The resources God has given us to live a thriving life are His Word, Spirit, and People.
Read God’s Word:
Numbers 3-5
Act 2: God’s Covenant People
Scene 3: The Sinai Covenant and law: God embraces and instructs his people
Background Information: Numbers 3-5
Numbers is named after the two military census that were taken. They had been camping near Mount Sinai for a year, and now it is time to move out. God arranges the people in specific ways with the Tabernacle, his presence at their center. The Levites served the people not by military duty but priestly duties, transporting and caring for the Tabernacle. It was important, strenuous work. They took the place of every firstborn in Israel. After the Passover, the firstborn belonged to God. The number of firstborns in Israel exceeds the number of Levites by 273, so they must be redeemed by a monetary payment. All this points forward to Jesus, our great high priest who redeems his people with his own life. These chapters also demonstrate that every member of Israel had a part to play, and that God was clearly in charge. He spoke to Moses, who then passed on his word to the people. This process of God speaking to his people through leaders has often been corrupted by wicked, false prophets both in Israel’s history and in the church. In spite of the sins of the few, God still uses leaders in the church to speak for God and to bless his people. Chapter five serves to illustrate the importance of marriage faithfulness as well as to protect women from false accusations of their husbands. The “bitter water” was not magic, it was a ritual drink that symbolized the rightness of God’s judgement. The physical judgement that fell on the guilty was from God, not the water itself. Remember, this was a Theocracy; God was very directly involved in the oversight of the lives of his people.
Pray:
Praise God for…
Thank God for…
Confess your sins to God
Ask God to encourage the River Youth who are at Conference in TX today. Pray for protection as they travel home this evening.
Ask God for… (what else concerns you?)
Reflect:
Write down one passage of scripture that stood out to you today.
Write down why this passage stood out to you.
Engage Community:
Text or call someone now and tell them…
– What you are praying for.
– What stood out from God’s word today.