The Notes are Good

24.2 Moses 24, Day 2

The Madness of Balaam

What does it mean for one to have “madness”. In our modern, clinical world, we tend to equate madness with illness, something that is a disease or affliction that someone has through no control of their own. We consider an insanity as a just reason for someone to not be held accountable for their actions.

But is there a different definition of madness? One that isn’t inflicted upon, but chosen by the individual. Someone who is presented with full knowledge of repercussions, but chooses the foolish path. It would be considered madness for a parent to allow a young child to play in an area scattered with broken glass. In this case we would consider that an act of insanity, but not one that would receive any sympathy or relief of accountability.

It can almost be thought of as dual minded. On one hand, you are consciously aware of the right thing to do, and yet, you purposefully choose to do the wrong thing.

I bring this up because in 2 Peter 2:16 we read, “But he was rebuked for his wrongdoing by a donkey–an animal without speech–who spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness”.

I see this dual mindedness in Balaam. In one mind, he hears God’s voice. He knows to obey. No amount of money can change his pledge of obedience. In another mind, he chooses to commune with evil spirits, to practice divination and sorcery, to go for monetary gain to disobey God and speak against the Israelites. In his other mind, he can witness and angel and bow down in repentance and obedience.

Again, I am not presenting mental illness as an excuse for Balaam, but I do believe his actions (and God’s actions) speak to someone who was mad. Balaam clearly heard the explicit command of the voice of God. The one he (Balaam the obedient) had chosen to listen to and obey. And the very next morning he (Balaam the idolator) was who got up and saddled his donkey.

We see the wickedness in his outburst of anger. We see his separation from obedience to God in his blindness to the Angel of the Lord. It does not say God prevented him from seeing, it only says that God later opens his eyes after allowing the donkey to chastise him. It is clear that this is not the same minded Balaam who obeys God in 7 oracles of blessing (tomorrow’s lesson).

I don’t think God was angry with Balaam for asking repeatedly. Paul asked repeatedly to be allowed to witness to the Jews, and that door was repeatedly closed. God was not angry for Paul’s persistent prayer. I don’t think God was angry with Balaam for not waiting for the officials to come back to him to get him to leave as many commentators have stated. I understand scripturally how they make their argument based on the wording of what God says in Numbers 22: 20 “if” (the Hebrew word ‘im: Strongs H518 = if). But the English translation of that word depends entirely on the tense of the sentence: If the men come to you vs. if these men have come to you (i.e., since these men came to you). Since sentence tense is completely different between Hebrew and English this is why we see differences between bible versions from the KJV to NIV. I’m just not on the page that God was angry because he didn’t wait.

I think it is not only that he went, but what mind he was in when he left. The Balaam that left that morning wasn’t one bent on serving God, it was one seeking profit, power and prestige. It was one who knew what was right, but still had full intent, as he had done repeatedly in the past, to practice sorcery and divinition. God was angry because he (that Balaam) was who was seated on the donkey that day.

I also see this as different than falling into sin as we all as Christians often do. Balaam’s sin was not the result of temptation, it was the purposeful and direct choice to willfully not only reject God’s direct commandment, to reject God and attempt to put Him on the same level as demons and fiction. It is like going in to a test in school knowing all the right answers but purposefully choosing to select the wrong answers. This is a clearly spiteful act and contrasts decidedly from someone performing in error.

The amazing part to me wasn’t God’s anger or even the talking donkey, but the fact that God is so filled with love for His creation that he allows the level of choice that Balaam was executing. To hear the voice of God and purposefully choose to willfully reject Him and commune with the lowest minions of the devil. To sell your services of wickedness and curses. It must break God’s heart to see the depths to which his creation can fall, and, yet, He gave even Balaam, and even a donkey, a voice to speak His truth. We also see His love of Israel. That regardless of the wicked plots of earthly kings, no curse would befall them.

What an amazing God.

My Answers:

3.
a.
King of a terrified people, filled with dread, took action to call on Balaam

b.
buy a curse on the Israelites, then fight them and hopefully defeat them and drive them out of the land

c.
moved, met with, gave passage to, sought to know the God of Israel, invite Moses, repent

d.
fight, conspire against, use power of others such as the courts, try to undermine. Some use diplomacy. Money to buy power or influence

4.
a.
No – Despite knowing the truth he chose to live a life attempting to put God and demons, the divine and divination on the same level.

b.
Do not add to or subtract from God’s word. God’s word can be heard by both believers and non-believers. God is interested in the heart. God can say no to a believer in love and yes to a non-believer to bring both into a state of heart obedience

c.
Taking greater caution to hear all of God’s message, not to add to or subtract from it as Balaam did to suit his own purposes. To put my belief in God, not just have a belief of God

23.5 Moses 23, Day 5

Defeating the Giants

After a great deal of traveling about, the Hebrews come to land occupied by the Amorites. This was land the Amorites had taken from the Moabites in battle. In fact, these Kings of the Amorites were conquering kings.

Unlike the King of Moab who rallied his troops in a defensive position to protect their land from their fear of trespassing Jews, Sihon brought out his army to attack – to vainly oppose both the people of God and God Himself.

Like all who take this position – he was defeated.

Next the Israelites turned toward Bashan. Now, it is important to note, that there was no way around. For God to bring them across the Jordan river into the Promised Land, they would have to travel this country. And, like Sihon, Og king of Bashan marched out to meet them.

A little background on Og. The name Og means giant. Deuteronomy 3:11 says, “Og king of Bashan was the last of the Rephaites. His bed was decorated with iron and was more than nine cubits long and four cubits wide. It is still in Rabbah of the Ammonites”. That would place his height somewhere between 9 and 12 feet tall. The Jews were now facing an army led by the giants they feared so much that it had kept them out of the promised land.

Moses turns to God and God tells him to not be afraid because, “I have delivered him into your hands.” Notice that He does not say I might deliver him, or even I will deliver him, but that I have delivered it – past tense – done deal. Og lost the battle before it had ever begun because the faithful Hebrews turned first to God and not to fear.

As a result, for the first time since leaving Egypt, the Jews took possession of land. They were no longer grasshoppers – they were giant slayers.

What giants are still in your life? What do you still fear? Are you running away from fears or running to God?

My Answers:

9.
a.
The Edomites were in land given to them. The Amorites were in land they took from others. Both denied them passage, both came out to meet them, but in the second case they were not restrained by God and instead they had God’s strength upon them

b.
Built them as a fighting unit, battle experience, success, confidence, training of military leaders, and it gave them a place to rest and dwell instead of constantly moving about in the wilderness

c.
Helping share the gospel at work and at home. Helping support families in raising Godly children. Working with kids to share God’s love for them.

10.
a.
Both were bullies, conquerers. They lived by the sword – they had no issue fighting this rag-tag group of nomads who retreated from Edom. They had full confidence in their armies and cities.

b.
There are still bullies, those in a position of strength who use it to bully and subdue and conquer others, burning churches, persecuting children

11.
a.
Do not be afraid of him, for I have delivered him into your hands (past tense), along with his whole army and his land.

b.
on my knees, relying on His strength.

23.4 Moses 23, Day 4

Un-Complicated

One of the stumbling blocks of Christianity is that it is too simple – it is not complicated enough. You would think this would be a good thing, but it really can trip people up.

To live after being bitten by a venomous snake the Jews had to look at the snake on the stick. That was it. Period.

But put yourself in their shoes. Isn’t that too easy? Wouldn’t you feel better about it is it had more requirements or it was harder? You know, maybe if at certain times of the day you had to face in a certain direction and say certain words. Now that would be better, right? Or if there was certain penance you had to live out to make up for your wrongs of the past? Or maybe a requirement that you pay a certain price, a real cost, either monetarily or physically – nothing brings feeling better about being healed than a good case of suffering, right?

But that is not God’s plan. He turns to us and says, I love you, I want you, come to Me, turn to Me, cast your eyes on My son and I will give you life.

How are you making it more complicated so you feel better? Are you “doing things for God” out of obligation, trying to add to Christ’s saving grace with your good deeds?

God wants your obedience, but only the obedience of a loving and grateful heart. God wants you to give things over to Him, but only through adoration and praise. If you are doing it for yourself, then it isn’t for God. Don’t make it harder than it is, just turn and believe and live.

My Answers:

7.
a.
Make a snake and put it on a pole, anyone who is bitten can look at it and live

b.
Graven image – crafting an image, especially one of a snake/serpent, 2 Kings 18:4 Hezekiah destroys it because people are worshiping it

8.
a.
The Son of Man must be lifted up like the way that Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness so that all who believe can have eternal life. The image of the snake on a pole was a foreshadowing of the sin of the world being laid upon Christ’s body on the cross as He was lifted up to die for us.

b.
Solid and growing – I hope someday to have a faith as un-bending as that I see demonstrated in the children I teach.

23.3 Moses 23, Day 3

Snake on a Stick

From Mount Hor to the Red Sea the detouring Israelites grew impatient. When they grew impatient they grumbled, speaking against God and Moses.

The free food that God was providing for them daily, which nourished them without their need to till the soul was “detestable, miserable food.”

It would be like approaching a parent and saying, “all you give me is love and shelter and feed and clothe me and provide for my every need. It is horrible.”

As a loving parent, you would like to set the reset button if your child did that and give them a glimpse of what horrible is actually like, while still showing your love for them. I think they call that “tough love.”

That’s what God delivers, in the form of venomous snakes.

And the people respond correctly. They confess that they sinned and they repent. They ask Moses to pray that the Lord will take away the snakes.

God, does one better, He gives them a lesson about salvation. He has Moses form the image of a snake on his staff and put it on a pole. When anyone is bitten they need only look at the bronze snake and they lived.

Let’s break this last part down because it can be a little bit confusing. If this is meant to be a foreshadowing of Christ raised up on the cross, why is it a snake? Why did looking on it heal them? Isn’t this the creation of a graven image?

It is a lesson about Christ. He would be raised up on the cross. But Jesus is not the snake. Snakes have normally been used to represent Satan and wickedness. But when Jesus was raised up on the cross and the sacrificial lamb he laid down his life and, through grace, descended fully from His kingdom to be a Son of Man. When Jesus the man was raised up on the stake He carried with him all the sin of the world, dating back to the first sin in the garden and including all sin of all mankind of all time.

There was nothing the Hebrews did to heal themselves. No special words or practices. No medicine or magic. One simple thing – they had to turn to this gift from God. To do so was a profession of faith, simply because it doesn’t make sense. Looking at something with your eyes can’t physically cure a snake bite with poisonous venom streaming through your blood. But turning your eyes and heart to Jesus is the only way to have life, real life, ever lasting life.

But what about it being a graven image. I’m sure this was a concern. But God allowed and instructed Moses to use it as a teaching and healing tool with the Israelites. The crosses we hang in our homes and churches and around our necks are a reminder, a teaching tool about the gift of salvation of our Lord Jesus. They are not to be worshipped. We learn in 2 Kings 18:4 that King Hezekiah was forced to destroy this bronze snake because the people had begun to worship it, burning incense to it.

I think it is amazing that this same snake is today the symbol of medicine. The American Medical Association logo includes the snake on a stick as a symbol of healing.

My Answers:

4.
They did not have a fight with Edom nor were they to take any of their land

5.
a.
They were impatient, downtrodden, making themselves miserable

b.
God

c.
Venomous snakes were sent among them – bit and many people died

6.
a.
They confessed their sin and repented – asked Moses to pray for them to God

b.
Confess our sins, God is faithful and just and He’ll forgive our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness

23.2 Moses 23, Day 2

No man left behind

This wandering group of Israelites, time and again, has proven unfaithful. They grumble. They disobey. They grumble some more. They’ve risen up against God’s appointed leaders. They continuously choose the wrong path, but God does not remove the correct path from them.

But I’m getting ahead. First, the Hebrews continue to wander the in the wilderness. Along the way they head toward the “road to Atharim” and encounter a King of Canaan who is living in the Negev.

As the people have been traveling through the Negev we continue to think of it as a desert, a wilderness, an area largely uninhabited where they occasionally find themselves missing access to drinking water. But at the very southern tip of the Negev is an area including modern day Eilat. Eilat is a resort city with a population of 20,000 people. It is dry, arid land along side a beautiful calm sea. While it rains less than 6 days of the year, there historically have been plentiful fresh water springs and the area was on a major trade route called the King’s Highway.

The Jews are not looking for a fight. They have no history of battle since leaving Egypt. But Arad makes a pre-emptive strike. It is apparent he seeks more to demoralize the Hebrews rather than expend the resources to defeat them, sending a message repeated by bullies everywhere: I am bigger than you are and I can punch you and take what I want from you at any time and you are weak and powerless to do anything about it.

But the Israelites did something that would surprise everyone. When their loved ones were captured, they didn’t focus on themselves, they focused on those they had lost and turned to God for help. God did not block them – He welcomed them onto the correct path. They promised to consecrate the people, the cities and the land to Him, and He gave them victory.

The victory wasn’t for the Israelites, it was for God. The Israelites did not occupy this area at this time, they continued to move on. They honored their brothers and sisters by honoring God and God reunited them.

Which of your brothers and sisters have been captured by the enemy? Which of your neighbors? Are you calling on God for victory to win them over from the enemy or have you given up on them?

It is a code of honor in many military commands that no soldier is left behind. Every effort is made to bring them back to reunite with their family.

God is our creator and all of us are His family. Who are you “leaving behind”? It is not by your strength they will be won, but by God’s strength. It is not your history of deeds (either good or evil), but your choice right now that makes a difference to God. Confess, Repent and turn yourself and them over to God’s saving power.

Also – Wouldn’t Hormah be a killer name for a Christian Rock Band?

My Answers:

3.
a.
Grumble. Turn to despair and fear and their victim mentality

b.
1. He listened, 2. He gave the Canaanites over to them (they completely destroyed both them and their towns – Hormah = Destruction (great name for a rock band!)

c.
concerns over major purchases and health issues, business issues, competition, growth, right partners

22.5 Moses 22, Day 5

Contentment

I loved the study of Psalm 90 today. For the first 11 verses Moses raises up attribute after attribute of the Lord. His majesty and might. His eternity and authority. One after another.

Then, starting in verse 12, Moses turns to supplication, petitions, requests:

Teach us to number our days – how long will it be?
Have compassion on your servants
Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love
Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us
May your deeds be shown to your servants
May the favor of the Lord rest on us
Establish the work of our hands
Establish the work of our hands

We have a limited amount of time on this planet. Looking through the rear-view mirror of life, we see how we should have been thankful for every day. Each hour and each day is a precious gift from God to be used for His glory. We have no issue in finding the joy in the easy days, but we need help to be glad in the days of trouble and affliction. Yet, it is only through these days that we grow. To reach a new mountain-top we must pass through valleys.

But how do we achieve that perspective? How do we find joy in the days of trouble and affliction? (1) By God having compassion on His servants and (2) By God showing His deeds to His servants (3) Through the favor of the Lord.

When we face times of trouble and challenge, especially the death of loved ones, we tend to become more introspective. We look backward, not only at the lives of those we love, but also at our own life. There is nothing wrong with this, but it needs to be temporary. We are not placed on this earth to go through it contemplating ourselves or looking backwards. The journey of life lies ahead of us, not behind us. We are here for a reason, for a purpose: We are here to do God’s work. When God’s favor is upon us He also gives us work to do.

When most of us are feeling sad, mournful or hurting we tend to pray to God to simply take the trouble away. We ask Him to remove the sadness and replace it with joy, to heal us. But should we ask for more? Instead of simply removing the sadness and leaving us where we are, should we ask for God to instead move us forward? Should we ask for Gods favor? Should we ask for work?

The easiest way to get out of a rut is not to contemplate the rut, it is far more effective to get a little push in the right direction.

My Answers:

12.
a.
Death of the remainder of his family
b.
God as creator and Lord, God’s authority over life and death, his eternity vs. our mortality, his power, his wisdom

c.
appropriate perspective. These are truths. It makes me appreciate and put my life into perspective and to wisely live the days of my life

d.
For God to establish the work of our hands (repeated). This is not just cerebral or spiritual. It is not mournful or depressing. We are to get active and work, work from God.

22.4 Moses 22, Day 4

Separated From / Gathered To

We look at death from the perspective of the living. We think of the person who died as being departed. We mourn the separation we feel from the person.

But in the lesson today we seem some very interesting and heart-warming language. When it came time for Aaron to die, the language God used in vs 26 was “Aaron will be gathered to his people.”

The illustration that comes to mind is that of a container of play-dough. One way of looking at it is this: When the play-dough is taken out of the container we can focus on the separation. What it was is not the same anymore. The shell of the container is there, but the contents have been removed. But, our focus shouldn’t be on the play-dough container, it should be on the play-doh itself. It is removed to transform it into something new. To join it together with other dough to create something bigger, better, more beautiful. Is our focus on the separated from or on the joined to?

Because of sin, under the law, Aaron and Moses were not allowed to enter the promised land. But, through Christ there is grace. It is not that the law was overturned, instead it was fulfilled. Christ lived the life of perfection that we (including Moses and Aaron) could not. When Jesus died it was not for His own sin, but for ours.

Jesus Christ was and is eternal. He was present at creation in Genesis 1 and He is present in the last verses in Revelation. While He had not yet taken the form of a baby in the manger, Jesus was part of the Trinity during Moses’ time as much as during ours.

The only way Aaron could be “gathered to his people” is if his people continued somewhere that exists after death. The only way Aaron, or any other sinner, could be deemed worthy of entrance is by the grace and redemption of Jesus Christ.

By grace we are saved through faith. Are you a person with a soul or a soul in a person? Is your focus on the container or the spirit inside?

My Answers:

9.
a.
It was land given to Esau. God did not tell them to fight them, it was not their promised land and none of it would be given to them. They were weakened in numbers from the plague and weakened in spirit. It would have been an offensive act, not a defensive response

b.
stayed in Kadesh then skirted the area by travelling through the wilderness

c.
Is it for my honor or for God’s? Is it for my glory and comfort of for God’s glory.? Am I being offensive or defensive? Is there another path? Is God directing me in a certain direction?

10.
He allowed him to see and participate in the legacy of passing the high priesthood to his son. He was celebrated by the people

11.
a.
There had to be a documented succession to the priesthood and, in particular, the position of the high priest. It was not open for debate or discussion but selected by God. The order of the priesthood did not change so the law and statutes and ordinances did not change, either

b.
Jesus claim to the priesthood was His divinity not as a descendant of Aaron

22.3 Moses 22, Day 3

Law vs. Grace / Trust in the Word

Moses’ times were marked by “The Law.” In particular, we see in our lesson today the challenge of the law. Moses was a humble and faithful servant. At this point in the scriptures he is probably well over 100 years old. He has not been perfect, but he has been faithful in his God-appointed task of bringing the Israelites up out of Egypt and into the promised land. But, he will now not be going into the promised land himself. There is no gray-area in “the law”, there is either obedience or disobedience, adherence or rejection. Moses disobeyed. He did not honor God as holy. Under the law, he was inadequate. In tomorrow’s lesson, though, we also see God’s grace.

How often in my own life do I put my trust in something tangible over the sufficiency of the Word of God? I can feel more comfortable and more secure with something I can touch or hold. I’m often shaped more by the words of Theodore Roosevelt to “speak softly and carry a big stick”, putting my faith more in the stick than the speech. But the scriptures teach the opposite. By far, the Word of God is more powerful than any stick. “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” – Heb 4:12

God, please give me the ears to hear the power of your word and the voice to speak it boldly!

My Answers:

6.
a.
Take the staff, speak to the rock in front of them and it will pour out its water

b.
took the staff, gathered the people, spoke to the people (chastising them – taking credit “must we”), struck the rock twice with his staff

7.
a.
took credit, disobeyed, put trust in the staff instead of in God – they wanted something physical, not just verbal

b.
physical connection with the rock instead of verbal – taking credit

c.
when I live in doubt and worry about a situation

8.
a.
“you will not bring this community into the land I give them”

b.
1. of anyone, they knew better, 2. They each had interceded repeatedly, the fact that neither objected or interceded shows they did not see it as unmerited, 3. They already knew they weren’t going in (God had already said only Joshua and Caleb – Ex 14:30)

22.2 Moses 22, Day 2

Slave Mentality

Before getting into the heart of today’s lesson, we have one verse noting Miriam’s death. This past week I had the opportunity to attend a presentation by an evangelical group with a mission to help women in the middle east. In many parts of the world, the middle east in particular, women are extremely dis-empowered. They have absolutely no say in the conflicts, no voice and no vote. They normally are not the ones standing up and shouting or raising firearms. Yet, they face all the consequences and hardships. While little was said about Miriam’s final days, months or years, we know that she died in the wilderness not in the promised land. She was not one of the spies. She was not a shouting voice. Yet, the consequences of their actions also affected her. We need to diligently be mindful of and pray for those in similar situations. We need to be mindful and prayerful in all of our decisions to recognize the decisions affect not only me but also those around me. We speak for our households in our actions – we need to speak correctly, as Joshua will say, “As for me and my house, we serve the Lord.”

In the core of our lesson today I saw again the “slave mentality” of the Hebrew people. They saw themselves as victims, as slaves. There were no armies forcing them to remain. There were no palace guards. They were free. There were huge benefits of staying together, but, it was choice not force that bound them. Yet, they took no responsibility. Starting in vs. 4: you brought us into this wilderness, you brought us up out of Egypt, you brought us to this terrible place. You, you, you.

This wasn’t Moses’ or God’s choice. They were being provided with daily manna, that tasted like a sweet coriander, but they complained about the lack of grain and figs in the land. They were shown bunches of grapes so massive it took 2 men to carry, but they complained about the lack of grapevines and pomegranates. They were brought to a land of milk and honey, the promised land, but rejected it. But, in their mind, it wasn’t their fault.

It almost seems that Moses could take the Hebrew out of slavery but he couldn’t take the slavery out of the Hebrew.

How are you viewing your life with a victim or slave mentality? What are you blaming on other people or circumstances? Are you living as a victim or victor?

My Answers:

3.
The lack of detail. She did not get a say in the entry into the promised land, none of the women did, yet, she suffered the consequences.

4.
a.
How little things change. God is providing daily food and again and again they fall into the same patterns

b.
I think they were mostly being dramatic. No one was forcing them to continue together. If they wished to separate from the community, it was their prerogative

5.
He did not demonstrate anger against them, as if resolved that they were a path to the next generation

21.5 Moses 21, Day 5

God is a God of Life

The people had rebelled. The people would continue to rebel. Sin would go on and on and on. Rejection of God would continue. Offenses connected with the sanctuary and priesthood were going to continue.

There was no delusion that any of this was in the past. But God also wanted to clearly communicate to His people. But how? He could have continued plagues. He could have continued labor, signs, slavery, punishment.

But, instead, He chose life. He had each tribe submit a staff, a rod, a dead piece of wood used as a walking stick. Names were written on them, they were not manipulated, no hocus pocus. Simply placed together in the same room at the same time.

But Aaron’s staff came to life. One night it lay dead, then, overnight not only did it grow and bud, but it actually blossomed and produced fruit, nuts, almonds.

How beautiful this must have been and how fitting. The same almond blossoms that the Lord had them use as the shape for the candlesticks in the tabernacle now sprout from the rod of the high priest. The vessel to hold the light to come.

My Answers:

10.
a.
Sponsored an event: budded his rod and caused almonds to grow from it

b.
Jesus is the great high priest on the order of Aaron and Melchizedek

11.
a.
offenses connected w/ sanctuary & priesthood, the care of sanctuary & altar, only serve as priests at altar and inside curtain

b.
From the offerings and tithes

c.
It was temporary, ceremonial – didn’t actually get them clean. Also: That they had a red heifer without defect never under a yoke, that they had cedar wood, hyssop and scarlet wool, ashes used for ceremonial cleansing with water for purification from sin