Why Every Christian Should Receive The Holy Ghost #1

The Lord said to me,.."I will test my people with a plumbline. Amos 7:8 (TLB)

The Plumbline is a blog to encourage the Body of Christ.

Why Every Christian Should Receive The Holy Ghost #1

Acts 1:4-5 (NIV) 4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."

Christ’s great gift to His followers was the baptism with the Holy Ghost. As He stood with His band followers on the Mount of Olives just before His departure to Heaven, He said, "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised...For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.". The fact is that in 10 days the Holy Ghost was poured out on at least 120 believers gathered in the Upper Room. Acts 2:1-4 (NLT) 1 On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. 2 Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. 3 Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. 4 And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability. This wonderful gift that they received revolutionized their lives, and set them afire for God. The supernatural happening on the Day of Pentecost was an event that demands our study and seeking.

Why Every Christian Should Receive The Holy Ghost:

FIRST: If Christ and the Apostles needed the Holy Ghost, then WE NEED HIM TOO.

Christ the Son of God, came down from heaven. Because He emptied Himself of His glory and became a man. In this human role as the Son of man, He needed the Holy Ghost baptism. Consider Matthew 3:16 (MSG) The moment Jesus came up out of the baptismal waters, the skies opened up and he saw God's Spirit—it looked like a dove—descending and landing on him.

The Twelve Apostles received the baptism of the Holy Ghost in the Upper Room. The women who followed Jesus received the Holy Ghost. Mary, the mother of Jesus, received the Holy Spirit. Christ’s brothers also received the Holy Ghost. Acts 1:14 (MSG) They agreed they were in this for good, completely together in prayer, the women included. Also Jesus' mother, Mary, and his brothers. Every one of the 120 in the Upper Room received the Holy Ghost infilling. Every person of the 3000 who heard Peter preach his sermon on the Day of Pentecost, was given the promise of the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:37-39 (NLT) 37 Peter’s words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?” 38 Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins, turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ to show that you have received forgiveness for your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.39 This promise is to you, and to your children, and even to the Gentiles—all who have been called by the Lord our God.”

Second: The Holy Ghost Gives Power to Witness:

The first thing one thinks of in attaining a victorious Christian life, is the need of POWER. We constantly meet the forces of evil, and face continually, strong temptations that the human will cannot stand up against successfully. The Believer not only needs power to defend himself against evil, but to take the offensive. Moreover, we need power to be able to witness effectively to others and to carry out chief function as Christians. Acts 1:8 (NLT) But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” The purpose of the Holy Spirit Baptism is to give the believer power.

The most amazing proof of the truth of Christianity is the fact that a band of lowly fishermen, who according to the standards of religious leaders of that day, were “ignorant and unlearned men” were able to go forth against severest opposition, and under God, bring into existence the most powerful religious movement in all history.

Zechariah 4:6 (NKJV) So he answered and said to me: "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' Says the LORD of hosts.

The Birth of A Nation #3

The Lord said to me,.."I will test my people with a plumbline. Amos 7:8 (TLB)

The Plumbline is a blog to encourage the Body of Christ.

The Birth of A Nation #3

Organization for Israel’s Camp  Then the Lord gave these instructions to Moses and Aaron:  “When the Israelites set up camp, each tribe will be assigned its own area. The tribal divisions will camp beneath their family banners on all four sides of the Tabernacle,* but at some distance from it.

Every man … shall pitch his tent by his own standard (flag), with the ensign of their father’s house—Standards were visible signs of a certain recognized form for directing the movements of large bodies of people. As the Israelites were commanded to encamp “each by his own standard, with the ensign of their father’s house,” the direction has been considered as implying that they possessed three varieties: (1) the great tribal standards, which served as rallying points for the twelve large clans of the people; (2) the standards of the subdivided portions; and, (3) those of families or houses. The latter must have been absolutely necessary, as one ensign only for a tribe would not have been visible at the extremities of so large a body. We possess no authentic information as to their forms, material, colors, and devices. But it is probable that they might bear some resemblance to those of Egypt, only stripped of any idolatrous symbols. These were of an umbrella or a fanlike form, made of ostrich feathers, shawls, lifted on the points of long poles, which were borne, either like the sacred central one, on a car, or on men’s shoulders, while others might be like the beacon lights which are set on poles by Eastern pilgrims at night. Jewish writers say that the standards of the Hebrew tribes were symbols borrowed from the prophetic blessing of Jacob—Judah’s being a lion, Benjamin’s a wolf. [Ge 49:3–24]; and that the ensigns or banners were distinguished by their colors—the colors of each tribe being the same as that of the precious stone representing that tribe in the breastplate of the high priest [Ex 28:17–21].

Dedication of Levites

The Levites Dedicated : Then the Lord said to Moses, “Now set the Levites apart from the rest of the people of Israel and make them ceremonially clean. Do this by sprinkling them with the water of purification, and have them shave their entire body and wash their clothing. Then they will be ceremonially clean. Have them bring a young bull and a grain offering of choice flour moistened with olive oil, along with a second young bull for a sin offering. Then assemble the whole community of Israel, and present the Levites at the entrance of the Tabernacle.* When you present the Levites before the Lord, the people of Israel must lay their hands on them. 11 Raising his hands, Aaron must then present the Levites to the Lord as a special offering from the people of Israel, thus dedicating them to the Lord’s service.

And Aaron shall offer the Levites—Hebrew, “as a wave offering”; and it has been thought probable that the high priest, in bringing the Levites one by one to the altar, directed them to make some simple movements of their persons, analogous to what was done at the presentation of the wave offerings before the Lord. Thus were they first devoted as an offering to God, and by Him surrendered to the priests to be employed in His service. The consecration ceremonial was repeated in the case of every Levite who was taken (as was done at a later period) to assist the priests in the tabernacle and temple. (See on 2Ch 29:34).

The Levites shall be mine—that is, exempt from all military duty or secular work—free from all pecuniary imposition and wholly devoted to the custody and service of the sanctuary.

The Levites go in to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation—to make an atonement for the children of Israel,—to aid the priests; “to make redemption”;  the Levites being exchanged, that there might be a sanctified body of men appointed to guard the sanctuary, and the people not allowed to approach or presumptuously meddle with holy things, which would expose them to the angry judgments of Heaven.

From twenty and five years old.—They entered on their work in their twenty-fifth year, as pupils and probationers, under the superintendence and direction of their senior brethren; and at thirty they were admitted to the full discharge of their official functions.

From the age of fifty years they shall cease waiting upon the service thereof,—that is, on the laborious and exhausting parts of their work.

But shall minister with their brethren—in the performance of easier and higher duties, instructing and directing the young, or superintending important trusts. “They also serve who only wait”

The Birth of A Nation #2

The Lord said to me,.."I will test my people with a plumbline. Amos 7:8 (TLB)

The Plumbline is a blog to encourage the Body of Christ.

The Birth of A Nation #2

Chart: Organization of the Warriors by Tribes and Families::

Tribal Leaders

“From the whole community of Israel, record the names of all the warriors by their clans and families. List all the men  twenty years old or older who are able to go to war. You and Aaron must register the troops, and you will be assisted by one family leader from each tribe. “These are the tribes and the names of the leaders who will assist you:

 Moses and Aaron called A Meeting: Moses and Aaron called together these chosen leaders, and they assembled the whole community of Israel on that very day.* All the people were registered according to their ancestry by their clans and families. The men of Israel who were twenty years old or older were listed one by one, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. So Moses recorded their names in the wilderness of Sinai.

These are those that were numbered—In this registration the tribe of Judah appears the most numerous; and accordingly, as the pre-eminence had been assigned to it by Jacob [Ge 49:8–12], it got the precedence in all the encampments of Israel. Of the two half-tribes of Joseph, who is seen to be “a fruitful bough” [Ge 49:22], that of Ephraim was the larger, as had been predicted. The relative increase of all, as in the two just mentioned, was owing to the special blessing of God, conformably to the prophetic declaration of the dying patriarch. But the divine blessing is usually conveyed through the influence of secondary causes; and there is reason to believe that the relative populousness of the tribes would, under God, depend upon the productiveness of the respective localities assigned to them. [For tabular chart, see on Nu 26:64.]1

Tribes and their Number of Warriors 

These were the men registered by Moses and Aaron and the twelve leaders of Israel, all listed according to their ancestral descent. They were registered by families—all the men of Israel who were twenty years old or older and able to go to war. The total number was 603,550. But this total did not include the Levites. For the Lord had said to Moses, “Do not include the tribe of Levi in the registration; do not count them with the rest of the Israelites. Put the Levites in charge of the Tabernacle of the Covenant,*

The Birth of A Nation #1

The Lord said to me,.."I will test my people with a plumbline. Amos 7:8 (TLB) 
The Plumbline is a blog to encourage the Body of Christ. 

The Birth of A Nation #1 

Overview: With the Law given, the priests ordained, and the sacrificial system which provided for forgiveness of sin instituted, it was time for God's people to move on. Israel had come to Sinai exactly three months after leaving Egypt. On the twentieth day of the second month of the second year out of Egypt they would set out again (Numbers 10:11). From this point on, Israel would be responsible to God for the choices individuals, groups, and the whole community made. Despite punishments for disobedience along the way, this generation did not learn the vital lesson of obedience. When the time came to make life's most significant choice, these people would hear God's voice, and turn away.

 A very significant statement about God is found in this section of Scripture: "The Lord is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion. Yet He does not leave the guilty unpunished" (Numbers 14:18). God is love. But persons are responsible to Him for their choices.

Responsible: This was the issue confronting Israel at the beginning of the Book of Numbers. This people had been redeemed from slavery by God's great power. The people had been taught God's will in a Law that revealed much of His character. And provision had been made to cleanse the Israelites from the sins that would inevitably come. The door to God was held open, guaranteed by the tabernacle, sacrifice, and the priesthood. The forgiven people had been instructed how to live in fellowship with their God. The message that came then to Israel was simply this: "You have been provided with everything you need to live a holy life. Now you are responsible." The people of Israel were about to face difficult and challenging circumstances. But there could be no excuses for failing to respond to God. In each situation Israel was now responsible for the choices the people made—and also responsible for the results of those choices. What happened now would inevitably be a direct consequence of Israel's decision to follow—or to reject—the leading of God. Some of us learn the lesson of responsibility only after a great deal of pain, as wrong choices work out their results in our lives. Some of us learn quickly, from others. In this section of Scripture we have lessons on responsibility that we can learn from others, and thus avoid the pain of learning the hard way. 1Cor. 10:11-12 tells us that "these things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us. . .So if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!" It's comforting to understand our position in Christ as forgiven people. But it is important to realize that, however exalted our position, as we live our daily lives we must accept responsibility for all our choices and act as redeemed people—lest we fall.

A Nation: Numbers 1-10: Here is where we see the first indication that the great mob of people who swarmed out of Egypt are now to be treated as a responsible nation. A census was taken, with the men of military age numbering 603,550. This figure is given in several different texts, though in some it is rounded off (Exodus 12:37; Exodus 38:26; Numbers 1:46; Numbers 2:32; Numbers 11:21). The later census of Numbers 26:51 shows similarity, but also some change over the 38-year period. The total population of Israel now ready to leave Sinai probably ranged between 2 and 2.5 million people.

Tribal marching and camping positions were set.The duties of the Levites were defined, and a system of trumpet calls was set to signal assembly, the order of departure, alarms, etc. As the people of Israel marched they were to respond to the direct leading of God. The pillar of cloud and fire which had appeared as Israel left Egypt (Exodus 13:21) now rested over the tabernacle. When the cloud rested, the people remained in camp. But when in the morning the cloud lifted up, the people set out and followed it as God led them where He chose. As the Bible says, "At the Lord's command they encamped, and at the Lord's command they set out. They obeyed the Lord's order in accordance with His command through Moses" (Numbers 9:23). Even in this, the people were being taught to respond to God. God's people must always look to Him for guidance, and go or wait at His command.

Chart: Israel Marching: When The Pillar of Fire/Cloud moved to change locations God instructed Moses to line-up the clans for advancing forward according to the following order. This was not a suggestion but a command.
Judah
Issachar
Zebulun
Gershon and Merari*
Reuben
Simeon
Gad
Kohath*
Ephraim
Manasseh
Benjamin
Dan
Asher
Naphtali

 *The Levites were divided into two companies (See Numbers 10:14-27). The sons of Gershon and Merari carried the tabernacle itself, while the Kohathites carried the holy articles from the tabernacle. With the order of march arranged as it was, the carriers of the tabernacle had time to set it up before the holy things arrived.

Click on chart to enlarge

Organization of Camp by Tribes:

The Man Moses #18

The Lord said to me,.."I will test my people with a plumbline. Amos 7:8 (TLB)

The Plumbline is a blog to encourage the Body of Christ.

The Man Moses #18

Balaam Tries to Curse Israel

ENEMIES FEAR ISRAEL: As fear of Israel struck the region, the peoples there began to look desperately for weapons to use against them. The king of Moab, Balak, frightened at the "horde" which seemed to him to "cover the face of the land," attempted to call in spiritual powers to defeat Israel. He sent for a man named Balaam, saying, "I know that those you bless are blessed, and those you curse are cursed" (Numbers 22:6). Balak wanted to use Balaam to lay a curse on Israel, and thus drain their strength.

BALAAM’S POWER: There is no reason to doubt that Balaam had some spiritual powers. Israel was warned that when they entered the land they were to destroy all those who were spiritualists, possessed by evil spirits, and necromancers (cf. Deut. 18:1). Though Balaam clearly used omens, as did pagan seers, in his divinations (cf. Numbers 24:1), it is possible that Balaam was a channel for God to speak to a pagan people. But it is more likely that the roots of Balaam's spiritual power were in the demonic than the divine. Throughout the Bible Balaam is spoken of in a negative way, and held up as a negative example. His ways and his motives are condemned in the New Testament, and his death is recounted in Numbers 31 as a divine judgment.

BALAK CALLED ON BALAAM: At any rate, Balak called on Balaam to curse Israel for him. The word translated "curse" here is qabab, which suggests the idea of binding, to reduce ability, or to render powerless. Peoples in the ancient world considered curses magic tools to be used to gain power over enemies. Balak was attempting to mount a supernatural attack on this people against whom natural resources seemed inadequate. But Balak was ignorant of the fact that the source of Israel's power was itself supernatural: Israel's strength came from the presence of Yahweh Himself in their camp.

God Tells Balaam to Bless Israel

God spoke to Balaam and told him not to go with Balak's messengers. Yet greed moved Balaam to ask God's permission again. This time God did permit Balaam to go, but warned him sternly that he must speak only the words God would give him.We can picture Balaam's arrival. Balak had been waiting anxiously. Angrily he insisted that Balaam hurry and curse his enemy. Balak took Balaam to a range of hills that looked down over Israel's encampment. There the Moabite offered the sacrifices that Balaam called for—and waited. Balaam finally spoke. But rather than speaking a curse, Balaam was forced by God to pronounce a blessing!From the rocky peaks I see them, from the heights I view them. I see a people who live apart and do not consider themselves one of the nations. Who can count the dust of Jacob or number the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous, and may my end be like theirs! Numbers 23:9-10 (NLT)  9 I see them from the cliff tops; I watch them from the hills. I see a people who live by themselves, set apart from other nations. 10 Who can count Jacob’s descendants, as numerous as dust? Who can count even a fourth of Israel’s people? Let me die like the righteous; let my life end like theirs.”

Three times the sequence was repeated. Balak took Balaam to a different height, hoping that from a different viewpoint Israel might be cursed. Yet no matter from where the attack was launched, it returned not as a curse but as a blessing on this people that God has chosen and whom He protects. God has dealt with Israel's sins in sacrifice and forgiveness. Thus: No misfortune is seen in Jacob; no misery observed in Israel. The Lord their God is with them; the shout of the King is among them. God brought them out of Egypt; they have the strength of a wild ox. There is no sorcery against Jacob, no divination against Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and of Israel, "See what God has done!"  Numbers 23:21-23 (NLT) 21 No misfortune is in his plan for Jacob; no trouble is in store for Israel. For the LORD their God is with them; he has been proclaimed their king. 22 God brought them out of Egypt; for them he is as strong as a wild ox. 23 No curse can touch Jacob; no magic has any power against Israel. For now it will be said of Jacob, ‘What wonders God has done for Israel!’

It is God who is at work in His people. We are His workmanship. Protected by His very presence, there is no enchantment against us now. The attack from without had failed. But Balaam made an effort to earn his fee. He suggested a strategy which he felt might force God to curse Israel against His will! Balaam reasoned that God could not bless a sinning people—and so he recommended to Balak that his women attempt to corrupt Israel and lead them into idolatry!  Adapted from The Teacher's Commentary.

The Man Moses #17

The Lord said to me,.."I will test my people with a plumbline. Amos 7:8 (TLB)

The Plumbline is a blog to encourage the Body of Christ.

The Man Moses #17

God is wholly trustworthy.

A NEW AND POSITIVE BEGINNING: With Numbers 21 we begin a new and positive chapter in the history of redemption. God's people are not suddenly perfect. They still fail. But a new generation takes over from the old. The generation that would not trust or obey is dying out. In Numbers 26 we read about "those numbered by Moses and Aaron . . . in the wilderness of Sinai. For the Lord had said of them, 'They shall die in the wilderness.' There was not a man left of them, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun" (Numbers 26:64-65).The new generation began to respond to God's voice. And they made a great discovery. When God's people live in right relationship with Him, they are fully protected!

Hope

There are two Hebrew words translated "hope" in the Old Testament. Each invites us to look ahead eagerly, with confident expectation. Each also calls for patience; the fulfillment of hope lies in the future. "Hope" in the Old Testament is based on relationship. It affirms trust in God. We are confident, not because we know the future, but because we know God is wholly trustworthy. The new generation we meet now in Numbers is confident, expecting victory, for this is a people with trust in the Lord.

The Story of Redemption: The last four books of Moses tell a single story: the story of redemption. In this unit you'll find a Chart: Understanding Redemption which traces the story of redemption, and summarizes its vital messages to you and to me. There is a definite unity to the story of redemption related in the events of the Exodus. The experiences of God's Old Testament people, in fact, parallel our individual experiences with God. The redemption they knew is ours too. And just as the new generation of Israel that we meet in Numbers 26 learned to anchor its faith in redemption history, we too need to anchor our faith in an understanding of what God has done for us.

Transition: Numbers 21-25: Lessons from the recent history of Israel provided a firm foundation for the new generation's view of God. Yet there were still struggles. The old, untrusting generation was still with the new. In these transition chapters we see struggle: a struggle in which the tendency to reject God's ways is matched against a tendency to respond. Sometimes the nation sins, sometimes it obeys. In the outcome of each course of action, the new generation is taught the results of sin—and given a taste of the fruit of obedience.

Numbers 21 shows the uncertainty and the fluctuations. First Israel vows to do battle "if You will deliver these people into our hands." Confidently they go into battle—and win (Numbers 21:1-3). Yet shortly after that the people became impatient and returned to their old habit of murmuring against Moses. In discipline God sent poisonous snakes among them. Many died. Then the Lord told Moses to erect an image of a serpent and lift it high up on a pole. Moses was to announce to all that anyone bitten could look at the bronze serpent and live (Numbers 21:4-9). There was no healing power in the image. Clearly the healing was from God—and any individual who trusted God enough to seek out what must have seemed a ridiculous remedy actually was healed. Individuals as well as the nation had the power to choose.The new generation was being taught that they had to take their destiny into their own hands!

Jesus Looks Back to O.T.: Jesus looked back on this Old Testament incident and said, "Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in Him may have eternal life" (John 3:14-15).Brainstorm with your group. How is this incident, in which deliverance from the serpent's deadly bite came through faith's look at a bronze serpent lifted up on a pole, like Christ's death on Calvary? The final incident in Numbers 21 again shows Israel in battle, and again victorious (Numbers 21:33-35). God's promise ("Do not be afraid of him, for I have handed him over to you, with his whole army and his land.") was now enough.

The Man Moses #16

The Lord said to me,.."I will test my people with a plumbline. Amos 7:8 (TLB)

The Plumbline is a blog to encourage the Body of Christ.

The Man Moses #16

The Word of the Lord - The Bible

OPPORTUNITY LOST:  The generation that had stood at the entrance to Canaan had thrown away the Promised Land. How striking that the first words of Numbers 15 are these: "The Lord said to Moses, 'Speak to the Israelites and say to them, "After you enter the land." ' " One generation had lost its opportunity to know rest, but their children would make a different choice. One generation had violated the Law Covenant, but God's commitment to His own covenant promises remained firm.

THE SPIRIT OF REBELLION:  The years that followed were years of continuing rebellion. Korah, a Levite, led a rebellion, and on Moses' word the ground opened to swallow up Korah and all his followers (Numbers 16). The congregation challenged this judgment, and a plague struck 14,700 (Numbers 16:41-50). The strain of being the link between God and sinful man was fully recognized now by Moses and by Aaron. To Aaron God said—and now the old man understood—"You, your sons, and your father's family are to bear the responsibility for sins against the sanctuary" (Numbers 18:1). Those close to God know a constant tension and struggle with those who draw back from Him and His Word.

But the dreary years passed. The old spirit of complaint continued to mark this generation of Israelites until the end (Numbers 20:2-9). But the end did come.In the fortieth year of deliverance from Egypt, in the thirty-eighth year of wilderness wandering, Aaron died and the role of high priest passed to one of his sons. The old generation was dying, soon to pass away in final outbreaks of rebellion and quick judgment. Then a new generation would come.

RESPONSIBILITY  ACCEPTED: That new generation would accept the responsibility that comes with redemption. That generation would choose obedience—and would come to know the rest of the Lord.

The People Murmur for Water, Moses Directed to Smite the Rock, (20:1-13). After thirty-eight years' tedious abode in the wilderness, the armies of Israel advanced towards Canaan. There was no water for the congregation. We live in a wanting world, and wherever we are, must expect to meet with something to put us out. It is a great mercy to have plenty of water, a mercy in which is found value and worth. Hereupon they murmured against Moses and Aaron. They spake the same absurd and brutish language their fathers had done. It made their crime worse, that they had smarted so long for the discontent and distrusts of their fathers, yet they venture in the same steps. Moses must again, in God's name, command water out of a rock for them; God is as able as ever to supply his people with what is needful for them. But Moses and Aaron acted wrong. They took much of the glory of this work of wonder to themselves; "Must we fetch water?" As if it were done by some power or worthiness of their own. They were to speak to the rock, but they smote it. Numbers 20:11 (NKJV) Then Moses lifted his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their animals drank. 
Therefore it is charged that they did not sanctify God, they did not give to him alone the glory of this miracle which was due in his name. And being provoked by the people, Moses spake unadvisedly with his lips. The same pride of man would still usurp the office of the appointed Mediator; and become to ourselves wisdom, righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption. Such a state of sinful independence, such a rebellion of the soul against its Saviour, the voice of God condemns in every page of the gospel.

Numbers 20:11 (NLT) Then Moses raised his hand and struck the rock twice with the staff, and water gushed out. So the entire community and their livestock drank their fill.

AARON’S DEATH: God bids Aaron prepare to die. There is something of displeasure in these orders. Aaron must not enter Canaan, because he had failed in his duty at the waters of strife. There is a lot of mercy in them. Aaron, though he dies for his transgression, dies with ease, and in honor. He is gathered to his people, as one who dies in the arms of Divine grace. There is tremendous significancy in these orders. Aaron is restricted from entering Canaan, to show that the Levitical priesthood could make nothing perfect; that must be done by bringing in a better hope.  It was a great satisfaction to Aaron to see his son, who was dear to him, preferred; and his office preserved and secured: especially, to see in this a figure of Christ's everlasting priesthood.

The Man Moses #15

The Lord said to me,.."I will test my people with a plumbline. Amos 7:8 (TLB)

The Plumbline is a blog to encourage the Body of Christ.

The Man Moses #15

Tabernacle Floor Plan

A lot of space is given in the scriptures to the detailed instructions for Moses to begin the gathering of materials for the construction of the wilderness Tabernacle. I have been overwhelmed by the all the precise specifications given to Moses regarding the Tabernacle furniture, such as the Ark of the Covenant, the Table of Showbread, and the Lamp Stand.

Exodus 40:1–16 (NKJV) Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 2 “On the first day of the first month you shall set up the tabernacle of the tent of meeting. 3 You shall put in it the ark of the Testimony, and partition off the ark with the veil. 4 You shall bring in the table and arrange the things that are to be set in order on it; and you shall bring in the lampstand and light its lamps. 5 You shall also set the altar of gold for the incense before the ark of the Testimony, and put up the screen for the door of the tabernacle. 6 Then you shall set the altar of the burnt offering before the door of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting. 7 And you shall set the laver between the tabernacle of meeting and the altar, and put water in it. 8 You shall set up the court all around, and hang up the screen at the court gate. 9 “And you shall take the anointing oil, and anoint the tabernacle and all that is in it; and you shall hallow it and all its utensils, and it shall be holy. 10 You shall anoint the altar of the burnt offering and all its utensils, and consecrate the altar. The altar shall be most holy. 11 And you shall anoint the laver and its base, and consecrate it.

12 “Then you shall bring Aaron and his sons to the door of the tabernacle of meeting and wash them with water. 13 You shall put the holy garments on Aaron, and anoint him and consecrate him, that he may minister to Me as priest. 14 And you shall bring his sons and clothe them with tunics. 15 You shall anoint them, as you anointed their father, that they may minister to Me as priests; for their anointing shall surely be an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations.” 16 Thus Moses did; according to all that the Lord had commanded him, so he did.

The Tabernacle Erected and Arranged.These instructions deal with three matters: (a) the physical arrangement of the sanctuary from the interior to the exterior parts and the courtyard curtains (vv. 1-8); (b) the consecration of the tabernacle and everything in it (vv. 9-11), and (c) the washing, dressing, and anointing of the priesthood (Aaron and his sons) to serve God and the people in the sanctuary (vv. 12-16).

The tabernacle was erected about a year after the Exodus from Egypt: on the first day of the first month, “in the second year”. The Exodus occurred on the 14th day of the first month (12:2, 6, 33-34). Since the people arrived at Sinai three months after the Exodus, they were at Sinai eight and one-half months. Part of that time Moses was on the mountain (40 days, 24:18; and another 40 days for the covenant renewal, 34:28). So perhaps about six and one-half months were involved in gathering the materials and constructing the tabernacle. Those months were from about mid-September to late March.

Moses did as God commanded. Seven times in this chapter Moses is said to have done exactly as the Lord commanded him (vv. 19, 21, 23, 25-26, 29, 32). The Testimony  placed in the ark refers to the two tablets of stone. Of particular interest in this passage is the fact that Moses appears to have ministered as a priest until Aaron was installed: Moses … burned … incense (40:27) on the golden altar of incense and he offered … burnt offerings and grain offerings on the altar of burnt offering.

God’s promise “I will dwell among the Israelites and be their God,” 29:45 was fulfilled as the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. The cloud, symbolic of the Lord’s presence, had filled the temporary tent outside the camp only on occasions. Now, however, it came to fill the tabernacle. In fact even Moses, who had seen something of God’s glory (33:18-23), was now unable to enter the tabernacle.

Encampment with Tabernacle

The cloud that had guided the Israelites when they set out from Succoth (13:20-22) now dwelt among them to lead them to the land of promise (40:36-39). As the cloud lifted the people would travel. If it stayed over the tabernacle but was not lifted from above it, the nation did not travel. The sovereign God of heaven had taken a people in slavery, delivered them in power, made a covenant with them, and established them into a theocracy, a nation under God on earth. The sign of the covenant was the Sabbath, and its regulations (stipulations) were the Law which included the Ten Commandments and various civil and ceremonial ordinances. The book ends on a strong positive note: God was with the nation, and He was guiding them on to the Promised Land.

The Man Moses #14

The Lord said to me,.."I will test my people with a plumbline. Amos 7:8 (TLB)

The Plumbline is a blog to encourage the Body of Christ.

The Man Moses #14

The Tabernacle in the Midst of Hebrew Camp  

The Building of the Tabernacle: Exodus 36:8 (NLT) The skilled craftsmen made ten curtains of finely woven linen for the Tabernacle. Then Bezalel decorated the curtains with blue, purple, and scarlet thread and with skillfully embroidered cherubim.

The commencement of the work (36:2-7) Bezalel and Oholiab took oversight of the project with every skilled person to whom the Lord had given ability and who was willing to... work. Again the emphasis is on the willingness of the people to participate with labor and materials. In fact the people brought so many materials—even more than enough—that they had to be restrained. An inventory of materials brought is included in 38:21-31.

Exodus 26:36 (NLT) “Make another curtain for the entrance to the sacred tent. Make it of finely woven linen and embroider it with exquisite designs, using blue, purple, and scarlet thread. The curtain at the tent’s entrance was to be of the same materials as the inner curtain, but apparently without the cherubim embroidery. Also the bases for the golden posts were to be bronze, not silver (cf. V. 32), because this curtain would be part of the exterior that had bronze throughout. This curtain was supported by five posts, not four as with the inner curtain (cf. V. 32). With more posts in the 15’ opening, the spaces for entering the tabernacle itself were narrower than the spaces between the four posts at the entrance into the most holy place. A careful study reveals that the instructions for the overall construction of the Tabernacle were precise, demanding and were not negotiable.

The Altar of Burnt Offering: Exodus 27:1-2 (NLT) 1 “Using acacia wood, construct a square altar 71/2 feet wide, 71/2 feet long, and 41/2 feet high. 2 Make horns for each of its four corners so that the horns and altar are all one piece. Overlay the altar with bronze. In giving instructions about the tabernacle God progressed from within (the ark and the atonement cover) outward to the courtyard outside the tabernacle. In the courtyard was an altar called “the altar of burnt offering” (30:28; Lev. 4:7, 10, 18) and “the bronze altar” (Ex. 38:30). Unlike the altar of incense (30:1-10), this was an altar for animal sacrifices. It was to be made of acacia wood, was 7-1/2’ square and 4-1/2’ high, with a horn (a projection that looked like an animal horn) at each of the four corners, overlaid with bronze. The utensils with it were to be of bronze also (27:3). The horns were to be covered with blood at the consecration of the priests (29:1, 10-12; Lev. 8:14-15; 9:9) and on the Day of Atonement (Lev. 16:18). The grating, or bronze network, placed on a ledge within and halfway up the altar (a little more than 2’ up) helped reinforce the altar and may have been the place where the animal meat was cooked. Poles were also to be overlaid with bronze and inserted into bronze rings at the altar’s corners for use in carrying the altar. The bottom half of the altar was to be hollow but it may later have been filled with small stones, not with earth as some suggest, with the fire being built on the rocks. The exact location of this altar is not given but it was “at [just inside] the entrance to the tabernacle” (40:29). The basin was between it and the tabernacle (30:18). This altar illustrates the fact that one can approach God only through sacrifice; only by sacrifice is sin atoned for. On this altar—the first object a worshiper saw in the tabernacle courtyard—sacrifices for sin were continually being made. The ultimate Sacrifice was Jesus Christ (Heb. 10:1-18).

This Tabernacle was a copy of the Tabernacle in Heaven. It was an EXACT copy and filled with spiritual meaning. Hebrews 9:11-15 (NLT) 11 So Christ has now become the High Priest over all the good things that have come. He has entered that greater, more perfect Tabernacle in heaven, which was not made by human hands...he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever....

For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins.  To do so is to retain the hope of an eternal inheritance (cf. “eternal redemption” in v. 12 and “the eternal Spirit” in v. 14) which has been promised to recipients of New-Covenant life.

The Man Moses #13

The Lord said to me,.."I will test my people with a plumbline. Amos 7:8 (TLB)

The Plumbline is a blog to encourage the Body of Christ.

The Man Moses #13

Pacification By Moses

Remember when Moses delayed his decent from the mountain the people got nervous and persuaded Aaron to make a golden calf so they could worship the idol. These actions prompted God to address Moses in verse ten.

Exodus 32:10 (NKJV) 10 Now therefore, let Me alone, that My wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them. And I will make of you a great nation.”

Make of you a great nation—Care must be taken not to suppose this language as offering any change or vacillation in God’s divine purpose. The covenant made with the patriarchs had been ratified in the most solemn manner; it could not and never was intended that it should be broken. But the manner in which God spoke to Moses served two important purposes—it tended to develop the faith and intercessory patriotism of the Hebrew leader, and to excite the serious alarm of the people, that God would reject them and deprive them of the privileges they had fondly fancied were so secure.

Pacification By Moses: Moses attempts to pacify the Lord his God. “O Lord!” he said. “Why are you so angry with your own people whom you brought from the land of Egypt with such great power and such a strong hand?  Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.* You bound yourself with an oath to them, saying, ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars of heaven. And I will give them all of this land that I have promised to your descendants, and they will possess it forever. So the Lord changed his mind about the terrible disaster he had threatened to bring on his people.

Moses turned, and went down from the mount— he heard the shouting some time before they actually saw the camp. The Israelites were reveling around the Golden Calf.

Moses’ anger waxed hot, and he cast the tables out of his hands—The arrival of the leader, like the appearance of a specter, arrested the revellers in the midst of their carnival, and his act of righteous indignation when he dashed on the ground the tables of the law, in token that as they had so soon departed from their covenant relation, so God could withdraw the peculiar privileges that He had promised them—that act, together with the rigorous measures that followed, forms one of the most striking scenes recorded in sacred history.

Moses took the calf which they had made, and burnt it in the fire—It has been supposed that the gold was dissolved by some chemical substance. But there is no mention of solubility here, or in De 9:21; it was “burned in the fire,” to cast it into ingots of suitable size for the operations which follow—“grounded to powder”; the powder of malleable metals can be ground so fine as to resemble dust from the wings of a moth or butterfly; and these dust particles will float in water for hours, and in a running stream for days. These operations of grinding were intended to show contempt for such worthless gods, and the Israelites would be made to remember the humiliating lesson by the state of the water they had drunk for a time [Napier]. Others think that as the idolatrous festivals were usually ended with great use of sweet wine, the nauseous draught of the gold dust would be a severe punishment (compare 2Ki 23:6, 15; 2Ch 15:16; 34:7).

Naked—either unarmed and defenseless, or ashamed from a sense of guilt. Some think they were literally naked, as their enemies performed some of their rites in that indecent manner.

Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said—The camp is supposed to have been protected by a rampart after the attack of the Amalekites.

Who is on the Lord’s side? let him come unto me—The zeal and courage of Moses was astonishing, considering he opposed an intoxicated mob. The people were separated into two divisions, and those who were the boldest and most obstinate in vindicating their idolatry were put to death, while the rest, who withdrew in shame or sorrow, were spared.

Consecrate yourselves to-day to the Lord—or, “Ye have consecrated yourselves to-day.” The Levites, notwithstanding the dejection of Aaron, distinguished themselves by their zeal for the honor of God and their conduct in doing the office of executioners on this occasion; and this was one reason that they were appointed to a high and honorable office in the service.

Exodus 32:31-35 31 So Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Oh, what a terrible sin these people have committed. They have made gods of gold for themselves. 32 But now, if you will only forgive their sin—but if not, erase my name from the record you have written!” 33 But the Lord replied to Moses, “No, I will erase the name of everyone who has sinned against me. 34 Now go, lead the people to the place I told you about. Look! My angel will lead the way before you. And when I come to call the people to account, I will certainly hold them responsible for their sins.” 35 Then the Lord sent a great plague upon the people because they had worshiped the calf Aaron had made.

The Man Moses # 12

The Lord said to me,.."I will test my people with a plumbline. Amos 7:8 (TLB)

The Plumbline is a blog to encourage the Body of Christ.

The Man Moses # 12

Moses

Exodus 32:1 NKJV    Now when the people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain, the people gathered together to Aaron, and said to him, “Come, make us gods that shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.”

When the people saw that Moses delayed—They supposed that he had lost his way in the darkness or perished in the fire.

The people gathered themselves together unto Aaron—rather, “against” Aaron in a tumultuous manner, to compel him to do what they wished. The incidents related in this chapter disclose a state of popular sentiment and feeling among the Israelites that stands in singular contrast to the tone of profound and humble reverence they displayed at the giving of the law. Within a space of little more than thirty days, their impressions were dissipated. Although they were still encamped upon ground which they had every reason to regard as holy; although the cloud of glory that capped the summit of Sinai was still before their eyes, affording a visible demonstration of their being in close contact, or rather in the immediate presence, of God, they acted as if they had entirely forgotten the impressive scenes of which they had been so recently the witnesses.

They said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us—The Hebrew word rendered “gods” is simply the name of God in its plural form. The image made was single, and therefore it would be imputing to the Israelites a greater sin than they were guilty of, to charge them with renouncing the worship of the true God for idols. The fact is, that they required, like children, to have something to strike their senses, and as the Shekinah, “the glory of God,” of which they had hitherto enjoyed the sight, was now veiled, they wished for some visible material object as the symbol of the divine presence, which should go before them as the pillar of fire had done.

Fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf—The words are transposed, and the rendering should be, “he framed with a graving tool the image to be made, and having poured the liquid gold into the mould, he made it a molten calf.”  This idol seems to have been the god Apis, the chief deity of the Egyptians, worshipped at Memphis under the form of a live ox, three years old. It was distinguished by a triangular white spot on its forehead and other peculiar marks.

They said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt—It is inconceivable that they, who but a few weeks before had witnessed such amazing demonstrations of the true God, could have suddenly sunk to such a pitch of infatuation and brutish stupidity, as to imagine that human art or hands could make a god that should go before them. But it must be kept in mind, that though by election and in name they were the people of God, however, in feelings and associations, in habits and tastes, little, if at all different, from Egyptians. They meant the calf to be an image, a visible sign or symbol of Jehovah, this is a breach of the second commandment [Ex 20:4–6].

Exodus 32:7–8 (NKJV) 7 And the Lord said to Moses, “Go, get down! For your people whom you brought out of the land of Egypt have corrupted themselves. 8 They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them.

It is inconceivable that these Israelites, who but for a few weeks earlier had witnessed such amazing demonstrations of the true God. Think of the great deliverance at the Reed Sea; the provision of mana; bitter water made drinkable via a tree branch; water from a rock.

We are not that much different than these Hebrews of old!