Lessons from Numbers- the danger of rebellion (part 4)

One of the reasons I find reading Numbers so difficult is not so much the chapters which record lists of names and genealogies, but that it focuses on several acts of rebellion on a micro and macro level - rebellion by one or two individuals, or by the whole of Israel - and all of them are judged swiftly by the LORD. Miriam is given leprosy. The sabbath-breaker, at God's command, is stoned to death (ch 15). Moses is told he will never enter the promised land because he didn't follow God's instructions to speak to the rock, not strike it (ch 20). Phinehas is commended by the LORD for spearing an Israelite and his pagan woman (ch 25). And Korah, Dathan, Abbiram along with their families and followers are swallowed up by the earth in an act of devastating judgement from the LORD. (ch 16)

It all seems so harsh; so sudden; so irrevocable. What happened to grace? I'm sure this is one of points where people say 'Look, the God of the Old Testament is just full of judgement. The God of the New Testament if one of love. The Bible contradicts itself!' Or at least, maybe some Christians feel that as we're under grace not law, thankfully these kinds of things don't happen anymore and don't apply to us.

But that viewpoint is not taken by the New Testament writers. In fact, they are hugely influenced by the book of Numbers. Look at what Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 10:

'For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers,a that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ. Nevertheless, with most of them God was not pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness.
Now these things took place as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did. Do not be idolaters as some of them were; as it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.” We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did and were destroyed by serpents, nor grumble, as some of them did and were destroyed by the Destroyer. Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come. Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.'

Paul says that Christ Himself was with Israel all those years in the wilderness! This isn't a case of Jesus coming in the New Testament and suddenly it's all about love. Moreover, Paul sees these accounts as 'examples for us'. Numbers warns readers not to make the same mistakes as Israel, of taking God's commands lightly, forgetting His goodness, hankering after the past and coveting what you do not have. It links all these sins to the heart issue: unbelief. This is still relevant for us today. Whenever we fail to believe God's promises; whenever we choose the pleasures of sin above obedience; whenever we question God's appointed leaders and their authority, we run the risk of behaving in exactly the same way as Israel, and 'with most of them God was not pleased... and were destroyed.'

Hebrews is another epistle very influenced by Numbers, and very focused on warning God's people not to harden their hearts, let sin deceive them, and walk away from the truth.

'For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt. For land that has drunk the rain that often falls on it, and produces a crop useful to those for whose sake it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God. But if it bears thorns and thistles, it is worthless and near to being cursed, and its end is to be burned.' (Heb 6:4-8)

In Numbers, there is no atonement for apostasy. Those who knowingly reject God's covenant promise are disinherited and destroyed. Their unbelief led to disobedience and treating God with contempt. There was no way to undo their sin. They could never enter the land; they died outside the land of promise. The writer of Hebrews similarly gives a stern warning to believers because if they commit apostasy (entering a covenant with God then rejecting Him; this may be done consciously or through persistent, deliberate unrepentant sin), they cut themselves off from Christ, the only sacrifice for sins under the new covenant. As the New Bible Commentary states:

'Nothing is impossible for God, but He offers us no hope of reclaiming those who take a continuous and hard hearted stand against Christ. Those who harden their hearts may reach a point where they are hardened beyond recall.'

The message of Numbers is that none of us can ever get complacent about our relationship with God, and that is supported by the New Testament as well. We are responsible for diligently making our call and election sure (2 Peter 1:10), knowing that if we are still standing at the end, it's because of God's phenomenal grace to us. We can't stay faithful without His enabling, so knowing our own human capacity for weakness and disobedience, we should throw ourselves upon His mercy and grace daily in prayer and ask Him to keep us faithful to the end.

Lessons from Numbers- the danger of rebellion (part 3)

Numbers 13 introduces a crisis which is the very heart of the book. The main theme of the book is God's promise (in covenant) of giving the people a land of their own, as well as descendants and blessing to other nations through them. Chapter 13 recounts how they sent spies into Canaan, who discovered that the land was good, but they were terrified by the 'giants' who occupied it. Joshua and Caleb were the only two who had faith to believe God would do as He had promised; nothing was too hard for Him:

“The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceedingly good land. If the Lord delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their protection is removed from them, and the Lord is with us; do not fear them.” (Numbers 14:7-9)

Chapter 14 details the people's reactions to the spies' report. No one seems to listen to Joshua and Caleb; they all start talking about choosing a new leader and heading back to Egypt (v4). Moses has to again intercede for them before the LORD, who says He will destroy them. In the end, the faithless spies die, and everyone else has to travel the wilderness for 40 years as none of that generation are allowed to see the promised land, except Joshua and Caleb.

It's a sobering lesson in what it means to have faith. You're never going to be 'mainstream'; you'll be in the minority. God describes Caleb as having 'a different spirit' and commends him for following Him 'fully' (v24). How many of us can honestly say that we are following God fully too? There are often areas of our lives where our discipleship is a bit lack lustre and half hearted, or perhaps where we think we are following God wholeheartedly, but the reality is, we've never been tested in those areas.

It is so easy to be held back by fear, but the lesson in Numbers here is that ultimately, the things the Israelites feared (falling prey in the wilderness) actually happened because they didn't trust God. It's safer to go forward into the unknown when God is with you, than to try to stay safe without God. That's no safe haven at all.

Lessons from Numbers- the danger of rebellion (part 2)

The second rebellion I want to look at is in Numbers 12, where Miriam and Aaron speak against Moses: 'Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married, for he had married a Cushite woman. And they said, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us also?” And the Lord heard it.' (v1-2)

Just like the rebellion in the previous chapter, this involves words. It's another form of complaining. Again, I'm struck by the fact that I don't really view this as being that serious. Everybody grumbles, it's not that big a deal, right? But God intervenes again in this chapter, and again with a severity that initially makes me feel surprised. The LORD calls them into the tent of meeting, tells them how wrong they are to speak against Moses, and gives Miriam leprosy. God's words really highlight the issue of the sin here: 'With him (Moses) I speak mouth to mouth, clearly, and not in riddles, and he beholds the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?' (8) In opposing Moses, Miriam and Aaron were really opposing God Himself. God had put Moses into his position of authority; for them to question that authority was to question God's wisdom and sovereignty and His anointing on Moses' life. It revealed an ugly pride on their part, that they felt there was nothing particularly special about Moses. 'God can speak through us too,' they claimed. But they weren't really focused on bringing God's words to the people; they were more concerned about status.

I really recommend the Revive our Hearts series of podcasts on Numbers 12 (the series is called 'Remember Miriam'). It contains some very convicting application of this chapter into our lives today. For me, I feel especially conscious that we need to uphold those in ministry over us, not pick holes in their leadership and criticise.

God uses this physical punishment of leprosy to force Miriam to see her need for Moses as a mediator; it's through his prayers for her that she is healed. But God still physically removes her from the camp for a time, and I think this too is a frightening picture of how God will intervene with those who are not obedient and humble before Him. He will remove them! Perhaps from ministry, for a time, or even for the rest of their lives. Rebellion against God's appointed leaders is never going to lead to blessing, and we do well if we guard our tongues to make sure we don't speak out against them too.