16, 18)

We were bought to belong

Titus 2:13-14; Romans 7:4; Ephesians 5:25-29; Acts 20:28

To God be glory in the church

Ephesians 3:21

Matthew 16:15-19

Jesus will build his church

-The church is built on the identity of Jesus; Messiah, Son of God

-Keys grant access or deny access; the gospel proclamation of who Jesus is

Acts 2:41; Acts 4:4, 11-12; Acts 5:1-11; Acts 10

Matthew 18:15-20

The church is given authority to recognize or exclude members

see 1 Corinthians 5; 2 Corinthians 2:1-11; James 3:2; 1Jn.1:8

1 Corinthians 11:23-31

Communion is the family meal for the New Covenant community; it keeps the gospel central

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Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

This Advent we have been fixing our eyes on Jesus; who he is, why he came. I’d like to continue to fix our eyes on Jesus by looking at who we are in light of who he is; he is the great Apostle; we are the ones he was sent to. He is our great High Priest; he came to give his own life as a sacrifice for our sins. He became human so that as a man he could die for our sins; he is not ashamed to call us brothers. He is God’s final Word, to reveal to us who God is, and it is a word of grace and truth. He is the greater Prophet like Moses; performing mighty acts of deliverance, setting captives free, leading us through this wilderness, and leading us in to all the promises of God. Jesus was sent from his Father’s side, became human, was born of a virgin in order to put the glory of God on display, pay my price, die for my sins and bring me into relationship with himself. He came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many (Mk.10:45). He came not for the righteous but sinners (Mt.9:13), he came to seek and to save the lost (Lk.19:10).

Now what? We understand that Jesus came to save us from the wrath to come (1Thes.1:10). But what did he save us to? What did he save us for? What is our purpose?

To God Be Glory In The Church (Ephesians 3:21)

The New Testament letter to the Ephesians is a letter about the glory of God on display in the church. Ephesians 3:21 is a key verse:

Ephesians 3:21 to him [God] be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

The church is a primary means God uses to bring glory to himself. I want to walk through Ephesians today and look at God’s purposes for us, the church.

Ephesians 1; Every Spiritual Blessing to the Praise of His Glory

The letter is addressed to the saints, those made holy through faith in Jesus. It begins by blessing God, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing. His choosing us, his predestining, his adopting us, is all (according to 1:6) ‘to the praise of his glorious grace’. His redeeming us, his forgiving us (1:7) is ‘according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us’. His purpose, his ultimate plan for the fullness of time was ‘to unite all things in him’ (1:10). In verse 12, Paul writes of himself and his fellow Jewish believers, we have obtained an inheritance, we were predestined, ‘so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory’. In verse 13, he turns to the Gentile believers in Ephesus and says ‘you also’;

Ephesians 1:13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory

Jew and Gentile both heard the word of truth, the good news of salvation through Jesus, both believed in him; both sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, both made co-heirs of the inheritance, both redound to the praise of his glory.

Verse 15 overflows with thanksgiving to God, and he prays that God:

Ephesians 1:17 …may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, 18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, …

We need God’s gift of spiritual strength, the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, we need the eyes of our hearts enlightened to know, to comprehend, to understand what we have been given in Christ, our hope, our inheritance, the supernatural resurrection power that is at work in us who believe in Jesus. So Paul prays for us, that we would know, that our hearts would be opened to perceive what we have been given.

God’s Gift of Jesus and The Church the Fullness of Him

Thoughts of the resurrection naturally turn his heart to Jesus, whom God raised from the dead,

Ephesians 1:20 …and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.

Ephesians 1:22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

God put all things under Jesus’ feet, and the Father gave Jesus as head over all to the church. Listen, Jesus is God’s gift to the church! Here Paul mixes metaphors; Jesus is head, sovereign, top of the org chart, in authority over all, in control. And he is head of the church, which is his body. As a body is not alive without its head, the church cannot live disconnected from Jesus. In a stunning phrase, here the church is called ‘the fullness of him who fills all in all’. We, you and I, the church, are the fullness of Christ who fills all in all. Jesus, being fully God, is omnipresent, and one way he makes his omnipresence known here on earth is through us, his body, the church. His life flows from the head through all the members of his body, and his presence extends into this world primarily through his blood-bought people, the church.

Ephesians 2; Salvation Displays His Glorious Grace

Ephesians 2 looks at us in our dead and helpless state, in treacherous rebellion and sinful disobedience, in our passionate lusts, deserving God’s hot and holy wrath, and says ‘But’;

Ephesians 2:4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ— by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

God’s amazing grace toward us is for our good and for his own glory. Driven by his own great mercy and steadfast love, he made us alive, and this puts on display his own great love and grace.

Ephesians 2:7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

We are his workmanship, meant to showcase his glory and great grace.

Jew and Gentile Built Together in One Body

Ephesians 2:11-12 highlights the deep divide between Jew and Gentile, those who were separated, alienated, strangers, without God and without hope. ‘But’;

Ephesians 2:13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility 15 by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.

The chasm bridged by the blood of Christ, the dividing wall broken down in the broken body of Jesus, the law of commandments and ordinances abolished, the hostility killed by his cross. Jesus is our peace. He has made us one, one new man, both reconciled to God in one body, in the church.

Ephesians 2:18 For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

Believing Gentile and believing Jew alike have access to the Father in the one Holy Spirit. Fellow citizens with the saints. Members of the household of God. Together built on the the one foundation, Christ, to whom the whole Bible points, and in whom we are cemented together, growing together, being built together into a dwelling place for God. The church, not a building but a people; we, believers, whatever our background, built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

Ephesians 3; The Mystery – Made Members of the Same Body

In Ephesians 3, Paul talks about the mystery that was hidden in ages past but ‘has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit’ (3:5).

Ephesians 3:6 This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

Israel was God’s chosen people, distinct and separate from all the other nations. But now, in Christ Jesus, through the gospel, Jew and Gentile together are made co-heirs of the promises, are made members of the same body, the body of Christ, the church.

Displaying God’s Wisdom to Heavenly Rulers

Paul was uniquely privileged to proclaim this message.

Ephesians 3:8 To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things, 10 so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.

God’s purpose of uniting Jew and non-Jew into one body the church, put the multifaceted wisdom of God on display to angels and demons.

Ephesians 3:11 This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him.

Through faith in Christ, we have access into the heavenly realms, to the very throne of God himself.

In verse 14, he again prays for the church;

Ephesians 3:16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

Paul prays for Holy Spirit enabled power to grasp the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge. He prays for this knowing to happen in the church, together with all the saints. This is not an individual knowing; this is a corporate knowing. We can’t fully appreciate the love of Christ on our own; we need the body. God gets glory in the church when the church together begins to comprehend the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, when Christ dwells in our hearts and the church is filled with all the fullness of God.

Ephesians 4; Founded on Truth, Exhorted to Unity

Having laid the gospel foundation in chapters 1-3, Paul builds on that foundation by exhorting the church in chapter 4:

Ephesians 4:1 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

This Holy Spirit created unity calls for humility, gentleness, bearing with one another in love. This exhortation is founded on the theological truth of the unity of the body of Christ.

Ephesians 4:4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

One Body; Many Body Parts

There is one body, connected to the one head, our Lord Jesus Christ, united by one Holy Spirit, to glorify one God and Father. But this one body, the church, is made up of unique and diverse body parts.

Ephesians 4:7 But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore it says, “When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men.” …11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.

This one body, the church, is made up of each one of us, unique diverse body parts, each equipped with gifts given to us by Jesus. Some are leaders gifted to equip the saints for the work of the ministry. Notice the work of the ministry is done by the saints, not by those gifted with leadership alone. Leaders are equipped by God to equip the saints, to build up the body, to promote unity, to know Jesus better, to grow us up to maturity, to protect us from false doctrine and false teachers. But it is not only those gifted with leadership that are gifted.

Ephesians 4:15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

The whole body, every body part, every joint, every ligament, gifted to speak truth, to build up one another in love, each part working properly, growing up in every way into christlikeness. In verse 25 we are to speak truth ‘for we are members of one another’. In verse 29,

Ephesians 4:29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.

Did you know, you recipients of God’s amazing grace, that you have the Spirit empowered ability to extend the grace of God to others through your words? Each of us, using our God given gifts, are to seek to build up the body.

In Ephesians 5:18, we are to

Ephesians 5:18 … be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

In 5:22-33, our marriages are to point to ‘Christ, who is the head of the church, his body; the church submitting to Christ; Christ who loved the church and gave himself up for her, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, as he nourishes and cherishes the church as members of his body.

We, the church, believers in Jesus, have a high and holy calling, to be the body, to give grace, to build one another up in love, to know and display together the immeasurable riches of God’s grace, to bring God glory in his church.

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Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

For Advent we’ve been ‘fixing our eyes on Jesus’(12:2). We’ve been looking at some of the titles of Jesus in the book of Hebrews, looking at who he is, and what he came to do.

Hebrews 3:1 calls Jesus ‘the Apostle’, the one sent out from his Father, the only begotten Son sent to become one of us, to set us free and show us grace. It also calls Jesus our Great High Priest, the only mediator between God and man, the only sinless priest who offered himself as the once for all sacrifice for our sins.

In Hebrews 2 the eternal Word became flesh, became human, became one of us, so that he could die in our place. When we put our trust in him, who he truly is and what he has done for us, we are adopted into his family, and he is not ashamed to call us his brothers.

In Hebrews 1, Jesus is the final word. In contrast to the many ways God spoke in times past, God has spoken in Son. God has given us his final word. God has put his own glory on display in his Son, the radiance of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Hebrews is all about how Jesus is supreme. Jesus is the great Apostle, the High Priest greater than Aaron, the incarnate Word greater than all the ways God spoke in the past. Today we will see that although Moses was the great deliverer, law-giver and leader, Jesus is greater.

Promise of ‘A Prophet Like Moses’ [Deut.18:15-19; 34:10]

Deuteronomy gets its name from ‘deutero’ ‘second’ and ‘nomos’ ‘law’; the second giving of the Law. Moses was addressing the new generation, the children of those who were rescued out of Egypt but disobeyed and fell in the wilderness. Even Moses was not allowed to enter the promised land, but he was teaching the law to that generation who would enter in under Joshua. In Deuteronomy 18 he says:

Deuteronomy 18:15 “The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to him you shall listen— 16 just as you desired of the LORD your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, when you said, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of the LORD my God or see this great fire any more, lest I die.’ 17 And the LORD said to me, ‘They are right in what they have spoken. 18 I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. And I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. 19 And whoever will not listen to my words that he shall speak in my name, I myself will require it of him.

After Joshua, full of the spirit of wisdom, is appointed to lead the people, Deuteronomy closes with these words:

Deuteronomy 34:10 And there has not arisen a prophet since in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face, 11 none like him for all the signs and the wonders that the LORD sent him to do in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to all his land, 12 and for all the mighty power and all the great deeds of terror that Moses did in the sight of all Israel.

Moses prophesied that YHWH God would raise up for the people a prophet like Moses from the people of Israel, who would mediate between God and man, who would speak God’s words, who would do signs and wonders, mighty acts of power, whom YHWH God would know face to face.

Expectation of ‘The Prophet’ [John]

We see this expectation in the New Testament: in John 1,

John 1:19 And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” 20 He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” 21 And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” …25 They asked him, “Then why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”

Notice the definite article; ‘the prophet’; they were not just anticipating another prophet like the many God chose to speak through; they were looking for ‘the prophet,’ the one who would fulfill the promises of Deuteronomy.

In John 6, when Jesus fed five thousand men, in addition to women and children with five barley loaves and two small fish, and had 12 baskets full left over,

John 6:14 When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!”

in John 7,

John 7:37 On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” 39 Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified. 40 When they heard these words, some of the people said, “This really is the Prophet.”

In Luke 7, when Jesus raised the widow’s only son,

Luke 7:16 Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and “God has visited his people!”

God had given his people the hope of a future prophet, a prophet like Moses, a greater prophet. And the people began to see in Jesus the fulfillment of that promise.

Jesus Like Moses; Compare and Contrast [Ex.20, 33; Num.12]

How is Jesus a prophet like Moses? What was different about Moses than all the other prophets? And in what ways was Jesus different than Moses, greater than Moses, the fulfillment, of which Moses was only a shadow?

A prophet was one to whom God gave his words, who spoke on behalf of God to the people. When YHWH God thundered his ten words from Mount Sinai to his people,

Exodus 20:18 Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off 19 and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” … 21 The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.

Moses was the mediator who stood between God and man, who represented the people before God, and brought God’s word to the people in a way they could hear it.

God Spoke More Directly with Moses [Num.12; Ex.33; Heb.1-2]

We saw in Hebrews 1 that God spoke at many times and in many ways; he spoke through creation, through dreams and visions, through a voice from heaven, through words written, through a still small voice. In Numbers 12 the Lord claims to have spoken uniquely to Moses. Miriam and Aaron challenged Moses’ authority; they argue that the Lord has spoken through them also.

Numbers 12:5 And the LORD came down in a pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance of the tent and called Aaron and Miriam, and they both came forward. 6 And he said, “Hear my words: If there is a prophet among you, I the LORD make myself known to him in a vision; I speak with him in a dream. 7 Not so with my servant Moses. He is faithful in all my house. 8 With him I speak mouth to mouth, clearly, and not in riddles, and he beholds the form of the LORD. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?”

YHWH God made himself known to Moses more directly.

Exodus 33:11 Thus the LORD used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. …

But even that direct revelation had limitations; when Moses asked to see God’s glory, the Lord answered, ‘But, you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live” (Ex.33:20).

But as Hebrews 1 tells us, ‘in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son’. Jesus ‘is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature’ (Heb.1:2-3). Jesus who was in the beginning with God and who is himself God, Jesus is God the Word made flesh. Jesus is God’s final word.

Moses the Servant, Jesus the Son [Heb.3:1-6]

Hebrews 3 invites us to consider Jesus

Hebrews 3:1 Therefore, holy brothers, you who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession, 2 who was faithful to him who appointed him, just as Moses also was faithful in all God’s house. 3 For Jesus has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses—as much more glory as the builder of a house has more honor than the house itself. 4 (For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.) 5 Now Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant, to testify to the things that were to be spoken later, 6 but Christ is faithful over God’s house as a son. And we are his house if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.

Moses was faithful as a servant in God’s house; Jesus was faithful as the Son. Moses has glory as a part of the house that God built; Jesus has far more glory as the builder of that house. Moses pointed beyond himself to the one who was to come; Jesus is the one who was to come, and he invited all to come to him and find life.

Moses Letters of Death, Jesus Life Giving Spirit [2Cor.3:7-13]

2 Corinthians 3 also compares and contrasts Moses’ ministry with the ministry of Jesus.

2 Corinthians 3:7 Now if the ministry of death, carved in letters on stone, came with such glory that the Israelites could not gaze at Moses’ face because of its glory, which was being brought to an end, 8 will not the ministry of the Spirit have even more glory? 9 For if there was glory in the ministry of condemnation, the ministry of righteousness must far exceed it in glory. 10 Indeed, in this case, what once had glory has come to have no glory at all, because of the glory that surpasses it. 11 For if what was being brought to an end came with glory, much more will what is permanent have glory. 12 Since we have such a hope, we are very bold, 13 not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not gaze at the outcome of what was being brought to an end.

Moses’ ministry was a ministry that brought condemnation and death, it was letters on stone, it had a glory that was being brought to an end.

Jesus brings the ministry of the Spirit written on human hearts, a ministry that brings justification, righteousness, life, and transformation, a permanent and infinitely more glorious ministry.

Law of Moses, Grace of Jesus [John 1, 3, 6, 7]

John 1 says:

John 1:17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

Law brings reward for obedience and punishment for disobedience; we all fall short and deserve punishment. Grace is a good gift we don’t deserve and could never earn.

John 3, Moses lifted up a bronze serpent on a pole so that whoever looked at it was delivered from the immediate physical consequences of their sins. Jesus was himself lifted up on a cross to bear the punishment we deserve, so that whoever looks to him experiences forgiveness of sins and eternal life.

John 6, Moses prayed and God gave his people bread in the wilderness to meet their physical needs. Jesus, after meeting physical needs, pointed to our spiritual need, and claimed to be the bread from heaven, spiritual food to nourish and satisfy hungry souls. Jesus gave us himself as food to satisfy our greatest need.

John 7, Moses was given circumcision as a sign of the covenant, a cutting off of flesh. Jesus came to make us whole, complete.

Like Moses, Jesus came to his own people to rescue them, but his own people rejected him. Moses brought mighty signs in the plagues, bringing injury, ruin and death; Jesus did mighty signs of healings, restoring broken things, even bringing the dead back to life. Moses led the people out of slavery in Egypt; Jesus sets people truly free and brings us into our heavenly rest. Through Moses God gave the Law; Jesus came to fulfill the Law and satisfy its demands. Moses prayed and God gave physical bread from heaven; Jesus is the bread from heaven, he gave his own body to give life to the world. Moses struck the rock and water poured out to satisfy physical thirst; Jesus is the Rock that followed them (1Cor.10:4); he was struck to give us living water, the water of the Holy Spirit, water that springs up to eternal life and satisfaction.

Jesus the Fulfillment [Jn.5; Mt.5]

Jesus said in John 5:

John 5:45 Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. 46 For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me.

Jesus claimed that Moses wrote about him. Jesus said in Matthew 5:

Matthew 5:17 ​“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.

Jesus is that prophet, who Moses wrote about, the fulfillment of all the law and the prophets and the Psalms. It truly is all about Jesus!

Both Peter in Acts 3 and Stephen in Acts 7 proclaimed Jesus as the one who is the prophet like Moses. Peter called Jesus ‘the Holy and Righteous One, …you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead’ (Ac.3:14-15).

Acts 3:22 Moses said, ‘The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers. You shall listen to him in whatever he tells you. 23 And it shall be thatevery soul who does not listen to that prophet shall be destroyed from the people.’

Jesus is our greater prophet! Listen to him! How are we to respond?

Acts 3:18 But what God foretold by the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ would suffer, he thus fulfilled. 19 Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, 20 that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus, 21 whom heaven must receive until the time for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long ago.

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Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org