March 20- The Revolution of Truth

March 20, 2011

Scripture Readings:
Numbers 30:1-31:54; Luke 4:1-30;
Psalm 63:1-11; Proverbs 11:20-21

You say you want a revolution

Well you know

We all want to change the world

You tell me that it's evolution

Well you know

We all want to change the world

But when you talk about destruction

Don't you know you can count me out

Don't you know it's gonna be alright

Alright alright

~Beatles

Numbers 30:1-31:54

An article was posted on the internet recently and it made the rounds on Facebook. It was about things that the children born in the year 2011 would never see.  Obviously, they will never see a rotary dial phone. This article proposed that they would not know what a fax machine was, or a travel agent, watch, paper maps, movie rental stores, dial-up internet, and maybe even the evening news.  The point was that each new generation discards the things of the past and, in a sense, starts fresh.

Today the new generation that did not die in the wilderness is called by God to start fresh by defeating the Midianites.  While their parents were the generation that were slaves in Egypt, were rescued by God from Egypt, and because of their lack of faith wandered in the wilderness for forty years, this young group of men is called to clean house in the Promised Land. Remember that Canaan was cursed by Noah and these men are called to annihilate the people in the land of Canaan who are associated with the fallen Nephilim and their worship of Nephilim gods.

Moses' last official act before his death is to implement this plan.  One thousand young men are recruited from each tribe.  It is an army of 12,000 men.  They are to wipe out the Midianites and bring home the loot. This army is successful.  They kill all the Midianite men, the five kings and even Balaam, the prophet.  Remember him?  He advised Balak to infiltrate Israel. This is pay back for that infiltration.

When the army returns with tons of livestock, riches, and women Moses is upset. The military commanders have acted like typical men.  They didn't want to kill those beautiful women they had a shot of sleeping with!  Not good. Moses reminds them that it was the Midianite women who were the cause of their down fall into idolatry last time around.  The relations with the women caused a plague among the Israelites.  Moses demands that they kill all the women and the boy children that have been brought back to the camp.  He allows all virgin women and girls to be kept.

I need to make a point about the Midianites.  Their form of idol worship included religious sexual acts to their gods.  They had male and female temple prostitutes that the whole community slept with constantly. These people would have been plagued with venereal disease.  Besides the spiritual issues, there were also health issues with living among these people.  God is protecting His chosen people. It is through the Israelites that the Messiah of the world will come. They must be preserved.

The Israelites come back and tell Moses that they did not lose one man in the battle.  They count up the plunder and give the Lord an offering of gold as a thanks offering for preserving their lives.

This story reflects that the Israelite generation that was rescued from Egypt (the world) still had Egypt in their hearts.  Their children are facing another threat to their spiritual purity.  Midian also represents the world.  The Israelites needed to separate themselves from the world.  They were to be set apart for God.  They were to be missionaries, in a sense, to the ancient world bearing witness about the One True God.  God is using the Israelites to punish the pagans and judge the world. This is ancient history, but it is also picture of a spiritual reality. The righteous lives of the godly act as a judgment against evil.

Have you separated yourself from the world, even though you live in the world?  Are you intimate with evil or do you turn from sin?  Your life is also a picture.

Luke 4:1-30

When Jesus comes up out of the water after being baptized by the Holy Spirit into his ministry he is on fire for God.  After being in the wilderness for forty days and forty nights (please see the comparison to the nation of Israel, his people, who were in the wilderness for forty years), Jesus takes all of the knowledge and wisdom he gained while studying as a boy and utilizes his knowledge of Scripture to deal with the temptations that the devil throws his way.  He is like a young soldier going to battle against the Midianites (evil world system controlled by Satan). Jesus is a warrior. Here are responses directly from the Bible that Jesus quotes (I am going to paraphrase):

• People need more than bread for their life.-Vs. 4
• You must worship the Lord your God; serve Him only. -Vs. 8
• Do not test the Lord your God. -Vs. 12

Jesus wins this battle.  There are other battles to come.  Now filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus begins to teach in the synagogues.  Please note that teaching the Word of God to people is an offensive move in the war against evil.  The Word of God is a sword in our hands.  Jesus goes to the synagogue in his own hometown of Nazareth to fight a spiritual battle against darkness.

On the Sabbath he reads a Scripture from Isaiah to his fellow townspeople about the Messiah.  Then he rolls up the scroll and says that this Scripture is fulfilled in front of their eyes that day.  Their response is, "How can this be?  Isn't this Joseph's son?"  Jesus' response to them is to acknowledge that they will not believe in him.  He refers to both the prophet Elijah and Elisha, who do miracles for Gentiles, rather than for Israelites.  When the synagogue group hears this they are furious and run after him to kill him.  Jesus manages to escape.

Does it surprise you that our gentle Jesus is being confrontational with his homeys?  Remember, he is filled with the Holy Spirit.  What is God trying to say to this group of Israelites in Nazareth?  I believe God is starting to give them the message that Jesus Christ is the Messiah for all people on earth, not just the Jews.  This was a hard, practically impossible, message for them to hear.  They are being confronted with Truth.

Jesus is going to live in the truth no matter who gets mad about it.  If it ruffles people's feathers, too bad.  Truth is a weapon.  It was a weapon for Jesus in his hometown of Nazareth and it was a weapon in the wilderness against the devil.  Truth is a weapon for you and me, too.  Do you have enough truth stored up in your heart to fight evil in your life?  Reading the Bible is ammunition in this fight.  The truth of God's Word will help you in the battle.

Psalm 63:1-11

Here is a psalm for anyone who feels that they are in a desert in their life.  Are you thirsty for salvation?  Read these words.

Proverbs 11:20-21

The Lord hates people with twisted hearts, but he delights in those who have integrity.

Integrity is truth.  That fits with what we've been talking about today!

What did you see today?

Blessings,

Jubilee Gal
Kathy Fullerton
© 2011