This was an assignment on the book of Numbers and its message to the church today. Quoted are Richard S.Hess: "The Old Testament" and Arie C. Leder: "Waiting for the Land."

The Wilderness

The abiding claim and truth of the Book of Numbers is that we have a God Who wants us to live and not die but in order to live we must obey His ways. Disobedience brings death. Also the lesson of Numbers is profoundly reassuring and applicable to children and adults alike: “small steps prepare us for the big decisions in life” (Hess p. 102).

Hess explains that with each small decision, we exercise our faith in God which, I would add, causes our faith to grow as a muscle, making us, as Hess continues,  able to face increasingly greater decisions and, in my view, resist increasingly greater temptation such as God allows. When we fail, we too have the comfort of knowing that we can find God’s Grace, as seen repeatedly in the Numbers Narrative.

Leder points out that the problem is not Israel’s past or present, neither slavery nor wilderness difficulties, nor foes in the Promised Land. Instead, Leder plainly states: “Israel herself is the problem” (p. 146). This means that what happened to us is not the problem either! The problem is us! I find that truth truly liberating. Blame would be our slave master, instead we find it to be a lie.

I cannot change what happens in life but I can change how I respond. I can make God-ward decisions, God’s Grace enabling me. The message of Numbers is a strong warning against disobedience yes, but it is a warning for our sake, that we might live! It is also freedom for the church today in knowing there is only One we need to fear (Matt. 10:28) and He is One Who cares for us. (1 Peter 5:7)

I am now in Seminary. Yes. Becoming a Pastor if you can believe it. I love my studies and find many of the assignments inspiring. I thought you might like them too. Here is one, the subject was Poetry and Faith Language, we were encouraged to speak about our lives, the book referenced is "Growing in the Life of Faith" by Craig Dykstra:

Dykstra’s first reason for the fact that we do not teach this poetic faith language is that we do not know it ourselves.

I agree. I can’t say that I know it but I do want to learn. Lately I have become convinced of its necessity: only with poetry can we publicly express life’s difficulties, which must be addressed, without either glorifying evil or giving voice to it and defiling many.

I recently heard of a eulogy given about a man who had been very difficult for his family; he was a professing Christian and had given much to Missions. The Pastor described life to his wounded adult children as: “often turbulent yet also glorious.” The simplicity of it struck me in its beauty: she had addressed the adult children’s difficulties with their father now deceased without spelling out in horrid graphic detail, verbally abusing everyone in the room, just how dysfunctional the family had become.

The second reason I found in the passage involves a fear many of us have of what Dykstra describes as “authoritarian language.”

Here I need to tell you that I came to know the Lord in a drug infested party. My christian friend did not use authoritarian language in sharing the Gospel. I heard the story of Adam and Eve in the garden and ‘caught’ the problem; can’t say I understood but I knew my overwhelming sense of being marred and dirty inside was real and that I shared that condition with Adam and Eve, which was comforting in a way, I wasn’t alone and they were in the Bible, a book I knew culturally as being of the utmost importance.  I did not know the word sin but the conviction of it was so strong that day as my eyes were opened to see Jesus' Beauty, His Holiness and His love. The power of God changed me forever. My friend never judged me, never condemned me, but simply shared from the scripture the story of the Gospel and of God’s Love. I cannot explain it. It must have had to do with God’s time for me. Maybe waiting for God’s time for people would save us much harsh language.

Many years in church though did teach me religious jargon even some of the ‘us versus them’ language Dykstra mentions, which I thankfully had to unlearn in order to minister in jails and prisons, mostly to young people in their 20’s who were all themselves victims of abuse but who were nevertheless made in the image of God.

I had to learn how to say it in English, not “theologizing” or using religious idioms that are at best incomprehensible to the uninitiated and at worst, off-putting, I learned to avoid the black and white pronunciations that do not communicate God’s searching Love. Proclamations and affirmations and even explanations yes, judgement and condemnation no!

But lately, as I mentioned, I have wanted to learn a more poetic faith language, calling the people I have been drawn together with up, helping them lift their eyes and focus on God and His faith rather than on our troubles. For that reason, I did appreciate the Nairobi Statement and am mulling on its language.

Poetic language is undoubtedly one of the reasons I still love the KJV. An unforgettable (to me) example of it is when the Scripture describes what must have been a terrifying prospect at the Red Sea for a bewildered group of slaves who had no idea, as we do now in awed albeit easy retrospect, that those waters would actually and miraculously part and that after a harrowing crossing with the enemy in hot pursuit, this band of people would finally and forever be delivered from their slave past:

“And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever.”(Ex. 14:13)

Rest...

That's a nice way to start the New Year though for me, it's pure coincidence. Then again... I do not believe in coincidence.

Rest

Lately, I have had much trouble sleeping. The whys and wherefores are not the point here (and hopefully being addressed soon). 

The point is that I have become very well acquainted with the effects of sleep, as well as the lack of it which has caused me think about Rest, the all-important state Jesus offers:

"Come unto Me all you who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest... you will find rest for your souls..." Matthew 11:28

and again

Hebrews 4:4, 5

"...God rested on the seventh Day...they shall enter into My Rest" 

When I generally sleep well, it's like having a reserve. I can go a day even two with minimal sleep and be fine, functioning properly : my mind works, thoughts line up and follow a logical sequence, I have initiative and make plans.

After many nights of not enough sleep, an even shorter night throws me into utter useless, non-functionality the whole next day. 

In that state of non-rest, my mind doesn't function properly, weak thoughts trail off without coming full circle:  I've put towels in the fridge that way. I can't bounce back emotionally, my reflexes are slow (bad for driving), getting more irritated at contradiction, unable to rise to the occasion or even regain a sense of hope for the future. My brain feels dried up, no elasticity or even movement, sluggishness, even hopelessness. 

Then I sleep well one night (thank you sleeping pill). Oh the difference! I can think, formulate plans, get things done I even have a positive outlook, bounce back, react quickly. 

I realize now hope takes energy. A positive outlook requires rest. 

It made me think of how often we don't rest in God. How often do I see professed followers of Christ with a negative outlook, critical of others or of themselves (or both), as people who are resigned and expect nothing good. 

It's changing the way I see life and my walk in this world: first seek to enter into His Rest, without it there is no proper perspective on anything, let alone anyone. I've come to view that sense of hopeless resignation with suspicion: is the person entering into God's rest? Am I?

...

In 2018, I wish us all more of this Rest He offers, to know the buoyancy of hope, the strength of the refreshing because we are renewed day by day.