Numbers 19:1

Numbers 19:1 says, And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,  Verse two adds, This is the ordinance of the law which the LORD hath commanded, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring thee a red heifer without spot, wherein is no blemish, and upon which never came yoke:  God spoke to Moses and Aaron, with a message for the people of Israel concerning a sacrifice they were to bring.  They were to bring a red heifer with no spot or blemish that had never had a yoke on it.  Jesus Christ is our everlasting sacrifice, and He was without any spiritual spot or blemish and never had the yoke of sin on Him.  Verse three continues, And ye shall give her unto Eleazar the priest, that he may bring her forth without the camp, and one shall slay her before his face:  Moses and Aaron were to then give the red heifer to Eleazar the priest.  He was to take her out of the camp, not to the altar, and slay her.  Matthew Henry says this speaks of the inefficiency of the Law of God to take away sin.  We know that Jesus was sacriced away from the temple, the center of carrying out God's law, when He died on the cross at calvary.  Verse four states, And Eleazar the priest shall take of her blood with his finger, and sprinkle of her blood directly before the tabernacle of the congregation seven times:   Eleazar was then to take the blood of the heifer on his finger and sprinkle it before the tabernacle seven times.  This was done to sanctify the tabernacle, as Jesus shedding His blood on the cross would later sanctify all who put their faith in Him.  Verse five adds, And one shall burn the heifer in his sight; her skin, and her flesh, and her blood, with her dung, shall he burn:  The heifer was then to be completely burned, just as Jesus offered Him completely on the cross to pay for our sins.  Verse six continues, And the priest shall take cedar wood, and hyssop, and scarlet, and cast it into the midst of the burning of the heifer.  Eleazar was then to throw cedar, hyssop and scarlet to the fire.  These were used in the cleaning of lepers, who were ceremonial unclean and barred from worshipping with the other people.  Jesus cleanses us from our spiritual uncleanliness by His sacrifice on the cross.  Verse seven says, Then the priest shall wash his clothes, and he shall bathe his flesh in water, and afterward he shall come into the camp, and the priest shall be unclean until the even.  The priest was to then wash his clothes and bathe himself in the water made from the ashes of the sacrifice of the heifer, come into the camp, where he would be unclean until the evening.  He was made unclean by participating in the offering of this sacrifice, just as we are made unclean by participating spiritually in the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.  Verse eight adds,  And he that burneth her shall wash his clothes in water, and bathe his flesh in water, and shall be unclean until the even.  The one who burned the heifer was also to be unclean until the evening.  All who made the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross necessary are spiritually unclean until they accept Him as their Savior and Lord.  Verse nine states,  And a man that is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer, and lay them up without the camp in a clean place, and it shall be kept for the congregation of the children of Israel for a water of separation: it is a purification for sin.  The ashes were then to be laid outside the camp in a clean place by a priest that was clean.  The sacrifice of this one heifer was enough to purify all the people of Israel, just as Jesus sacrifice is enough to purify all people for all time.  Verse ten adds, And he that gathereth the ashes of the heifer shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: and it shall be unto the children of Israel, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among them, for a statute for ever.  After gathering the ashes, the one who gathered them would be considered unclean until the evening, to both the people of Israel and the strangers there with them.  Jesus death on the cross purifies all who put their faith in Him.  We must be washed in the blood of Jesus Christ to be saved.

Numbers 18:25

Numbers 18:25 says, And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  Verse twenty-six adds, Thus speak unto the Levites, and say unto them, When ye take of the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them for your inheritance, then ye shall offer up an heave offering of it for the LORD, even a tenth part of the tithe.  Even though the Levites were to have the tithe of the rest of the people of Israel to use as their inheritance from God, He still expected them to offer a tithe of it to Him. We cannot exempt ourselves from obeying God's laws because we are serving Him and living by His provision for us.  Verse twenty-seven continues, And this your heave offering shall be reckoned unto you, as though it were the corn of the threshingfloor, and as the fulness of the winepress.  Verse twenty-eight concludes, Thus ye also shall offer an heave offering unto the LORD of all your tithes, which ye receive of the children of Israel; and ye shall give thereof the LORD’s heave offering to Aaron the priest.  The tithe given to Aaron the priest would be counted the same as an offering of grain or wine for the Levites, since they did not grow things themselves.  I believe God still expects us to tithe on all that we have.  Verse twenty-nine states, Out of all your gifts ye shall offer every heave offering of the LORD, of all the best thereof, even the hallowed part thereof out of it.  The Levites were to offer the best to the LORD, which Matthew Henry says was likely used to maintain the high priest, since there is no mention of any other way of providing for him.  Verse thirty adds, Therefore thou shalt say unto them, When ye have heaved the best thereof from it, then it shall be counted unto the Levites as the increase of the threshingfloor, and as the increase of the winepress.  Verse thirty-one continues, And ye shall eat it in every place, ye and your households: for it is your reward for your service in the tabernacle of the congregation.  After the Levites offered their tithe to the LORD,  they could freely eat of the rest of the offerings, even though they had been offered to God.  I believe that God still expects us to use His tithes and offerings to support His work.  Those in full time ministry should pay their tithes and offerings to God, but they should also have their needs abundantly met by the congregation.  Verse thirty-two concludes, And ye shall bear no sin by reason of it, when ye have heaved from it the best of it: neither shall ye pollute the holy things of the children of Israel, lest ye die.  If the Levites obeyed God's commands concerning the use of the tithes and offerings, they would bear no guilt in using them.  As followers of Christ today, we must use the things that God blesses us with in accordance with His will and for His honor and glory. 

Numbers 18:20

Numbers 18:20 says, And the LORD spake unto Aaron, Thou shalt have no inheritance in their land, neither shalt thou have any part among them: I am thy part and thine inheritance among the children of Israel.  The Levites were to have no inheritance among the people of Israel, because God was their inheritance.  As Christians, we really have no inheritance in this world, because we belong to God, and He will one day call us home to heaven, leaving everything in this world behind.  Verse twenty-one adds, And, behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they serve, even the service of the tabernacle of the congregation.  The Levites were given all the tenth, or tithe, from the people of Israel to use to sustain them.  Though they had no inheritance, the Levites were well provided for.  Some today are called into full time ministry, and those who have jobs in the world should provide forcthem under God's leadership.  They are not to become rich, neither should they struggle to survive.  Verse twenty-two continues, Neither must the children of Israel henceforth come nigh the tabernacle of the congregation, lest they bear sin, and die.  The Levites had no inheritance, but had the honor of serving in the tabernacle, and the rest of the tribes had an inheritance, but could not serve in the tabernacle.  Neither group should have had any reason to be envious of the other.  When we are obedient to God's calling, we should never be envious of one another.  Verse twenty-three states,  But the Levites shall do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation, and they shall bear their iniquity: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations, that among the children of Israel they have no inheritance.  The Levites were given the privilege of serving in the tabernacle, but they would have no inheritance in this world.  They were the priests forever.  We as followers of Christ are a priesthood of believers, and we should not put our faith in the things of this world.  They are not our inheritance, but Heaven is.  Verse twenty-four adds, But the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer as an heave offering unto the LORD, I have given to the Levites to inherit: therefore I have said unto them, Among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.  God said that since He was providing for the Levites by their sharing in the offerings and tithes, that they needed no inheritance.  If we truly believe that God is providing for us today, we need no inheritance in this world.  

 

Numbers 18:8

Numbers 18:8 says, And the LORD spake unto Aaron, Behold, I also have given thee the charge of mine heave offerings of all the hallowed things of the children of Israel; unto thee have I given them by reason of the anointing, and to thy sons, by an ordinance for ever.  God put Aaron in charge of His heave offerings of all the hallowed things of Israel.  God as always provided for those who are called to full time service in doing His work, and as Christians we should make certain that we do our part in making sure this happens.   Verse nine says adds, This shall be thine of the most holy things, reserved from the fire: every oblation of theirs, every meat offering of theirs, and every sin offering of theirs, and every trespass offering of theirs, which they shall render unto me, shall be most holy for thee and for thy sons.  The most holy sacrifices of the meat and sin offerings were reserved for Aaron and his sons, the ones actually doing the duties of the priest.  Verse ten continues, In the most holy place shalt thou eat it; every male shall eat it: it shall be holy unto thee.  They alone were free to eat them, and they were to do it in the most holy place, since it was holy unto them.  God expects us to use what He blesses us with wisely and in accordance with His will if we are followers of Christ.  Verse eleven states, And this is thine; the heave offering of their gift, with all the wave offerings of the children of Israel: I have given them unto thee, and to thy sons and to thy daughters with thee, by a statute for ever: every one that is clean in thy house shall eat of it.  The heave and wave offerings were also given to Aaron and could be eaten by all his family.  God not only makes provision for His ministers, but for their families also.  Of course, He does work through His people to do this.  Verse twelve adds, All the best of the oil, and all the best of the wine, and of the wheat, the firstfruits of them which they shall offer unto the LORD, them have I given thee.  God also gave Aaron and his sons the best of the oil, first fruits, wine and wheat offered to Him.  The offerings served to show that the people of Israel were faithful to God, but also to provide for His priests.  We need to bring our tithes and offerings to God, and then we must use them to carry out His work.  Verse thirteen continues, And whatsoever is first ripe in the land, which they shall bring unto the LORD, shall be thine; every one that is clean in thine house shall eat of it.  This continued to make provision for all of the families of Aaron and his sons.  Verse fourteen says, Every thing devoted in Israel shall be thine.  All the offerings brought by the people were to be Aaron and his sons to use in accordance with God's word.  They were bpnot getting rich, but were having their needs met in accordance with God's will.  Those called into God's ministry today should not get rich, but they should have their needs amply met by those that they minister to.  Even those churches that may not be able to have a full time minister should do everything they can to help meet his needs so that he can devote as much time as possible to fulfilling his calling.  Verse fifteen adds, Every thing that openeth the matrix in all flesh, which they bring unto the LORD, whether it be of men or beasts, shall be thine: nevertheless the firstborn of man shalt thou surely redeem, and the firstling of unclean beasts shalt thou redeem.  The firstborn of men and beast could be redeemed by the people, and the money used to redeem them would be Aaron and his sons to use.  God not only was providing for their food needs, but was giving them money to purchase other things that they might need.  God did not need what they brought, but He used it to meet the needs of those doing His work full time.  Verse sixteen continues, And those that are to be redeemed from a month old shalt thou redeem, according to thine estimation, for the money of five shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, which is twenty gerahs.  Again, this was  provision that would allow Aaron and his sons to provide adequately for the needs of their families.  Verse seventeen states, But the firstling of a cow, or the firstling of a sheep, or the firstling of a goat, thou shalt not redeem; they are holy: thou shalt sprinkle their blood upon the altar, and shalt burn their fat for an offering made by fire, for a sweet savour unto the LORD.  Some things could not be redeemed, but were to be offered on the altar to God.  When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, we cannot redeem ourselves from serving Him as He calls us to do, but can only be redeemed by Him. Verse eighteen adds, And the flesh of them shall be thine, as the wave breast and as the right shoulder are thine. Verse nineteen continues, All the heave offerings of the holy things, which the children of Israel offer unto the LORD, have I given thee, and thy sons and thy daughters with thee, by a statute for ever: it is a covenant of salt for ever before the LORD unto thee and to thy seed with thee.  God had given all these things to Aaron and his sons and daughters as a covenant forever.  God would provide for them, just as He provides for His people today.

Numbers 18:1

Numbers 18:1 says, And the LORD said unto Aaron, Thou and thy sons and thy father’s house with thee shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary: and thou and thy sons with thee shall bear the iniquity of your priesthood.  God told Moses that Aaron and his sons and the Levites would bear the responsibility if the tabernacle was profaned.  Aaron may have been receiving what seemed to be a great honor, but He also bore a great responsibility.  We may receive great honor from God by being followers of Christ, but we also have a great responsibility to keep our life sanctified for Him and to keep His word holy.  Verse two adds, And thy brethren also of the tribe of Levi, the tribe of thy father, bring thou with thee, that they may be joined unto thee, and minister unto thee: but thou and thy sons with thee shall minister before the tabernacle of witness.  Though the Levites were to join Aaron and his sons in the priesthood, only Aaron and his sons were to minister before the tabernacle.  As Christians, we are all a part of the priesthood of believers, but we don't all have the same calling to serve the same way.  Verse three continues, And they shall keep thy charge, and the charge of all the tabernacle: only they shall not come nigh the vessels of the sanctuary and the altar, that neither they, nor ye also, die.  The Levites were to keep the charge of Aaron and the tabernacle, but they were not to come near the vessels of the tabernacle, or they would die.  We should never attempt to claim a role in the church that God has not called us to.  Verse four continues, And they shall be joined unto thee, and keep the charge of the tabernacle of the congregation, for all the service of the tabernacle: and a stranger shall not come nigh unto you.  Though the Levites were to help Aaron and his sons by serving in the tabernacle, they were to keep strangers from attempting to.  Again, we as followers of Christ have a responsibility to keep those who are not from attempting to take over the church.  Verse five states, And ye shall keep the charge of the sanctuary, and the charge of the altar: that there be no wrath any more upon the children of Israel.  Aaron and his sons were responsible for keeping the charge of the sanctuary and the altar so that there would be no wrath from God on the people of Israel.  Though Aaron might have been called to a position that might have been seen as a great honor, it was even more a position of great responsibility.   As followers of Christ, we have been called to a position of great honor as we have been forgiven of our sins and have become a part of the family of God, but this also brings with it great responsibility to keep the kingdom of God holy.  We cannot allow the things of this world to become acceptable in the church if they are 8n opposition to what the Bible teaches us.  Verse six adds, And I, behold, I have taken your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel: to you they are given as a gift for the LORD, to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation.  God told Aaron that He had given the Levites to Aaron to help in the service of the tabernacle.  We need to allow God to call people to their position of service today.  We cannot simply decide what we want to do in the church without knowing that is what God wants us to do.  Verse seven continues, Therefore thou and thy sons with thee shall keep your priest’s office for every thing of the altar, and within the vail; and ye shall serve: I have given your priest’s office unto you as a service of gift: and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.  God told Aaron that He had given the service as priests as a gift to his sons and him.  Whatever God calls us to do today as followers of Christ is a gift from Him, and we must do it humbly and faithfully.   We are not called to any position in the church because we are better than other Christians, but are called simply because God chose that position for us.

Numbers 17:8

Numbers 17:8 says, And it came to pass, that on the morrow Moses went into the tabernacle of witness; and, behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded, and brought forth buds, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds.  After God instructed Moses to have all the heads of the tribes of Isreal carve their name on a rod and put it in the tabernacle, the rod of Aaron, representing the tribe of Levi, was budded out, bloomed with buds, and yielded almonds.  This could only be the work of God.  I believe that God will always let us know when He is at work, even if we are murmuring against Him.  Verse nine adds, And Moses brought out all the rods from before the LORD unto all the children of Israel: and they looked, and took every man his rod.  Moses brought out all the rods in the presence of the LORD and each man took his rod.  Since their names were carved on them, there could be no doubt whose was whose.  We should always know what is ours before God and not try to claim what belongs to someone else, because God certainly knows.  Verse ten declares, And the LORD said unto Moses, Bring Aaron’s rod again before the testimony, to be kept for a token against the rebels; and thou shalt quite take away their murmurings from me, that they die not.  God instructed Moses to bring Aaron's rod before the tabernacle of the testimony as a token against the rebels, so that they would quit murmuring and not die. Jesus stands as a testimony to us today as His followers, and for that reason we should never murmur against God.  Verse eleven adds, And Moses did so: as the LORD commanded him, so did he.  Moses did as God commanded Him to do, and so must we as followers of Christ today.  Just as God showed the people then that He had indeed selected Moses and Aaron to be His representatives with the people, I believe that He will let us know who He has chosen to lead His congregations today, so we should not murmur against them or God.  Verse twelve states, And the children of Israel spake unto Moses, saying, Behold, we die, we perish, we all perish.  Yet, the people still continued tto complain, saying they would all perish.  Verse thirteen adds, Whosoever cometh any thing near unto the tabernacle of the LORD shall die: shall we be consumed with dying?  They asked if anyone who came near the tabernacle of the LORD would die, were they all doomed to die.  God had never said this.  He said if anyone other than the ones He chose tried to take over the service in the tabernacle that they would die.  We cannot change God's plans to suit our own desires or feed our own ego.  Matthew Henry said that this could represent either the people still murmuring against God or their finally accepting His leadership, but to me it seems more like they were still murmuring and claiming God was too strict.  We may sometimes have the thought that God expects too much from us and start to complain, but this should never happen if we are truly living by faith.

Numbers 17:1

Numbers 17:1 says, And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  Verse two adds, Speak unto the children of Israel, and take of every one of them a rod according to the house of their fathers, of all their princes according to the house of their fathers twelve rods: write thou every man’s name upon his rod.  God told Moses to have the prince of every tribe of Israel to take a rod and write the name of the prince on it.  This included all twelve tribes, and still had to do with whom God had chosen to be His spokesman.  Since they were questioning God, He involved them in the process of answering the question.  I believe that God gives every person enough personal knowledge to come to Him, and also that He gives each Christian enough knowledge to know what they should be doing in His kingdom.  There should be no reason for murmuring amongst the followers of Christ.  Verse three continues, And thou shalt write Aaron’s name upon the rod of Levi: for one rod shall be for the head of the house of their fathers.  Moses was to write Aaron’s name on the rod of the tribe of Levi.  This was the one exception, and it placed both Moses and Aaron in the process.  They and the Levites were the ones God had had set apart to serve Him as His representatives to the people.  We need to make certain that we follow those that God has put in position as preachers and teachers today without jealousy or murmuring as long as they are faithful to Him.  Verse four states, And thou shalt lay them up in the tabernacle of the congregation before the testimony, where I will meet with you.  God instructed Moses to then lay the rods in the tabernacle of the congregation before the testimony where God met with Moses.  If we are going to get answers to spiritual questions today, we need to come before God for those answers.  Verse five adds, And it shall come to pass, that the man’s rod, whom I shall choose, shall blossom: and I will make to cease from me the murmurings of the children of Israel, whereby they murmur against you.  God said that He would make the rod of the of the man He had chosen to serve as His representative to blossom.  God then said this should eliminate the murmuring against Him.  I believe that God still lets His people know what they should be doing in the work of His kingdom today, and therefore there should be no murmuring against other Christians and especially not against God Himself.  Though we may not have as drastic example to show us, the Holy Spirit will let us know what God has called us to do.  Verse six declares, And Moses spake unto the children of Israel, and every one of their princes gave him a rod apiece, for each prince one, according to their fathers’ houses, even twelve rods: and the rod of Aaron was among their rods.  Moses spoke to the people of Israel and told them what God had instructed him to do, which was to take the twelve rods, one from each tribe, which also had the rod of Aaron among them.  Since they had chosen and marked the rod for their tribe they were very much involved in the process.   I believe that God still gives us clear answers to what we should be doing in His kingdom today, yet we still too often murmur about other Christians and even about God Himself.   Verse seven concludes, And Moses laid up the rods before the LORD in the tabernacle of witness.  Moses then laid the rods before God in the tabernacle of witness.  Moses did as God instructed him to do, then whatever happened was in God's hands.  We need to simply put ourselves before God in obedience to His word and then leave everything in His hands.