Certainty in Fulfilling God's Plan

While it seems to me Leviticus was marked with joy in working towards God's plan, Numbers starts off with an underlying sense of excitement just beyond the written word. Having prepared themselves and been found to be pleasing in the Lord's eyes, only now is it time to look outwards. The census marks the beginnings of the conquest that will give them a home. They're ready to be on the move at last, there had to be a sense of building excitement as they continued to draw closer to the end of their journey and the fulfillment of the promise they've heard all their lives.

The immediate response of the Lord when questions arise in Num 9:8 is remarkable. I had to stop and reflect on how awesome that sort of instant answers from God would be. Just imagine, everything from abortion and homosexuality to the perils of dancing, at this point in establishing the law, whatever wasn't clear was solved really, really easily.

"Hold on, let me just go ask God real quick."

How I wish we had that same sort of clarity now! Or...I don't know. With that sort of clarity there is absolutely no room for yourself and your opinions. I'm rather fond of my opinions most days. No justification of interpretations, it is what it is and thus carried an absolute mandate to do the right thing. There is no ignorance is bliss excuse for doing your own thing. I expect it would keep us out of a lot of trouble. They had such an immediate dependence upon the will of God that I know I lack in my life.

It is exemplified for me in Number 9:22-23, and just as in Leviticus continues to speak to me of waiting for God's timing and seeking his will before trying to move on our own. What we do on our own will surely fail, but what we do in his power will surely succeed.

"Whether it was two days, or a month, or a longer time, that the clouds continued over the tabernacle, abiding there, the people of Israel remained in camp and did not set out, but when it lifted they set out. At the command of the Lord they camped, and at the command of the Lord they set out. They kept the charge of the Lord, at the command of the Lord by Moses."

I do envy the clear, unarguable and physically manifested presence of God. As we continue to seek out what our own futures hold I could wish we each got a cloud telling us exactly where to find employment. Or a neon sign. A neon sign would also be nice.

Lastly, how beautiful are the words given to Aaron to bless the Israelites? I'm sure in my mind it's tranquility comes not only from the inspired words themselves, but is combined with the childhood memories of hearing these same words spoken in benedictions past.

"The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace."

Ah, Leviticus

I read Leviticus in one day, and yeesh, the blood! So much blood! Thrown against the base of the altar, smeared on the corners, sprinkled over the priestly garments, here, there, blood everywhere. I suppose there are studies out there that can really go into depth with it and glean pearls of wisdom about how it applies to our life today. In truth I'm glad it doesn't apply to my life today, at least not in any literal way.

Sacrificing animals just doesn't sit well with my modern sensibilities, it's such a foreign (and icky) concept to wrap my head around. It seems that the Israelites (and me) are really bad at judgement calls, and without such detailed and concrete rules to follow they (like me) can't be trusted to know how to handle many aspects of daily life properly. I can appreciate that clarity, and even find myself longing for it in our modern world of concessions and compromises. That sort of black and white approach has some appeal, even with my modern sensibilities.

In all that detail, there wasn't much mention of how often they cleaned the tabernacle, or if they even did at all. I can't help but wonder! Tons of mention of the washing of people, garments, and even houses for the many, many things that would make them unclean, but not of the tabernacle itself. They were in the desert, it was dusty there, you know? Not to mention all the blood and oil. Perhaps as the dwelling place of God it was incapable of needing washing, as that would imply it was unclean. I've always had this picture in my head of the altar being beautifully gold, gleaming, and pristine; the truth is it was beautifully gold, gleaming, and then liberally decorated with sacrificial blood. That part just never quite shows up in my imagination, or even in any of the illustrations I've seen. 

Has our modern culture censored that part of things too much? Have we done it a disservice by relegating it to something distasteful? Is it the same sort of subtle cultural bias where we think of Satan as this monster with horns while angels are lovely ladies peacefully strumming harps? The truth of course is that Satan was described as beautiful while the cherubim described are fearsome with their four different faces and as many wings. It's certainly something to think about.

I'll be honest, when I read the part about the blood being sprinkled on the priestly garments to ordain them, the mom in me cringed and immediately started wondering how/if they got those stains out in the pre Spray 'N Wash era.

I know, deep, isn't it? Don't judge me. :P

Joy in Fulfilling God's Plan

As I read about the construction of the tabernacle, I had to stop and think about what joy these people must have felt during that time.

They had just renewed their covenenat with God, and were now eager to do all he said. How happy they must have been as they worked to fulfill the plan God had for them!

It occurred to me that we so often want something to do, and it is very hard to wait. In fact, so hard that while they were waiting for Moses to return they fell into sin, and part of me wonders if it was for lack of anything else to do.

Waiting on the lord is hard to do! As I've lost my voice this week, I've done a lot oflistening. It's just not easy. There's no way around it. These people had to wait and listen for the command from God to reveal his plan, and only then were they able to go into action.

Doing it on their own resulted in death and disaster, but the construction of the tabernacle paints a very different picture. They were thrilled to be giving over these valuable goods, they were filled with the spirit to be able to create just as God intended, and they were working together to bring glory to God. Truly, it must have been a wonderful and exciting time to be among them.

I get the sense, reading all of this together, of how they waited, and the sense of excitement began to build as step by step, law by law, God began to reveal his plan to his people, but he did it in an orderly way. In his way. focusing first on the holiness of his people, and keeping house, as it were, before moving onto anything else. They weren't ready yet.

And I sit and think of our life. God has plans for us, and I know they're good, and I want to know them right now! But...I think perhaps we're not ready yet. So here we are, waiting on the Lord, trying to learn what it is he wants to teach us so that his plan will be revealed to us, and just as there must have been such a joy in purpose in building the Tabernacle, I can't wait to experience such a joy in purpose as Peter and I find what it is God has in store for us.

Jesus is the Rock

Exodus 17:6
"Behold, I will stand before you on the rock at Horeh, and you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, and the people will drink."

It was pointed out to me in my notes (I love my ESV study Bible, thank you honey!) that this is an early foreshadowing of Jesus to come, our rock of salvation, from whence flows the water of life. What a great symbolic picture that paints.

Later, I came across Exodus 33:21-22.

"And the Lord said, 'Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by."

My notes didn't draw a connection here to this rock and Jesus, but with the other passage still so fresh in my mind I couldn't help but wonder. Isn't this a picture of a rock being the intercessor between us and God, to keep us from dying in the presence of the full glory of the Lord? Isn't that rather what Jesus is for us? Is it safe to say, then, that Jesus is the cleft of the rock we are hidden in to experience what we may of the splendor of God while still in this sinful and flawed form?

Genesis - These guys are a mess!

It's been so long since I actually read the stories in Genesis from the Bible, as opposed to children's books. What a difference. I'd forgotten what a mess all these people were. Lying, cheating, stealing, killing, and the list goes on.

And this isn't just Cain and Lamech and the other ne'er-do-wells. This is Abraham! And Isaac! And Jacob!

But that's good because I'm a wreck too, and it's ever so nice to know that God will use me just as he used these people. I used to think that because it is in the Bible, it was part of God's plan, and I never could quite make all that reconcile in my head. That's just not the case at all. I read it this time with an attitude of look at all the stuff these people did by their own plans, and look how each and every time God made it work out for his glory through people as messed up as I am.

Praise the Lord for that!

Just because God will make the fruit of my sins work for his glory does not at all mean that is what he wanted for me! I messed up, and despite that God makes it work. The good parts are absolutely part of his plans. The sin parts? That's just me. God never wanted or planned on that for me. The point in all the lying, cheating, stealing, and killing is that God will find a way even when we mess things up with our own sinful nature.

Also, Esau may be one of the most underrated persons in the Bible. From my POV, this guy was seriously wronged by the machinations of his brother and even his own mother. When Jacob returns home, he is scared (rightly so!) of his brother's vengeance. But it is all for naught, as it appears Esau forgave his brother ages ago and has been living a blessed life of his own. What a lesson in forgiveness.

The Creation

One of the notes in my study Bible had this to say, "...the ultimate purpose being that the whole earth should become the temple of God, the place of his presence, and should display his glory."


I'd never thought about it like that before, and it just slightly shifted my view of the world and my place within it. The creation story instilled in me the great sense of order God brings to everything he does. I read it with all the debates of evolution vs. creation, and even young earth vs. old earth theories swimming in my head. I see no reason at all why God can't work through science. The fact that the world was designed in such a specific, understandable way to me speaks even more of the presence of a loving creator.

I think the key word in all of it is designed. God didn't just create an external layer of the world to be seen, like the back lot of a movie set where everything is without substance, all just a facade. It was completely designed down to the smallest detail, including the elusive graviton and other parts of it we don't understand. It all works together so harmoniously, nothing by chance, and all connected to each other. The world was clearly designed by a master designer. It's so intricate, so perfect, and so amazing. It seems as science stumbles upon new discoveries year by year that the awe inspiring genius behind it, and the care to which was put into the smallest of details in our world is nothing short of humbling.

God works through order. I see that time and time and time again reading through these first few books in the Bible. So at the end of the day, young earth, old earth, whatever. I don't see how that matters to what the story is trying to tell us. God created the heavens and the earth. The important part isn't defining exactly when he did it, but knowing that he did indeed create it exactly to his plans.

And it was good.

And then we messed it up.

But it's still amazing, despite our best efforts to ruin it some days.

The Bible in 90 Days

The Women's Retreat this year really impressed some things upon me, and one of them, as so many times before, was that I really ought to read my Bible. Having tried various approaches that never pan out for whatever reason, and having more free time with Peter home, I'm taking the plunge. The entire thing, cover to cover. Oh, and I decided none of this read your bible in a year stuff this time, 90 days. Maybe less.

It's so strange to me as I think on it now how I could ever have expected to have an idea of what was within this most important of books when I've only read bits and pieces here and there willy nilly regardless of context. That's not how I read books. I imagine if I read any of my beloved books like that I would never have really gotten the proper sense of what they were about. No wonder it never worked out for me!

It's been such a great blessing so far, and I already have a better sense of who God is and who I am in Him.. There's so many thoughts and realizations I've had I feel like I'm playing catch up trying to record them all now, but better late than never.

So here we go, and there was evening, and there was morning.