Listening to the Word

Numbers 8-9; Acts 28 “’You are to bring the Levites before the Lord, and the Israelites are to lay their hands on them.’” Numbers 8:10 “His father was sick in bed, suffering from fever and dysentery. Paul went in to see him and, after prayer, placed his hands on him and healed him.” Acts 28:8 The practice of “laying on of hands” is a foundational teaching that every Christ-follower should know (Hebrews 6:1, 2). Laying on of hands was used to consecrate, or set apart, the Levites for service on behalf of the Israelites. The Levites were in place of the tithe of the first-born son from every Israelite family. When we lay hands on someone, there is transference from one person to another. In the story of Paul healing Publius’ father on Malta, Paul laid hands on a sick person and the healing power of Jesus restored the man (James 5:14-16). When the early disciples laid hands on people, they received the gift of the Holy Spirit and their spiritual gifts were released to the people. We pass ...

  Numbers 7; Psalms 23; Acts 27   “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul…” Psalm 23:1-3 “But now I urge you to keep up your courage, because not one of you will be lost; only the ship will be destroyed.” Acts 27:22 The ship in which Paul and 275 others were being transported across the Mediterranean Sea provided safety and shelter. However, in the storm that structure broke into pieces; yet, all lives on board were saved. It was Jesus, the good shepherd, who spoke to Paul and assured him that his mission to Rome would not be damaged, nor would any lives be lost in the storm. Are we trusting today in our structures, or in Christ as our security? When the storms of life hit us, will we be looking back or looking forward? Are we clear on what our mission from the Lord is? The Lord leads us out of the storm and beside quiet waters. Will we trust him and take his hand? “Lord Jesu...

Numbers 5-6; Psalms 22; Acts 26   “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from the words of my groaning?…All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him, for dominion belongs to the Lord and he rules over the nations.” Psalm 22:1, 27, 28 This passionate, painful cry of David was quoted by Christ on the cross as he died for the sin of the world. Christ was forsaken so we could turn to the Lord and find mercy. Christ was rejected, humbled, insulted, and killed, only to rise from the dead, be given a name above every name, and the worship of the nations. This salvific story was prophesied by David many hundreds of years before it was fulfilled in Christ. Today the families of the nations, even from the farthest ends of the earth are turning to the Lord as the Gospel of the Kingdom reaches all the earth. When God allows suffering in our lives, he prepares us for it an...

Numbers 3-4; Acts 25   “’When the camp is to move, Aaron and his sons are to go in and take down the shielding curtain and cover the ark of the Testimony with it…Over the table of the Presence they are to spread a blue cloth and put on it the plates, dishes and bowls, and the jars for drink offerings; the bread that is continually there is to remain on it.’” Numbers 4:5, 7 The bread of the Presence was to be before the Lord always, even when the Israelites were traveling from one camp to another. This “shew-bread” represented Israel’s continual dependency on God for provision and life. When tempted to turn stones into bread, Jesus reminded Satan that “man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). When we pray “give us this day our daily bread”, we are reminded of the bread of the Presence continually before God. Jesus declared, “I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life. I am the bread of life…here is the bread...

Numbers 1-2; Acts 24   “Take a census of the whole Israelite community by their clans and families, listing every man by name, one by one. You and Aaron are to number by their divisions all the men in Israel twenty years old or more who are able to serve in the army.” Numbers 1:2, 3 Why did God command Moses to take a census or all Israelite men by name and by tribe? God makes covenant with individuals, not just a nation. Each person matters to God. God held the men responsible for their families. It was the 603,550 men who were being prepared for warfare as Israel were soon to face attacks in the desert. God’s promises and covenant with us today through Jesus Christ extends to both men and women, by name. We, too, have a responsibility to keep the terms of our covenant with God. We, too, are being trained for spiritual warfare, not just for our own wellbeing, but on behalf of our family, community, and nation. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the ruler...

Leviticus 26-27; Acts 23   “If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey my commands, I will send you rain in its season, and the ground will yield its crops and the trees of the field their fruit.” Leviticus 26:3, 4 The promises of God always come with conditions on our part. God’s promises to Israel for provision, protection, peace, and his presence were conditional on Israel walking in God’s ways and obeying his commands.   When we claim 2 Corinthians 1:20: “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ”, but fail to obey Christ as Lord of our lives, are we still expecting God’s promises, like blank cheques, to be operational in our lives? Bonheoffer called that presumption “cheap grace”. God’s invitation to us is to find our life fully in him, listen to his Word, and obey. It is as we make God our life, he fills us with his abundant life, and like a good Shepherd, takes care of us (John 10:10). Will we surrender to God every area of our lives t...