And the LORD said to Moses, “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him my covenant of peace, and it shall be to him and to his descendants after him the covenant of a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel.’"

 Numbers 25:1-18

And the LORD said to Moses, “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him my covenant of peace, and it shall be to him and to his descendants after him the covenant of a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel.’" Numbers 25:10-13

I continue my study of Numbers, and in the text today - Numbers 25:1-18 - we see Israel yoke itself to Baal, God's response of rage and punishment, and God's recognition of Phineas for his zeal in the name of the LORD. Here are my observations using the Sword Bible Study Method.

• What do we learn from the text about God?: God is a jealous God - jealous for His name and His glory alone.  Yet we see Israel worshiping Baal and God responds with righteous anger and jealousy to restore His Name and punish those who break the commandments to love Him and to not have any other gods before Him.  The LORD instructs Moses to kill those who yoke themselves to Baal (vv4-5). God's anger burns and 24,000 of the people are killed.  God also recognizes Phineas for his efforts to restore God's name and punish those who followed Baal (vv7-8, 10-13).  God seeks for believers to confront sin within the church (see also Matthew 18:15-17). God gives Phineas His "covenant of peace" (v12).  God offers believers this same covenant of peace (see also John 14:27 and Colossians 3:15).  
• What do we learn from the text about people?: Israel has yet to arrive in the Promised Land and on their journey through the wilderness, they yoke themselves to pagan gods.  God's people are called to go to all nations to proclaim the gospel (Matthew 28:19-20), yet we are not to become of the world in that we allow earthly sinful influences that drive a wedge between us and God - see also John 15:19, 17:14-16, and Romans 12:2).
• Is there anything from the text God wants us to obey (SPEC: Sins to avoid, Promises to claim, Examples to follow, Commands to obey?): Avoid being overcome by the influences of this world such that you become yoked to other gods.  Claim the promise that Jesus Christ alone offers salvation and a peace that surpasses understanding.  Follow the example of Phineas who had zeal and jealousy for God's name and glory.  Love God with all of Your heart, soul, and mind - seek Him (Jeremiah 29:13). 

Comment and discuss this post

My Prayer: Father God, You are an awesome God who saves and who gives peace - a peace that surpasses understanding. Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such blessings.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me. Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and energy.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo. Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world.

Leviticus 12

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. 1 John 2:15-16

This morning, I continued my study of Leviticus using the Christ-Centered Exposition series commentary for this book - continuing chapter twelve - God Rules from Our Birth - covering Leviticus 12:1-8, looking specifically at the first theme - God Requires Separation from Unbelievers.  Here, the commentary focuses on how at this point in the Old Testament, the Israelites were preparing to enter Canaan, the land God promised to Abraham (Genesis 12:7), and the land God led the Israelites to out of the wilderness after leaving Egypt. The commentary explores the pagan worship of the cultures in Canaan and its neighbor Moab - the pagan worship of both of these lands included use of human blood and/or human pain/sacrifice.  God of courses detests false gods and worship of these false gods, and the commentary states that childbirth as depicted in Leviticus 12 involves both human pain and blood; so by implication, childbirth, although not sinful, is loosely linked with the pagan worship of Canaan and Moab. Hence, God calls for the mothers to be purified as a prerequisite of the worship experience.  As a key takeaway for today and the theme for today - God Requires Separation from Unbelievers - the commentary urges us to see how our worship separates us from unbelievers.  The commentary also offers two additional takeaways - how believers separate ourselves from unbelievers:

• truth separates us: since (and because of) the Fall, childbirth was painful and often dangerous, sometimes leading to death; death was associated with sin (since the Fall); the concept of original sin and how the wages of sin are death (Romans 6:23) is unique to Christianity as is the role Jesus plays in redemption, forgiveness of sin, justification, sanctification, glorification, and eternal life.
  
• obedience separates us: Leviticus is just one book of the Bible but what we see just in this one book is how God governs every aspect of our lives - including all the details; God does bring about obedience as the fruit of our faith and believers obedience is designed to allow us to not only be separate, but different in the sense that unbelievers see and experience something that draws them to Him.
  

Comment and discuss this post here.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who created me and those around me and I am grateful for the life You gave me and for those in my community - thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of how You bless me.  I worry.  Please forgive me and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.   

With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.”

Acts 2

With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” v40

At Pentecost, Peter warns those in attendance to "save [them]selves from this corrupt generation".  All of us struggle with temptation of some kind regarding idolatry people, things, status, power, etc. Whatever our struggle may be, Peter's warning rings true for everyone.

Peter's warning isn't an isolated one as there are many of the same or similar warnings throughout scripture:

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Romans 12:2

 

Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? 2 Corinthians 6:14

 

Instead, we are intended to live in fellowship with other believers who can mutually help each other grow in Christ.

 

He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. 1 Thessalonians 5:10-11

 

While we are called to bring the Good News of Jesus to unbelievers, we need other believers in our lives who can keep our faith "sharp" and help us avoid the "dullness" that comes from growing too close with the things of this world.  See also this post from DesiringGod.com.

 

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who has provided other believers in my life to help keep me sharp and avoid dullness - thank You Jesus!  I am undeserving of the blessings You pour out on me - I too often conform to the patterns of this world and my sin is great.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, as the house of Ahab had done, for after his father’s death they became his advisers, to his undoing. He also followed their counsel when he went with Joram son of Ahab king of Israel to wage war against Hazael king of Aram at Ramoth Gilead.

2 Chronicles 22

He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, as the house of Ahab had done, for after his father’s death they became his advisers, to his undoing. He also followed their counsel when he went with Joram son of Ahab king of Israel to wage war against Hazael king of Aram at Ramoth Gilead. v4

We know from previous readings (see 1 Kings 16:30) that Ahab did evil in the eyes of the Lord.  In fact it is said he "did more evil in the eyes of the Lord than any of those before him".

So it is no surprise that Ahaziah did evil in the eyes of the Lord as he chose Ahab's family to be his advisers.  We must be careful who and how we include in our life.  We are to love those in the world but not to conform to the world.

Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? 2 Corinthians 6:14

 

Do not conform to the pattern of this world[.] Romans 12:2

 

Instead, we are intended to live in fellowship with other believers who can mutually help each other grow in Christ.

 

He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. 1 Thessalonians 5:10-11

 

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an amazing God full of love and compassion for me.  You provide for all of my needs and You are always with me.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not worth such love and compassion.  I worry.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray. As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been. He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites. So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord; he did not follow the Lord completely, as David his father had done.

1 Kings 11

He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray. As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been. He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites. So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord; he did not follow the Lord completely, as David his father had done. v3-6

It is not certain who the author of 1 Kings is but the author makes it clear that Solomon did not follow the Lord's instructions about not to intermarry (v2).  It is also not why Solomon did not follow God's instructions here.  Perhaps it was arrogance - that Solomon felt he did not need to submit to all of God's instructions - that he could "afford" to skip a few.  Perhaps it was that Solomon did not trust the Lord that He would satisfy, that Solomon did not need to look anywhere beyond how God did bless him - he needed more than what he felt the Lord could provide.

Regardless of why Solomon sought wives against the Lord's wishes - it is clear that the Lord warned Solomon that these wives "will surely turn your hearts after their gods" (v2). And they did (v4-6+).

God warns all of us that we need to be careful with whom we associate. 

Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? 2 Corinthians 6:14

It's not that we cannot be friends with unbelievers or spend time with them...it is that we cannot be "yoked" or significantly influenced to the point where they control us much like a yoke controls oxen.


We should find our influences in the Lord first and foremost (Romans 12:1) then with others, including our church leaders, elders, and fellow church members/believers.


Lord, help me follow You first and foremost, then with other believers who can help me remain focused on You.


My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an amazing God who is worthy of my worship and devotion.  You also provide many people in my life, church leaders, elders, and other believers who support and encourage me - thank You Jesus!  I am not worth such love.  I worry.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.