Numbers 14-15

“Let us choose a leader and go back to Egypt.” (14:4). Despite the pleadings of Moses and Aaron, Caleb and Joshua, the rest of the Israelites rejected God’s promise of a new life and wanted to go back to their slavery in Egypt. Only Moses’ appeal to God’s character - “slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love” - kept them from being wiped out. The Promised Land was closed to them, although their children went in. 

The Promised Land, Canaan, pointed toward the life God

Numbers 13

“We seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers” (v33). The appointed Israelite soldiers who “spied out” the Promised Land saw all its amazing potential, including “milk and honey” and abundant fruit. Yet their attention was focused on the people they saw, descendants of Anak, related to the infamous, dangerous Nephilim (Gen 6:4). Caleb saw the same threat but declared, “We are well able to overcome it” (v30). The others, seeing only their weakness compared to the enemies’ stre

Numbers 11-12

“And the people of Israel also wept again and said, ‘Oh that we had meat to eat!’” (11:4). The anger of the Lord “blazed” at the Israelites not about meat, but because they had rejected his presence (11:20). They let the cravings of the “rabble” convince them to scorn their rescue from slavery and the miraculous manna that sustained them (11:4-6). Moses was so disgusted that he said to the Lord, “Kill me at once” (11:15). Miriam and Aaron showed a similar disregard for Go

Mark 4:21-41

 “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” (v41). Jesus taught about the kingdom of God to a very religious society that had, in many ways, domesticated the faith of Abraham and Moses by putting it under human control. Jesus’ stories cut through cultural misunderstandings, insisting that God’s kingdom requires real participation (v24), grows in unexpected ways and places (v27) and might look insignificant in the world’s eyes (v31). 

“Peace, be still!” (v

Mark 4:1-20

 “Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow” (v3). Jesus’ teaching stories (parables) invited listeners to ask more questions and go deeper (v9). Through the image of a seed, Jesus indicated what might prevent people (us) from believing the gospel, understanding, growing, and bearing fruit. We can simply disregard truth (v15), or we can ‘believe’ in a shallow way that wilts under difficulty. Or, the “cares of the world” and “desire for other things” may displace loyalty to

Psalm 22

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (v1). In his darkest moment, Jesus uttered these painful words on the cross. The psalm expresses the despair and abandonment that is common to humanity because of sin, disaster, illness, and loneliness. For our sakes, the Messiah lived this experience: “I cry by day, but you do not answer; and by night, but I find no rest” (v2). Yet his life affirmed that the Father is holy and faithful (v3-5), and through his resurrection our o

Numbers 8-10

“At the command of the Lord they camped, and at the command of the Lord they set out” (9:23). During their long wilderness journey, the Israelites were learning to obey God. They learned to follow set rhythms of work, rest, and worship, such as Sabbaths and yearly feasts like Passover. They also learned to watch for God’s presence in the cloud over the tabernacle; when it lifted, they moved. Whether they had been camping “two days, a month, or a longer time”, they obeyed

Numbers 6-7

“The chiefs of Israel ... approached and brought their offerings before the Lord” (7:1-3). On the day when the tabernacle was completed, the first to approach with offerings and sacrifices were the “chiefs” of each tribe. These leaders demonstrated to everyone what it looked like to belong to God’s community. While the Levites served in place of Israel’s first-born (8:11,18), the chiefs led in generous giving. They offered resources (wagons and oxen), gifts for the sanctu

Numbers 4-5

“As the camp sets out, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry these, but they must not touch the holy things, lest they die” (4:15). The Kohath men waited for the priests to cover the worship objects before carrying them. Nothing about the “holy things” was inherently dangerous, yet because God was present, these ordinary things had to be handled with care. The “test” for adultery, likewise, was harmless (dust and water), and only carried consequences if the Lo

Mark 3

“And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him” (v2). Jesus was full of healing power, yet some people desired only to control, accuse, and judge him. Their “hardness of heart” was so great that they could not rejoice at the healing of a disabled man. They had the opportunity to join the crowds who followed Jesus and experienced deliverance (v7,15), but instead they saw the Holy One and rejected him (v22-30).

“And he

Mark 2:18-28

“Why do John's disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” (v18). The religious leaders wanted to see Jesus as just another good Rabbi who taught his disciples to be righteous. But Jesus was the Messiah, the fulfiller of Israel’s hopes, not another teacher emphasizing cultural traditions. Time with him was celebration, although suffering was coming (v19-20). The Messiah King had the right to interpret and re-orient all of life, incl

Mark 2:1-17

“And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and ... they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay” (v4). Those seeking healing for their brokenness, like the paralytic and his friends, were so drawn to Jesus that they took apart a roof. Like Levi leaving behind his job (v14), they did everything possible to get close to the One who spoke with love and authority. Others, convinced they were righteous, focused on purity co

Psalm 21

“O Lord, in your strength the king rejoices, and in your salvation how greatly he exults!” (v1). Within the psalmist’s God-centered worldview, the highest person in the land rejoiced and exulted in the One whose greatness humbles us all. Glory, life, splendor and majesty, rich blessings – all come from the hand of the Creator. The good king does not self-promote; he does not overestimate his own power. He trusts in the Lord (v7) in good times and hard times (v11).

“Through

Numbers 2-3

According to Exodus 13, every firstborn male was claimed by God for His service. In the census of Numbers 2:32, a total of 603,550 fighting men were identified, of whom 22,273 were “firstborn”, Num. 3:43. God had chosen the whole tribe of Levi as a substitute, a ransom for the “firstborn” of the rest of Israel, Num. 3:12. But when the Levites were numbered, there were only 22,000, Num. 3:39. Who would take the place of the 273? God’s solution was a ransom price for each i

Numbers 1

God spoke to Moses: “Take a census of all the congregation of the sons of Israel… by their families, by their father’s household,” Numbers 1:1,2. This was a military census, so the focus was on males of a certain age. Reasons for the census included their need of organization. There could be no plan, no leadership, no accountability without the information.

God was not wanting Israel to put their trust in the size of their army; He had already defeated the army of Egypt wh