Numbers 15:32

Numbers 15:32 says, And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man that gathered sticks upon the sabbath day.  While in the wilderness, the people of Israel found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day, which would have been considered unnecessary work.  Matthew Henry says this was done presumptuously as an affront to both the law and the Lawmaker.  Verse thirty-three adds, And they that found him gathering sticks brought him unto Moses and Aaron, and unto all the congregation.  Those who found the man gathering sticks brought him to Moses and the congregation.  We are told as followers of Christ if we find someone who professes to be a fellow believer openly sinning that we are to bring them before the congregation to give them an opportunity to repent.  Verse thirty-four continues, And they put him in ward, because it was not declared what should be done to him.  They put him in the midst of the congregation because they weren't sure about what was to be done to him.  Matthew Henry says it is unclear whether they didn't know whether or not what the man did was a clear violation of the law of the Sabbath or whether or not they were unclear of his punishment.  We need to know what God's law says, and we also need to acknowledge that the penalty of breaking His law, which is what sin is, is death.  Verse thirty-five states, And the LORD said unto Moses, The man shall be surely put to death: all the congregation shall stone him with stones without the camp.  Verse thirty-six adds, And all the congregation brought him without the camp, and stoned him with stones, and he died; as the LORD commanded Moses.  God told Moses that the man should certainly be put to death, and the congregation stoned him to death.  All sin brings a death penalty, but deliberate, willful sin in the congregation of believers in Christ I believe is especially offensive to God, especially when it carried out for all to see.  Verse thirty-seven says, And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  Verse thirty-eight adds, Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue:  God then told Moses to instruct the people of Israel to put fringes on their garments and put a blue ribbon on the fringes.  This was done to remind them that they were a peculiar people who belonged to God and also so that they would be easily identified by the rest of the world, who would know if they were disobeying God.  They were to do this throughout all the coming generations.  We don't have any particular garment that identifies us as Christians, but our words and actions should.  Verse thirty-nine continues, And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the LORD, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring:  God said this fringe was to be a reminder to the people that they were to remember God's law and not go chasing after the things of this world instead.   We have an even greater reminder, and that is the Holy Spirit living in us.  Verse forty concludes, That ye may remember, and do all my commandments, and be holy unto your God.  This fringe on their garment was to also remind them that they were holy, or set apart, from the rest of the world, and because of that they were to keep God's law.  As Christians, we are holy, set apart from the world, and even though we cannot be saved by God's law, it still applies.   Verse forty-one declares, I am the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the LORD your God.  God said they were to do these things because He was the LORD their God, Who had delivered them out of Egypt.  We must acknowledge God as the lord of our life today as followers of Christ because He has delivered us from the bondage of sin and set us free from its penalty forever.