Nazirite Separation for God. Numbers 5-6; Mark 16

May the mumbling commence!

I have been preparing to portray John the Baptist in a play that I wrote for church, so I’ve been thinking some about the Nazirite vow.  For that reason, the sixth chapter of Numbers caught my eye.  Read from the beginning of the chapter below:

Then the Lord said to Moses, "Speak to the people of Israel and give them these instructions:  If some of the people, either men or women, take the special vow of a Nazirite, setting themselves apart to the Lord in a special way,  they must give up wine and other alcoholic drinks. They must not use vinegar made from wine, they must not drink other fermented drinks or fresh grape juice, and they must not eat grapes or raisins.  As long as they are bound by their Nazirite vow, they are not allowed to eat or drink anything that comes from a grapevine, not even the grape seeds or skins. 

They must never cut their hair throughout the time of their vow, for they are holy and set apart to the Lord. That is why they must let their hair grow long.  And they may not go near a dead body during the entire period of their vow to the Lord, even if their own father, mother, brother, or sister has died. They must not defile the hair on their head, because it is the symbol of their separation to God.  This applies as long as they are set apart to the Lord. (Verses 1-8)

Because of the famous figures who were Nazirites, I had always thought of the vow was for men.  Though, if I would have thought about it, both Samson’s and John’s mother took the vow of the Nazirite during their pregnancies.  This vow was equally open to women and men.

What does the vow consist of?  There will be no alcoholic beverages.  Period.  Anything off the grape vine was out of the question.  And a barber was out of the question.  Long hair was a symbol to mark Nazirites as set apart to the Lord is a special way.

So far so good!  I think I can handle all these requirements… for a time.  But another part of being a Nazirite meant that there was to be no contact with a dead body.  I could not go to a funeral even of my father or mother or brother or sister.  That would be hard.  (And it is a requirement that was ignored by Samson.)

Set apart visibly for the Lord… by appearance, diet, and behavior.  That would be a conversation starter – make no mistake.  It would be a rich time to share the Good News of the Lord… to share our special blessing from God.  Like the one that ends Numbers chapter six.  Most of you have heard it in one form or another at some point.  Read it below:

'May the Lord bless you and protect you. 

May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. 

May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.' (Verses 24-26) 

What wonderful verbs!  May God bless and protect you.  May God smile on you and be gracious to you.  May God show favor to you and give you peace.  That is a wonderful place to be – in the hands of our loving and living Lord.  It is a reminder that God goes before us… just as Jesus went before his disciples as he had promised them.  Read from Mark chapter sixteen:

“Now go and give this message to his disciples, including Peter: Jesus is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there, just as he told you before he died!" (Verse 7)

What a grand Lord to devote ourselves to!

Enough mumbling for now…

Peace Out

Coming of Age; Numbers 2-4; Mark 15

May the mumbling commence!

When do people come of age?  When is someone seasoned enough to lead?  I have heard some people talk about thirty or thereabouts.  That benchmark seems to be true of those who were acceptable for service in the Tabernacle.  Read the recurring verse from Numbers chapter four:

Count all the men between the ages of thirty and fifty who qualify to work in the Tabernacle. (Verses 3; 23; 30; 35; 39; 43; 47) 

It seems there is a pattern here, doesn’t it?  There is a coming of age at about thirty.  Sure, a thirteen-year-old is considered an adult… but maturity for leadership does not blossom until age thirty.

Maybe we need to consider this point when we think about ministering to that age group from eighteen to twenty-nine.  These young men and women are still in the formation stage of adulthood – where patterns will be developed that will continue for the rest of their lives.  It is an important time.

This important formative time makes the missing twenty and thirty-something’s in the church even more distressing.  What call can we send out to connect with the young adult crowd?  It is an important question to answer if the church will remain healthy for the long term.  Each generation needs to solve this puzzle anew.

It is in the twenties and thirties when people adopt for themselves their own spirituality.  So, what will bring these young people back into relationship with the church?  Jesus has opened the way to God.  What will make this way attractive to young adults?  Read from Mark chapter fifteen:

At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until three o'clock.  Then, at that time Jesus called out with a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?" which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" 

Some of the bystanders misunderstood and thought he was calling for the prophet Elijah.  One of them ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, holding it up to him on a stick so he could drink. "Leave him alone. Let's see whether Elijah will come and take him down!" he said. 

Then Jesus uttered another loud cry and breathed his last.  And the curtain in the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.  When the Roman officer who stood facing him saw how he had died, he exclaimed, "Truly, this was the Son of God!" (Verses 33-39)  

In the deepest and darkest valley of the crucifixion, Jesus quotes from Psalm twenty-two.  Even from in that deepest and darkest valley – though he could not see the presence of the Father – Jesus was sure of the holiness of the Father.  Read from Psalm twenty-two:

Yet you are holy.

The praises of Israel surround your throne. 

Our ancestors trusted in you,

and you rescued them. 

You heard their cries for help and saved them.

They put their trust in you and were never disappointed. (Verses 3-5)

It was this enormous faith in the Lord that led to the curtain in the Temple being torn in two.  No longer was there a curtain separating people from the Lord.  That curtain was torn from top to bottom.  That means that there was no human part to that equation.  It was a amazing work of the Lord.

Enough mumbling for now… 

Peace Out

Extravagant Love! Mark 14 (Numbers 1-2)

May the mumbling commence!

Well, we have finished Leviticus (YEAH!) only to move onto Numbers (OH!).  And the first couple of chapters of Numbers did not strike any chords in my spirit this morning.  That is the advantage of reading in the Old and New Testaments simultaneously.

After reading about the ornate Tabernacle, it seems appropriate to meditate a little on this passage from Mark chapter fourteen.  Read the beginning of Mark chapter fourteen:

It was now two days before the Passover celebration and the Festival of Unleavened Bread. The leading priests and the teachers of religious law were still looking for an opportunity to capture Jesus secretly and put him to death.  "But not during the Passover," they agreed, "or there will be a riot." 

Meanwhile, Jesus was in Bethany at the home of Simon, a man who had leprosy. During supper, a woman came in with a beautiful jar of expensive perfume. She broke the seal and poured the perfume over his head.  Some of those at the table were indignant. "Why was this expensive perfume wasted?" they asked.  "She could have sold it for a small fortune and given the money to the poor!" And they scolded her harshly. 

But Jesus replied, "Leave her alone. Why berate her for doing such a good thing to me?  You will always have the poor among you, and you can help them whenever you want to. But I will not be here with you much longer.  She has done what she could and has anointed my body for burial ahead of time.  I assure you, wherever the Good News is preached throughout the world, this woman's deed will be talked about in her memory." (Verses 1-9)

How extravagant this anointing was!  That perfume was worth a small fortune… a year’s worth of wages.  It is far too easy in Mennonite and Church of the Brethren circles to join the chorus of the people at the table.  SELL THAT PERFUME AND GIVE THE MONEY TO THE POOR!

And Jesus agreed, right?  Nope.  If we side with the people around the table who were berating the woman, we would have gotten the same stern lesson from Jesus.

We will always have the poor among us.  Those are hard words to hear.  But Jesus does say them.  Jesus knew that the disciples would not always have him.  It is good to show honor to our Lord and Savior.

Acts of extravagant love for the Lord will be remembered and will point to Jesus for others.  We should keep these thoughts in mind when we hear the pros and cons of doing something lavish like the anointing of Jesus in this passage. 

We should meditate on this passage when… the idea of stained glass windows comes up.  Think about how the imagery will start conversation and allow the Good News to be told.

We should think about this passage when the church is choosing to invest or not invest in an updated sound system or new audio-visual equipment.  How will it help the message of Jesus, the Good News, to be known?  How will they help us grow in faith in Jesus Christ?

Because if items can help us in these ways, then they are well worth the investment.  They are well worth the extravagant expense… when we lay them at the feet of our glorious Lord Jesus.

Enough mumbling for now…

Peace Out

God is Ever Faithful. Leviticus 26-27; Mark 13

May the mumbling commence!

Admit it: sometimes we wander away from God.  And sometimes God must use extreme measures to get our attention.  Sometimes God has to show a longsuffering patience.  I wonder how God puts up with us.  I wonder how God puts up with me.  But the Lord does.

Though we are unfaithful, God is ever faithful.  Read from Leviticus chapter twenty-six:

"And for those of you who survive, I will demoralize you in the land of your enemies far away. You will live there in such constant fear that the sound of a leaf driven by the wind will send you fleeing. You will run as though chased by a warrior with a sword, and you will fall even when no one is pursuing you.  Yes, though no one is chasing you, you will stumble over each other in flight, as though fleeing in battle. You will have no power to stand before your enemies.  You will die among the foreign nations and be devoured in the land of your enemies.  Those still left alive will rot away in enemy lands because of their sins and the sins of their ancestors. 

But at last my people will confess their sins and the sins of their ancestors for betraying me and being hostile toward me.  Finally, when I have given full expression to my hostility and have brought them to the land of their enemies, then at last their disobedient hearts will be humbled, and they will pay for their sins.  Then I will remember my covenant with Jacob, with Isaac, and with Abraham, and I will remember the land.  And the land will enjoy its years of Sabbath rest as it lies deserted. At last the people will receive the due punishment for their sins, for they rejected my regulations and despised my laws. 

But despite all this, I will not utterly reject or despise them while they are in exile in the land of their enemies. I will not cancel my covenant with them by wiping them out. I, the Lord, am their God.  I will remember my ancient covenant with their ancestors, whom I brought out of Egypt while all the nations watched. I, the Lord, am their God."  (Verses 36-45)

Though we wander and wander, as soon as we return to the Lord – confessing our sins and embracing what the Lord wants us to do – God is there.  God was there all the time – waiting for us to turn, to repent.  God will allow us to suffer the consequences of our actions with the hope that the consequences will turn us back.

And God cannot renege on his covenant with us.  It is the same process working in the last days that Jesus talks about in Mark chapter thirteen:

"The time will come when you will see the sacrilegious object that causes desecration standing where it should not be" – reader, pay attention! "Then those in Judea must flee to the hills.  A person outside the house must not go back into the house to pack.  A person in the field must not return even to get a coat.  How terrible it will be for pregnant women and for mothers nursing their babies in those days.  And pray that your flight will not be in winter.  For those will be days of greater horror than at any time since God created the world. And it will never happen again.  In fact, unless the Lord shortens that time of calamity, the entire human race will be destroyed. But for the sake of his chosen ones he has shortened those days.” (Verses 14-20)

Shorten the days of our wandering.  Help us to recognize your call to us to come back.  May we never delay.

Enough mumbling for now…

Peace Out

Jubilee! Leviticus 21-25

May the mumbling commence!

In a time of exponentially increasing indebtedness, what a witness could the practice of the Year of Jubilee be!  Yes, many individuals and families are swimming in debt.  Lord knows, that my family has a share in that problem.  Governments – local, state and national have a ever increasing debt.

But, have we ever stopped to ask the question: Who does everything belong to anyways?  Read from Leviticus chapter twenty-five:

"In addition, you must count off seven Sabbath years, seven years times seven, adding up to forty-nine years in all.  Then on the Day of Atonement of the fiftieth year, blow the trumpets loud and long throughout the land.  This year will be set apart as holy, a time to proclaim release for all who live there. It will be a jubilee year for you, when each of you returns to the lands that belonged to your ancestors and rejoins your clan.  Yes, the fiftieth year will be a jubilee for you. During that year, do not plant any seeds or store away any of the crops that grow naturally, and do not process the grapes that grow on your unpruned vines.  It will be a jubilee year for you, and you must observe it as a special and holy time. You may, however, eat the produce that grows naturally in the fields that year.  In the Year of Jubilee each of you must return to the lands that belonged to your ancestors. 

When you make an agreement with a neighbor to buy or sell property, you must never take advantage of each other.  When you buy land from your neighbor, the price of the land should be based on the number of years since the last jubilee. The seller will charge you only for the crop years left until the next Year of Jubilee.  The more the years, the higher the price; the fewer the years, the lower the price. After all, the person selling the land is actually selling you a certain number of harvests.  Show your fear of God by not taking advantage of each other. I, the Lord, am your God. 

If you want to live securely in the land, keep my laws and obey my regulations.  Then the land will yield bumper crops, and you will eat your fill and live securely in it.  But you might ask, 'What will we eat during the seventh year, since we are not allowed to plant or harvest crops that year?'  The answer is, 'I will order my blessing for you in the sixth year, so the land will produce a bumper crop, enough to support you for three years.  As you plant the seed in the eighth year, you will still be eating the produce of the previous year. In fact, you will eat from the old crop until the new harvest comes in the ninth year.'   And remember, the land must never be sold on a permanent basis because it really belongs to me. You are only foreigners and tenants living with me.” (Verses 8-23)

Think of it!  Every fiftieth year all debts are forgiven.  No more deficits!  No more red ink!  Property returns to the original owner.  People in bondage are set free.  It’s no wonder that it’s called Jubilee.

Jubilee is based on the fact that all land – everything – belongs to the Great Creator God.  The Lord made it, so it is His.  Let us hold our property loosely, knowing it belongs to God and is being held on loan from our children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren…

And, who is our Jubilee?  Michael Card has a song called “Jesus is our Jubilee”.  As the lyrics say: “Sins forgiven, slaves set free.  Jesus is our Jubilee.”

Let’s bask in the mercy and grace of the Lord.  Let’s give thanks continually.  We are free to be what God has created us to be.

Enough mumbling for now…

Peace Out 

Set-Apart for the Lord. Leviticus 19-20; Mark 12

May the mumbling commence!

We are set-apart.  We are holy to the Lord.  But, how do we live this holiness?  Read from the beginning of Leviticus chapter nineteen:

The Lord also said to Moses, "Say this to the entire community of Israel: You must be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy.  Each of you must show respect for your mother and father, and you must always observe my Sabbath days of rest, for I, the Lord, am your God.  Do not put your trust in idols or make gods of metal for yourselves. I, the Lord, am your God. 

When you sacrifice a peace offering to the Lord, offer it properly so it will be accepted on your behalf.  You must eat it on the same day you offer it or on the next day at the latest. Any leftovers that remain until the third day must be burned.  If any of the offering is eaten on the third day, it will be contaminated, and I will not accept it.  If you eat it on the third day, you will answer for the sin of profaning what is holy to the Lord and must be cut off from the community. 

When you harvest your crops, do not harvest the grain along the edges of your fields, and do not pick up what the harvesters drop.  It is the same with your grape crop – do not strip every last bunch of grapes from the vines, and do not pick up the grapes that fall to the ground. Leave them for the poor and the foreigners who live among you, for I, the Lord, am your God.” (Verses 1-10)

The basis for our holiness is the Lord.  Our model for holiness is the Lord.  And that means following the Law of the Lord.

Respect your parents.  Observe the Sabbath.  Neither trust nor make idols.  Offer sacrifices properly.  Know that when working to advance ourselves that we are not to miserly keep all the bounty to ourselves.  That bounty is a blessing from God.  The first fruits are offered to God, and the gleanings – those things left behind – belong to the vulnerable.

In other words, our joy bursts forth to the Lord, and our lack of economy benefits the most vulnerable people in our midst. 

Yet there is a long list of commands.  They can be overwhelming.  Is there one that is the most important?  It was a question often asked.  Indeed it was asked to Jesus.  Read from Mark chapter twelve:

One of the teachers of religious law was standing there listening to the discussion. He realized that Jesus had answered well, so he asked, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" 

Jesus replied, "The most important commandment is this: 'Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord.  And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.'  The second is equally important: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' No other commandment is greater than these." (Verses 28-31)

Love God with everything that you have, and love your neighbor as yourself.  IF we do these things, everything else will take care of itself.  Everything else will take care of itself including things that seem dubious.  Read from earlier in Mark chapter twelve:

The leaders sent some Pharisees and supporters of Herod to try to trap Jesus into saying something for which he could be arrested.  "Teacher," these men said, "we know how honest you are. You are impartial and don't play favorites. You sincerely teach the ways of God. Now tell us – is it right to pay taxes to the Roman government or not?  Should we pay them, or should we not?"

Jesus saw through their hypocrisy and said, "Whom are you trying to fool with your trick questions? Show me a Roman coin, and I'll tell you."  When they handed it to him, he asked, "Whose picture and title are stamped on it?"

"Caesar's," they replied. 

"Well, then," Jesus said, "give to Caesar what belongs to him. But everything that belongs to God must be given to God." This reply completely amazed them. (Verses 13-17)

Reject and return the idol of the Roman coin.  Give everything else (what belongs to God) to God.  What a way to underscore the importance – the preeminence – of worshiping the Lord God before all else!

Enough mumbling for now… 

Peace Out

Worshiping the Lord Shapes Us. Leviticus 17-18; Mark 11

May the mumbling commence!

What should guide our lives?  What should be the rudder of our ship?  There is no shortage of people and things that clamor for our attention and try to mold our lives.  But there is one that should predominate in the molding of Christians.  Read from the beginning of Leviticus chapter eighteen:

Then the Lord said to Moses, "Say this to your people, the Israelites: I, the Lord, am your God.  So do not act like the people in Egypt, where you used to live, or like the people of Canaan, where I am taking you. You must not imitate their way of life.  You must obey all my regulations and be careful to keep my laws, for I, the Lord, am your God.  If you obey my laws and regulations, you will find life through them. I am the Lord. (Verses 1-5)

The discussion begins and ends with the unapologetic statement that the Lord is our God.  All other arguments are based upon that FACT.  It is important not to lose that identity.  We are children of God.

So, what guides our lives?  Culture is not to guide our lives.  Does culture guide our lives?  Of course it does.  But it should not be the bottom line of our formation as people.  Should we move away?  We will only encounter another set of problems… and we will bring our personal problems along with us.  Running is not the answer.

What is the answer?  Obeying all the regulations and laws of the Lord is the answer.  Obeying all laws and regulations is a tall order.  Thank God we have redemption through Jesus Christ! 

I can come to God with my sins.  So can you.  Come to worship the Lord.  Don’t try to prevent other people from coming… people with their own set of sins… sins that are both occasional and habitual.  Don’t try to prevent other people from coming to worship the Lord because we each have our own set of sins.

Jesus was clear about his attitude toward those who would make worshiping the Lord difficult for anyone.  Jesus cleared the Temple of merchants, who were taking the space of worship for non-Israelites.  Read from Mark chapter eleven:

When they arrived back in Jerusalem, Jesus entered the Temple and began to drive out the merchants and their customers. He knocked over the tables of the money changers and the stalls of those selling doves, and he stopped everyone from bringing in merchandise.  He taught them, "The Scriptures declare, 'My Temple will be called a place of prayer for all nations,' but you have turned it into a den of thieves." (Verses 15-17)

Come to worship the Lord.  It is the Lord who is to be the ultimate shaper of our lives.  The One who created us is the One who knows what form we are meant to take. 

Let us bow is humble worship of the Lord.  Let’s bow and be transformed.

Enough mumbling for now…

Peace Out