People have often accused God of being unfair, strict, and
rigid. They have complained at His severity and harshness. Are these
accusations true?
God does have standards, but He is especially interested in
the heart of man, wanting man's intentions to be right. Knowing that neither man
nor this world is perfect, God is often flexible
to make exceptions that keep the spirit of His law. God's accommodations
demonstrate compassion, while prioritizing both a right heart and a focus on foundational
principles.
God made an exception regarding the inheritances of the
children of Israel. Land was distributed by tribe and by family, with a man's
inheritance passing to his sons. A man named Zelophehad, however, had no sons.
Instead he had five daughters. The father had died during the wilderness
wandering, and when the land was divided, this man would not be represented.
His daughters came before Moses with this argument: "Why should the name of our father be withdrawn from among his
family because he had no son?" (Numbers 27:4).
God agreed. Although normally the land would be passed
through sons, God didn't want families to be lost. He instructed Moses, "You shall surely give them a hereditary
possession among their father's brothers, and you shall transfer the
inheritance of their father to them" (27:7).
God knew that this one family would not be the only special
circumstance, so He expanded the accommodations. If a man had no son, his
inheritance would go to his daughter. If he had no daughter, the inheritance
would go to his brother. If he had no brother, the inheritance would go to his
uncles. If he had no uncles, the inheritance would go to the nearest relative
(27:8-11).
The underlying principle mattered to God. He wanted land
kept in families, so He established guidelines to allow that to happen. These
new guidelines, however, presented their own complexities. First and foremost,
the land was divided by tribe. If a daughter who inherited her father's land
were to marry someone from a different tribe, individual portions of land
within one tribe's possession would then pass to families from other tribes,
resulting in a patchwork of confusion.
God did not want such confusion and division. Therefore,
when the exception was given to allow daughters to inherit, they were restricted
to marrying someone from their own tribe (36:6-9). God created the right
balance between granting an exception and preventing that exception from
causing chaos.
God made another exception regarding the division of the
land among the tribes. God had instructed the people of Israel to cross over
the Jordan River from east to west, and they were to inhabit the land west of
the Jordan. The tribes of Reuben and Gad had a lot of livestock, and they saw that
the land east of the Jordan was good for livestock.
The leaders of these tribes requested an exception. "If we have found favor in your sight,
let this land be given to your servants as a possession; do not take us across
the Jordan" (Numbers 32:5). Moses was ready to turn down their
request. He had two objections. First, it wasn't fair for those two tribes to
settle in to their homes, while the other ten had to go off to war and fight
for their possessions. The fight was to be shared by all. Second, their request
sounded ominously similar to the nation's refusal to enter the land forty years
earlier; Moses did not want to bring renewed anger and judgment from God because
of another refusal.
God gave His answer through Moses, and a compromise was
reached. Since Reuben and Gad weren't just trying to avoid the battle, and
since they agreed to go fight with all the other men, returning to their
possession only after the rest of the land was conquered, God allowed them to
add their eastern possessions to the area of the Promised Land. Because their
hearts were right, God granted this exception, but it did require adaptation.
The cost of their exception was extended time away from their families and
homes while they helped to fight.
God also made an exception regarding the Passover. The
Passover was to be celebrated at a very specific time, the fourteenth day of
the first month. The rules for the Passover were strict. It was to be
universally observed, but the people had to be ceremonially clean in order to
participate.
When it came time to celebrate, there was group of men who
were unclean due to their contact with a dead body. These men wanted to
worship, and they came to Moses with their question: "Though we are unclean because of the dead person, why are we
restrained from presenting the offering of the LORD at its appointed
time?" (Numbers 9:7). God responded by offering an accommodation.
Anyone who was "unclean because of a
dead person, or [was] on a distant journey" was able to celebrate the
Passover on the fourteenth day of the second month instead (9:10). This was not
a license to be unclean for avoidable reasons, but God made provision for
extenuating circumstances.
God made other exceptions. There were strict laws regarding
murder and fornication, for example. If someone accidentally killed someone
without premeditation, he could flee to a city of refuge for protection
(Numbers 35). If a young lady was raped in an uninhabited area and had no
chance to cry out for help, she was not considered guilty (Deuteronomy 22).
God does have rules, and He wants people to keep them. God
is holy, and He wants His people to be holy. God also understands exceptional
circumstances, and He cares about the desires of a man's heart. With His
compassionate understanding of fallen man on a fallen planet, God graciously
makes accommodations for those who seek to live for Him when they keep the
intent of His laws as carefully as possible.
"We serve in
newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter" (Romans 7:6).
Saturday, April 27, 2019
Saturday, April 20, 2019
How Right Is God?
Moses and Aaron were great mathematicians, or at least
statisticians. God gave them a monumental job - to "take a census of all the congregation of the sons of Israel ...
from twenty years old and upward" (Numbers 1:2-3). So they started
counting. Here are their results, listed by tribe.
Reuben - 46,500
Simeon - 59,300
Gad - 45,650
Judah - 74,600
Issachar - 54,400
Zebulun - 57,400
Ephraim - 40,500
Manasseh - 32,200
Benjamin - 35,400
Dan - 62,700
Asher - 41,500
Naphtali - 53,400
Total - 603,550
The Levites were not numbered as men of war (age twenty and up) but as servants of God (from one month and up). This added 22,000, but perhaps only half of them were older than twenty. Using that estimate, the total men of Israel were 614,550. If each of them were married, reasonable in that culture, the total adults were approximately 1,229,200.
This census took place at the beginning of the second year after leaving Egypt. How many of this vast multitude of people actually entered the Promised Land? Two. Just two.
When it came time to enter the land, the people were fearful of the conquest, and they rebelled against God's command. They did not believe His power, and they refused to enter. In response, God declared that none of those twenty or older would be able to enter the land, with the exception of the two men who dared to stand alone in their determination to obey God.
Was God's "prediction" reasonable? Certainly, there was a great likelihood that many of those million people would naturally die during the forty years of wandering that God established. After all, some of those people were probably already eighty or ninety years old, if not older. They wouldn't last another forty years. But a great many of those people were twenty and thirty years old. While one could imagine that some of them might die within forty years, it really seems that deaths of those younger people would be the exception rather than the rule.
What was the life expectancy during this time? Moses died at 120, and Aaron died at 123. Miriam died not too long before Aaron, so she was likely in her 120s as well. This family may have had unusual longevity, but it is reasonable to think they were at or near average. Joshua died at 110, and we know that Caleb reached at least eighty-five (and that was when he started conquering his possession). Even taking 110 as an expected age of death, people who were seventy at the beginning of the wilderness wandering would have had a good likelihood of entering the land.
Logically, statistically, most of those at the younger end of the scale would be expected to survive another forty years and more. Those who were twenty should have made it back with fifty or more years to spare. They would still have been young enough to help conquer the land; Caleb and Joshua did. I'm sure people who study demographics and statistics could come up with figures for how many people of each age group would still be alive after forty years. As educated and reasonable as those predictions would be, they would all be wrong. They wouldn't even be close.
The real result? "But among these [who were ready to enter the land forty years later] there was not a man of those who were numbered by Moses and Aaron the priest, who numbered the sons of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai. For the LORD had said of them, 'They shall surely die in the wilderness.' And not a man was left of them, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun" (Numbers 26:64-65).
Only two survived. This is statistically impossible. Out of 1,229,200, only two. Even if one accepts the unlikely outcome of only two surviving, Joshua and Caleb are not the two most likely prospects. They weren't the ones who advanced from nineteen to fifty-nine. Caleb was already forty, and Joshua was probably near the same age. Just before entering the land, it must have been quite remarkable that in that nation of relatively young people, there were three old men: Moses, who at 120 would soon die, Joshua, and Caleb.
Perhaps some of the lingering elderly (or not-so-elderly) thought they were so close that they just might make it. Maybe they would somehow be spared. Maybe they really would get to enter the land. But they didn't. Whether decades or days before the start of the conquest, they all died. Why? Because God is always right. God is right down to the smallest detail. He had said only two, and there were in fact only two.
God always keeps His word. Those 1,229,200 learned that on a very practical level. Just prior to entering the land, God had Joshua number the new nation. There were now 601,730 men aged twenty to sixty, and 23,000 Levites. Using the same estimations as before, this meant a new nation of 1,226,460. This new generation also needed to know that God always kept His Word, so Joshua told them so just before his death.
"Now behold, today I am going the way of all the earth, and you know in all your hearts and in all your souls that not one word of all the good words which the LORD your God spoke concerning you has failed; all have been fulfilled for you, not one of them has failed" (Joshua 23:14).
Yes, God does everything He says He will do. No exceptions. God's Word and His promises can be trusted whole-heartedly, because He fulfills His word even when it is mathematically improbable or statistically impossible. God is entirely and completely right.
Reuben - 46,500
Simeon - 59,300
Gad - 45,650
Judah - 74,600
Issachar - 54,400
Zebulun - 57,400
Ephraim - 40,500
Manasseh - 32,200
Benjamin - 35,400
Dan - 62,700
Asher - 41,500
Naphtali - 53,400
Total - 603,550
The Levites were not numbered as men of war (age twenty and up) but as servants of God (from one month and up). This added 22,000, but perhaps only half of them were older than twenty. Using that estimate, the total men of Israel were 614,550. If each of them were married, reasonable in that culture, the total adults were approximately 1,229,200.
This census took place at the beginning of the second year after leaving Egypt. How many of this vast multitude of people actually entered the Promised Land? Two. Just two.
When it came time to enter the land, the people were fearful of the conquest, and they rebelled against God's command. They did not believe His power, and they refused to enter. In response, God declared that none of those twenty or older would be able to enter the land, with the exception of the two men who dared to stand alone in their determination to obey God.
Was God's "prediction" reasonable? Certainly, there was a great likelihood that many of those million people would naturally die during the forty years of wandering that God established. After all, some of those people were probably already eighty or ninety years old, if not older. They wouldn't last another forty years. But a great many of those people were twenty and thirty years old. While one could imagine that some of them might die within forty years, it really seems that deaths of those younger people would be the exception rather than the rule.
What was the life expectancy during this time? Moses died at 120, and Aaron died at 123. Miriam died not too long before Aaron, so she was likely in her 120s as well. This family may have had unusual longevity, but it is reasonable to think they were at or near average. Joshua died at 110, and we know that Caleb reached at least eighty-five (and that was when he started conquering his possession). Even taking 110 as an expected age of death, people who were seventy at the beginning of the wilderness wandering would have had a good likelihood of entering the land.
Logically, statistically, most of those at the younger end of the scale would be expected to survive another forty years and more. Those who were twenty should have made it back with fifty or more years to spare. They would still have been young enough to help conquer the land; Caleb and Joshua did. I'm sure people who study demographics and statistics could come up with figures for how many people of each age group would still be alive after forty years. As educated and reasonable as those predictions would be, they would all be wrong. They wouldn't even be close.
The real result? "But among these [who were ready to enter the land forty years later] there was not a man of those who were numbered by Moses and Aaron the priest, who numbered the sons of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai. For the LORD had said of them, 'They shall surely die in the wilderness.' And not a man was left of them, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun" (Numbers 26:64-65).
Only two survived. This is statistically impossible. Out of 1,229,200, only two. Even if one accepts the unlikely outcome of only two surviving, Joshua and Caleb are not the two most likely prospects. They weren't the ones who advanced from nineteen to fifty-nine. Caleb was already forty, and Joshua was probably near the same age. Just before entering the land, it must have been quite remarkable that in that nation of relatively young people, there were three old men: Moses, who at 120 would soon die, Joshua, and Caleb.
Perhaps some of the lingering elderly (or not-so-elderly) thought they were so close that they just might make it. Maybe they would somehow be spared. Maybe they really would get to enter the land. But they didn't. Whether decades or days before the start of the conquest, they all died. Why? Because God is always right. God is right down to the smallest detail. He had said only two, and there were in fact only two.
God always keeps His word. Those 1,229,200 learned that on a very practical level. Just prior to entering the land, God had Joshua number the new nation. There were now 601,730 men aged twenty to sixty, and 23,000 Levites. Using the same estimations as before, this meant a new nation of 1,226,460. This new generation also needed to know that God always kept His Word, so Joshua told them so just before his death.
"Now behold, today I am going the way of all the earth, and you know in all your hearts and in all your souls that not one word of all the good words which the LORD your God spoke concerning you has failed; all have been fulfilled for you, not one of them has failed" (Joshua 23:14).
Yes, God does everything He says He will do. No exceptions. God's Word and His promises can be trusted whole-heartedly, because He fulfills His word even when it is mathematically improbable or statistically impossible. God is entirely and completely right.
Saturday, April 13, 2019
Caleb's Blessings
The Bible records multiple statements that Caleb followed
God fully. His whole-hearted devotion resulted in multiple blessings. In Numbers
13:6, Caleb was chosen as one of the twelve spies. God didn't specify names, apparently
leaving the choice to Moses. God required only that the spies be leaders within
their tribes. At age forty, Caleb fit the requirement; his choosing is evidence
of his testimony.
Caleb did his duty just like the other men. When the men returned, they acknowledged briefly that the land was good before elaborating on the obstacles, using words like "nevertheless" and "moreover." They didn't yet say that the land couldn't be conquered, but they painted a bleak picture.
Caleb immediately spoke up to contradict the pessimism. "Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, 'We should by all means go up and take possession of it, for we will surely overcome it'" (Numbers 13:30). His leadership skills in quieting a rumbling crowd were rejected, as the people began to protest and grumble, fatalistically desiring a return to Egypt.
Caleb was grieved by this rebellion. He and Joshua tore their clothes. They reiterated the goodness of the land. They expressed their faith in God: "If the LORD is pleased with us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us" (Numbers 14:8). They pled with the people, "Only do not rebel against the LORD" (v. 9). They urged against fear: "And do not fear the people of the land" (v. 9). Their courage and confidence were rooted in faith: "The LORD is with us" (v. 9). Because of their stand of faith and obedience, the people wanted to stone them.
God was upset with the majority but pleased with Caleb. He commended him to Moses: "My servant Caleb ... has had a different spirit and has followed me fully" (Numbers 14:24). God approved of Caleb's distinction and devotion. All the Israelites aged twenty and over would die in the wilderness, but Caleb would survive to possess the land. Moses was instructed to share this information with the multitude, resulting in public acknowledgement of Caleb's faith. In the immediate, Caleb was protected. The other ten spies died immediately by a plague from God; only Caleb and Joshua were spared.
At the end of the forty years of wandering, all of Caleb's generation was dead. The longevity of Joshua and Caleb was remarkable. Apart from these two men, the oldest Israelite was fifty-nine years old. Caleb was eighty. His very existence proclaimed his godliness.
Still Caleb's influence and reputation persisted. In Numbers 32:12 Moses cautioned the two-and-a-half tribes who wanted to stay east of the Jordan river. He reminded them of the fatal consequences of the refusal forty years earlier, and he shared the testimony of Caleb and Joshua. They alone lived, "for they have followed the LORD fully." Forty years later, Caleb still served as an example of devotion to God for a new generation.
Caleb continued to serve. One man from each tribe was appointed to apportion the land, and Caleb was chosen. He was still a leader of his tribe, and this time God chose Caleb by name (Numbers 34:19). Caleb was still trusted and involved.
Shortly before Moses died, he appealed earnestly to the people to follow God faithfully. Who did he choose as an example? Yes, it was Caleb. Moses reminded the people that all who did not trust the LORD had died, but Caleb was spared "because he has followed the LORD fully" (Deuteronomy 1:32).
Finally, it was time to divide the land. Caleb, now eighty-five years old, came to Joshua to claim his inheritance. In doing so, he shared his testimony from the time of spying. He told Joshua, "I brought word back to [Moses] as it was in my heart" (Joshua 14:7) and "I followed the LORD my God fully" (v. 8). God had already confirmed multiple times that Caleb's testimony was true.
Caleb was still a man of faith, ready to claim the land God had promised him. "I am still as strong today as I was in the day Moses sent me; as my strength was then, so my strength is now" (v. 11). He acknowledged God as the one who had preserved him (v. 10). Even though it meant a challenge, he was still ready to obey God in claiming his inheritance: "Give me this hill country about which the LORD spoke on that day" (v. 12). He claimed God's help in accomplishing the task. "The LORD will be with me, and I will drive them out as the LORD has spoken" (v. 12). Joshua blessed Caleb (v. 13) and gave him Hebron as his inheritance "because he followed the LORD God of Israel fully" (v. 14).
Caleb saw what no one else of his generation saw, except Joshua. He actually inherited the land that God had promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He saw with his own eyes what had been anticipated during four hundred years of slavery.
The job was not easy. His inheritance, Hebron, was precisely where the dreaded Anakim lived in their great fortified cities. The area was actually named after the greatest Anakim of all (v. 15). Caleb drove out the three sons of Anak and went on to take Debir, offering marriage with his daughter to the man who would conquer it. He had the joy of seeing his daughter married to a good man, (who would later be a leader as well), and supplied with a good possession.
Finally, Caleb's city Hebron ended up with the distinction of being a city of refuge, with the added honor that it was a city in which the Levites lived. While Caleb possessed the surrounding fields and villages, he enjoyed the blessing of the Levite presence (Joshua 21:12).
Continuing responsibility, divine commendation, public reputation, fulfilled promises, long life, inspiring example, divine help, established family, pleasant surroundings - all of these came to Caleb because he followed God fully.
Caleb did his duty just like the other men. When the men returned, they acknowledged briefly that the land was good before elaborating on the obstacles, using words like "nevertheless" and "moreover." They didn't yet say that the land couldn't be conquered, but they painted a bleak picture.
Caleb immediately spoke up to contradict the pessimism. "Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, 'We should by all means go up and take possession of it, for we will surely overcome it'" (Numbers 13:30). His leadership skills in quieting a rumbling crowd were rejected, as the people began to protest and grumble, fatalistically desiring a return to Egypt.
Caleb was grieved by this rebellion. He and Joshua tore their clothes. They reiterated the goodness of the land. They expressed their faith in God: "If the LORD is pleased with us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us" (Numbers 14:8). They pled with the people, "Only do not rebel against the LORD" (v. 9). They urged against fear: "And do not fear the people of the land" (v. 9). Their courage and confidence were rooted in faith: "The LORD is with us" (v. 9). Because of their stand of faith and obedience, the people wanted to stone them.
God was upset with the majority but pleased with Caleb. He commended him to Moses: "My servant Caleb ... has had a different spirit and has followed me fully" (Numbers 14:24). God approved of Caleb's distinction and devotion. All the Israelites aged twenty and over would die in the wilderness, but Caleb would survive to possess the land. Moses was instructed to share this information with the multitude, resulting in public acknowledgement of Caleb's faith. In the immediate, Caleb was protected. The other ten spies died immediately by a plague from God; only Caleb and Joshua were spared.
At the end of the forty years of wandering, all of Caleb's generation was dead. The longevity of Joshua and Caleb was remarkable. Apart from these two men, the oldest Israelite was fifty-nine years old. Caleb was eighty. His very existence proclaimed his godliness.
Still Caleb's influence and reputation persisted. In Numbers 32:12 Moses cautioned the two-and-a-half tribes who wanted to stay east of the Jordan river. He reminded them of the fatal consequences of the refusal forty years earlier, and he shared the testimony of Caleb and Joshua. They alone lived, "for they have followed the LORD fully." Forty years later, Caleb still served as an example of devotion to God for a new generation.
Caleb continued to serve. One man from each tribe was appointed to apportion the land, and Caleb was chosen. He was still a leader of his tribe, and this time God chose Caleb by name (Numbers 34:19). Caleb was still trusted and involved.
Shortly before Moses died, he appealed earnestly to the people to follow God faithfully. Who did he choose as an example? Yes, it was Caleb. Moses reminded the people that all who did not trust the LORD had died, but Caleb was spared "because he has followed the LORD fully" (Deuteronomy 1:32).
Finally, it was time to divide the land. Caleb, now eighty-five years old, came to Joshua to claim his inheritance. In doing so, he shared his testimony from the time of spying. He told Joshua, "I brought word back to [Moses] as it was in my heart" (Joshua 14:7) and "I followed the LORD my God fully" (v. 8). God had already confirmed multiple times that Caleb's testimony was true.
Caleb was still a man of faith, ready to claim the land God had promised him. "I am still as strong today as I was in the day Moses sent me; as my strength was then, so my strength is now" (v. 11). He acknowledged God as the one who had preserved him (v. 10). Even though it meant a challenge, he was still ready to obey God in claiming his inheritance: "Give me this hill country about which the LORD spoke on that day" (v. 12). He claimed God's help in accomplishing the task. "The LORD will be with me, and I will drive them out as the LORD has spoken" (v. 12). Joshua blessed Caleb (v. 13) and gave him Hebron as his inheritance "because he followed the LORD God of Israel fully" (v. 14).
Caleb saw what no one else of his generation saw, except Joshua. He actually inherited the land that God had promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He saw with his own eyes what had been anticipated during four hundred years of slavery.
The job was not easy. His inheritance, Hebron, was precisely where the dreaded Anakim lived in their great fortified cities. The area was actually named after the greatest Anakim of all (v. 15). Caleb drove out the three sons of Anak and went on to take Debir, offering marriage with his daughter to the man who would conquer it. He had the joy of seeing his daughter married to a good man, (who would later be a leader as well), and supplied with a good possession.
Finally, Caleb's city Hebron ended up with the distinction of being a city of refuge, with the added honor that it was a city in which the Levites lived. While Caleb possessed the surrounding fields and villages, he enjoyed the blessing of the Levite presence (Joshua 21:12).
Continuing responsibility, divine commendation, public reputation, fulfilled promises, long life, inspiring example, divine help, established family, pleasant surroundings - all of these came to Caleb because he followed God fully.
Saturday, April 6, 2019
An Example, Not a Warning
What spiritual legacy will individual Christians leave
behind them? Will they influence others for good or for evil? Will their
influence be exercised through an example to follow or a warning to heed?
"So that they became a warning" (Numbers 26:10). These sober words are written about Korah, Dathan, Abiram, and their associates. These men "contended against the LORD" (v. 9). Not happy with God's chosen leadership, they opposed Moses and Aaron. As a result of their rebellion, God sent judgment in which 250 men perished when "the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up" (v. 10).
Similar to the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, from that day forward, Korah, Dathan, and Abiram became the well-known warning regarding the consequences of rebelling against God. The reputation those men left behind was that of caution and admonition. Children were warned not to be like them; parents didn't want their children to face the same fate.
This is not God's only warning. Psalm 78 was written as a warning; it recounts the failures of previous generations. Asaph introduces his psalm, "Listen, O my people, to my instruction. ... I will utter dark sayings of old. ... We will not conceal them from their children, but tell to the generation to come the praises of the LORD" (Psalm 78:1, 2, 4). Even though the stories of the past were dark, filled with failure and resulting judgment, it was important to retell those stories as warnings for future generations.
Asaph tells story after story, cycle after cycle, of Israel's failures. He tells how Israel forgot God's works, didn't keep His covenant, refused to walk in His law, rebelled against God, didn't believe in Him, didn't trust His salvation, grieved Him, tempted Him, turned back from Him, and provoked Him. The psalm reveals increasing levels of judgment, all with the intention that the coming generations would heed the warning and refrain from making the same mistakes.
Even the New Testament continues telling these stories, applying the warning not just to Israel but also to New Testament Christians. Paul recalls the story found in Numbers 21. The Israelites grumbled about the wilderness experience. They complained about the lack of food and water. They despised the very provision of God. This grumbling brought the judgment of God, as many were destroyed by fiery serpents.
Paul also tells the story found in Numbers 25. The people of that day performed immoral actions with the daughters of Moab. Furthermore, they joined in the worship of their heathen gods. God responded by sending a plague, in which 23,000 people died in a single day.
Paul specifically reveals that these Bible stories were recorded, first in the Old Testament and again in the New, as warnings for those who would read. "Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction" (I Corinthians 10:11).
Before his death, Moses challenged Israel to be faithful. He warned that if they turned against God, they would face judgment. He foresaw the future, as he described "the plagues of the land and the diseases with which the LORD has afflicted it" (Deuteronomy 29:22). Judgment would surely follow rebellion.
The caution of Moses contains a sobering revelation. While the Israelites would suffer the consequences of their rebellion, other peoples would also observe and evaluate. "All the nations will say, 'Why has the LORD done thus to the land? Why this great outburst of anger?' Then men will say, 'Because they forsook the covenant of the LORD, the God of their fathers, which He made with them when He brought them out of the land of Egypt'" (vs. 24-25).
The sad commentary is that sometimes the answer for the question "Why is all of this happening to me?" is so obvious that even non-Christians understand. Even the world knows there is something powerful about a relationship with God. It is not something to be taken lightly. God can't be followed sporadically or half-heartedly, only when one feels like it. God can't be abandoned or forgotten with no consequences. Those who live in such a fashion end up as warnings and bywords.
Perhaps the most sobering aspect of these stories of warning lies in the intensity of the various situations. Some of the situations of rebellion were pretty major - immorality with heathen women and worshipping of false gods. Other situations were still serious but seem not to be on the same level - being dissatisfied with the leader God had established. Still other situations seem relatively minor - not liking the food and living conditions God had provided.
Whether major or minor, rebellion is an issue of the heart. Any level of rebellion reveals a heart that is un-submissive to God. Lack of submission is a poison that quickly grows. What starts as not liking the food can rapidly escalate into worshipping false gods, because the heart attitude, not the specific target, is the key. What a tragedy for any Christian to walk down such a dangerous path, one that could set him up as a warning for those of his generation.
Thankfully, the Bible reveals a completely different and much more refreshing option. Rather than being a negative warning of what not to do, Christians have the opportunity of being a positive example of what to do. Paul told Timothy, "In speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe" (I Timothy 4:12).
This challenge ought to grip the heart of every believer. No one wants to look back at the end of his life, realizing the best thing he can say is, "Don't do what I did." What a much better thing to be able to say, "While I wasn't perfect, I left you an example to follow." The capacity to be an example rather than a warning is dependent upon squelching any level of rebellion quickly and choosing rather to submit to God in all things.
"So that they became a warning" (Numbers 26:10). These sober words are written about Korah, Dathan, Abiram, and their associates. These men "contended against the LORD" (v. 9). Not happy with God's chosen leadership, they opposed Moses and Aaron. As a result of their rebellion, God sent judgment in which 250 men perished when "the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up" (v. 10).
Similar to the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, from that day forward, Korah, Dathan, and Abiram became the well-known warning regarding the consequences of rebelling against God. The reputation those men left behind was that of caution and admonition. Children were warned not to be like them; parents didn't want their children to face the same fate.
This is not God's only warning. Psalm 78 was written as a warning; it recounts the failures of previous generations. Asaph introduces his psalm, "Listen, O my people, to my instruction. ... I will utter dark sayings of old. ... We will not conceal them from their children, but tell to the generation to come the praises of the LORD" (Psalm 78:1, 2, 4). Even though the stories of the past were dark, filled with failure and resulting judgment, it was important to retell those stories as warnings for future generations.
Asaph tells story after story, cycle after cycle, of Israel's failures. He tells how Israel forgot God's works, didn't keep His covenant, refused to walk in His law, rebelled against God, didn't believe in Him, didn't trust His salvation, grieved Him, tempted Him, turned back from Him, and provoked Him. The psalm reveals increasing levels of judgment, all with the intention that the coming generations would heed the warning and refrain from making the same mistakes.
Even the New Testament continues telling these stories, applying the warning not just to Israel but also to New Testament Christians. Paul recalls the story found in Numbers 21. The Israelites grumbled about the wilderness experience. They complained about the lack of food and water. They despised the very provision of God. This grumbling brought the judgment of God, as many were destroyed by fiery serpents.
Paul also tells the story found in Numbers 25. The people of that day performed immoral actions with the daughters of Moab. Furthermore, they joined in the worship of their heathen gods. God responded by sending a plague, in which 23,000 people died in a single day.
Paul specifically reveals that these Bible stories were recorded, first in the Old Testament and again in the New, as warnings for those who would read. "Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction" (I Corinthians 10:11).
Before his death, Moses challenged Israel to be faithful. He warned that if they turned against God, they would face judgment. He foresaw the future, as he described "the plagues of the land and the diseases with which the LORD has afflicted it" (Deuteronomy 29:22). Judgment would surely follow rebellion.
The caution of Moses contains a sobering revelation. While the Israelites would suffer the consequences of their rebellion, other peoples would also observe and evaluate. "All the nations will say, 'Why has the LORD done thus to the land? Why this great outburst of anger?' Then men will say, 'Because they forsook the covenant of the LORD, the God of their fathers, which He made with them when He brought them out of the land of Egypt'" (vs. 24-25).
The sad commentary is that sometimes the answer for the question "Why is all of this happening to me?" is so obvious that even non-Christians understand. Even the world knows there is something powerful about a relationship with God. It is not something to be taken lightly. God can't be followed sporadically or half-heartedly, only when one feels like it. God can't be abandoned or forgotten with no consequences. Those who live in such a fashion end up as warnings and bywords.
Perhaps the most sobering aspect of these stories of warning lies in the intensity of the various situations. Some of the situations of rebellion were pretty major - immorality with heathen women and worshipping of false gods. Other situations were still serious but seem not to be on the same level - being dissatisfied with the leader God had established. Still other situations seem relatively minor - not liking the food and living conditions God had provided.
Whether major or minor, rebellion is an issue of the heart. Any level of rebellion reveals a heart that is un-submissive to God. Lack of submission is a poison that quickly grows. What starts as not liking the food can rapidly escalate into worshipping false gods, because the heart attitude, not the specific target, is the key. What a tragedy for any Christian to walk down such a dangerous path, one that could set him up as a warning for those of his generation.
Thankfully, the Bible reveals a completely different and much more refreshing option. Rather than being a negative warning of what not to do, Christians have the opportunity of being a positive example of what to do. Paul told Timothy, "In speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe" (I Timothy 4:12).
This challenge ought to grip the heart of every believer. No one wants to look back at the end of his life, realizing the best thing he can say is, "Don't do what I did." What a much better thing to be able to say, "While I wasn't perfect, I left you an example to follow." The capacity to be an example rather than a warning is dependent upon squelching any level of rebellion quickly and choosing rather to submit to God in all things.
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