Lev, Num, & Deut

G.K. Chesterton, “and the more I considered Christianity, the more I found that while it established a rule and order, the chief aim of that order was to give room for good things to run wild. “ This week our speaker was Kesia Nylund. We finished week two of DBS and went over the Pentateuch!

The old covenant and laws were for the Israelites during that time. Israel could reach God through the Priests who were chosen and set apart therefore the Nations could reach God through Israel who were chosen and set apart. The new covenant and laws are for all the people post Jesus including us. God’s people get to God through Jesus the great high priest therefore the nations get to God through God’s people who are a kingdom of priests and holy nation (1 Peter 2:9)… that’s us as Christians!

The book of Numbers was set up to read laws and then a narrative of how it played out and it would go back and forth like so. Reuben, Simeon, Gad, Ephraim, and Naphtali had been cursed by their life choices and then we can see how God carried that out as their population of descendants decreased from Sinai (Numbers 1) to Moab (Numbers 26). Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Manasseh, Benjamin, Dan, and Asher had been blessed by God and then we can see how their numbers therefore increase. This is why the Book of Numbers is called numbers because they tallied up the people and took a census.

(Numbers 21:4-9) Have you ever noticed that the symbol for pharmacy is a snake on a pole, a lot similar to how the Israelites were healed if they simply looked at the bronze snake on the pole? More evidence of how the Bible shapes a lot of society today even for non-Christians. Celebration is a spiritual discipline. No earthly king can promise blessings or curses, therefore, God is setting Himself up to be their king.

(Deuteronomy 28:1-6, 15-19) In the Old Testament, life was neutral but God would bless those who keep His commandments and curse those who go against Him. In today’s world, post-new covenant, Jesus tells us that we will all go through storms but how faithful you are to God will determine how stable your foundation is. (Matthew 7:24-27)

The Tabernacle is a tent they would set up as they moved from place to place following God's lead from a cloud or pillar of fire, so it had to be easily packable. The ark was where His presence dwelled in a room in the Tabernacle where only the holiest of holies could go. Holiness to God can lead to holiness to others. Moses writes all of the Torah (Gen, Ex, Lev, Num, Deut) and he is very repetitive and detailed, but this is as God had commanded him. When Moses died, his second hand then finished the story for him. (Deuteronomy 6:4-7) Love is not just a feeling but an action.