Dana Hagstrom – Be Still…

Numbers 15:32-41 – Sabbath & Tassels

Read Numbers 15:32-41

Moses’ word from God here about what happens to those who break the Sabbath is quite something. It helps me understand a little bit why the religious leaders in Jesus’ day were so aghast at the times they witnessed Jesus himself breaking Sabbath to heal someone or feed his disciples.

In an episode from “The Chosen,” Jesus and his followers were depicted as having had stones thrown at them in payment of times Jesus had healed on the Sabbath. The healing itself would have given them something to talk about even if it hadn’t been so blatantly on a Sabbath. What was Jesus’ response? Continue reading “Numbers 15:32-41 – Sabbath & Tassels”

Numbers 15:1-31 – Getting Right With God

Read Numbers 15:1-31

If you’ve spent any time studying in the Law of Moses, it seems that the rite of sacrifices comes up often. Have you ever found it curious that God used all these lovely aromas as a way of forgiving his people?

It wasn’t just burnt offerings of animals, but grain offerings, oil offerings, and now liquid wine offerings. These instructions are set to go into effect when the people reach their new land. Presumably, this will be a young crew of Israelites since none of the older ones who had been complaining would see the Promised Land. Continue reading “Numbers 15:1-31 – Getting Right With God”

Numbers 14:26-45 – Learn Our Lesson

Read Numbers 14:26-45

The LORD’s punishment needed more explanation. Now we can more accurately imagine what happened in those days between God and his people. Those rebellious ones gave us so many examples of what not to do if we are trying to make God-honoring choices.

The people of Israel were in denial. They couldn’t believe God would put them out into the wilderness only for them to perish. God was only doing that as a consequence for the people’s disobedience. Their sentence to death in the wilderness was only because of their own stumble. Continue reading “Numbers 14:26-45 – Learn Our Lesson”

Numbers 14:1-25 – When We Rebel

Read Numbers 14:1-25

How brave are you when venturing into the unknown? I think of Abraham and Sarah leaving all that was familiar to follow God’s leading. Even closer to home, I remember packing up our Prius with the necessities of life and our four dogs and crossing the border into Mexico.

It’s natural to be wary of new things. But I think Moses’ crowd of followers went a little overboard in their dramatic rebellion! I felt sorry for Moses and Aaron who “fell face down on the ground,” no doubt questioning everything about their leadership, feeling like they had let the people down. Continue reading “Numbers 14:1-25 – When We Rebel”

Numbers 13:1-33 – Too Scary!

Read Numbers 13:1-33

The Promised Land is right there, close enough to scout out. Moses assigns leaders from each tribe to enter the land and bring back a detailed report of what they find. They had quite a list of things to investigate before the people were ready to claim the land God had promised them.

If you’ve ever moved to a new place, chances are you checked it out ahead of time. What sorts of things are important to you? For us moving to Mexico, we had a whole spreadsheet of things we wanted to check on like medical care, access to air transportation, housing, climate, etc. If we had had young children, investigating the school system would have been a must. Continue reading “Numbers 13:1-33 – Too Scary!”