A Righteous Jealousy

That title sounds a little crazy, right? But tonight's whole chapter seems a little crazy on the surface. Numbers 25 has all the makings of a soap opera, but with a very final end (instead of the endless recycling of stories for the characters so often seen in the soaps).

It starts out telling us that the Israelites were turning to false gods (ironically enough, it's Baal again!). Not only that, but they were being enticed by the Moabite and Midianite women to do so. One of the biggest aspects of the worship to Baal, a fertility god, was prostitution. So even after all they've been through, and in quite the contrast to the blessings just pronounced on them through Balaam, they're yet again turning from God to commit sin. We've all got a good idea how this is going to end, right?

Of course, God is angry with His people. And not just a little mad, but fiercely angry. So much so that he demands the death of those who have begun to worship Baal. And not just any death, either. For whatever reason, the ESV translates God's command in verse 4 into "hang", but with a little footnote that says impale. This referred to the practice of shaming someone who had committed some sort of atrocity by killing them and then impaling them on a stick and leaving them there to rot in the heat, rather than according them the decency of a burial. For those of you out there who think God is only love, and wouldn't condemn His people to hell, here's your answer to that! God will not tolerate false worship. He is a jealous God. Keep in mind, here, that God's jealousy is not our own, but a term to help us understand. This is the closest emotion to what would be invoked in us under similar circumstances.

Okay, so this command has just come down. As we'll find out in a minute, there was apparently already some sort of plague wiping out these followers of Baal from within Israel. (Considering their form of worship, I doubt the plague was a pleasant one.) All of a sudden, one of the chief's sons deliberately and publicly flouts God's command not to mingle with these women anymore, bringing one home and beginning to "worship" with her (if you know what I mean). This so inflames Phinehas, the chief priest at the time, that he grabs up a javelin, rushes to their tent, and impales them both with the javelin, killing them.

Now, even though God greatly values human life, rather than punish Phinehas, God rewards him. Here's why: Phinehas did this out of a righteous anger (not a self-satisfying anger) because this chief's son was deliberately disobeying God. In addition, God had just commanded that those who were doing these things be impaled, which is exactly what Phinehas did. So hear me, this is not an example of how to behave when someone you know dishonors God. Society (and God Himself) would frown upon this type of behavior. However, this was a special case with a special, specific punishment directly ordained by God for a specific behavior during a specific time period. Because the heart of Phinehas was for guarding the people of God, for honoring God and for offering His commands when he did this, God rewarded him.

In addition, this act stopped the plague. I don't know if that's because there was no more prostitution or if the plague was a very special God-sent plague, but whatever the reason, it stopped. Apparently, though, God wasn't ready to, because He commands Moses to war against the Midianites, because they had deliberately seduced God's people away from the one true God.

More tomorrow! Or, in the spirit of the soap opera, should I say, To Be Continued.... (dramatic music)

Father God, what a God You are! Just when I think I might have the slightest grip on what to expect next, You surprise me. Your Word is full of good and true things, and it's amazing to see how You will go to great lengths to preserve the purity of Your people. Even when it might seem harsh to the world who does not know You, how loving it is to us! Thank You for Your mighty hand, guiding, protecting, and preserving Your people. Amen.

Redemption through Christ

So, we've officially started our study of Colossians in Sunday school. Today we focused on 1:1-14. I'm going to share what my own studies taught me in this. It's all very cool and exciting. So, first, a little background.

Who wrote this? The short answer is Paul. For those of you who might be reading this and not know, here's a little background on Paul. He was once known as Saul, but took the name Paul after his conversion. Apparently, Paul means "little"; he wanted to be known as little in the service of Christ. He was Jewish, and was actually a Pharisee and persecuted the early church prior to his conversion. He was trained under Gamaliel, who was a renowned teacher of Jewish law. This means that Paul would have been very familiar with all the outward observances of the law, which is important as he's writing Colossians. Hopefully, I can make that connection for you once we get there. Paul was converted to Christianity after his encounter with Christ on the road to Damascus; his salvation was clearly all a work of God, which you can definitely see that he's very aware of in his writings.

What is this? Colossians is an epistle, or letter. It's known as one of Paul's prison epistles, because it was most likely written during his imprisonment in Rome.

Why is Paul writing this? Paul had learned of heresies, or false teachings, creeping into the church at Colossae. Colossae was a city in Asia Minor, and was an important trading city, as well as a meeting place for ideas and religions from all around. Many people there worshipped the Greek "gods", in addition to some mystery cults. There was also an apparently sizable Jewish influence as well. All of this led to syncretism, or the combining of ideas from other philosophies or religions with Christian truths. This meant that there was some "Christian mysticism", as well as Jewish legalism to be fought against. Some scholars believe that some of this led to eventual Gnosticism, the idea that one needed to have a special knowledge of God to be saved. Gnostics denied the deity of Christ and to some extent, the seriousness of sin. Obviously, none of these really jive with Christianity and the true gospel, and so were a danger to this church. Interesting to note is that Paul had probably never visited the church at Colossae. It was most likely started by Epaphras, a convert of Paul's, and the man who brought this issue in the church to Paul. So, Paul is writing the church at Colossae to remind them of the gospel truth, to encourage them to stand firm in the gospel, and to combat false teachings within the body.

Digging in: I kind of took this verse by verse with the girls today, so that's what I'll do here. Bear with me, because all of this is coming from scribbled notes I wrote!

Verses 1-2: Greeting

Paul begins in verse 1 by telling who is writing the letter, himself and Timothy. Paul calls himself an apostle here, and that was one of the questions we had. What is an apostle? The definition I found is "one sent with a special message or commission". The apostles were originally the twelve that Jesus chose. However, Paul counts himself an apostle because Christ gave him a special commission to bring the gospel to the Gentiles. We are not apostles, because while we have all been given the Great Commission in Matthew 28, we have not been granted a special message to bring to anyone. We are, however, disciples, ones who follow the teachings of Christ. Paul also says that He is one by the will of God, which we've seen both in his conversion and his commission by Christ. Timothy was a convert of Paul's, and therefore a brother in Christ. An interesting fact that I found was that Timothy may have acted as somewhat of a secretary for Paul, writing his letters as Paul dictated them. It's also important that Timothy is involved in this letter because of his background. He was part Greek, part Jew, so he had his feet in both worlds. He was raised to have a firm foundation in Jewish belief and tradition, but did not follow all of the same laws. In fact, He was not circumcised until Paul did so (my best understanding of this is that, while Paul did not agree with the circumcision party, as we saw in Acts 15 at the Jerusalem Council, this was done so as to avoid Timothy's testimony from being outright rejected and to avoid giving needless offense or hindrance to the gospel message). In addition, He was considered one of Paul's most constant companions.

He tells us in verse 2 who he is writing to, the church at Colossae, which we've already discussed.

Verses 3-8: Thanksgiving

Next, Paul spends some time in thanksgiving for these brothers and sisters in this church, while already beginning to combat some of the false doctrine creeping into it.

In verse 3, he begins by affirming the deity of Christ, which was one of the things that some of the false teachers were denying.

In verses 4-5, he mentions three of the foundational principles of Christianity: faith, hope, and love. He speaks of their faith in Christ, the outward manifestation of that faith in the love they show for the body, and the reason for their faith and love, the hope of the gospel in Jesus Christ. He takes them back to the roots of what they believe and why. He reminds them of who they are! He also reminds them that the gospel, and it alone, is "the word of truth". No other teaching is acceptable or able to gain them access to the Father or give them hope in Christ.

In verse 6, he reminds them of the evidence of the truth of the gospel, that it grows and spreads and bears fruit. He says that this is what it is doing in the world and right there in them, since the moment they were saved by it and in it.

In verse 7, He calls upon a face they know, Epaphras. He reminds them that Epaphras believes the gospel, and calls him a fellow slave (bondservant) to Christ. He reminds them that Epaphras is faithful to Christ, the gospel, and the body.

Finally, in verse 8, he commends them for their "love in the Spirit". What is this? A Spirit-given love that works itself out in action, as an outward manifestation of the inward truth of the gospel salvation they have experienced.

Whoo, and that's just part of the greeting!

Verses 9-14: Prayer

In verse 9, Paul reminds the Colossian church that knowledge alone is not enough to bring them to salvation. It must be a knowledge and understanding that comes from God to discern His will and then to rightly act on it. They were not to rely on wisdom given by these false teachers, but on spiritual wisdom that comes only from God.

In verse 10, we see why this is so: so that we can "walk in a manner worthy of the Lord". To walk here means how we conduct or behave ourselves. Paul tells us how we are to do this, in a manner fully pleasing to the Lord. But wait, we're sinners. We can't do that! Which is why he's reminded us of who Christ is and what He's accomplished for us, and tells us here in verse 10 that we can't do it on our own, but only through the process of sanctification (becoming more Christ-like). Knowing that we are fully forgiven, we can grow in Him and in His knowledge, completing good works as an act of service and worship to Him as a result of the salvation we have obtained in Him. See how it all points back to Christ?

Verse 11 is where, as mentioned above, Paul reminds us that we need God's power and might to accomplish any of this, because we are unable to do it on our own.

In verse 12, Paul reminds the Colossians that God has "qualified" whom He would to inherit the promise of salvation, Jew and Gentile alike. Nothing else is required, no special knowledge, no dietary restrictions, etc.

Finally, in verses 13-14, Paul basically gives them a short summary of the gospel as an encouragement and something to stand steadfastly in. He says that God had "delivered (rescued) us from the domain of darkness (Satan/sin/evil) and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son (the kingdom of God/heaven/salvation in Christ), in whom (Christ's lordship) we have redemption (deliverance/liberation/freedom from), the forgiveness of sins (necessary for a relationship with Christ and for salvation).

What a message! What a joy!

Lord, You are so amazing. You are so faithful; faithful to preserve Your people in the midst of strife, faithful to provide us with shepherds and those who would guard the flock and combat lies, faithful to provide us with Your Word and open our eyes and give us understanding of Your truth. You are a God without description, for our stammering tongues cannot hope to give voice to the truth of who You are, to tell even a fraction of Your glories. But, Lord, I long for the day when I will see You face to face and my mortal tongue is unloosed to more fully and perfectly sing Your praise, when my ears are unstopped and my feeble mind unfettered to more fully hear and understand Your Word, when the scales fall from my eyes to behold the fullness of Your beauty and Your perfect plan for Your bride. Hallelujah and amen!

Oracles upon Oracles

Really quickly, before we get into Numbers 24, I want to rejoice with you and thank God for faithful preachers. Since I quit teaching 2nd and 3rd graders on Wednesday nights, I get to be in service, which is really awesome. My first chance for this was last night. Apparently, we're studying through Exodus right now. Last night's sermon was on Exodus 22:1-15. Basically, it's a bunch of laws dealing with retribution. But here's the cool thing: Nick reminded us that all of Scripture points to Christ, and then made an awesome connection that I never would have made. We were in debt to God because of our sin. We owe him perfect obedience, but stole it from Him to glorify ourselves, hence the debt. But Christ paid it! And He paid it twofold, by living the perfect life of obedience we can't, and then dying on the cross in our place for the punishment of our sins. How awesome is that?

Okay, so for Numbers 24. This is the "finishing out" of Balaam's oracles, or blessings. What's cool about this to me is that there is a bit of prophecy in the second oracle (actually, the final one but the second in tonight's chapter) and you can see it in two ways.

One, these events point to the things that will happen during King David's reign. That would be accurate. I think there's a deeper meaning, too, though. I think this also points to Christ. Look at it! "I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near: a star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel..." To me, that speaks of Christ. Even applying the rest of it to David, you can still look at it in light of Jesus, too. It talks about the destruction of the enemies of Israel and his dominion. If you take that and apply it to Christ, He has defeated the greatest enemy of His people on the cross. He's overcome our sin. And He's certainly ruler over all! Also the "crush the forehead of Moab" part sounds vaguely reminiscent of Genesis 3:15 to me. (That's right, I'm not quoting it for you - go look it up and see if you agree!)

Anyway, I thought that was pretty cool, especially in light of Nick's reminder last night that all Scripture points to Christ.

Father, thank You for sending Your Son to be our Defender, our Redeemer, our Victorious One. And thank You for accepting His life and death in place of my own for my sins. Lord, You died the death I deserve, and You did it while my heart was still far from You. Lord, I love to look back at my life and see how You have orchestrated everything on my path for my good and Your glory. You've poured blessing upon blessing on me that I simply don't deserve. You are amazing! Dwell with and in me, Lord, that I might be a light in the darkness and share Your gospel. In Your name I pray, amen.

Blessings from a Curse

Isn't it cool how God's Word just all flows together? Earlier this morning, I wrote about my study of 1 John 2 last night, and how he was warning the church against those who would profess to know God, but said something else entirely through their actions. And here we see the perfect example in Numbers 23, tonight's study.

I wanted to figure out a little more about Balaam. Luckily, a few years ago, my grandmother gave me a really cool and extremely helpful book, Unger's Bible Dictionary, and Nic was kind enough to let me borrow his study Bible (until my own arrives on Thursday - yay!), plus I do have an old KJV study Bible. All that to say, I had several resources to help me understand this a little better. Ironically enough, the KJV study Bible had a little "segment", for lack of a better word, on Balaam. It said that he was willing to acknowledge God as being powerful and the source of his "gifts" (divination and the ability to bless and curse),but didn't believe that He was the only God. It went on to say that he was a contrast between an outward facade of spirituality and a corrupt inward life. Furthermore, he only wanted to remain obedient so long as it gained him profit. The Bible Dictionary called him a "heathen diviner". It also claims that his intentions when he gives each of these blessings was initially to curse Israel in order to obtain profit, but he was constrained by God to speak only what he was told by God to speak.

The second thing I needed to understand was what an oracle is. I mean, I've heard it used before and had a general idea, but wanted to be sure since it's in Scripture, at least as a heading. Apparently, it is "the divine communications given to the Hebrews" in various ways; in tonight's case, through (or maybe in spite of) Balaam.

Okay, so now we're at the first oracle or blessing. The first thing I took note of here were the phrases "the Lord put a word in Balaam's mouth" and "thus shall you speak". Taking the first phase, my thought was what does that look like? I mean, you would typically picture a conversation with God, right? And God tells the person what to say. But that's not the image I got. Maybe it's just the words used, but it's almost like God physically did something to put His Word into Balaam. I pictured God somehow leaning over Balaam and breathing it into him or something. Think about it before you start making fun of me; it doesn't just say that the Lord met with Balaam, or told him what to say and then to go and repeat it. No, it says He put the Word in Balaam's mouth. That implies a certain physicality, right? That's not a passive verb to me (English teachers, don't kill me if I'm wrong); in my mind, that implies an action of some sort. And then the second phrase is very visceral, too. But, rather than a request or even a command, it's like a statement of a very certain fact. God doesn't tell Balaam he's going to go repeat the words to the best of his recollection. He doesn't give Balaam the opportunity to twist His Word at all. He says, "Thus shall you speak." Very little room for error there, huh?

So then Balaam says, I came here to curse this people, but I'm constrained to say only what God would have me say, and that's not His desire for this people. Instead, he ends up verifying how they are set apart and reiterating His promise of Abraham's descendants. Isn't that crazy? And the whole time, God's using this unwilling servant. Can't you picture Balaam just grinding this out through gritted teeth, like, God, can't you just let me make a little money? And we know that his main objective is not obedience to our glorification of God. After all, He was told at the first request, no. Then, he was told, no, but since you're going to be so stiff-necked and more stubborn and less wise than your donkey, go, but say only what I command you to say. Now, he's screaming yes, but being told no yet again. That should be the end of it, right? You would think, but...you guessed it, no. Because now, he gets asked to try again, and he gives a second oracle/blessing.

This is just not turning out so well for Balak, is it?

In this second oracle, Balaam says one of my favorite truths about God. Go (re)read verse 19. Balaam is being forced to tell Balak, "Listen, God doesn't lie or change His mind. He's already spoken, and that's that." How cool is this promise? Especially when you look at other promises in Scripture and know this one stands alongside it, so all the others must be true as well! Not only that, but he then basically tells Balak that it's futile and foolish to try to harm Israel, because as God's chosen people, He is their defense and protection and no one can stand against Him. Wouldn't you just love to be a fly on the wall for that? Balaam is basically confirming Balak's fears, when instead he was called and paid to remove them! But Balak still doesn't get it, because he wants Balaam to go one more place with him to try God again (always a wonderful idea, right? Insert annoying buzzer sound.)

But, as much of a temptation as it is to keep going, we'll have to wait until tomorrow to see what happens. Stay tuned...

Lord, thank You for Your Word! It is water to the thirsty soul and the bread of life to the hungry. It is miraculous, living, breathing, sharper than any two-edged sword. It is our best defense against the devil's snares. And it is given to us freely, and You give us Your Spirit to help us discern it rightly, You give us spiritual ears to hear and eyes to see Your truths in it. Lord, You are a God of wonders! Thank You for the gift of Your Word. Cause us to treasure it more and anew each day as we store it in our hearts. Amen.

We Have an Advocate

Sorry that I'm just getting to this today, but as I said last night on Facebook, we had women's Bible study, which ran a little over, and then I had to shower, etc., when I get home...at which point I crashed. But studying through 1 John is awesome! Last night's discussion/study was on 1 John 2. Here's what I got from both my own study and the wisdom of the other ladies that participate with me.

First, if you look back at 1 John 1:9-10, you see John telling us that we are still sinners, and that if we deny this, then we're denying the need for Christ, and therefore, can't be His. But then you come right over to chapter 2, verses 1 and 2 and see the solution for this: confess your sins so that Christ can be your Advocate with the Father (since you are His, then, if you confess your sins, repent and believe). How cool is that? We discussed what an advocate is in the group. Of course, we know that this is often someone who speaks on your behalf, who fights for you and defends you. Christ is definitely doing all of those things for those who are His. I also mentioned another side to that: having been the "court advocate" for a domestic violence program in Bedford (which is a wonderful program, by the way, and always in desperate need of any financial support that you can provide - you can look them up on Facebook or follow the link for more information: http://www.co.bedford.va.us/res/social/domestic/index.asp), I also learned that an advocate can be a constant source of support, someone who will encourage and guide you when you can't see the way sometimes. Isn't that another beautiful picture of what Christ does for us?

Second, John is writing in this chapter specifically to encourage the church in their position in Christ and to warn them against false teachers. At that time, there was a group who denied the deity of Christ, who denied that sin really mattered, etc., and some of these teachers were in the church, naming themselves Christians! I can't imagine what it must have been like to suddenly have your close friend in the church spouting off random craziness that contradicted everything that Christ and the other apostles had taught, can you? And that was what was almost so insidious about it: that these were people who were known to believers, who called themselves followers of Christ, so I feel like that would have made it that much harder to discern the truth, especially if it was coming from someone that was well-liked or well-respected in the body. But John does say that you can rightly discern the truth from the lies, comparing it with the contrast between light and darkness. He tells us that a true believer will be known by their faithful walk, by their love for Christ rather than the world, by their knowledge of who God is, and by their growth in Christ.

What this taught me was a need for a greater love and unity within the body, so that at the first signs of a false teaching or these little "white lies" coming into the body, we can strangle it out. That's not to say we shun the person speaking them, so don't get me wrong. But it is to say that we can "speak the truth in love" to them, that we can gently and lovingly correct them before they slip away or draw others with them. It encourages a greater love of the Word, so that we can rightly discern the truth and we won't question in our minds what is truth and what is a lie. It requires a greater abiding in Him, so that we know Him and won't be deceived or enticed by lesser things or idols that can so easily take root in our lives. It requires a guardedness and a watchfulness of what we say so as not to give a wrong impression or allow our words to be twisted. It certainly inspires a greater love and a greater recognition of my desperate need for Christ in all things!

Lord, I love you. I can't imagine where my life would be without You and Your grace and mercy to me. I look back in my life, and I can clearly see where Your hand has led me and how You have worked things for my good, even when I couldn't see it at the time. And even now, in the things I still can't find the good in, I know that You have a purpose for those things, as well. I thank You for daily inspiring a greater trust in You and a greater dependence on You in my heart. To know that I still have so much to learn about You is very humbling, but also so wonderful. What kind of God would You be if I had nothing more to learn about You?! I thank You for being my Advocate with the Father. You are a good and gracious God, and I am well pleased in my soul to be called Yours. Amen.

The Donkey Speaks

Wow, I had no idea where to even start with Numbers 22! I definitely had to get out the study Bible to understand even a portion! The "problem" lies in that this tale seems almost contradictory, yet we know that the Word doesn't contradict itself. So what's happening here? Well, as is so often the case, a lot of this is the heart behind the words, or the underlying message of the words.I'm going to try to break this down, and I may quote from the study Bible if necessary.

Verses 1-6: This is sort of setting up the background. Israel had just defeated two other nearby nations through the power of God. The king of Moab, this unbelieving land, is worried that the same will happen to him, so he calls for a man who practices divination from the land of his kindred. My assumption is that this would mean that the people in this land probably also do not follow God, including Balaam.

Verses 7-14: So we see here that Balaam appears to be obedient to God. After all, he is certainly speaking with him. And when God said he couldn't go, he told the messengers that he couldn't. But, think about it for a minute. If he was truly God's, why would he curse the people of God? Why divide himself from them by cursing them? In addition, his refusal, the study Bible suggests, may have been worded in such a way as to suggest that the cause of his refusal was less about obedience and more about cash. We see this in the fact that Balak sends more emissaries, indicating that there was not a firm refusal.

Verses 15-21: Ok, so Balak didn't take no for an answer. But here's the thing - neither did Balaam. God had already told him that he could not curse the people of Israel for any reason. Yet, rather than turning these messengers away with a firm refusal based on his knowledge of what God's will was, Balaam opened his ears, invited these men to stay the night, and said he would see what more God had to say to him. Clearly, he did not know the same God James does as he writes in James 1:17, "with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change". So from this, we know that Balaam is motivated by something other than a love for and obedience to God, probably money and a desire to make much of himself. We see God telling him, go, but do only what I say. Which leads to the seeming contradiction...

Verses 22-30: The first thing we read here is that God's anger was kindled against Balaam, because he went. But wait, didn't God just tell him to? I didn't understand this myself, but the study Bible had a great answer for this, one that is in keeping with the rest of the text. It says, probably because God knew that Balaam's heart was set on the money. This means that he intended to have it, God's will or no. We know that God is a God who sees the heart, not just the actions, and we've already seen Balaam's heart, so this makes perfect sense and erases the seeming contradiction here.

What I found amusing in this scripture is that Balaam is not at all fazed by the fact that his previously mute donkey starts talking to him. He just holds a conversation with it. I'm pretty sure I would pee my pants and commit myself to the loony bin, but Balaam is just so nonchalant about it all. You can also tell more about his heart here. Rather than thinking, gee, this faithful animal had never led me astray and might know something I don't, even on a more instinctual level, and maybe I should listen, he becomes angry and starts to beat her. But he has a different reaction to the next surprise of the day...

Verses 31-41: When Balaam finally had his eyes opened to see the angel, he is utterly undone. He just falls and hides his face. However, he is still sort of scheming even in this. The angel tells Balaam that what he's doing is perverse (reckless) before the Lord, but in Balaam's response, he says he'll turn back if what he's doing is "evil in your sight". That's already been addressed, and he knows it is! Yet, clearly God has a use for this man, even in his sin, because He allows him to meet with Balak. We'll see what happens in Numbers 23!

What a cool story! And how gracious God is even when we're in our sin, almost openly defiant about it as Balaam was, and yet can still receive grace when we're saved by God (salvation being the grace - if you're already saved, you won't be defiantly sinful against the One who saved you!).

Lord, thank You that salvation is all of you and none of me, so that I may not boast of my works in earning it. You are an amazing and just God, faithful to bless and preserve Your people through everything. I love knowing that You have already drawn up the boundaries of my life and that You are keeping me where You would have me. Lord, I pray that I will not be like Balaam, claiming obedience with my lips, but showing defiance with my actions. I pray that You will guard me from sin and the temptations of sin. I pray that You will continue to grow me into a faithful, godly woman, not for my glory, but for Yours. Amen.

Tomorrow

Dear friends, it has been an exhausting and amazing week! We've had VBS at my church, and I have been with the most awesome group of middle school girls. What a blessing! However, as a result, I wasn't home until about 9:30 every night and then was showering and going to bed, so that's why there haven't been any posts. I will pick up again tomorrow!

 

Internet

So, of course,rour Internet went down today and won't be fixed until Monday. That means I can't really post until Monday night, since it's really hard to do this on a phone. But have a great Father's Day!

 

The Miracle

Numbers 21 contains the awesome story of the bronze serpent. I've had this particular bit of Scripture explained before, and I was so excited to read through it tonight so I could share it with you, because I would never have made the connection without it being explained. First, read verses 4-9.

Are you back? Now, make the following connections: complaining = sin. Fiery serpents = punishment for sin. Bronze serpent = salvation = Jesus.

How cool is this? It's like a foreshadowing of what Christ would do for us. We were in our sin, grumbling, complaining, ignoring God. Sin requires a punishment. Fortunately for us, just as the bronze serpent was lifted up for the people of Israel to gaze upon and be saved if they repented and believed in its healing power, so Christ was lifted up upon the cross, dying for those who would look on Him, repent of their sins, and believe in Him as the only way of salvation. How amazing!

Jesus, thank You for Your sacrificial love. Thank You for dying for me while I was yet in my sin. Thank You for opening my eyes to it, causing me to repent and for replacing my stony heart with one of flesh, made to love You. You are an awesome and mighty God, and my heart is filled with joy to know You and to dwell in Your presence. I love You unreservedly and unashamedly, Lord. Amen.

My Apologies

Friends, those of you that read this, I ask for your forgiveness tonight. I have been too long in writing. The truth is, while I was studying for my Sunday School and Wednesday nights and church, I wasn't studying daily like I should have been. I just let other things claim my time, and while some, not all, were necessary things, I became a Martha instead of a Mary, running around busily instead of sitting at His feet. So...tomorrow will be the first blog and I'll get back into Numbers. There may be some posts coming on 1, 2, or 3 John or Colossians, too. We're studying John's epistles in a new women's Bible study I've joined that will meet every other Monday night (our first night was this past Monday), and we're going to start Colossians in Sunday School.

Look for my post tomorrow, and yell at me if you catch me slacking again!