If you don't
have a One Year Bible or prefer something online, this link will take you to
the day's reading, http://oneyearbibleonline.com/daily-oyb/. This
site allows you to select from several languages and several English
translations.
MARCH 5
Numbers 4-5
Numbers 4
What I find interesting in all of this is the amount of organization
the Lord put into founding the nation. Especially because of His holiness, and
also because He was making a symbolic point regarding approaching Him, God took
great care in putting the worship and logistics of marching and moving and
packing up, etc., into a form that the people could follow.
Often they say in leadership to give people responsibility but not to
prescribe how they have to get the job done. More often than not, people need
direction at the beginning of anything, and slowly they become competent and
independent. God is creating a nation here, so He is giving very specific
detail in very important things.
Take note of what each of the four groups were to do. This will become
more interesting when the Lord gives them their order of marching. If you made
a chart with the tabernacle in the middle and the tribes around it, it will
make sense later.
Vs. 1-20 The sons of Kohath had a great honor and great danger. What is
interesting is that Aaron and his sons went in first and prepared everything in
the Holy Place and packed it and covered it, until it was just goatskins and
poles. Then, when everything was properly concealed, they called the sons of
Kohath. If they touched or even saw any of the furniture of the holy places,
they died. Aaron and his sons had the responsibility to protect them.
Isn't it cool that the Levites could "retire" at 50?
Actually, it didn't mean that those younger or older couldn't help in other
ways, but those people who were 30-50 carried the tabernacle and its parts.
As a very real object lesson, God underscores His holiness by
forbidding the people to even look upon the items in the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place (Holy of
Holies) that represent His presence and His provision to them. In 1 and 2 Samuel
6 (what a coincidence that in both books it's in chapter 6), we'll see what
happens when well-intentioned people disregard God's holiness and commands
regarding the ark of the covenant. All of these restrictions would also look
forward to the time when the veil would be torn, and we, as disciples of our
Lord, could stand before His throne and know His grace.
Vs. 21-28 The sons of Gershon took down all of the hanging skins and
coverings. These were not wool blankets. The panels that made up the tabernacle
and the outer court were all animal skins and probably had some weight to them.
Vs. 29-33 The sons of Merari transported the framework for everything.
Vs. 34-49 Notice that v. 47 specifies that this age grouping was for
bearing burdens. As I read this I'm impressed with the detail and planning God
put into this. We like spontaneity in worship, but God also likes things to be
done decently and in order. Discipline in following Christ has fallen on hard
times too; but I think you could make a symbolic point from how God ordered the
life and worship of Israel, that to follow Christ in the harvest, we do it
better if we have discipline and structure.
Numbers 5
Vs. 1-4 Now we are easing back into laws for governing the nation of
Israel. Since, for the first time, the "camp" has now been defined,
they were to enact the regulations for lepers and those who were unclean. There
was to be some area of housing, "outside the camp," where those who
were defiled could stay. Notice, particularly with the lepers, they didn't send
them away. They had to remain outside the "city limits," but were
still a part of Israel. Remember, this emphasis on uncleanness was symbolic in
the community of Israel for their need to remain ready for the worship and
service of God.
Vs. 5-10 This is a
slant on a law we saw earlier in Leviticus, when a person realized they had
done something wrong and restitution had to be made restoring money or
livestock. This has a very important connection to worship and keeping the
worship of God pure. This is similar in spirit to what Jesus taught His
disciples in Matthew 5:23-24, So if you
are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has
something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be
reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. God is not
excited about worship from those who have hurt others without making up and
making restitution.
In the case of needing to make restitution but the person was dead and
had no family, they still had to make restitution. It would be given to God,
specifically to the priest. No statute of limitations here. This would be used
for the financial provision for the priests.
Vs. 11-31 Well, this is a strange one. The general idea is that if a
man were overcome by the spirit of
jealousy, he was to go to the priest and there would be a supernatural way
of figuring out if his wife had been unfaithful. The entire thing was
spiritually instigated. It seems that God is singling out the adulterous woman
and not the man; but if a woman was caught, the man she committed adultery with
would also be caught. There was a law for dealing with adulterers. This
provision deals with the detection of marital defilement; and it works off the
idea that the man, being the head of the family, would be roused by this
supernatural impulse.
Whatever it was that would happen to the woman was awful and also
visual. It wasn't a "scarlet letter," but instead a life-long
disability that would not look very appealing. It would be a visual warning to
the entire people not to be unfaithful, either to each other, or to God. God
identifies Himself as jealous for Israel. Just as a note, later in Numbers, the
people will be enticed to worship Baal sexually. At the end of Joshua (22:17),
Phinehas mentions that there was still evidence of that sin among the people.
That suggests to me, that God allowed some physical disability to be associated
with that sin to keep it as a warning before the people.
Don't ask me why I think v. 28 is funny. So what if you're an innocent
50-year-old woman. As a result of your husband's jealousy and this ritual,
you're going to be rewarded! And get pregnant!
I'm not sure what your impressions and observations will be, but I'll
make a couple of general ones.
First, note the large amount of text and attention given to this. It
must have been important.
Second, to take it to the priest, once they were in the land, meant a
"road trip." So this was a serious thing and this was the only valid
way to work through this sort of a problem. The man had to do the right thing
and take her to the tabernacle to the priest.
Along with this issue, the people were to take all severe matters to
the priest, because he carried the Urim and Thummim as a way of finding the
will of God.
Third, inherent in this entire law, was the symbol of God being the
husband and Israel being His wife. What is clear in this law is that any
unfaithfulness will be found out and punishment will follow. When God says that
He is a jealous God, it brings the symbol of marriage to mind.
As disciples it is easy to slip and pursue all sorts of things besides
our Lord and His will in the harvest. God understands; but staying close to
Christ, in His Word, in the company of other disciples, helps us to stay
focused and faithful to the One who loves us and commissions us to share His
love.
Mark 12:18-37
Vs. 18-27 We know this story. The Sadducees didn't believe in the
resurrection and were trying to get Jesus to give some answer they could
ridicule. Oddly enough, most of the priests were Sadducees. Apparently this
question had worked well with the scribes and Pharisees, making them look
foolish in the eyes of the public. This was a question like, "how many
angels can stand on the head of a pin?" To even answer this question made
you look silly.
V. 25 So Jesus gave them new information that showed their lack of
understanding of the Scripture and of the spiritual life after death. All of
this made perfect sense, and in the sight of the people the Sadducees were
reeling from this unexpected insight and answer.
Vs. 26-27 Here was the knock-out. Not only didn't they know the power
of God; but again, in a very simple and obvious text, they showed that they
didn't know the Scriptures. The interesting thing with this illustration is
that the Sadducees argued about the interpretation of the law. The story Jesus
used was about Moses, but it was about him before the law was given and it
taught theology. The Sadducees weren't expecting this passage of Scripture or
what it taught.
What stands out to me is that they knew
neither the Scriptures nor the power of God. How many Christians is this
true of? When Jesus said they didn't know the Scriptures, He wasn't saying they
didn't know any of it, but they didn't have the relationship with God that made
sense of it all and that makes the Word alive and unified. So many Christians
don't know enough of the Bible to get beneath the surface and find the living
pulse of God, much less be led by the Spirit through the day. Many others know
the verses, but there is no love of Christ that makes the Word a light for
their lives and to a lost world.
So where do we need to see the power of God? If it is not in the
harvest, seeing the lost saved and becoming fully devoted followers of Christ,
I'm afraid all we're looking for is a carnival show or a "feel good"
experience, like the people mentioned in Matthew 7:21-29.
Vs. 28-34 Although Luke (Luke 20:39) alludes to this scribe, Mark gives
us "the rest of the story." It shows that there were some men of
spiritual understanding who had open hearts. This scribe was moved by the
wisdom and understanding of Jesus' answer. Although the scribes were mostly
Pharisees, this man's interest went beyond the political, and he was truly
spiritually motivated.
Vs. 29-31 Jesus is putting Deuteronomy 6:4-5 together with Leviticus
19:18. The two commandments are really a summary of the Ten Commandments. The
first four have to do with God and the last six with our neighbor. Paul uses
this teaching in Romans, saying that love
your neighbor fulfills the law.
V. 34 The sincerity and truth of this encounter stopped the conflict.
The opponents of Jesus were humiliated, and when they saw that Jesus actually
complimented the scribe, they had nothing more to say.
Vs. 35-37 Generally, the common people understood that the title, the son of David, referred to the
Messiah. The leaders seem to have reduced this understanding to the Messiah
being "only" the son of David. They apparently felt that David was
superior to the Messiah.
Notice again how Jesus shows in a very clear insightful passage of
Scripture that the Messiah was God and superior to all, and that the leaders
didn't understand the Scripture at all. Notice too that the people rejoiced in
this clear teaching.
As we follow the Lord in the harvest, teaching His Word, we need to
follow His example. We need to know the Scriptures so well that we can simply
and clearly show people the power of God and the truth of His Word.
Psalm 48
(Another of the psalms of the sons of Korah)
None of us likes hard times. I really, really don't like them. But
think of this. If it is true that they wrote in and around the dangerous and
stressful times of the Assyrian threat to Jerusalem under Hezekiah, look at the
praise that came out of that dark time. Even the psalms of David reflect the
joy and wonder of being delivered by God from threat, danger and death.
You can understand that this kind of great deliverance not only was an
amazing thing to Jerusalem, but if the Assyrian army just lost 185,000 men,
especially during a time they were making a play to become the world empire of
the day, all other nations would not only notice, but they would be afraid to
approach Jerusalem, even for a visit. Israel was in the news all over that
world. When the ambassadors from Babylon visited Hezekiah after his illness in
2 Kings 20, I'm sure they approached Jerusalem with awe. You can sense some of
this awe of the nations in this psalm.
Imagine what God will produce in us if we are in the harvest with
Christ, battling for the souls of the lost, ourselves in danger, following in
faith, relying on God, living to bring Him glory by bearing much fruit and so
proving to be disciples of our Lord.
Vs. 1-3 Since the ridicule of the Assyrians was brought to the gates of
Jerusalem, Zion is being exalted as the throne of God and the city of God.
Vs. 4-8 In the city of the Lord
of Hosts, all remained calm; but the kings who came against Israel were all
humbled.
Vs. 9-11 God's steadfast love
was promised to Abraham, that through Israel all the nations of the world would
look toward Israel to be blessed.
Proverbs 10:26
And let them also be tested first;
then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless. (1 Tim. 3:10) The words in 1 Timothy make a
good application to this proverb.
Please Read
the Following Disclaimer
I'm writing the Reading Notes to and
for those who are following a One Year Bible and are interested in growing
deeper as a disciple, following Jesus in the harvest. My hope is to see the
growth of a discipleship culture in the church, that is, groups of 3-4
disciples, meeting weekly, encouraging each other to follow Christ and work to
reach out and make disciples, who make disciples. The Bible itself is the most
universal and important discipleship manual we have and it is the key to our
growth and service in Christ. Nothing keeps us more focused on why we are here,
or what we are to be doing, or whom we are to be following. My comments are
only meant to provide some explanation of the events or to show the flow of
God's plan of redemption. My comments are in no way exhaustive, but are
designed to keep us, as disciples, focused on Christ and our role in His
harvest. My hope is that the people in these groups will grow in Christ and be
willing, after a year, to find 3 others to meet with and encourage in their
growth as disciples, making disciples in the harvest.
If you would like a more descriptive
commentary that is still readable and concise, I'd recommend the Bible Knowledge Commentary (BKC).
I read the BKC in doing background for the Reading Notes and refer to it quite
often. I also make reference to maps or charts in the BKC, though I will only
note where those resources can be found. Often you can do a search for these
and find them in Google books. Buying both volumes of the Bible Knowledge
Commentary would be a good idea.
I am not endorsing any particular
One Year Bible translation; in fact, I read something you probably don't, Die
Revidierte Lutherbibel, 1984. Unless noted, all Scripture quotes are from the
ESV Bible.
Anyone reading along with us is
welcome to do so and is encouraged to take their own notes and make their own
observations. If the comments made do not agree with your particular tradition
or understanding, that's OK. Nothing I've written is meant to criticize any
point of view, but only to express the truth of what God has written to us, as
I understand it. Often there is a breadth of opinion on certain events, both
historical and prophetic. Many of my views come from my church background,
theological training and my personal study.
I'm
doing this with discipleship in mind, meaning, I'm writing out thoughts that
will keep discipleship and our growth as disciples applied to what we are
reading. Remember, the real focus of the Reading Notes is to be a
supplement, a disciple’s commentary, giving motivation and insight so that we
will keep following our Lord in the harvest, reaching the lost and making
disciples, who make disciples. Being in
the Word every day, sitting at Jesus’ feet, learning directly from Him, is the
essential essence of being and making disciples.
May the Lord bless you as you follow Him in the
harvest, reaching the lost and making disciples, who make disciples. Dan
If you would like documents
containing an entire month of the Reading Notes, go to https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes.
If you would like a full
presentation of discipleship read Simply
Disciples*Making Disciples.
Or if you are struggling with
insomnia and would like a long boring dissertation on disciple making, these
can both be found on https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes.
Reading Notes ©, Dan Kachikis
2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018
The One Year Bible © by
Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton Illinois 60189
The Holy Bible, English
Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of
Good News Publishers.
All charts/graphics/outlines
from the Bible Knowledge Commentary are used with the permission of David C.
Cook.
© 1983, 2001 John F Walvoord and Roy B Zuck.
The Bible Knowledge Commentary is published by David C Cook.
All rights reserved. Publisher permission
required to reproduce.
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