Tag: Numbers

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His Face Shine on You – Numbers 6:22-27

The concept of light is seen very early in the Bible – almost immediately, as God separates light and darkness, order and chaos. He does this in our lives today as well.

This passage is still used today as a Priestly Benediction – the Aaronic priests were instructed to bless the people with this same benediction, and both Christians and Jews still use these words in blessing today. (In fact, Gene Roddenberry used this as the model for the Vulcan “live long and prosper.”

The Ketef Hinnom scrolls, discovered in 1979 are the oldest biblical texts found, dating from 600 BC, and contain this blessing.

The structure here includes a preface and a postscript, opening with the instructions to the priests about how to use the words. The blessing specifically references Yahweh, the Covenant Name of God, pointing back to the promise made to Abraham, and to the love and mercy of God, in contrast with Elohim, the term for God that speaks more to His strength and justice. The pronoun used here is the second person singular, not plural, like your might expect, a reminder that this covenant relationship is not only a corporate thing, but intensely personal between each person and their Creator.

The blessing itself grows progressively, with each line being longer than the one before, a growing tide of blessing that builds on itself. The term “bless” here is barak which also means “kneel” and is an intimate picture of a father kneeling to comfort a child. The term “keep” is “shamar” which can also mean to watch and guard.

This concept is continued in the next verse, where the face – in fact, the plural “faces,” possibly a reference to the Trinity – shines on us. His face becomes the illumination to our lives, His guidance the direction for our actions. But that comes in the midst of Him being gracious to us, “to bend or stoop in kindness to an inferior”. This is the grace made ultimate on the cross and offered to each of us through that work of sacrifice.

The next verse returns to the Face of God, which turns to us, in contrast to turning away. This combined with the kneeling imagery creates an intimate picture of our relationship with God, going beyond the transactional concept that we often think about in relation to how we interact with God.

The blessing then closes with the concept of shalom, nor merely the absence of conflict but the restoration of relationships and the making whole and complete what was broken – personally, societally, environmentally, restoration in all things.

Lord, help us to receive this blessing, pass this blessing on and play a part in bringing this blessing to pass.

— Sermon Notes, Dave Sim, Renew Church, Lynnwood WA, February 5, 2023

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Leading & Following – Numbers 11:1-15

This passage raises two important questions: what does it mean to be a good leader? And what does it mean to be a good follower? All of us play both roles in different parts of our lives, and this passage gives us a look at both sides of the equation.

At this point in the story of the Exodus, the Israelites are in the desert, the wilderness of Paran in what is now Saudi Arabia, dependent on manna for food.

They have come out of slavery, but have forgotten the bad parts of that life and now only remember the food. They have received miraculous sustenance but now it has become mundane and they are tired of it. They complain to Moses and Moses in turn complains to God. He is in over his head and wants to give up entirely.

The Bible is an honest book. It does not present “10 Easy Rules for Being a Leader” or even a follower. Instead, we get this story of a bunch of sinful people flailing around in the desert. But even then, there are important lessons we can take.

All of us are leaders in one form or another, whether in our family, work, community or other circumstance. All of it comes with similar challenges that can make our leadership ineffective.

First, the temptation of power is always present, and even the smallest amount of power can be abused.

Second, the responsibility of leadership can feel overwhelming, and it is easy to feel inadequate just like Moses did.

Third, sin can disrupt your leadership. We have seen this all too often in the Christian ministry world. All leaders sin, but there are sins that can entirely undermine your leadership, if they strike at the very foundation of what made you a leader in the first place.

There are also things that can make bring a follower difficult. If we have a lack of trust in our leaders, if we are in the midst of a transition, these and more can make life as a follower difficult.

Fortunately, we have the perfect leader as our example in Christ. First, we are to be servant leaders, willing to do the lowliest task. We are to maintain the highest moral and ethical standards.

We can also learn from Christ how to be a follower. First, we must not follow blindly, but be discerning in who we follow and how we follow. The scriptures are an authority over any Christian leader. Second, we must keep perspective and not lose context the way the Israelites did. And third, we must pray for our leaders, whether in the church, in the workplace, in the government or wherever we find them.

One thing to be careful about as either a leader or a follower is seeing our goal, our Promised Land, as the necessary step before we can really be with God. “Once we get to this point, then we can finally know God.” But in reality, God is with us all throughout the journey.

– Sermon Notes, Dave Lester, Seed Church, Lynnwood, WA, June 9, 2019