STAY GRATEFUL FOR GOD’S CARE

  

1/1/2012

• Although we have no detailed account of the children of Israel during the wasted years in the wilderness, there are isolated incidents recorded. 
• From chapter 16 through 19, we have four incidents which all concern the priesthood.
• Chapter 16 is the gainsaying of Korah.
• Chapter 17 is about Aaron's rod that budded.
• Chapter 18 is the confirmation of the priesthood.
• Chapter 19 concerns the offering of the red heifer.

1.     DANGEROUS REBELLION (NUMBERS 16:1-17:13)

CHAPTER 16

• This is the fifth murmuring and it is against the priesthood.
• Korah was a Levite of great authority.  Associated with him were 250 of the princes of the assembly who were also men of authority.
• A rebellion to be effective must have prominent men behind it.  It takes brains and money.  This rebellion was no small affair.
• What was the root of the trouble here?  It was the jealousy of Korah.  This matter of jealousy is an awful thing. 
• All authority is God-given. 
• No man takes this honor upon himself.
• God had given the places in the camp, and He had given the Levites their specific jobs to do.  Korah was a Kohathite, and their position and service were God-appointed.
• If you are a Christian, you have been given a gift, and you are to use that gift as you function in the body of believers. 
• We are not to try to get someone else's job or office.
• Because the duties of Moses and Aaron were appointed by God, the murmuring is actually directed at God.
• God is going to deal with this rebellion in a definite way.  I tell you, the judgment of these men is going to be serious.

CHAPTER 17

• Now God is going to confirm the priesthood of Aaron and establish the fact that Aaron is the high priest. 
• These children of Israel were murmuring against Aaron saying that he was not the only one who could represent them before God. 
• It was actually a rebellion against God and His chosen.

Numbers 17:6

6 Moses therefore spoke to the sons of Israel, and all their leaders gave him a rod apiece, for each leader according to their fathers' households, twelve rods, with the rod of Aaron among their rods.

NASB

• These rods were probably picked up out on the desert and whittle out and decorated by carvings -- but they were dead wood! 
• Aaron's rod was just as dead as all the other rods.

Numbers 17:8

8 Now it came about on the next day that Moses went into the tent of the testimony; and behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted and put forth buds and produced blossoms, and it bore ripe almonds.

NASB

• This is life out of death.  Aaron's priesthood was confirmed by resurrection.  Aaron's rod brought forth buds, and blossoms, and fruit! 
• A perfect illustration of the resurrection of Christ is Aaron's rod that budded.
• The priesthood of the Lord Jesus Christ rests upon the fact of His resurrection. 
• We are told very frankly in Hebrews 7 that if Christ were still on the earth, He would not be a priest.

2.     PERPETUAL PRIESTHOOD (NUMBERS 18:1-19:22)

CHAPTER 18

Numbers 18:1

So the LORD said to Aaron, "You and your sons and your father's household with you shall bear the guilt in connection with the sanctuary; and you and your sons with you shall bear the guilt in connection with your priesthood.

NASB

• We need to remember that Korah was a Levite; the rebellion arose within the tribe of Levi.  It was very serious. 
• God is telling them they are responsible.
• It is also true that when there is sin in the church, you and I bear a certain amount of responsibility. 
• We cannot escape the responsibility for sin in our lives, sin in our families, and sin in our church.
• You see, this is the thing God is saying to Aaron. 
• Aaron cannot look at all that is happening among the Levites and take a holier-than-thou attitude. 
• Aaron cannot elevate himself by pointing out that he is God's elect, the one whom God has chosen as the high priest. 
• God's man is to walk in humility. 
• God's man bears responsibility!

CHAPTER 19

• This chapter contains an unusual ordinance, and it sounds very strange, but there is a good reason for it. 
• When the children of Israel were on the march and a man sinned, they couldn't stop right there, put up the tabernacle, and go through the ritual of offering a trespass offering or a sin offering.  So what were they to do when a man sinned on the way?
• They would take the ashes of a heifer, mix those ashes with running water, then with hyssop sprinkle the individual who had sinned. 
• That sounds strange, doesn't it? 
• But that was the way God dealt with sin for those people.
• Let me tell you another strange incident. 
• When our Lord Jesus went into the Upper Room with His disciples, the first thing he did was to get a basin of water and wash the disciples' feet. 
• Now why did He do that?'
• He tells Simon Peter the reason:

John 13:8

8 Peter said to Him, "Never shall You wash my feet!" Jesus answered him, "If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me."

NASB

• If the Lord Jesus had not washed the feet of Peter, Peter could not have fellowship with Him.
• Jesus Christ has gone back to the Father now, and He is still girded with the towel of service.  The basin of water is the Word of God, the Holy Spirit is the One who applies it, and the hyssop speaks of faith.
• When you and I sin today, Christ is not going to die all over again. 
• We are told,

1 John 1:7

but if we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.

NASB

• The "light" is the Word of God.  
• If we walk in the light, what do we see? 
• We see that we are dirty and that we need cleaning. 
• The Spirit of God convicts us.
• The Word tells us that the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, will keep on cleansing us from all these sins. 
• But the water of the Word and the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ must be applied to us.

1 John 1:9

9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

NASB

3.     DIVINE HELP (NUMBERS 20:1-21:35)

CHAPTER 20

• This chapter opens with the death of Miriam and it closes with the death of Aaron. 
• It also contains the sin of Moses and the sin of Edom. 
• Yet this is an important chapter because it marks the end of wandering for the children of Israel and the beginning of marching.
• Chapters 14 to 20 is the only section which deals with the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness. 
• Israel is out of God's will and there is very little to tell. 
• We can talk about Israel being God's chosen people, but they didn't amount to anything except when they were in God's will. 
• And that is still true today.
• It is also true of you and me that we don't amount to anything when we are out of God's will.  When you and I are not functioning in the body of believers, exercising the gift that He has given to us by the power of the Holy Spirit, we are as unnecessary as a fifth leg on a cow. 
• Actually, we get in the way of Christians who are in the will of God.
• At Kadesh Again After 37 Years.
• Here they are back at Kadesh where they had failed before, and again they are complaining instead of trusting.
• God was displeased with their complaining. 
• That should make us realize that if we are whining and complaining saints, we are not pleasing to God. 
• That is true no matter who you are, or where you are, or what you are doing.

Numbers 20:11

11 Then Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came forth abundantly, and the congregation and their beasts drank.

NASB

• Some teach that Moses' error was in smiting the rock twice. 
• He should not have smitten rock at all.  It had already been smitten. 

1 Corinthians 10:1-4

For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; 2 and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea; 3 and all ate the same spiritual food; 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ.

NASB

• Christ suffered once for sins, never the second time. 
• He died once.  God was teaching this to them in a type, and Moses should have protected and guarded the type by obeying God. 
• God told him very clearly that he was to speak to the rock. 
• That was all that he needed to do, but Moses failed to obey God.

CHAPTER 21

• In this chapter are their first victories in warfare. 
• Also the experience of their eighth and last murmuring is recorded, which brought about the fiery serpents and the serpent of brass, used by the Lord Jesus to illustrate His own crucifixion.'
• Since they can't go through the land of Edom (who denied them permission to cross their land), they are attempting to make a circuitous route around that land. 
• The way is hard and the people become discouraged.
• The Eighth Murmuring.
• The people begin to whine and complain and murmur. 
• Unfortunately, that is characteristic of many of us today. 
• When life is hard, we complain and murmur.

Numbers 21:6

6 And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died.

NASB

• Now they are ready to admit that they have sinned!
• That is a problem with many folk today. 
• They want to begin with God as a church member -- as a nice person accepted into a congregation of "nice people." 
• But that is not God's way.     
• The only way to begin with God is as sinners. 
• You see, Christ died for sinners, and He did that because He loves sinners. 
• He did not come to seek and to save the "righteous." 
• He came for sinners.
• The Israelites are going to have to give evidence of faith because they have no good works to present to God. 
• They cannot promise that from now on they will be good because they won't be good.
• But they can believe God, and God is going to let them come to Him by faith.

4. PROVIDENTIAL CARE (NUMBERS 22:1-25:18)

• Did you know that more is said in Scripture about Balaam than there is about Mary, the mother of Jesus? 
• There is more said about Balaam than any of the apostles. 
• The N.T. mentions him three times, and each time it is in connection with apostasy.
• In II Peter we are told about the way of Balaam.
• In Jude we are told about the error of Balaam.
• In Revelation we are told about the doctrine of Balaam.

4A. SOME WILL OPPOSE GOD’S PEOPLE (NUMBERS 22:4B-6)

4B And Balak the son of Zippor was king of Moab at that time. 5 So he sent messengers to Balaam the son of Beor, at Pethor, which is near the River, in the land of the sons of his people, to call him, saying, "Behold, a people came out of Egypt; behold, they cover the surface of the land, and they are living opposite me. 6 Now, therefore, please come, curse this people for me since they are too mighty for me; perhaps I may be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land. For I know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed."

NASB

·         Israel is ready to enter the land. 

·         Balak had witness what had happened to the Amorites and to Og, the king of Bashan.  Balak was wondering if he should attack Israel. 

·         Very candidly, he didn't know what to do, so he decided to engage the services of a prophet.

4B. GOD BRINGS GOOD WHERE SOME INTEND EVIL

(NUMBERS 22: 31-35)

31 Then the LORD opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the way with his drawn sword in his hand; and he bowed all the way to the ground. 32 And the angel of the LORD said to him, "Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out as an adversary, because your way was contrary to me. 33 But the donkey saw me and turned aside from me these three times. If she had not turned aside from me, I would surely have killed you just now, and let her live." 34 And Balaam said to the angel of the LORD, "I have sinned, for I did not know that you were standing in the way against me. Now then, if it is displeasing to you, I will turn back." 35 But the angel of the LORD said to Balaam, "Go with the men, but you shall speak only the word which I shall tell you." So Balaam went along with the leaders of Balak.

NASB

·         This is what Scripture calls the way of Balaam. 

·         Speaking of false prophets, Peter wrote.....

2 Peter 2:15-16

15 forsaking the right way they have gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness, 16 but he received a rebuke for his own transgression; for a dumb donkey, speaking with a voice of a man, restrained the madness of the prophet.

NASB

·         The way of Balaam was covetousness.

4C. GOD NEVER CEASES TO CARE FOR HIS PEOPLE (NUMBERS 23:19-23)

19 "God is not a man, that He should lie,

Nor a son of man, that He should repent;

Has He said, and will He not do it?

Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?

20 "Behold, I have received a command to bless;

When He has blessed, then I cannot revoke it.

21 "He has not observed misfortune in Jacob;

Nor has He seen trouble in Israel;

The LORD his God is with him,

And the shout of a king is among them.

22 "God brings them out of Egypt,

He is for them like the horns of the wild ox.

23 "For there is no omen against Jacob,

Nor is there any divination against Israel;

At the proper time it shall be said to Jacob

And to Israel, what God has done.

NASB

The Error of Balaam

·         The history of sin in Israel was more than evident. 

·         So Balaam concluded that God must judge Israel because of their sin. 

·         Therefore he persisted in seeking God's permission to curse Israel even though God had made it clear that Balaam was not to do such a thing.

·         The natural man always concluded that God must judge Israel because of their sin, and that God must judge the individual sinner.

Romans 8:1

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

NASB

************

Numbers 24:25

25 Then Balaam arose and departed and returned to his place, and Balak also went his way.

NASB

• There is only one other man in Scripture who is said to have gone to his place and that man is Judas.

Acts 1:24-26

24 And they prayed, and said, "Thou, Lord, who knowest the hearts of all men, show which one of these two Thou hast chosen 25 to occupy this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place. "  26 And they drew lots for them, and the lot fell to Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

NASB

Numbers 31:8

 8 And they killed the kings of Midian along with the rest of their slain: Evi and Rekem and Zur and Hur and Reba, the five kings of Midian; they also killed Balaam the son of Beor with the sword.

NASB

CHAPTER 25

• The Doctrine of Balaam
• In this chapter we shall see the most subtle and satanic thing which this man Balaam really did.
• When Balaam saw that he could not curse Israel, he taught Balak how he might corrupt these people. 
• Because Balak couldn't fight the children of Israel, Balaam taught him to join them and corrupt them from within.
• Isn’t it interesting that a liberal in the church wants us to come over to their side and agree with them. 
• But we will never be able to get them to come over to our side and agree with us --  yet they claim to be the broad-minded ones and we are the narrow-minded ones.
• Have you ever noticed that the Lord Jesus was betrayed from the inside?  It wasn't a Roman soldier who betrayed Him. 
• It was one of His own apostles who betrayed Him.
• It was His own nation who turned Him over to Rome to be crucified.
• Jesus is always betrayed from the inside. 
• That is still true today. 
• That is the doctrine of Balaam.