Tag Archives: Moses

Day 67: Moses’ great passion

Deuteronomy 3:12-4:43; Mark 11:20-33

Key Verses

Deuteronomy 4:33-35
Did any people ever hear the voice of a god speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and still live? Or has any god ever attempted to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, and by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great deeds of terror, all of which the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? To you it was shown, that you might know that the Lord is God; there is no other besides him.

In Moses’ first speech to the people, he reminds them of the Lord’s faithfulness and trustworthiness. You can almost sense his desperate desire for the people to obey. He reminds them that the land east of the Jordan has already been given. And he implores the men of Reuben, Gad and Manasseh to go with their brothers to secure the rest of the land west of the Jordan (3:12-22).

He encourages them to remain obedient.. reminding them of how their brothers who worshiped Baal of Peor (Num. 25:1-5) were killed by the Lord “but you who held fast to the Lord your God are all alive today” (4:4). He also warns that if they disobey “that you will soon utterly perish from the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess. You will not live long in it, but will be utterly destroyed” (4:26).

Moses knows that his death is imminent. We’ll continue to see his passion for the people’s obedience and trust in God’s word to build – culminating in his great song of faith in Deut. 32…

Moses was the great mediator between God and Israel. He pointed forward to Jesus – who is the ultimate mediator between God and the nations. I imagine Jesus’ passion for our obedience and trust surpasses that of Moses’! I pray I don’t disappoint him…

Day 61: Setting the Stage

Numbers 25-27; Mark 8:22-30

Key Verses

Numbers 27:15-17
Moses spoke to the Lord, saying, “Let the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation who shall go out before them and come in before them, who shall lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of the Lord may not be as sheep that have no shepherd.”

Mark 8:29
And he asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Christ.”

The people are at Shittim – the last stop before they cross the Jordan into Jericho. Except for a major hiccup in Chapter 25 where Israel was “whoring with the daughters of Moab,” the rest of the book of Numbers outlines how God prepares the people to enter the land…

  • First, another census was taken to count how many men could go to war… but also to determine the size of the land inheritance. The larger the tribe, the larger the land allotment (Num. 26).
  • Second, Moses asked for a successor to lead the people, since he was not allowed to cross the Jordan into Canaan. Joshua was named Moses’ successor (Num. 27).
  • And finally, in the remainder of the book of Numbers, Moses summarized the law (Num. 28-30), defined the borders of Canaan (Num. 34) and introduced cities of refuge (Num. 35).

For the next few days, I want to turn our focus to Mark, mainly because the upcoming chapters in Mark are my absolute favorite :)

This section of Mark (8:22 – end of chapter 10) begin and end with Jesus healing a blind man. This is significant! Because within these few chapters, we see a pattern emerge that vividly illustrates the disciples’ blindness.

This pattern begins in the last verses of Chapter 8.

  • First, Jesus predicts his death (vs 31-32).
  • Secondly, the disciples show (in some way) that they do not accept or believe that Jesus will die (vs. 32-33), and
  • Third, Jesus gives a profound lesson in discipleship (vs. 34-38).

We see this same sequence of events occur three times (in different contexts) over the next 2 1/2 chapters. Repetition in Scripture is usually a sign of importance so we will concentrate on Jesus’ messages of discipleship over the next few days.

I apologize for today’s textbook-ish post, but we’ll dig deeper into this section of Mark tomorrow! Happy reading :)

Day 59: On the move

Numbers 20-21; Mark 7:24-37

Key Verses

Numbers 20:24
“Let Aaron be gathered to his people, for he shall not enter the land that I have given to the people of Israel, because you rebelled against my command at the waters of Meribah.”

Mark 7:37
And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

Three days ago we read at the end of Numbers 14… that because of unbelief, the people would have to wait 40 years to enter the land. Numbers 15 begins with, “When you come into the land you are to inhabit, which I am giving you…” In other words, God was gracious and reaffirmed that despite the 40-year delay, He would, in fact, give the people the land.

The next 5 chapters (15-19) described how the Israelites should observe the law – in the land. Their life in the promised land would be different from life in the wilderness – the changes in the law reflected this change.

Today, we come to Numbers 20, and the 40 years are almost complete. The people gather together in the wilderness of Zin – which is just south of Canaan and happens to be the same area the spies first crossed on their way into Canaan years earlier. But that generation has passed away and we see that their children – though still rebellious, are not quite as bad as their fathers… Rather, the focus switches to Moses’ and Aaron’s rebellion. The consequences for their disobedience are severe, as Aaron dies and Moses is prohibited from entering the land.

We also read of the Israelites marching northward through the Transjordan (the land East of the Jordan River) and we see God’s favor return to His people as they defeat the kings of the Transjordan.

It’s an exciting time :) We are on the verge of seeing God fulfill a promise He first made to Abraham hundreds of years earlier!

But ultimately, all of God’s promises are fulfilled in the person of Jesus – who we find traveling to Jews in the outer most regions of Tyre, Sidon and the Decapolis in today’s reading from Mark. This may sound trite, but I love Jesus. I love watching his movements and actions. I LOVE reading about his healings. I can almost imagine myself being pressed on all sides by the crowds – hoping to catch just the glance of his eye…  When I read Mark’s gospel, I feel like I’m watching personified compassion on the move :)

Until tomorrow… when the plot thickens ;)

Day 56: The Tragedy of Unbelief

Numbers 13-14; Mark 6:1-29

Key Verses

Numbers 14:11
And the Lord said to Moses, “How long will this people despise me? And how long will they not believe in me, in spite of all the signs that I have done among them?

Mark 6:5-6
And [Jesus] could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. And he marveled because of their unbelief.

God does not work in the midst of unbelief…

In today’s passage in Numbers, we read of the gross unbelief of the Israelites. Except for Moses, Aaron, Joshua and Caleb… the rest of the people refused to trust in God’s promises, and therefore they disobeyed God’s good word. The consequences were severe… no one would enter the land – except Joshua and Caleb and the children. God promised that in a span of 40 years, everyone in the current generation would die.

The people, hearing the harsh judgment, immediately backtracked and made a half-hearted attempt to take the land. But God was not with them, and they were brutally defeated.

This is a hard lesson. God does not work in the midst of unbelief. If we are actively disobeying Him, can we expect Him to work in our lives?? Even Jesus, in the midst of his hometown rejection, could not perform the usual mighty display of miracles. His power was limited in the face of rejection.

Ultimately, God’s promises are always fulfilled. The people of the next generation inherited the land. But those who disobeyed missed the blessing! God will accomplish his good plans for the world – with or without us…

God, please help me to obey. Help me to trust in your good word, and give me the faith to choose your ways over my own desires and plans. Please God, don’t let me miss the blessing! Oh God… “I believe; help my unbelief!”

Day 37: All the Nations

Exodus 39-40; Matthew 24:1-14

Key Verses

Exodus 39:32
Thus all the work of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting was finished, and the people of Israel did according to all that the Lord had commanded Moses; so they did.

Matthew 24:13
And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

Exodus ends with the people obeying every command of the Lord for the building and erecting of the Tabernacle. God’s presence descends as a cloud covering the tent of meeting and His Glory fills the Tabernacle. The Lord’s presence would go with the Israelites. He is the Covenant-Keeping God. He would be their God and they would be His people!

For the cloud of the Lord was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their journeys (Exodus 40:38).

Can you imagine what it would have been like to actually see the Lord’s presence? His physical presence. I believe His presence was visible not only for the Israelites – but also as a testimony to all the nations that the Lord of the Israelites was the One True God.

In Matthew, Jesus answers the disciples’ questions about the end of the age. He says, “And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations.”

From the beginning of time, God’s heart has been for all the nations. He called Israel apart as His people as a testimony to all the nations. And in the end, heaven will be filled with people from all the nations.

And they sang a new song, saying,
“Worthy are you to take the scroll
and to open its seals,
for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God
from every tribe and language and people and nation (Revelation 5:9).

God’s covenant promise to Abraham in Genesis 12 was that ALL the peoples of the earth would be blessed through him. We are heirs of this promise. And we are called to be the vehicle in which the promise is fulfilled as we proclaim God’s grace and salvation to our neighbor and to the ends of the earth. The end of the age is waiting for the nations to hear!! In the end…

…every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:10-11).

Day 36: The Tabernacle

Exodus 37-38; Matthew 23:1-39

Key Verses

Exodus 38:21
These are the records of the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the testimony, as they were recorded at the commandment of Moses, the responsibility of the Levites under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

Matthew 23:17
You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that has made the gold sacred?

The Law was born on the glory of the mountain, written on stone tablets by the finger of God and encased in the ark. The ark was made of pure gold and it alone was found behind the veil – in the Most Holy Place, the Holy of Holies. It was behind the veil where the presence of the Lord came down and His glory shone above the mercy seat of the Ark.

Just on the other side of the veil, in the Holy Place, stood the Altar of Incense – which would continually burn the holy Incense, pleasing to the Lord. Inside the Holy Place were also the  Table for the Bread of the Presence and the Golden Lampstand – both pointing forward to Jesus, the Bread of Life and the Light of the World.

The Holy Place and the Most Holy Place comprised the tabernacle which was made of the finest linen with blue, purple and scarlet yarns. The Tabernacle was surrounded by the court. The Bronze Basin, used for ceremonial washings, stood between the Bronze Altar and the entrance to the Tabernacle. After offering a sacrifice on the altar, the priest would then wash in the basin before entering the Holy Tabernacle.

Each act – every priestly duty – was ordained by God to daily remind the people of their sin and His holiness.

Time marched forward and God’s word was diluted. The priests and religious leaders of Jesus’ day distorted God’s holy law to exalt themselves and to line their pockets with the people’s guilt offerings. Jesus was disgusted. The holy tabernacle was defiled by pride.

“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in  (Matthew 23:13).

Jesus, who perfectly fulfills every requirement of the law… Jesus who would become the final Passover Lamb… Jesus, the God of the Covenant laments over His people.

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! See, your house is left to you desolate (Matthew 23:37-38).

The word “house” was an expression for “temple.” The temple, the dwelling place of God, is desolate. And Jesus weeps.

Day 35: Who is This God?

Exodus 34-36

Key Verses

Exodus 34:6-7
“The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty…”

Who is this God we worship? He is merciful. He is gracious. He is slow to anger. He is abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. He forgives iniquity, transgression and sin. But he will not let the guilty go free.

Who is this God we worship? That Moses’ face shone with glory after speaking with Him on the mountain?

Who is this God we worship? That he sovereignly placed skilled craftsmen among the Israelites so that His tabernacle could be built perfectly.

Who is this God we worship? He is the God who condescended to us. He made us His people by the sacrificial work of His Son. We are His people, and He. Is. Our. God.

Day 34: God’s Fierce Love

Exodus 31-33; Matthew 22:23-46

Key Verses

Exodus 32:16-17
Moses said to the Lord…”For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not in your going with us, so that we are distinct, I and your people, from every other people on the face of the earth?” And the Lord said to Moses, “This very thing that you have spoken I will do, for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name.”

Matthew 22:37-39
And [Jesus] said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

In Exodus 24:7, the people promised to obey the all of the “Book of the Covenant.” It doesn’t take the people long to break their covenant promise to the Lord. The people throw aside Moses and implore Aaron to make them an idol. The fickle people choose to worship a calf made of gold in the absence of Moses. It turns my stomach.

I think, however, the focus in these chapters should be on Moses, and his intercession for the people. Moses is the mediator. He’s the mediator of the covenant and he’s the mouthpiece of God. Moses intercedes twice on behalf of the people in these chapters… First, he pleads for their lives and secondly, he reminds God of His covenant promise to be their God in order to convince Him to go with them to the promised land.

Moses doesn’t change God’s mind. God is molding Moses to have the same thoughts, the same ways, to be more like Himself. Think of the transformation from when Moses first encountered God in the burning bush – to now – when he is boldly pleading for the people. Moses was afraid to stand before Pharaoh, and now he’s able to reason with God. The change is remarkable. This is the work of God in Moses’ life. It is a work of grace.

You see… God made a promise.

I will dwell among the people of Israel and will be their God. And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt that I might dwell among them. I am the Lord their God (Exodus 29:45-46).

He will not break this promise. His promise does not depend on the faithfulness of  His people. It depends on the faithfulness of One. That One will not break covenant. That One will not sin. And that One will become the once and for all sacrifice and rise to sit at the right hand of the Father where he makes intercession for all the saints. Yes, Jesus, intercedes for you just as Moses interceded for the people. How much more will the Father listen to the perfect mediator?

If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:31-35; 38-39).

God’s anger burned against the Israelite people because He loved them. His anger matches the fierceness of His love. He is jealous for you!

Day 33: A Holy Garment

Exodus 29-30; Matthew 22:1-22

Key Verses

Exodus 29:45-46
I will dwell among the people of Israel and will be their God. And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt that I might dwell among them. I am the Lord their God.

Matthew 22:8, 9-12
Then he said to his servants, “The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.” So the wedding hall was filled with guests.
But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment. And he said to him, “Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?” And he was speechless.

Wow. Exodus 29 is the ceremony of all ceremonies. I’ve never heard or seen a more intricate ceremony! Have you?

First, Aaron and his sons are consecrated (set apart) and ordinated as priests. They are washed and dressed in the priestly garments and anointed with oil…

And the priesthood shall be theirs by a statute forever. Thus you shall ordain Aaron and his sons (Exodus 29:9).

Aaron is a descendant of Levi (Ex 6:16-20). He is the first of the High Priests. Later, when the Israelites inherit the land and Joshua allots pieces of the land to the tribes of Israel, the Levites are not given land because they are to serve the nation as priests.

Next, Aaron and his sons must make a sacrificial offering to atone for their own sin. They place their hands on the head of the bull to signify the transfer of their sin to the animal. They then slaughter the bull and the insides of the animal are burned on the altar, but the outside of the bull… its flesh, skin, and dung, is burned outside the camp – away from the tabernacle. These parts of the animal symbolically bear the sin. And God does not tolerate sin. (Exodus 29:10-14)

Then we see two rams being offered. The first is a burnt offering in which the whole ram is given as an offering to the Lord. The 2nd ram is the ram of ordination. (Exodus 29:15-27)

The ordination ceremony is to last seven days, and each of the seven days, the priest must make a sin offering. God also gives instructions for how to purify the altar. The consecration of the altar would be part of the regular duties of the priests – to offer both a morning and evening sacrifice. (Exodus 29:38-42)

But why must the altar be consecrated daily? It stands just outside the Tent of Meeting which contains both the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place. And it is there where the Lord will meet with the people. (Exodus 29:42-46)

What do we learn from these chapters? God is holy. He can not be in the presence of sin. The word “holy” is used 19 times in these two chapters alone!! And just in case you think that God relaxes on this “holy” thing when Jesus enters the world… Just read what Jesus has to say from today’s reading in Matthew… Only those with the proper garment, a holy garment, are invited to His feast. The man found without the proper garment was “[bound] hand and foot and cast into the outer darkness” (Matthew 22:13).

Friend, do you have the proper garment? We can not manufacture this garment from our own good works. This garment is a gift. It is the righteousness of Christ, received by faith…

I will greatly rejoice in the Lord;
my soul shall exult in my God,
for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation;
he has covered me with the robe of righteousness (Isaiah 61:10).

God’s holiness is to be feared. We can not approach him without the proper covering. Christ covers us with His righteousness so that He might “present [us] holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation” (Colossians 1:22 NIV). That’s good news. That’s the gospel!

Day 32: God’s Holiness Revealed

Exodus 27-28; Matthew 21:23-46

Key Verses

Exodus 28:36
“You shall make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it, like the engraving of a signet, ‘Holy to the Lord.'”

Matthew 21:31-32
Jesus said to [the religious leaders], “Truly, I say to you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes go into the kingdom of God before you. For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him.

As we continue to read the requirements for the tabernacle and the priestly garments, I’m struck by the amount of detail given by the Lord. Each detail has a purpose in painting a picture of God’s holiness, His provision for sin, and a future glory!

Did you notice that the objects closest to the Holy of Holies are made of pure gold, but those objects farther away (in the court) are made of silver and bronze? Even the choice of metal reflects the holiness of God!

The priestly garments are also thick with symbolism. Aaron’s turban has a plate of pure gold with the engraving, “Holy to the Lord.” The tribes are individually represented as each name is engraved on onyx stones set in either shoulder of the ephod. The 12 tribes are represented as a whole on the High priest’s breastpiece:

So Aaron shall bear the names of the sons of Israel in the breastpiece of judgment on his heart, when he goes into the Holy Place, to bring them to regular remembrance before the Lord…Thus Aaron shall bear the judgment of the people of Israel on his heart before the Lord regularly (Exodus 28:29-30).

If you compare the types of stones on the breastpiece in Exodus 28:17-18, they are the same stones listed in Revelation 21:19-20, when describing the detail of the new Jerusalem. In fact, if you read Revelation 21:12-21, you’ll notice the language describing the New Jerusalem is similar to the language we’ve been reading in Exodus. The tabernacle is just a shadow – which points forward to its fulfillment in the new earth!

Turning to Matthew, we find more glimpses of God’s holiness in Jesus’ harsh dealings with the Pharisees. The Pharisees were held to a higher standard because they were the spiritual leadership among the people. Jesus had no mercy for teachers who lead the people astray through their pride and unbelief.

He is a holy God – but has offered a way of salvation for even the worst of sinners – through Jesus. This is the gospel. This is good news!!