Coming to Life: Numbers

Welcome to Coming to Life, a one-year journey through God's Word. My name is Katie Haack. If you are like I was, then you might feel like reading the Bible is tough, especially the Old Testament. I mean, Genesis is fun because it's full of amazing stories, and Exodus is great because you read about God speaking through a burning bush and parting the Red Sea. But then the rest of the books of the law kind of go downhill. Especially books like Numbers. You might just be skimming through all of the names so that you can check off your list that you read the book. That's literally what I did the first several times I read Numbers. Now that I understand the purpose of it, I actually really enjoy reading it. I hope that after today you feel the same way. The author, like the other books we've been studying, is Moses. Again, this book was written to the Israelites. They are still sitting at the bottom of Mount Sinai. They went there after they escaped from Egypt. They got the Ten Commandments here and built the tabernacle. They are finally preparing to start the journey to the Promised Land. This is a tragic story of Israel's unbelief, but a beautiful portrayal of God's mercy and grace. It starts with God telling Moses to number the people. During a census, all the tribes would be counted except the tribe of Levi. This census is a symbol of God's love for his people. Each person is so priceless to him that he takes the time to count them one by one. He then arranges the position of each tribe. He is residing in the tabernacle, which is to be at the center. He promises to protect them, provide for them, and guide them. Then the Levites, or the priests, are to surround the tabernacle. The twelve tribes surround them.

Three on the north, three on the south, three on the east, and three on the west. God wants you to see early on that when you put him at the center of your life, he will protect, provide, and guide you. God's presence was like a cloud, and it remained with them day and night. During the night, it looked like fire, and during the day, like a pillar. When the cloud moved, the Israelites knew it was time to pack up and follow it. As the people began traveling, though, they began to complain. Moses' own sister and brother even turned against him. Remember, they were rescued from slavery, fed food that fell from the sky, given water from rocks, saw the very presence of God fill the tabernacle, and were now following a cloud toward the most amazing land in the entire world, but they were unhappy. While we see some partial punishments by God, we see much more of his mercy as he continues to protect and provide and guide, despite their complaints. As the Israelites get closer to the promised land, Moses sends twelve spies out to check on the land, one from each of the twelve tribes. Ten of them come back terrified, believing that even though God saved them from the Egyptians, he could not save them from the Canaanites, who were currently living in the promised land. Two of those spies, Joshua and Caleb, had faith and encouraged the people to go. The people panicked and refused. They actually wanted to return to Egypt, while God gave them what they wanted. He told them that they would never enter the promised land. But because of his loving kindness, he did not want their children to suffer in slavery. So instead of allowing them to go back to Egypt, he instead allowed them to wander in the wilderness until that generation passed away, and then the children could make their own choice to go into the promised land. In the meantime, the Levites start complaining. They become jealous of Aaron's role. God punished them by opening up the earth and having it swallow some of them, and then sending fire from heaven to consume the rest.

Fun fact, some of them survived. The sons of a man named Korah, who was the very man who headed the rebellion against Aaron, lived. They worshiped God for many generations, fought beside King David, and then gave us eleven of the Psalms. The people still complain. At one point, Moses gets so angry, he defies God and then tries to take partial credit for all of the blessings God is giving the people. So he is told he also does not get to enter the promised land. You should be noticing a theme by now. You have a choice to trust God, follow him, and be rewarded with his incredible blessings. Or you can get frustrated when things don't go the way you think they should. You can complain when it's not happening fast enough. You can fear the people God has put in front of you. and you can try to take matters into your own hands. But, as you can clearly see, that choice comes with great tragedy. Sadly, many of us make it every single day. So time goes on. There's some other really cool stories you can read about. Most of the people who were numbered in the beginning of the book have now died, and the Israelites finally arrive just across the river from the promised land. They are about to enter. The people residing in the promised land get nervous seeing all of these Israelites, and they hire a prophet to try to curse them. It is a great story. He ends up not being able to say anything negative against them,

even though he wants to, and ends up blessing them instead. Read it. You will get to hear a donkey talk, even. Throughout this book, we are reminded that God is our protector, our provider, and our guide. This was true back in the days of Moses, and it is still true today. If you allow God to be the leader of your life, he will take you places you could never get to on your own. He will protect you in ways you can't always see, and he will provide for all of your needs. I hope that the information shared today helps you grasp how interesting the Bible is so you develop a passion for reading it. I pray that as you dig into scripture and go through your workbook, God speaks to you in exciting new ways, and your spirit begins coming to life. God bless. God bless. God bless. God bless.