Samson, Elijah and John the Baptizer walk into a prophecy…. It’s no joke. Torah reading נָשֹׂא Nasso (“take up” or “carry,” Numbers 4:21-7:89) helps us see how these three were each witnesses, forerunners who prepared the way for someone greater who came after them. In Yokhanan’s case, he was preparing the hearts of the people to receive Heaven’s greatest gift, Yeshua (Jesus) the Mashiakh (Christ), the Son of God.
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Yogi Berra famously quipped, “It’s deja vu all over again.” And that seems to sum up the beginning of Torah reading בְּהַעֲלֹתְךָ Beha’alotcha (“when you raise up” [the lamps]). We have read about the Tabernacle menorah and the consecration of the priesthood before in Shemot (Exodus) and Vayiqra (Leviticus), but Bamidbar (Numbers), like Devarim (Deuteronomy), is a thematic rather than a book. And Bamidbar is like a travelogue of Israel’s journey from bondage to freedom, with snapshots of cringe-worthy waypoints that are best not revisited by future generations.
In the Beha’alotecha album of snapshots, we see a collection of lessons about remembering the One Who gave freedom and guarding oneself against resentment for the journey to that freedom.
https://hallel.info/wp-content/uploads/190608-Parashat-Bamidbar-Numbers-1v1-4v20.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:18:25 — 31.4MB)Subscribe: RSSWhat are we going to eat? What are we going to wear? What’s going to protect us from the elements? Where do we belong? These four important questions are behind the census of ancient Israel described in Torah reading בְּמִדְבַּר Bamidbar (“in the wilderness,” […]
The closer we are to God, the closer God looks at us. We may come to God as we are, but we shouldn’t stay as we were. A key lesson of the Torah reading שמיני Shemini (“eighth”; Leviticus 9–11) is the more understanding God gives us, the more God expects of us (Luke 12:48). This is also why the sacrifice of Yeshua (Jesus) was the only sacrifice that could take away our sins, transgressions and iniquities (Lev. 16:15, 18, 27; Heb. 9:13; 10:4).
Death is out of place in the order God created. The biblical offering of the red heifer and the purification water made from its ashes are poured into were designed by God to be a physical cleanser and a spiritual cleanser. In the Torah reading חֻקַּת Chukat (Numbers 19-21), instructions are given for its use to remove any physical remnants of death that clings to a person who helped take care of the final rest for the dead, but it was also a spiritual cleanser used to clear away the spiritual stench of death.
Death cannot inhabit the realm of life. Even thought death is all around us, we don’t have to wallow in it. God gives us a message of life in a culture of death. A life that the Creator is looking to restore. That is the consistent message from Genesis to Revelation.
There’s a difference between an “argument to Heaven” and an “argument to man.” In the former, we are showing a person how their conduct contradicts God’s word. In the latter, we are trying to dominate the other person. We want the person to accept us as an authority, rather than pointing one to accept God’s authority.
What is the goal? To gain influence or to come closer to God. Even if our “argument to Heaven” is not executed perfectly, if the conclusion of the matter brings both parties closer to God’s will, it has accomplished a righteous goal. We see this lived out in the tragic rebellion of recorded in Torah reading קֹרַח Korach (Korah; Numbers 16–18).
Go where the Creator sends us. That’s a lesson from the Torah reading שְׁלַח Shelakh (“send,” Numbers 13–15). Our faith forefathers in Yisrael had to learn trust after the LORD freed them from Mitsraim (Egypt) then told them to conquer seemingly unvanquishable foes in the Promised Land.
And that’s the kind of faith Yeshua the Mashiakh’s sent ones (apostles or shelakhim) had to learn during His earthly ministry and after He returned to Heaven.