Today's readings from the One Year Chronological Reading Plan are Numbers 27-29:40.
Today I will focus on Chapter 27. The short story of the daughters of Zelophehad is very interesting (and explains why they were included in the census in Chapter 26). Their father had no sons and they wanted to ensure that they had an inheritance so that their father's name would not disappear from his clan.
This was a new situation that hadn't been brought up before. And Moses handled this new situation the same way we should when faced with a new situation that we're unsure of what to do - he sought the Lord. He didn't just make a decision based on his knowledge or what he thought would be the right thing to do, he took it to God.
This is a good reminder for me. I think often we just rely on our knowledge, our common sense, our past experience, our intelligence, to be able to come up with the right decision when faced with something new. But we need to remember to take it to God - in Him alone is wisdom.
Secondly - this request of these 5 women shows that they are women of faith. They hadn't even stepped foot into the promised land yet, nevermind conquered it. But these women show that they had complete faith that what God promised would come to pass, and they were making plans based on that faith.
What a great reminder for us - to make plans based on our faith in God. What He has promised He will do.
The story of Moses "passing the torch" (Olympics are just finished after all!) to Joshua is a great one. When God let Moses know that he would be able to see the land from the mountain and that he would soon die, Moses did not argue with God or try to change his mind. Instead, Moses' concern was, as always, for the people and finding a suitable leader for them. He relied on God to pick his successor, instead of picking one himself. My guess is that had it been up to Moses, he would've picked Joshua too. But he didn't assume that what he wanted was what God wanted. He went to Him in prayer and waited for His direction - and then he acted on it!
This all happened a couple months before Moses' death. He took the time to prepare the next leader, so he would be ready to fulfill his new responsibilities. Joshua wouldn't commune with God directly like Moses had, but he would work with Eleazer the priest who would use the Urim and Thummim to determine God's will.
And he commissioned him in front of all the Israelites so that they would know that Joshua had God's blessing as the new leader, and that Moses also fully supported this decision.
One thing that definitely helped prepare Joshua to take over Moses role of leader of the people of Israel was his role as Moses' humble helper for many years. It doesn't sound like he had any prior ambitions to take over any leadership role. He was content in his role as Moses' helper, and when called on to spy out Canaan and report on it, he demonstrated his faithfulness in God that God would conquer the giants and they would have the victory as God promised. He was faithful in what he was given, and God rewarded him with greater responsibility.
Tomorrow's readings: Numbers 30:1-31:54.
3 comments:
I've always thought Moses would have picked Joshua on his own, too, but been impressed that he still sought God's will despite most likely having a favourite in mind.
It stood out for me too, this time, that after Moses, the leaders of Israel would no longer be directly communicating with God, but would be advised by God through the priest. I've never really thought about it before, but I guess that's kind of a symbol of how Jesus removed His physical presence from among us here on earth after His resurrection, but He left with us His Holy Spirit who acts in a similar intercessory, priestly role in each of our lives. Cool.
Great thoughts about bringing our decisions to God even though we often forget or think it is a decision we can make on our own based on whatever knowledge or capabilities we already have. Thanks for the reminder!
Tammi - the one difference between the two parallels would be that the OT example would be a bit of a let down to go from direct communication to relying on the Umim and Thummim through the priest. The NT example could be considered a let down as far as we don't get to physically see Jesus anymore, but on the other hand the Holy Spirit is able to be with all believers at the same time.
Post a Comment