“The Grace of God”
Life in the Wilderness
May 6, 2007
Numbers 17:1-19:22
These three chapters, Numbers 17, 18, and 19 follow closely on the heels of some pretty strong judgments from the LORD.
You remember the Retreat of Unbelief a couple of weeks ago? When the whole nation decided to NOT go up and NOT conquer the Promised Land out of fear and unbelief.
What was God’s judgment? God’s judgment was a 40 year sentence of life in the wilderness and the death of an entire generation.
Last week, we read about Korah’s Rebellion. When Korah and about 250 other Israelite leaders challenged Moses’ and Aaron’s authority.
And what was God’s judgment then? God’s judgment was the earth swallowing up Korah’s followers and fire incinerating the 250 rebellious men.
Judgment.
And mingled with this righteous judgment, we have also seen God’s grace.
And I believe that chapters 17, 18, & 19, serve in large part to communicate “The Grace of God.” The amazing grace of God.
God is not just holy and wrathful, though we dare not forget it. God is also giving and gracious, and we need to be reminded of that each and every day.
So, while we might be tempted to sleep through these three chapters about staffs, and priests, and offerings, and tithes, and red cows, instead, we should look closely to see what these chapters have to teach us about “The Grace of God” and how they point us to the ultimate grace of God–the Lord Jesus Christ.
Think back to last week. What did Korah want?
What did Moses discern was Korah’s real objective?
Korah was a Levite, but he wanted to be a priest. He probably wanted to be the High Priest.
And died for it. And so did a lot of other people.
In chapter 17, God puts an end to any speculation about who should be the High Priest. Chapter 17, verse 1.
“The LORD said to Moses, ‘Speak to the Israelites and get twelve staffs from them, one from the leader of each of their ancestral tribes. Write the name of each man on his staff. On the staff of Levi write Aaron's name, for there must be one staff for the head of each ancestral tribe. Place them in the Tent of Meeting in front of the Testimony, where I meet with you. The staff belonging to the man I choose will sprout, and I will rid myself of this constant grumbling against you by the Israelites.’”
Got the picture? 12 staffs for 12 tribes. Each tribal leader gets his name put on his tribe’s staff.
God’s going to do a miracle. Do dead sticks sprout? No, they don’t.
And what will this prove? V.5
“The staff belonging to the man I choose will sprout, and I will rid myself of this constant grumbling against you by the Israelites.”
God’s going to choose. What happens? V.6
“So Moses spoke to the Israelites, and their leaders gave him twelve staffs, one for the leader of each of their ancestral tribes, and Aaron's staff was among them. Moses placed the staffs before the LORD in the Tent of the Testimony [in the Holy Place]. The next day Moses entered the Tent of the Testimony and saw that Aaron's staff, which represented the house of Levi, had not only sprouted but had budded, blossomed and produced almonds.”
No question about it! Aaron is the man God has chosen to be High Priest.
“Budded, blossomed, and produced almonds!”
Bible Trivia question: (And remember, there’s really no such thing as Bible trivia!) What piece of furniture should this staff remind you of?
The Lampstand, right?
Remember that it was shaped of pure gold into the form of an almond tree with clusters?
And remember that it signified the Light of God and His shining His blessing on His people?
Aaron was supposed to do the same thing.
He was to be a blessing for God’s people. A gift of God’s grace.
The people didn’t quite get that. V.9
“Then Moses brought out all the staffs from the LORD's presence to all the Israelites. They looked at them, and each man took his own staff. The LORD said to Moses, ‘Put back Aaron's staff in front of the Testimony, to be kept as a sign to the rebellious [it stays there for good!]. This will put an end to their grumbling against me, so that they will not die.’ Moses did just as the LORD commanded him. The Israelites said to Moses, ‘We will die! We are lost, we are all lost! Anyone who even comes near the tabernacle of the LORD will die. Are we all going to die?’”
Do you think they got it?
God says keep this staff as a sign that they won’t die. And they get scared that they’re going to die!
On one hand it’s good that they finally fear God. But God doesn’t want slavish fear. He wants trusting fear.
They finally seem to understand again that not just anyone can or should approach God in the tabernacle.
But they are missing God’s gracious gift of a priest.
#1. GOD GIVES US OUR PRIEST.
God in His grace, gives us our priest.
Not just any man will do. Only God’s man will do.
But God gives Him to be a priest for His people. That’s the point of the first 7 verses of chapter 18.
The people are scared stiff, but God says (v.1):
“The LORD said to Aaron, ‘You, your sons and your father's family are to bear the responsibility for offenses against the sanctuary, and you and your sons alone are to bear the responsibility for offenses against the priesthood. [God has given His people a priest. V.2] Bring your fellow Levites from your ancestral tribe to join you and assist you when you and your sons minister before the Tent of the Testimony. They [the rest of the Levites] are to be responsible to you and are to perform all the duties of the Tent, but they must not go near the furnishings of the sanctuary or the altar, or both they and you will die. They are to join you and be responsible for the care of the Tent of Meeting–all the work at the Tent– and no one else may come near where you are. You are to be responsible for the care of the sanctuary and the altar, so that wrath will not fall on the Israelites again. I myself have selected your fellow Levites from among the Israelites as a gift to you [Aaron and the priests], dedicated to the LORD to do the work at the Tent of Meeting. But only you and your sons may serve as priests in connection with everything at the altar and inside the curtain. I am giving you the service of the priesthood as a gift. Anyone else who comes near the sanctuary must be put to death.’”
There is awesome responsibility put on the priests and their support staff–the Levites.
And there is an awesome warning of judgment if anyone else comes near the sanctuary.
But the main point that God is making is that He has graciously given the Levites to Aaron and his sons.
And He has graciously given the priesthood to Aaron and His sons.
And He has graciously given priests to Israel so that they have a mediator between them and God.
God gives us our priest.
Now, in the New Covenant, we have a new High Priest. It is no longer Aaron or Aaron’s sons.
This new priest is a priest forever according to another order.
His name is Jesus Christ.
And He is a gift of the grace of God.
He is the light of the world like the lampstand in the tabernacle.
He is the one God has chosen like Aaron whose staff had blossomed.
He is our High Priest.
This is what the book of Hebrews says about it. Chapter 4.
“We have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are–yet was without sin. [So what?] Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
God gives us our Priest.
And therefore, we approach the throne of grace.
Not only is our new High Priest sinless, but He’s also sympathetic.
He understands. Jesus understands.
And not only that, but this High Priest has opened up the way for us to approach God.
We don’t have to be scared like they were in chapter 17.
Our High Priest has gone through the heavens and opened them to us.
“Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
Are you going through a time of need?
There is grace to help with the High Priest that God has given us!
Trust Him. Take Him your problems. Don’t be afraid. Draw near with confidence.
God Gives Us Our Priest.
But that’s not all. He also gives us our portion.
#2. GOD GIVES US OUR PORTION.
He not only provides us with the mediator that we need to come to Him, but He gives us Himself and everything we need.
God, in His amazing grace, gives us our portion. Verse 8.
“Then the LORD said to Aaron, ‘I myself have put you in charge of the offerings presented to me; all the holy offerings the Israelites give me I give to you and your sons as your portion and regular share.”
Remember, Aaron and the rest of the priests and the Levites are not going to get any of the Promised Land.
How will they be supported?
How will they make a living? They will live off of the tithes and offerings. V.9
“You are to have the part of the most holy offerings that is kept from the fire. From all the gifts they bring me as most holy offerings, whether grain or sin or guilt offerings, that part belongs to you and your sons. Eat it as something most holy; every male shall eat it. You must regard it as holy. This also is yours: whatever is set aside from the gifts of all the wave offerings of the Israelites. I give this to you and your sons and daughters as your regular share. Everyone in your household who is ceremonially clean may eat it. I give you all the finest olive oil and all the finest new wine and grain they give the LORD as the firstfruits of their harvest. All the land's firstfruits that they bring to the LORD will be yours. Everyone in your household who is ceremonially clean may eat it. Everything in Israel that is devoted to the LORD is yours. The first offspring of every womb, both man and animal, that is offered to the LORD is yours. But you must redeem every firstborn son and every firstborn male of unclean animals. [We’ve seen that before in Exodus and in Numbers, haven’t we?] When they are a month old, you must redeem them at the redemption price set at five shekels of silver, according to the sanctuary shekel, which weighs twenty gerahs. But you must not redeem the firstborn of an ox, a sheep or a goat; they are holy. Sprinkle their blood on the altar and burn their fat as an offering made by fire, an aroma pleasing to the LORD. Their meat is to be yours, just as the breast of the wave offering and the right thigh are yours. Whatever is set aside from the holy offerings the Israelites present to the LORD I give to you and your sons and daughters as your regular share. It is an everlasting covenant of salt before the LORD for both you and your offspring.”
Now catch this. God is providing for them. V.20
“The LORD said to Aaron, ‘You will have no inheritance in their land, nor will you have any share among them; I am your share and your inheritance among the Israelites.”
“I am your share and your inheritance among the Israelites.”
God not only gives them their portion.
He IS their portion!
And He is ours, as well.
Remember, in the New Covenant, we are all priests!
And God is our portion.
God says, “I am your share and your inheritance.”
Let me ask you a question.
If you had God and nothing else, would that be enough?
Would God be enough for you?
Most of the time, we want God and stuff. God and other stuff.
But sometimes, God strips away “all that other stuff,” just to see if we would be happy with God alone.
That’s one of the things He was doing with Job.
And it was one of the things He was doing with Asaph in Psalm 73.
This is what Asaph finally learned.
He said, “Whom have I in heaven but you[, LORD]? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”
Is that how you feel about God?
He is so gracious! He not only supplies our needs and gives us many of the things we want–He IS our share and inheritance.
And you know what, that makes it possible for me to give!
If God is my portion, then I can be a giving person.
Look at what God says in the next section. V.21
“I give to the Levites all the tithes in Israel as their inheritance in return for the work they do while serving at the Tent of Meeting. From now on the Israelites must not go near the Tent of Meeting, or they will bear the consequences of their sin and will die. It is the Levites who are to do the work at the Tent of Meeting and bear the responsibility for offenses against it. This is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come. They will receive no inheritance among the Israelites.”
“Instead, I give to the Levites as their inheritance the tithes that the Israelites present as an offering to the LORD. That is why I said concerning them: 'They will have no inheritance among the Israelites.'’”
So God has provided for them and been their portion. What the Israelites gave to God, God gave to the Levites. Now what do they do with it?
They give, too! V.25
“The LORD said to Moses, ‘Speak to the Levites and say to them: 'When you receive from the Israelites the tithe I give you as your inheritance, you must present a tenth of that tithe as the LORD's offering. [Even the Levites tithe! They tithe the tithe!] Your offering will be reckoned to you as grain from the threshing floor or juice from the winepress. In this way you also will present an offering to the LORD from all the tithes you receive from the Israelites. From these tithes you must give the LORD's portion to Aaron the priest. [The Levites tithe to the priests.] You must present as the LORD's portion the best and holiest part of everything given to you.' Say to the Levites: 'When you present the best part, it will be reckoned to you as the product of the threshing floor or the winepress. You and your households may eat the rest of it anywhere, for it is your wages for your work at the Tent of Meeting. By presenting the best part of it you will not be guilty in this matter; then you will not defile the holy offerings of the Israelites, and you will not die.'”
When God graciously gives us our portion, we thankfully give to others in worship right back.
Now, this text and others like it form the basis for the New Covenant understanding of supporting gospel workers.
And I’m thankful for your generous giving that makes my labor as your pastor possible.
Thank you for supporting us by your regular tithes and offerings.
God has been your portion and we benefit from your giving from that provision.
And it also forms the basis for mine and Heather’s giving.
We rejoice that you pay us so well that we are able to give both to this church and to the Lord’s work in missions.
We get to support several missionary families because you support us.
And we were also happy to be participate in the special offering today to pay down the remaining debt our church owes on the parking lot.
God is our portion and we give because He’s first given to us.
And the greatest thing He’s given us is Number Three.
#3. GOD GIVES US OUR PURIFICATION.
God, in His Amazing Grace, Gives Us Our Purification. Chapter 19, verse 1.
“The LORD said to Moses and Aaron: ‘This is a requirement of the law that the LORD has commanded: Tell the Israelites to bring you a red heifer without defect or blemish and that has never been under a yoke. Give it to Eleazar the priest [that’s Aaron’s son]; it is to be taken outside the camp and slaughtered in his presence. Then Eleazar the priest is to take some of its blood on his finger and sprinkle it seven times toward the front of the Tent of Meeting. While he watches, the heifer is to be burned–its hide, flesh, blood and offal. The priest is to take some cedar wood, hyssop and scarlet wool and throw them onto the burning heifer. After that, the priest must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water. He may then come into the camp, but he will be ceremonially unclean till evening. The man who burns it must also wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he too will be unclean till evening.” Stop there for a second.
Now this is strange to us, but we’ve seen a lot of these kinds of things already in the book of Numbers.
These are the instructions for the Red Heifer, or the Red Cow. This isn’t really a sacrifice, but it has some sacrificial features to it.
The cow (not a bull) must be perfect, never worked, and most importantly–red.
Why do you think red?
Blood, I think.
Taken outside the camp, to the outskirts of holiness, and slaughtered and burned.
And what do they put in with the red heifer? V.6
Cedar wood, hyssop, and scarlet wool.
What color is cedar? It has red highlights, doesn’t it?
And hyssop was the plant that carried the blood on the doorposts at the Passover.
And scarlet (red) wool.
All burned together to make an ash. Why? What’s this all about? V.9
“A man who is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer and put them in a ceremonially clean place outside the camp. They shall be kept by the Israelite community for use in the water of cleansing; it is for purification from sin.”
“Purification from sin.”
There’s our word: purification. God gives us our purification.
These red-heifer ashes were to be kept in a ceremonially clean place outside of the camp as kind of like an instant cleansing solution to be used when someone comes into contact with a dead body.
Remember, death and sin are intrinsically related.
And clean and unclean are pictures of holy and unholy.
And, you know what, there is going to be a lot of death in this camp. Right?
14,700 people died in the plague last Sunday.
603,548 fighting men, a whole generation of men 20 years and older are going to die over the next 40 years.
That’s an average of 42 deaths per day for 40 years!
And that’s just the men.
And that’s a lot of uncleanness. So here’s what they do. V.10
“The man who gathers up the ashes of the heifer must also wash his clothes, and he too will be unclean till evening. This will be a lasting ordinance both for the Israelites and for the aliens living among them.”
“Whoever touches the dead body of anyone will be unclean for seven days. He must purify himself with the water on the third day and on the seventh day; then he will be clean. But if he does not purify himself on the third and seventh days, he will not be clean.”
Remember what we learned about this back in chapter 5? How they had to go outside of the camp?
What we didn’t know then, was that they had to use this special water that came from red, red, red purification offering to get clean. V.13
“Whoever touches the dead body of anyone and fails to purify himself defiles the LORD's tabernacle. That person must be cut off from Israel. [This is important. Purification is not optional.] Because the water of cleansing has not been sprinkled on him, he is unclean; his uncleanness remains on him. [You’ve got to have it.]”
“This is the law that applies when a person dies in a tent: Anyone who enters the tent and anyone who is in it will be unclean for seven days, and every open container without a lid fastened on it will be unclean. Anyone out in the open who touches someone who has been killed with a sword or someone who has died a natural death, or anyone who touches a human bone or a grave, will be unclean for seven days. For the unclean person, put some ashes from the burned purification offering into a jar and pour fresh water over them. Then a man who is ceremonially clean is to take some hyssop, dip it in the water and sprinkle the tent and all the furnishings and the people who were there. He must also sprinkle anyone who has touched a human bone or a grave or someone who has been killed or someone who has died a natural death. The man who is clean is to sprinkle the unclean person on the third and seventh days, and on the seventh day he is to purify him. The person being cleansed must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and that evening he will be clean. But if a person who is unclean does not purify himself, he must be cut off from the community, because he has defiled the sanctuary of the LORD. The water of cleansing has not been sprinkled on him, and he is unclean. This is a lasting ordinance for them. The man who sprinkles the water of cleansing must also wash his clothes, and anyone who touches the water of cleansing will be unclean till evening. Anything that an unclean person touches becomes unclean, and anyone who touches it becomes unclean till evening.”
That’s a lot of repetition to make sure that they get the point.
Purification is absolutely necessary.
Death is everywhere. Uncleanness is everywhere.
And that’s a picture of sin being everywhere. And it must be dealt with. God is holy.
But He’s provided purification in His grace.
God Gives Us Our Purification.
For the Israelite it was a red, red, red purification offering.
And you know what it was for us...
Listen to Hebrews chapter 9, verses 13 and 14.
“The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences [internally!] from acts that lead to death [sin!], so that we may serve the living God!”
Jesus Christ died a bloody death on the Cross as a purifying sacrifice to cleanse us from our sins and provide us purification so that we may serve the living God.
Have you trusted Jesus Christ as your High Priest, and Portion, and Purifying Sacrifice?
His blood is sufficient to purify you from all your sins.
Once and for all.
He invites you today to trust Him as Savior and Lord, Rescuer and King, High Priest, Portion, and Purification.
WORSHIP AT THE LORD’S TABLE
That’s what this table represents: The body and blood of Christ.
“The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God [on the Cross], cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!”
If you are a faith-follower of Jesus Christ and have come under the blood, you are invited to eat and drink with us this memorial meal.
It reminds us of the purification that our High Priest has accomplished for us.
And it is also a call to examine ourselves and re-appropriate the Grace of God that purifies us.
Is there anything right now that stands between you and God that you know of?
Use this time to reflect on God’s grace in providing a Priest, a Portion, and a Purification.
And also use this time to repent of any known sin and receive the cleansing power of Christ’s blood.
1 John 1:9 says that if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse (purify us) from all unrighteousness.
This table reminds us of God’s faithfulness and justice to forgive us and purify us because of the Cross.
Life in the Wilderness
May 6, 2007
Numbers 17:1-19:22
These three chapters, Numbers 17, 18, and 19 follow closely on the heels of some pretty strong judgments from the LORD.
You remember the Retreat of Unbelief a couple of weeks ago? When the whole nation decided to NOT go up and NOT conquer the Promised Land out of fear and unbelief.
What was God’s judgment? God’s judgment was a 40 year sentence of life in the wilderness and the death of an entire generation.
Last week, we read about Korah’s Rebellion. When Korah and about 250 other Israelite leaders challenged Moses’ and Aaron’s authority.
And what was God’s judgment then? God’s judgment was the earth swallowing up Korah’s followers and fire incinerating the 250 rebellious men.
Judgment.
And mingled with this righteous judgment, we have also seen God’s grace.
And I believe that chapters 17, 18, & 19, serve in large part to communicate “The Grace of God.” The amazing grace of God.
God is not just holy and wrathful, though we dare not forget it. God is also giving and gracious, and we need to be reminded of that each and every day.
So, while we might be tempted to sleep through these three chapters about staffs, and priests, and offerings, and tithes, and red cows, instead, we should look closely to see what these chapters have to teach us about “The Grace of God” and how they point us to the ultimate grace of God–the Lord Jesus Christ.
Think back to last week. What did Korah want?
What did Moses discern was Korah’s real objective?
Korah was a Levite, but he wanted to be a priest. He probably wanted to be the High Priest.
And died for it. And so did a lot of other people.
In chapter 17, God puts an end to any speculation about who should be the High Priest. Chapter 17, verse 1.
“The LORD said to Moses, ‘Speak to the Israelites and get twelve staffs from them, one from the leader of each of their ancestral tribes. Write the name of each man on his staff. On the staff of Levi write Aaron's name, for there must be one staff for the head of each ancestral tribe. Place them in the Tent of Meeting in front of the Testimony, where I meet with you. The staff belonging to the man I choose will sprout, and I will rid myself of this constant grumbling against you by the Israelites.’”
Got the picture? 12 staffs for 12 tribes. Each tribal leader gets his name put on his tribe’s staff.
God’s going to do a miracle. Do dead sticks sprout? No, they don’t.
And what will this prove? V.5
“The staff belonging to the man I choose will sprout, and I will rid myself of this constant grumbling against you by the Israelites.”
God’s going to choose. What happens? V.6
“So Moses spoke to the Israelites, and their leaders gave him twelve staffs, one for the leader of each of their ancestral tribes, and Aaron's staff was among them. Moses placed the staffs before the LORD in the Tent of the Testimony [in the Holy Place]. The next day Moses entered the Tent of the Testimony and saw that Aaron's staff, which represented the house of Levi, had not only sprouted but had budded, blossomed and produced almonds.”
No question about it! Aaron is the man God has chosen to be High Priest.
“Budded, blossomed, and produced almonds!”
Bible Trivia question: (And remember, there’s really no such thing as Bible trivia!) What piece of furniture should this staff remind you of?
The Lampstand, right?
Remember that it was shaped of pure gold into the form of an almond tree with clusters?
And remember that it signified the Light of God and His shining His blessing on His people?
Aaron was supposed to do the same thing.
He was to be a blessing for God’s people. A gift of God’s grace.
The people didn’t quite get that. V.9
“Then Moses brought out all the staffs from the LORD's presence to all the Israelites. They looked at them, and each man took his own staff. The LORD said to Moses, ‘Put back Aaron's staff in front of the Testimony, to be kept as a sign to the rebellious [it stays there for good!]. This will put an end to their grumbling against me, so that they will not die.’ Moses did just as the LORD commanded him. The Israelites said to Moses, ‘We will die! We are lost, we are all lost! Anyone who even comes near the tabernacle of the LORD will die. Are we all going to die?’”
Do you think they got it?
God says keep this staff as a sign that they won’t die. And they get scared that they’re going to die!
On one hand it’s good that they finally fear God. But God doesn’t want slavish fear. He wants trusting fear.
They finally seem to understand again that not just anyone can or should approach God in the tabernacle.
But they are missing God’s gracious gift of a priest.
#1. GOD GIVES US OUR PRIEST.
God in His grace, gives us our priest.
Not just any man will do. Only God’s man will do.
But God gives Him to be a priest for His people. That’s the point of the first 7 verses of chapter 18.
The people are scared stiff, but God says (v.1):
“The LORD said to Aaron, ‘You, your sons and your father's family are to bear the responsibility for offenses against the sanctuary, and you and your sons alone are to bear the responsibility for offenses against the priesthood. [God has given His people a priest. V.2] Bring your fellow Levites from your ancestral tribe to join you and assist you when you and your sons minister before the Tent of the Testimony. They [the rest of the Levites] are to be responsible to you and are to perform all the duties of the Tent, but they must not go near the furnishings of the sanctuary or the altar, or both they and you will die. They are to join you and be responsible for the care of the Tent of Meeting–all the work at the Tent– and no one else may come near where you are. You are to be responsible for the care of the sanctuary and the altar, so that wrath will not fall on the Israelites again. I myself have selected your fellow Levites from among the Israelites as a gift to you [Aaron and the priests], dedicated to the LORD to do the work at the Tent of Meeting. But only you and your sons may serve as priests in connection with everything at the altar and inside the curtain. I am giving you the service of the priesthood as a gift. Anyone else who comes near the sanctuary must be put to death.’”
There is awesome responsibility put on the priests and their support staff–the Levites.
And there is an awesome warning of judgment if anyone else comes near the sanctuary.
But the main point that God is making is that He has graciously given the Levites to Aaron and his sons.
And He has graciously given the priesthood to Aaron and His sons.
And He has graciously given priests to Israel so that they have a mediator between them and God.
God gives us our priest.
Now, in the New Covenant, we have a new High Priest. It is no longer Aaron or Aaron’s sons.
This new priest is a priest forever according to another order.
His name is Jesus Christ.
And He is a gift of the grace of God.
He is the light of the world like the lampstand in the tabernacle.
He is the one God has chosen like Aaron whose staff had blossomed.
He is our High Priest.
This is what the book of Hebrews says about it. Chapter 4.
“We have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are–yet was without sin. [So what?] Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
God gives us our Priest.
And therefore, we approach the throne of grace.
Not only is our new High Priest sinless, but He’s also sympathetic.
He understands. Jesus understands.
And not only that, but this High Priest has opened up the way for us to approach God.
We don’t have to be scared like they were in chapter 17.
Our High Priest has gone through the heavens and opened them to us.
“Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
Are you going through a time of need?
There is grace to help with the High Priest that God has given us!
Trust Him. Take Him your problems. Don’t be afraid. Draw near with confidence.
God Gives Us Our Priest.
But that’s not all. He also gives us our portion.
#2. GOD GIVES US OUR PORTION.
He not only provides us with the mediator that we need to come to Him, but He gives us Himself and everything we need.
God, in His amazing grace, gives us our portion. Verse 8.
“Then the LORD said to Aaron, ‘I myself have put you in charge of the offerings presented to me; all the holy offerings the Israelites give me I give to you and your sons as your portion and regular share.”
Remember, Aaron and the rest of the priests and the Levites are not going to get any of the Promised Land.
How will they be supported?
How will they make a living? They will live off of the tithes and offerings. V.9
“You are to have the part of the most holy offerings that is kept from the fire. From all the gifts they bring me as most holy offerings, whether grain or sin or guilt offerings, that part belongs to you and your sons. Eat it as something most holy; every male shall eat it. You must regard it as holy. This also is yours: whatever is set aside from the gifts of all the wave offerings of the Israelites. I give this to you and your sons and daughters as your regular share. Everyone in your household who is ceremonially clean may eat it. I give you all the finest olive oil and all the finest new wine and grain they give the LORD as the firstfruits of their harvest. All the land's firstfruits that they bring to the LORD will be yours. Everyone in your household who is ceremonially clean may eat it. Everything in Israel that is devoted to the LORD is yours. The first offspring of every womb, both man and animal, that is offered to the LORD is yours. But you must redeem every firstborn son and every firstborn male of unclean animals. [We’ve seen that before in Exodus and in Numbers, haven’t we?] When they are a month old, you must redeem them at the redemption price set at five shekels of silver, according to the sanctuary shekel, which weighs twenty gerahs. But you must not redeem the firstborn of an ox, a sheep or a goat; they are holy. Sprinkle their blood on the altar and burn their fat as an offering made by fire, an aroma pleasing to the LORD. Their meat is to be yours, just as the breast of the wave offering and the right thigh are yours. Whatever is set aside from the holy offerings the Israelites present to the LORD I give to you and your sons and daughters as your regular share. It is an everlasting covenant of salt before the LORD for both you and your offspring.”
Now catch this. God is providing for them. V.20
“The LORD said to Aaron, ‘You will have no inheritance in their land, nor will you have any share among them; I am your share and your inheritance among the Israelites.”
“I am your share and your inheritance among the Israelites.”
God not only gives them their portion.
He IS their portion!
And He is ours, as well.
Remember, in the New Covenant, we are all priests!
And God is our portion.
God says, “I am your share and your inheritance.”
Let me ask you a question.
If you had God and nothing else, would that be enough?
Would God be enough for you?
Most of the time, we want God and stuff. God and other stuff.
But sometimes, God strips away “all that other stuff,” just to see if we would be happy with God alone.
That’s one of the things He was doing with Job.
And it was one of the things He was doing with Asaph in Psalm 73.
This is what Asaph finally learned.
He said, “Whom have I in heaven but you[, LORD]? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”
Is that how you feel about God?
He is so gracious! He not only supplies our needs and gives us many of the things we want–He IS our share and inheritance.
And you know what, that makes it possible for me to give!
If God is my portion, then I can be a giving person.
Look at what God says in the next section. V.21
“I give to the Levites all the tithes in Israel as their inheritance in return for the work they do while serving at the Tent of Meeting. From now on the Israelites must not go near the Tent of Meeting, or they will bear the consequences of their sin and will die. It is the Levites who are to do the work at the Tent of Meeting and bear the responsibility for offenses against it. This is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come. They will receive no inheritance among the Israelites.”
“Instead, I give to the Levites as their inheritance the tithes that the Israelites present as an offering to the LORD. That is why I said concerning them: 'They will have no inheritance among the Israelites.'’”
So God has provided for them and been their portion. What the Israelites gave to God, God gave to the Levites. Now what do they do with it?
They give, too! V.25
“The LORD said to Moses, ‘Speak to the Levites and say to them: 'When you receive from the Israelites the tithe I give you as your inheritance, you must present a tenth of that tithe as the LORD's offering. [Even the Levites tithe! They tithe the tithe!] Your offering will be reckoned to you as grain from the threshing floor or juice from the winepress. In this way you also will present an offering to the LORD from all the tithes you receive from the Israelites. From these tithes you must give the LORD's portion to Aaron the priest. [The Levites tithe to the priests.] You must present as the LORD's portion the best and holiest part of everything given to you.' Say to the Levites: 'When you present the best part, it will be reckoned to you as the product of the threshing floor or the winepress. You and your households may eat the rest of it anywhere, for it is your wages for your work at the Tent of Meeting. By presenting the best part of it you will not be guilty in this matter; then you will not defile the holy offerings of the Israelites, and you will not die.'”
When God graciously gives us our portion, we thankfully give to others in worship right back.
Now, this text and others like it form the basis for the New Covenant understanding of supporting gospel workers.
And I’m thankful for your generous giving that makes my labor as your pastor possible.
Thank you for supporting us by your regular tithes and offerings.
God has been your portion and we benefit from your giving from that provision.
And it also forms the basis for mine and Heather’s giving.
We rejoice that you pay us so well that we are able to give both to this church and to the Lord’s work in missions.
We get to support several missionary families because you support us.
And we were also happy to be participate in the special offering today to pay down the remaining debt our church owes on the parking lot.
God is our portion and we give because He’s first given to us.
And the greatest thing He’s given us is Number Three.
#3. GOD GIVES US OUR PURIFICATION.
God, in His Amazing Grace, Gives Us Our Purification. Chapter 19, verse 1.
“The LORD said to Moses and Aaron: ‘This is a requirement of the law that the LORD has commanded: Tell the Israelites to bring you a red heifer without defect or blemish and that has never been under a yoke. Give it to Eleazar the priest [that’s Aaron’s son]; it is to be taken outside the camp and slaughtered in his presence. Then Eleazar the priest is to take some of its blood on his finger and sprinkle it seven times toward the front of the Tent of Meeting. While he watches, the heifer is to be burned–its hide, flesh, blood and offal. The priest is to take some cedar wood, hyssop and scarlet wool and throw them onto the burning heifer. After that, the priest must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water. He may then come into the camp, but he will be ceremonially unclean till evening. The man who burns it must also wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he too will be unclean till evening.” Stop there for a second.
Now this is strange to us, but we’ve seen a lot of these kinds of things already in the book of Numbers.
These are the instructions for the Red Heifer, or the Red Cow. This isn’t really a sacrifice, but it has some sacrificial features to it.
The cow (not a bull) must be perfect, never worked, and most importantly–red.
Why do you think red?
Blood, I think.
Taken outside the camp, to the outskirts of holiness, and slaughtered and burned.
And what do they put in with the red heifer? V.6
Cedar wood, hyssop, and scarlet wool.
What color is cedar? It has red highlights, doesn’t it?
And hyssop was the plant that carried the blood on the doorposts at the Passover.
And scarlet (red) wool.
All burned together to make an ash. Why? What’s this all about? V.9
“A man who is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer and put them in a ceremonially clean place outside the camp. They shall be kept by the Israelite community for use in the water of cleansing; it is for purification from sin.”
“Purification from sin.”
There’s our word: purification. God gives us our purification.
These red-heifer ashes were to be kept in a ceremonially clean place outside of the camp as kind of like an instant cleansing solution to be used when someone comes into contact with a dead body.
Remember, death and sin are intrinsically related.
And clean and unclean are pictures of holy and unholy.
And, you know what, there is going to be a lot of death in this camp. Right?
14,700 people died in the plague last Sunday.
603,548 fighting men, a whole generation of men 20 years and older are going to die over the next 40 years.
That’s an average of 42 deaths per day for 40 years!
And that’s just the men.
And that’s a lot of uncleanness. So here’s what they do. V.10
“The man who gathers up the ashes of the heifer must also wash his clothes, and he too will be unclean till evening. This will be a lasting ordinance both for the Israelites and for the aliens living among them.”
“Whoever touches the dead body of anyone will be unclean for seven days. He must purify himself with the water on the third day and on the seventh day; then he will be clean. But if he does not purify himself on the third and seventh days, he will not be clean.”
Remember what we learned about this back in chapter 5? How they had to go outside of the camp?
What we didn’t know then, was that they had to use this special water that came from red, red, red purification offering to get clean. V.13
“Whoever touches the dead body of anyone and fails to purify himself defiles the LORD's tabernacle. That person must be cut off from Israel. [This is important. Purification is not optional.] Because the water of cleansing has not been sprinkled on him, he is unclean; his uncleanness remains on him. [You’ve got to have it.]”
“This is the law that applies when a person dies in a tent: Anyone who enters the tent and anyone who is in it will be unclean for seven days, and every open container without a lid fastened on it will be unclean. Anyone out in the open who touches someone who has been killed with a sword or someone who has died a natural death, or anyone who touches a human bone or a grave, will be unclean for seven days. For the unclean person, put some ashes from the burned purification offering into a jar and pour fresh water over them. Then a man who is ceremonially clean is to take some hyssop, dip it in the water and sprinkle the tent and all the furnishings and the people who were there. He must also sprinkle anyone who has touched a human bone or a grave or someone who has been killed or someone who has died a natural death. The man who is clean is to sprinkle the unclean person on the third and seventh days, and on the seventh day he is to purify him. The person being cleansed must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and that evening he will be clean. But if a person who is unclean does not purify himself, he must be cut off from the community, because he has defiled the sanctuary of the LORD. The water of cleansing has not been sprinkled on him, and he is unclean. This is a lasting ordinance for them. The man who sprinkles the water of cleansing must also wash his clothes, and anyone who touches the water of cleansing will be unclean till evening. Anything that an unclean person touches becomes unclean, and anyone who touches it becomes unclean till evening.”
That’s a lot of repetition to make sure that they get the point.
Purification is absolutely necessary.
Death is everywhere. Uncleanness is everywhere.
And that’s a picture of sin being everywhere. And it must be dealt with. God is holy.
But He’s provided purification in His grace.
God Gives Us Our Purification.
For the Israelite it was a red, red, red purification offering.
And you know what it was for us...
Listen to Hebrews chapter 9, verses 13 and 14.
“The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences [internally!] from acts that lead to death [sin!], so that we may serve the living God!”
Jesus Christ died a bloody death on the Cross as a purifying sacrifice to cleanse us from our sins and provide us purification so that we may serve the living God.
Have you trusted Jesus Christ as your High Priest, and Portion, and Purifying Sacrifice?
His blood is sufficient to purify you from all your sins.
Once and for all.
He invites you today to trust Him as Savior and Lord, Rescuer and King, High Priest, Portion, and Purification.
WORSHIP AT THE LORD’S TABLE
That’s what this table represents: The body and blood of Christ.
“The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God [on the Cross], cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!”
If you are a faith-follower of Jesus Christ and have come under the blood, you are invited to eat and drink with us this memorial meal.
It reminds us of the purification that our High Priest has accomplished for us.
And it is also a call to examine ourselves and re-appropriate the Grace of God that purifies us.
Is there anything right now that stands between you and God that you know of?
Use this time to reflect on God’s grace in providing a Priest, a Portion, and a Purification.
And also use this time to repent of any known sin and receive the cleansing power of Christ’s blood.
1 John 1:9 says that if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse (purify us) from all unrighteousness.
This table reminds us of God’s faithfulness and justice to forgive us and purify us because of the Cross.
3 comments:
Matt
I read your blog today adn would like to dialog with you about tithing. My web site has a 19 point essay which I invite you to read and challenge if desired. My site lists 25 OT tithing principles which, fortunately, are NOT followed today.
Numbers 18 is the statute of support for Levites and priests. (1) Tithe-receivers were not allowed to own or inherit land. Do you folllow that principle? (2) The Levits who received the whole first tithe were only servants such as ushers, deacons, choir members, maintenance men and builders. Do your members give their tithes to those in your church? (3) The priests (as you pointed out) only got 1% of the total ltithe, a tenth of a tenth. Do you teach that? (4) Priests were the only ones allowed into the sanctuary. Do you keep your members outside? (5) Priests were to kill anybody daring to worship God directly. Do you do that? (6) Abraham was only an example of tithing pagan nspoils of war. Is that how you teach Abraahm's tithe?. (7) Abraham gave the 90% to the king of Sodom. Do you tell members to give the 90% to Satan? (8) According to Neh 10:37, OT believers brought their tithes to the Levitical citeies and not to the temple. Do you teach that? (9) According to Neh 10:38 only Levites adn priests were told to bring portions of the tithe to the temple. Do you teach that? (10) Jesus commanded his Jewish followers to tithe garden spices from their back yard. Do you do that?
Frankly, the new covenant giving principles in 2 Cor 8 and 9 are far better since tithing is part fo the "no glory" mentioned in 2 cor 3:10.
I am the author of Should the Church Teach Tithign? (from my PHD thesis) and my book can also be downloaded free on the internet. www.shouldthechurchteachtithing.com
May God bless your.
Russ,
Thanks for your comment.
I appreciate your hard thinking on the subject of tithing/giving.
I agree with you that "grace-giving" in 2 Corinthians 8-9 and elsewhere in the New Testament has replaced the burdens of the Old Testament tithing. We have been given so much to be thankful for in the New Covenant; we have so much to give.
However, I think several of the principles from the OT are still very helpful and form the basis for the NT doctrine. I think there is more continuity between them than you are giving credit for.
Thanks again for dropping by.
-Matt
I think there is lots to glean from in the Old Testament. The tithe can be one of them, but just because we use all of scripture for doctrine, reproof, & instruction doesn't mean that the all the the laws mentioned should be obeyed. I usually say that God never changes. His principles of the Old Testament have never changed. God's goal for Israel as well as his NT church was to be stewards, not 10% givers. A tithe was a lesson that was taught to teach Israel the concept of stewardship, but we have a different lesson today, because we have a different tutor- the Holy Spirit.
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