Bible Study With Jairus

Bible Study with Jairus - Leviticus 21

 

Bible Study with Jairus Leviticus 21

A common problem when reading the Old Testament is that after a person reads how God is depicted in the Old Testament, they often think that God is cruel, angry and frequently kills people.  This is the reason that many atheists think that the God depicted in the Old Testament, is bad-tempered and narrow-minded. He seems to frequently seek revenge against debtors. But the Gospel of John in the New Testament tells us that God loves the world. John the apostle also tells us in his epistles that God is love. So, how do we reconcile this contradiction?

A friend and I used to talk about the Bible quite a bit. He had the same questions. During this time, I happened to see a person writing a big "I LOVE U" in the snow and the word LOVE was drawn inside the shape of a heart. Because more than a foot of snow had fallen in Maryland at that time, these three words were written in very thick snow and were written so big that you had to stand on the second story to see the full image of these words. When you stood in front of it, you would just see lots of indents in the snow. You couldn’t clearly see what the words said. Then, I suddenly received inspiration and said to my friend, understanding God relates to these words. When we are too close we can’t clearly see what it says. But when we look at it from high places, we clearly see the whole picture. The same is true for the Bible. The angle and height we view it from are not the same as the angle and height of God. The words and the works of God are like His footprints. From a distance, we may be able to clearly see the words: "I love you"   But when we who are as small as an ant in comparison to God, look at things from a close view, we can barely make out the dot in the letter “i”.  When we look at things from God’s view we can get a better understanding of what the Bible is actually saying.

God is love, and every book, chapter and verse in the Bible show us His love. After reading any book of the Bible, if you feel that God is not loving or you feel that God is cruel, then there is a good possibility that you didn’t understand the chapter and need more of the Holy Spirit’s illumination. Each week in our study we read a chapter in the Old Testament and a chapter in the New Testament. We have already read up to the book of Acts in the New Testament and the book of Leviticus in the Old Testament.  With each chapter we read we are moved by the love of God and the Holy Spirit gives us a deeper understanding and proof of the lavish love that God has for each of us.

We encountered some challenges when we read Leviticus 21 and I proposed the same principle. As a result, when we finished our Bible study, we were all aware of God’s love..

The first half of Leviticus 21 talks about how priests should be holy when they are serving God. They cannot defile themselves. First, the priest should not make himself unclean for any of his people who die, except for a close relative or an unmarried sister.  Second, priests must not shave off the edges of their beards or cut themselves. Third, priests must not marry a divorced woman or a woman defiled by prostitution. Fourth, if a priest’s daughter defiles herself by becoming a prostitute, she must be burned in the fire.

As for the requirements of the high priest, it’s even more strict. First, he must not make himself unclean, even for his father or mother.  Second, he can't leave the sanctuary of God; third, like priests, he can only marry a virgin and fourth, his children can't be defiled.

The contents of verses 1-15 in chapter 21 can be understood, but the following content has a problem. Let’s read chapter 21 verses 16-24. 

21:16  The Lord said to Moses, 

21:17 “Say to Aaron: ‘For the generations to come none of your descendants who has a defect may come near to offer the food of his God. 

21:18 No man who has any defect may come near: no man who is blind or lame, disfigured or deformed; 

21:19  no man with a crippled foot or hand,

21:20 or who is a hunchback or a dwarf, or who has any eye defect, or who has festering or running sores or damaged testicles. 

21:21 No descendant of Aaron the priest who has any defect is to come near to present the food offerings to the Lord. He has a defect; he must not come near to offer the food of his God. 

21:22 He may eat the most holy food of his God, as well as the holy food; 

21:23 yet because of his defect, he must not go near the curtain or approach the altar, and so desecrate my sanctuary. I am the Lord, who makes them holy.’”

21:24 So Moses told this to Aaron and his sons and to all the Israelites.

A Christian friend felt that after reading these verses, that God seemed to discriminate against disabled people. Why can't a disabled man offer food to God? They can’t even go near the sanctuary and offer  food to  God. Why does it say that because they have a disability they will desecrate the sanctuary of God? Isn’t this obvious discrimination towards people with disabilities? How do we explain this?

I replied that according to the principle I mentioned before, if you believe God discriminates and is unloving, you need to take a deeper look from a different angle because God is always love. And, if you didn’t feel His love here, it’s not that He is wrong, rather, we are looking at it from the wrong angle and height. We can't pull God down to our level and use our natural mind to understand Him. We must pray that God will use His Holy Spirit to illuminate us and ask Him to bring us to heavenly heights in the spirit to see God’s love from a higher perspective.

If you agree with what we said here or if you agree with our view that God is love, then, how can we see God's love in these verses?

This friend shared an explanation from the online BiblePoint.net:

The blind represents that he doesn’t know God and the will of God; the lame represents that he’s all talk and no action; disfigurement represents no spiritual sense of smell and has no discretion; the dysmelia (or deformed) represents the flesh; the man with crippled foot or hand represents the lack of spirit at work; the hunchback represents submission and compromise; the dwarf represents that the person’s life is not long; the man who has eye defect represents that this person is prejudiced, short-sighted and snobbish; festering sores and scabies represents that the wound cannot be healed and it’s bitter.

This explanation is quite good. I know that the person who interpreted this received the same spiritual teaching as I did, known as spiritual interpretation. It’s through spiritual meaning that we can explain some of the Bible, especially the Old Testament Scriptures. With this, we can match it with the spiritual significance of our situation today.

If we follow the principles we have talked about before and if we don’t see that God is doing this out of love, then, we are still misunderstanding the bible.  I asked the question, what about when Moses told the Lord that he was slow of speech and slow of tongue to do the task that He had given him.  What does the Lord mean when he responded to him in Exodus 4:11 saying: “Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the Lord?

According to the literal meaning of this sentence, God makes human beings dumb, deaf, and blind. Why would God do that? How do we understand that God is love here? Everyone was speechless because we couldn’t understand why God said this.

Slowly, with the help of the Holy Spirit, we began to understand the spiritual significance of this passage. First, the Bible says that the wages of sin is death. Even if people were born mute, deaf, and blind, this should also be considered as the result of the sin. This concept is also so common among the Israelites that the disciples of the Lord asked Him, “Who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” (NIV, John 9:2). The Lord Jesus replied that it was not the sin of this man, nor the sin of his parents, but it is to manifest and display God's work.

How do we understand what Jesus is saying here?

First, we know that the disciples asked this question because they were very familiar with the laws of the Old Testament. They knew that the law of God stipulated that blind people could not offer sacrifices to God. They were deeply influenced by the law and they had a strong concept of good and evil. But Jesus wants to turn their eyes from the horror of human sin and the result of sin to the provision that God is mighty to save in His love. The meaning of this sentence is that God has prepared salvation for the sin of man, that is, the coming of Jesus Christ so that people can be set free from their sins and return to God.

I believe the meaning of this sentence is not the fact that Jesus denies that man is sinful and that the wages of sin is death, because it is clearly stated in the Bible that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and the wages of sin is death. This blind man and his parents may also have sinned, and his blindness may be the result of his sin or the sin of his parents. But the Lord Jesus is here to let the disciples focus on how Jesus Christ can save the sinner, and not let them focus on what is right and wrong, or judge who caused this person to be blind.

The reason why I say this is because God clearly said to Moses that He was the one who created human beings to be mute, deaf and blind. And in the New Testament, Lord Jesus also told us that not one of the sparrows will fall to the ground outside your Father's care. (NIV, Matthew 10:29). And we know that every creation of God is good and God would not deliberately create people who are mute, deaf and blind. But why are there still people who are mute, deaf and blind in this world? Isn’t this contradictory? How do we explain these contradictions?

I heard a message from Kenneth E Hagin that many verses in the Old Testament mentioned that the disasters and plagues brought or sent by Jehovah to people are actually mistakes in translation. He quoted a Hebrew scholar's research that the usage of these words is actually passive forms of the original text. In other words, these words should be translated into God's permission to allow these plagues to fall on people.

In addition, I have heard Peter Horrobin, an expert in deliverance, give a very vivid example to explain why the sins of the ancestors often caused the offspring to be possessed by demons. In deliverance ministries, people often encounter demonic oppression due to the fact that their ancestors are practicing idolatry, fornication, and other sins, causing their children and grandchildren to be possessed. This is biblical.

It says in Exodus 34:6-7

⁶ And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, ⁷ maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin. Yet he doesn’t leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.” (NIV)

God did say that “He punishes the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.” (NIV, Numbers 14:18). This doesn’t affect God’s claim that He is a God of mercy and a God of grace. When we compare punishing the children for the sins of the parents to the third or fourth generation, we also need to recognize that His blessings will reach up to a thousand generations.

Peter Horrobin gave a very vivid example when the audience was puzzled by why God allowed the result of sin to be circulated through the family. He stood on the podium to represent God. He let a member of the audience sit under the podium, under his feet to represent a father. He let another person  stand below this person to represent a son, and then he poured water out of a bottle on the podium. The water dripped onto the head of the person sitting on the podium, flowed over  the person’s body, and then dripped onto the person sitting under the podium.

He said that when God created us, He set up a principle that the blessings of our ancestors will be passed down from generation to generation starting from the son to the grandchildren. The blessings and grace of God will be passed on to the family as characterized by this example. He said that pouring down mineral water is like God pouring some of the oil on Aaron's head. Then it flowed through Aaron's beard and robes, soaked the whole body, and then this blessing has also passed through Aaron’s sons and grandchildren. It’s passed from generation to generation.

He said that if God stops the consequences of human sins through the ancestors and passing on one’s genes to the next generation, it’s like asking God to close the principle of the Father's blessings to his children that He established. This is not what God wants to do, nor what God will do. What God is doing is changing the source of sin and not closing the channel of God's blessing. When Jesus Christ comes to earth to redeem us from sin, the channel of God's blessing will still work. God will continue to bless us to a thousand generations. In other words, God is looking at the problem from eternity’s perspective. In God's eternal eyes, sin is only a problem that occurs at a certain time. God won’t change the principles of the Father's blessing to his children or the Father's passing on genes to his children that He has set for eternity because of bad things that happened during a certain period of time.

Peter Horrobin said that if God closes the path of inheriting the sin of the ancestors to the descendants, it also closes the way God blesses the son through the Father. There is no problem with regards to the inheritance principle set by God, nor is it the root cause of the problem here. The root cause is that the source is wrong. People made the wrong choice. They chose Satan and sin as the source. God's solution is to change the source, correct the error made by the source. If the error of the source is corrected, slowly other things will be solved, but this will take a time.

From this perspective, God allows sin to flow to the third and fourth generations. This doesn’t mean that God doesn’t love people. But in God's eternal eyes, God continues to retain the blessings of the Father to his children and grandchildren. The blessings of God are to be passed for generations. The New Testament also tells us “for God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable.” (Romans 11:29). We have to resolve the contradictions of the Bible here. We don’t need to deny that God does allow the passing on of sin in families, and the fact of mute, deaf and blind caused by the result of sin. We should instead stand at a higher altitude and eternal perspective to look at God's plan and economy. You must know that in God's eternity, sin is short-lived. There are no records of sin in the first three chapters of Genesis and the last three chapters of Revelation. The law was established because of sins. “Where sin increased, grace increased all the more.” (NIV, Romans 5:20). This is what Paul said in   Romans.

Similarly, the Lord Jesus is answering the disciples that it’s not the sin of his father or the sin that the son committed that made this person blind, but to show the work of God. I personally think that Jesus is not denying the fact that He or His ancestors had sinned, but rather saying, when sin abounds, grace abounds much more. Jesus is teaching his disciples not to focus on sin, but to focus on the grace and the work of God.

So how do we understand why this chapter said that God doesn’t allow disabled people to come to Him to sacrifice? How can this be linked to God's love, and not make God look so mean?

I feel like I was inspired by the Holy Spirit and I shared this at the meeting:

What is the essential difference between philosophy and other religions and Christianity? The essential difference is that Christianity teaches us that we must come to God through a unique mediator - Jesus Christ. No matter how kind, godly and hard we work, we cannot reach God.

Throughout the ages, Satan has encouraged people to strive for salvation through human efforts, religion, asceticism, good deeds, and the law to please God, but 1 Timothy 2:5 says, “For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus.” (NIV)

If you try to convince an atheist or others who are passionately pursing God’s acceptance through philosophy and good deeds that Jeus Christ is the only way to God, these people would consider you to be narrow minded. The message of one way to God eliminates their freedom to pursue a variety of paths.

Why do you feel hurt when it says here that God doesn’t allow disabled people to offer sacrifice to God? This is the result of the damage that the sin brought that distorted our mind. Let me give you a few examples to illustrate this.

As a child, because I was thin and I had white skin compared to other Chinese children, I was often bullied by my classmates. Some students often laughed at me because I was white-skinned. Although the classmate that called me white was only teasing, because of the bullying and insults I received, I thought of the word white as a person who is thin, weak and unhealthy. I hated that my skin was white, and I longed for my skin to be darker.  I thought if a person was dark-skinned, they were strong because I saw a lot of strong people that had dark skin. So when it comes to the word white, my instinctive reaction was to be annoyed. I liked the word black. But does black and white really represent my interpretation? Does black connote good and white connote bad?

Does white and black really have different meanings? No, in fact, white and black are the same. They have no special meaning, but the fall of man adds meaning to them because of the taint of sin. This meaning is not necessarily correct. Just like my experience, I thought that black was better than white, but that is actually a wrong judgment caused by the twisted soul.

When Adam sinned, God came to look for him and asked where he was. His first reaction was to think that God would punish him, so he hid. But God came not to punish him, but to redeem him. God not only slaughtered a sacrificial animal for them, but He also covered them using animal skins and promised that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent’s head.

Why is it when God came to Adam to save him, Adam felt that God was going to hurt him? A person will have an orphan spirit after he/she has committed a sin. What is an orphan spirit? An orphan spirit is like the prodigal son in Luke 15. It is clear that his father loved him, but he didnt feel that way. So, he wandered away from his father.

Bethel Church, in Redding California which is led by pastor Bill Johnson had a prophet named Kris Vallotton, give an example to explain the meaning of an orphan spirit and it left a deep impression on me. He said that their family adopted an orphan. Because of his lack of love, the child isolated himself when he first came to their home. Later, when he felt the warmth, he opened up his heart, but he still obviously had the orphan spirit. Kris said that during Christmas, his daughter was responsible for distributing gifts to the stockings. She accidentally put two identical gifts in the stockings of another child and unintentionally put just one gift in the stocking of the adopted child. After the adopted child opened the gift, his first reaction was anger. He said, “Why is it that the other children have two gifts and I only have one?”

Kris said that the first reaction of this child is not to thank others for giving him a gift, but rather he was hurt because he thought that the others looked down on him. This is a typical example of the orphan spirit. When we hear the Word of God say that disabled people could not sacrifice in front of God, it stings our orphan spirit and we feel that God is condemning us.

It’s just like I didn’t like to hear others say that I’m white due to the ridicule by my classmates. It’s a reaction from cognitive distortion.

What does God mean here? God's meaning is completely good and it’s completely out of love.

Since people have been tempted by Satan's temptation to fall, Satan has always used two methods to deceive people. One is to constantly lie to people telling them that God doesn’t love themor that God has abandoned them.. When people believe the lies, they become more distant from God. This is an orphan spirit, the sickness that the prodigal son in Luke 15 had.

Satan's second trick is to constantly encourage people to become like God, or to strive to reach God's standards. First of all, the fall of Satan is due to the fact that he said he wanted to be like God in his heart. Second, he first deceived Eve saying that if she ate the fruit of knowledge of good and evil, she would be like God. Satan also stirred Cain up to give his produce as an offering to God. We all know that Cain's produce from the field represents people's efforts and religions in an attempt to please God. But after his failure to please God, he became a murderer.  Men with religious spirits will tend to act this way. The brother of the prodigal son in Luke 15 has this sickness. This is called the religious spirit.

So Satan encourages all kinds of religions, philosophies, and human efforts to work hard to reach God, practice to be God or to be accepted by God. All of these efforts are types of disabilities in the eyes of God. These are the tactics of the enemy to stop people from using the unique, perfect sacrificial lamb, and our high priest, Jesus Christ to come to God.

In other words, you should understand the words of the Lord like this. God doesn’t say, "You can't get close to God if you’re disabled. You are all disabled. You are not worthy to come near me." Instead, you should hear God shout loudly: "For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind that is Christ Jesus. No one outside of him can get close to me. Anyone who is mute, deaf, or blind can come close to me, but you must come through my son Jesus Christ, the perfect sacrificial Lamb. In Him, I can see that you’re also flawless. Don't try to use personal efforts to do what pleases me. It's all Satan's tricks to stop you from getting close to me. Don't be fooled! Mute, deaf, blind, I long for you to serve me, so I prepared my son Jesus Christ to be a perfect sacrificial Lamb. In Him you will become righteous, you will be close to me, and I will no longer see you as mute, deaf and blind."

These words are actually God preparing the right path to salvation and sacrifice for the sake of the mute, deaf, and blind. But because people have an orphan spirit, they misunderstand God.

To summarize what we said in the beginning, it’s important to see and know God’s love within every chapter of the Bible.  If we cannot grasp his love within the chapter, we need to continue to seek the Holy Spirit’s guidance in revealing it.  The Bible is God’s love letter to us.  He is love.  God is often blamed unjustly although he is quietly patient and longsuffering with us.  He’s madly in love with us but is often treated as the bad guy.  Hey…it’s not easy to be God!

 

Bible Study with Jairus - Leviticus20

 Bible Study with Jairus - Leviticus 20

Leviticus 20 records the three kinds of punishments for the various crimes in Israel and their corresponding intensity.

Leviticus 20:2 says that “Any Israelite or any alien living in Israel who gives any of his children to Molech must be put to death.” Verse 9 then states that “Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.” Verse 10 follows with, “If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife, both the adulterer and adulteress are to be put to death” and verse 11 says, that “If a man has sexual relations with his father’s wife, both the man and the woman are to be put to death”

Leviticus 20:12 states that “If a man has sexual relations with his daughter-in-law, both of them are to be put to death.”  Verse 13 follows by saying that “If a man has sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman, they are to be put to death.” Verse 14 states that “If a man marries both a woman and her mother, both he and they must be burned in the fire.” Verse 15 then says that “If a man has sexual relations with an animal, he is to be put to death.” Finally, in verse 27, also states “that the medium or spiritist must be stoned to death.”

The scriptures above are more serious sins, and God’s final judgment is for the offenders to be killed. Note that the degree of judgement in the situations below is quite different. I didn't notice the difference when I first started reading the Bible, but after the woman shared her perspective this week, I noticed that there was actually a distinct difference in the level and intensity.

Verse 17 says that “If a man marries his sister, the daughter of either his father or his mother, they are to be publicly removed from their people.” What does “publicly removed” mean? Does it refer to killing? I do not believe it refers to killing, but rather cutting him out from the people or community. The following verse says that “If a man has sexual relations with a woman during her monthly period, both of them are to be cut off from their people.” From here, we can presume that maybe what it’s saying is to be cut off from Israeli traffic.

The next sin seems to be at another level. Verse 19 says “Do not have sexual relations with the sister of either your mother or your father, or else both will be held responsible.”, but it did not specify here what punishment in particular.   Verse 20 follows with “If a man has sexual relations with his aunt, he has dishonored his uncle. They will be held responsible; they will die childless.”. In other words, they can still live in Israel but will no longer able to pass on the family name. Verse 21 states that “If a man marries his brother's wife, it is an act of impurity; they will also be childless. This is a filthy thing.” John the Baptist once blamed Herod for marrying his brother's wife, Herodias. I assumed that it was because of verse 21. But the Bible also explicitly mentions that his brother died, and his younger brother should marry his elder brother's wife and give birth and establish an heir for his elder brother.

By reading this passage, I believe that it is clear it mentions the wife of the brother-in-law not because of the death of his elder brother, but because his brother was still alive when Herod married his brother’s wife.

After stating these various crimes and their corresponding punishments, Jehovah said that the reason He did not allow the Israelites to commit them was because the Canaanites had done this before, leading Jehovah to despise them. At this time, Jehovah once again mentions God’s promise of giving them the land of milk and honey and declares that He’s the God of Israel and has made Israel a separated nation.

Verse 25 states that "You must therefore make a distinction between clean and unclean animals and between unclean and clean birds. Do not defile yourselves by any animal or bird or anything that moves along the ground--those that I have set apart as unclean for you.” In verse 26, it says "You are to be holy to me because I, the LORD, am holy, and I have set you apart from the nations to be my own.”

The question raised by the woman at the beginning of our study showed that she did not understand what “sanctification" really meant. She looked for other Chinese translations on the Internet and found the word "self-cleaning".

I told her that it was a very good question. Often, when we are reading the Bible and come across unanswered questions, we feel disturbed. It is very likely that the Holy Spirit is going to answer our questions, but He answered it through a question raised by one member. We must pay attention to this as the Holy Spirit often uses this type of question to provide us with timely answers.

What is sanctification or self-cleaning? Understanding this contains a very important spiritual and practical significance for Christians today who are living in an era of controversial issues such as homosexuality and abortion. If we understand this concept, it will greatly influence our understanding and application of God's law. If we misunderstand, misinterpret, and misapply God’s law, it will cause a series of difficulties.

As we are not in a hurry to answer this question, let’s first consider another question.  Why did God ask Noah to bring seven pairs of clean animals and unclean animals into the ark?  We can imagine that the flood had wiped out a lot of people and animals, but have you ever thought that since God had sent the flood to destroy the entire world of humankind and beasts, why not just let Noah bring clean animals to the ark and leave the unclean ones? If that is the case, wouldn’t it be an extinction of unclean animals? Wouldn’t that be that a good thing?

This question is not difficult to answer. Imagine the vision that God gave to Peter. When God called Peter to preach the gospel to the Gentiles, he saw that there was a variety of unclean animals in Tabriz and commanded him to slaughter them. But Peter refused, he said that he had never eaten these impure or unclean animals before. But Jesus said that “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.” (Acts 10:15). This story shows that if Noah had not brought unclean animals to the Ark at that time, the vision would not have happened. The answer to the earlier question is that there is a process of making something unclean, clean.

Abraham was originally an Aramean who lived in idolatry, but God called him and the Israelites to sanctification or cleaning in order to make them holy to be a sacrifice to God. They had gone through the process of being unclean to clean. Similarly, under the grace of God, God also gives a clean process to other unclean people. If God had not provided a process, when Abraham lived beyond the Euphrates river and was involved in idol worship, God could have killed him or cut him off, but God did not do that. Instead, God called him. Thus, Abraham became clean from unclean.

 

In addition to undergoing the process of being unclean to clean, God has different requirements for clean and unclean people. In other words, judgment begins at the house of God. The people who are part of God's family are those cleaned by God. If they do unclean things, they will be severely punished and disciplined by God. For those who are not yet clean, or who have not yet known Jesus Christ, God's mercy triumphs over judgment.

If you understand this truth and think about the words of Jesus: "He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous." (Matthew 5:45), it will become very meaningful. It is not that God doesn’t differentiate between good and evil, He gives the "wicked and evil" time to become "good and just." Words such as good and bad, and good and evil are not good spiritual vocabulary and therefore, are easily misunderstood. We can replace good or evil people with the words clean or unclean.

God's words in the Bible, even the law, have different contexts and intended audiences. We cannot generalize it. We must cut straight the truth under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. First, God has different treatments and approaches regarding people and sins. Second, God's demands, as well as how He handled the time period for the Israelis and Gentiles are also not the same.

Romans tells us that God used the law to judge the Israelites. Although the Gentiles have no law, they are a law unto themselves (their conscience is the work of the law). Romans 2:11-12 NIV says that: “For God does not show favoritism. All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law." This part is well-written. God does not favor people. Whether it’s the Israelites who are holy to God, or the Gentiles who are not holy to God (here is the Canaanites), the crime is to be judged and the capital punishment is death. This is beyond doubt. However, this is not the focus of our discussion here.

What we are discussing here is the scope and application of the law, and the limitations that we have on law. It is essential for us to understand how to be spiritual Israelites in this fallen society today.

God asks the Israelites and the people that are saved today to be the salt of the earth so that the Gentiles can witness God Himself. In order to make us more holy and to manifest God more, some laws or moral requirements have been put forward. When we manifest God, and when these Gentiles or sinners become attracted to God, He will continue to let them sanctify themselves in order to fulfill God's requirement - holiness.

God never imposed these laws or moral requirements on the Gentiles. This is why, when Jesus came to earth, he treated the tax collectors, prostitutes and Pharisees in a completely different way. The attitude of the Pharisees is that these people are sinners and unclean, therefore, cannot come close to God and His presence; the attitude of Jesus, on the other hand, is that these people are sinners, and He should be a friend to them first in order to show God to them. After seeing God's manifestation, they will know God and see salvation. The power of salvation will lead them further to the path of cleansing and sanctification.

I am not saying that the law of God does not apply to the Gentiles and sinners.  What I mean is that Christians should not use the law to condemn others or distance them from God.

 

Let me give a simple example. One of the hot topics discussed in the US is   about abortion and homosexuality. We Christians should hate the sin and love the sinner.  But we often failed to show love to the person who are sinners.

 

When Jesus came to Earth, he did not keep some laws such as the law of the Sabbath. He healed the people and let the disciples gather ears of wheat on the Sabbath day.  The first thing He took into consideration was to treasure the people and make them feel the love of God, and for them not to simply obey the law for the sake of obeying. But in stark contrast to Jesus, some Pharisees kept the law for the law. Their concern was the law and not the people. Therefore, Jesus condemned them saying “The Sabbath was made for man and not man for Sabbath.” (Mark 2:27).

I firmly believe that the responsibility of Christians today is not to have moral judgement but to have "self-sanctification" or "self-cleaning." When we put our focus on this goal, we will be able to reflect God’s glory and we will gradually transform and become the image of Christ. People will naturally see the manifestation of God in us, leading them to have feelings of conviction and repentance.

When we are judging people's mistakes and failures before our very eyes, it is very easy for us to put ourselves in the wrong position and treat ourselves as Gods in judging them. But God clearly tells us in the Bible that "There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy."(James 4:12). God will judge everyone, and Paul also tells us that since Gentiles have no law, conscience acted as their law.

I mentioned during the meeting that many people are so eager to judge others. But if they look inside themselves to see if they have fulfilled God’s requirements of being holy, they will find that they are far from meeting it. It’s easy to judge others, but it’s difficult to be holy.

I am not against Christians maintaining the basic standard of morality in a society or against anyone to oppose the continuous moral decline in society. My point is that if Christians can pay more attention to the righteousness in themselves and rely more on the light and grace of God to live out the reality of the law, we will be able to change the current situation of moral degradation and this will lead to better results.

To know the level of morality in the world is actually a manifestation of the cleanliness and spirituality of Christians and churches before God. The root of the degradation of morality in society is the church, not the unbelievers. If we only think about how to correct people’s behavior and not change what we have inside, then we are doing things in the wrong order.

Bible Study with Jairus - Romans 1

Bible Study with Jairus - Romans 1

I asked everyone at our Bible study to think about Romans chapter 1 and ask questions about what they didn't understand.  There was silence around the room. I jokingly said that this made sense for those who have been Christians for a long time.  When you have diligently read the Bible for many years, you become so familiar with it that you feel like you completely understand it.  Unfortunately, this can be a dangerous place to be because you may have the knowledge and Biblical truth but could lack in new spiritual insight given by the Holy Spirit.  God's word should be a living (Rhema) Word to us.  Romans 1:17 says, "For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written; "the righteous will live by faith." St. Augustine was said to be so inspired after reading this verse that he repented and was saved.  Martin Luther restored the truth of justification by faith after this verse inspired him.

We focused on Romans chapter 1 in mid-May, 2020.  I told everyone that the Holy Spirit would illuminate this chapter and speak a timely word to us.  Our intention isn't to explain the chapter verse by verse or word by word, but to enter into fellowship with the Lord and allow the Holy Spirit to speak.

The book of Romans was written during Paul's three months in Corinth.  Why did he write the book of Romans in Corinth? Romans is a long letter with sixteen chapters.  The letter was probably written on parchment because Paul obviously didn't have a computer back then.  Can you imagine the burden he must have had to write such a long letter to the church in Rome?

Paul wrote the book of Romans in Corinth, having never been to Rome, so more than likely, the church in Rome wasn't established by him. It seems strange that he would write such an intimate letter to people he wasn't close to.  As an example, if you were Paul today and established churches in Los Angeles and New York, you would naturally want to stay connected by writing or visiting those that the Lord had burdened your heart for.  Wouldn't it seem odd if you suddenly wrote an incredibly long, personal letter to a church in Texas that you never even visited? There must have been some sort of hidden connection that Paul had to the Roman church for him to send this letter.  If we can understand why he had the burden to write the book of Romans, we might have a better understanding of how it applies to us today.

The Holy Spirit will often disrupt our thoughts with questions because he wants to speak to us through them.

Paul mentioned in Romans 15 that he planned to go to Jerusalem. Believers in Macedonia and Achaia collected an offering for Paul to take to the poor in Jerusalem. He also planned to go to Rome later, and then to Spain (Romans 15:25-28).

Acts 19:21 (ESV) said: "Now after these events Paul resolved in the Spirit to pass through Macedonia and Achaia and go to Jerusalem, saying, "After I have been there, I must also see Rome." At that time, Paul was in Ephesus in Asia, while Apollos was in Corinth.  Paul laid his hands on and prayed for the Baptism of the Holy Spirit to fall on those under Apollos' ministry who had not received yet.  Later, he was "resolved in the Spirit" that he would pass through Macedonia, Achaia, and go to Jerusalem. He even said that he "must" see Rome. We know that the reason why Paul went to Jerusalem was to deliver the contribution from Macedonia and Achaia to the poor Jewish Christians. But why did Paul say that he "must" go to Rome?

What is the reason Paul decided that he must see Rome?  Although Paul felt that he must see Rome, he didn't know whether it would happen because he said in Romans 1:10 (NIV), "I pray that now at last by God's will the way may be opened for me to come to you."  Paul was saying that he wasn't sure if he would be able to go to Rome.  He was still praying that God would open the way for him.

After Paul decided to go to Jerusalem, Agabus and some disciples (Acts 21) prophesied that he would be bound in Jerusalem. Even the disciple Luke opposed him of going up to Jerusalem. But Paul was determined to go, saying that he was ready not only to be bound but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus (NIV, Acts 21:13).  Therefore, when he went to Jerusalem, he was prepared to die, not knowing whether he would go to Rome.  It was only after Acts 23:11 that the Lord appeared to Paul at night and promised that he would go to Rome safely.  But when Paul was writing the book of Romans in Corinth, although he had a burden for Rome, he did not know whether God would open the way for him to go.

Where did Paul's burden for Rome come from? The Holy Spirit stirred us to look at the verses in Acts 18:1-3, which answered the questions we raised.

Acts 18:1-4 (NIV) said: "After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. There he met a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla because Claudius had ordered all Jews to leave Rome.  Paul went to see them, and because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them.  Every Sabbath he reasoned in the synagogue, trying to persuade Jews and Greeks."

The Holy Spirit has particularly pointed our attention to the phrase "Claudius had ordered all Jews to leave Rome."  Why did Claudius order all the Jews to leave Rome?  We know that most of the Christians in the early churches were probably Jews. Although they were in gentile nations, there were also many Jews in the church. It was only after the gospel had spread before the Gentiles gradually increased.

We checked the history of this period online. Historically, the conflict between the Jews and the Gentiles existed in the city of Rome.  At that time, the situation was similar to the case of Germany during World War II.  Anti-Semitism was flourishing to the extent that there were many conflicts between the Jews and the Gentiles.  At about 40 AD, the Roman consul was drawn in by the anti-Semites.  They began to persecute the Jews. These persecution measures included burning the Jewish synagogue and forcing them to eat pork, causing many riots.  At that time, Caligula did not handle the situation well. Later, after Claudius succeeded to the throne, he regained some favor with the Jews.  This matter was then temporarily resolved.  But later, the Jews were incited by others to stir up trouble.  Because the spread of the Christian gospel was very active there, it caused conflicts between Christians and non-Christians, and between Jewish Christians and other Jews who had opposed the gospel.  Perhaps to avoid these troubles, Claudius had driven the Jews from Rome.  However, no one knows when Claudius's decree became invalid. Anyways, many Jews had begun to return to Rome later.

In short, from these historical records and Romans 1, we can speculate about the situation there. The message of the gospel was flourishing in Rome.  Paul said in Romans 1:8 that he thanked God for the people of the Roman Church because their faith was being reported all over the world.  Rome had a revival before Paul went there.  Why did God burden Paul and confirm that he was to go there in Acts 23?  Romans 1:11-13 (NIV) says, "I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith.   I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles." From these verses, Paul's meaning was clear. His purpose of going to Rome was to strengthen these Roman Christians, mutually encourage each other and to preach the gospel more to bear some fruits.

Paul's purpose was mainly to stabilize and strengthen the church in Rome. I'll use a war example to illustrate.  For example, two armies are fighting for a mountain top.  But if they advance and retreat, this can't be regarded as stabilizing the place.  Only if they fight for a place and establish a base there can they be considered as stable.  The same is true in Rome. Although Rome had a revival, since the Jews were driven out, this shows that the church had not yet established a foothold in Rome.  When Priscilla and Aquila and Paul were setting up tents together, they might have discussed these situations with Paul in detail, giving Paul the burden to help strengthen the church in Rome.  According to the record from the book of Acts, Paul met Priscilla and Aquila in Acts 18, and it was only recorded in Acts 19 that Paul was resolved in the Spirit and decided to go to Rome. Therefore, we can boldly speculate that Paul's encounter with Priscilla and Aquila fueled the burden for the church in Rome.

Next, let's look at the record of Romans 16. Paul mentioned a lot of names here.  This shows that he knew many people in Rome. In Romans 16:3, His greeting to Priscilla and Aquila shows that they returned to Rome. But neither the Bible nor history records when they returned to Rome.  In addition to Priscilla and Aquila, Paul also greeted Sister Phoebe (Romans 16:1), as well as Epenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in the province of Asia" (Romans 16:5) and Andronicus and Junia, who had been in prison with him and dozens of others. This shows that Paul knew a lot of people there. Therefore, although he had not established the Roman church and he had never been to Rome, his connections with Priscilla and Aquila and others more than likely fueled his burden for the church.

Because Paul was not sure whether he would reach Rome safely, he was heavily burdened with writing the content of the gospel in detail to the church in Rome to help them understand the pure gospel.  Paul said at the end of Romans 16, "Now to him who is able to establish you in accordance with my gospel, the message I proclaim about Jesus Christ, in keeping with the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past." (NIV, Romans 16:25).  He is raising the bar with these words.  Although revival had come to the church in Rome, many believers there may not have understood the depth of the gospel message. It's possible that some of the preaching may have deviated from the truth.  Priscilla and Aquila may have passed this information on to Paul or perhaps Andronicus and Junia, who were in prison with him.  This could be why Paul felt burdened to write such a detailed letter about the gospel of Jesus Christ to educate and strengthen the believers there.

The book of Romans is often called "Paul's Gospel" by theologians.  Although it is not included in the gospel, it is a very detailed explanation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Many theologians have commented that Paul's gospel is very helpful for future generations to understand the gospel of Jesus Christ.  People such as Augustine and Martin Luther, who we mentioned earlier, represent some of the people who were helped by the book of Romans.

To better help the members of our study understand Paul's experience in Rome (including Paul's burden to go, the environment does not allow him to go, and finally continuing the trip later), I shared some of my experiences.  I hope it can help everyone better understand Paul's spiritual experience and its significance to us today.

I went to Oregon in January 2016 to attend a prophetic meeting hoping to hear from God about my wife's ten-year infertility problem and to learn how to listen to God's voice. In this special meeting, God told me that not only will I have a child in 2016, but also "Jairus Bible World Ministry" came out of Him.  I was saved in the Local Church Movement.  I never thought of having my own ministry, nor did I ever think of serving the churches in China.  But before this special meeting, I read a book by Chuck Pierce, who is an American prophet.  He talked about Jesus appearing to him in the 1980s, telling him God's plan for China until 2026, and China becoming a very powerful country and having a great spiritual revival that will spread to the whole world, significantly changing China and the world.  One of the keynote speakers of the special meeting that I had attended was Chuck Pierce, and he repeated this story.

One day after coming back home, I was walking the streets of Washington, DC, and I remembered this vision. Suddenly I heard the Holy Spirit asking me, "What is a great revival?" At this point in my spiritual walk, I wasn't used to hearing God's voice clearly, so I was taken aback at His question.  I immediately answered Him in the spirit, "I heard that one-tenth of Chinese people are Christians. Isn't this already a great revival?"  Because I was saved overseas, I never participated in the church services in China.  The teaching I received at the Local Church Movement was mainly to minister to Chinese scholars and students overseas.  I never thought of serving the churches in China and the United States.  The Holy Spirit immediately asked me, "How about two out of ten?"  I was even more surprised.  I quickly counted in the spirit, and I realized there would be 100 million more Chinese that will be saved.  The conversation with the Holy Spirit this time had changed me a lot.  I started to have a burden on China.

God placed a burden for China in my heart, but He hasn't opened the opportunity for me to go yet.  His current path for my life is training. I'm studying for my Doctor of Ministry degree at the United Theological Seminary.  Part of the training was leaving the Local Church Movement and exploring truths from the Charismatic movement, which led me to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit and learn about the various gifts of the Spirit.  The Holy Spirit has assured me that the burden for China will be fulfilled.  A Korean prophet prophesied that God had set my base of ministry in the United States but would send me all over China to minister.  God would also open the door for ministry in the United States.  Other prophets confirmed this prophetic word.  My experience is similar to Paul's in that God gave the burden, but the circumstances didn't permit the door to be opened right away.  Through the waiting period, Paul wrote the book of Romans.  My waiting period includes finishing my Doctoral degree and other writing projects.  As I've been going through this series of processes, I realized what God's plan was for me.  He is preparing me to help stabilize and strengthen Chinese and American churches someday.

The application of Paul's experience isn't to be limited to me.  I would like to challenge every believer to ask God how He is preparing you for His purposes during this coronavirus pandemic.  One woman felt like God allowed her time to prepare for the CPA exam.  Another woman said that God used these circumstances to draw her deeper into faith for healing a physical illness to prepare her to serve Him better in the future.  The Chinese character or word for crisis has two meanings, crisis, and opportunity. It's important to look at situations like the coronavirus or the riots from God's perspective so that we can take advantage of any opportunities he has for us in the middle of the crisis. One man in our study said that this pandemic has exposed sin in many people.  God is more than willing to give them the opportunity to repent and strengthen their faith through this trial.

At the end of our study, we blessed and prayed for the people in China, the United States, and the world. May God be merciful to them; let them not ignore the grace of God for giving them sun, air, and water. Like Romans 1:20 (NIV) says, "For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse."  God has allowed our circumstances to change pretty dramatically, and people are feeling weak and helpless. 

It's time to turn to God with a repentant heart, surrendering our will to Him and allowing Him to work through us in power.

 

 

Bible Study with Jairus - Leviticus 19

Bible Study with Jairus- Leviticus 19

There are a lot of details stipulated in the law in Leviticus 19. For example, in verse 19 (NIV), it says, “Keep my decrees. Do not mate different kinds of animals. Do not plant your field with two kinds of seed. Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material.” How can we understand what this means? Each time we read a portion of scripture, we have a person lead the discussion by sharing some thoughts about the chapter and asking questions that they may have.  Then we all engage in discussion.

 

The question raised by the woman who was leading our Bible Study, was that she often talks to her atheist friends and they argued with her saying that: "The accounts in the Old Testament are really behind the times, you see, the hybrid wheat has saved a lot of people’s lives. But the Bible wrote that you cannot cross two different seeds. It’s really outdated."

 

How can we come to an understanding in this situation?  Imagine if the Lord Jesus was here today and faced with this question.  How would He answer?  Another woman asked the question, “Should we use genetic modification?”  We may not know exactly how the Lord would answer but we do know that when the Pharisees, teachers of the law, elders and chief priests challenged Jesus’ behavior in eating with tax collectors and prostitutes that the same principles can apply.

Based on the principle described in Leviticus 19, let’s take a look. Jesus is a Jew. The Jews should not have dealings with the Samaritans. Jesus is also a man, and a man should not talk with a Samaritan woman, but He had done this. When He did this, not only did his disciples express surprise, but even the Samaritan woman was shocked. She said, “Are you not a Jew? Why did you ask a Samaritan woman for a drink?” This clearly reveals that the Jews didn’t speak with the Samaritans at that time. In addition, the analogy in the parable of the Good Samaritan told by Jesus is also a great breakthrough in the Jewish idea. Perhaps, the person who was attacked by robbers is unclean, and if the Levite and the priest touch Him, they may become unclean, affecting their observance of Sabbath rules and rituals.

 

Why did the Jews think so?  This is the application of the principle. The Jews are God's chosen people, and God does not allow them to intermarry with Gentiles, or mix with the sinners, thereby, tarnishing them. So when Jesus and the tax collectors who are dining together, or the sinful woman kissing His feet there, the teachers of the law, the priests, the elders, and the Pharisees felt that Jesus violated this commandment. But we know that Jesus has His own reason for doing this.

 

Why did the teachers of the law, the priests, the elders, and the Pharisees think that Jesus had violated the rules? Who is in wrong here?  The teachers of the law are doing what they are doing in accordance with the rules of Jehovah in the Old Testament. So in the literal sense, there is nothing wrong with it. Of course, the Lord Jesus is God, and He certainly can't be wrong. But how do we discern the difference between the two?

 

A theological teacher at the United Theological Seminary in the United States tells a new version of the Parable of the Good Samaritan, and may help us understand this difference more deeply.

 

This story goes like this. A beggar is asking for food at the intersection. A pastor who’s driving a BMW has comes to the intersection stopping for the red light.  The beggar comes to the car and asks for food. The pastor pretended not to see him. When the light turned green, he drove away. The second person drove up and the beggar again asks for food. This time, it was a Christian mother. She looked around her car and found a chocolate bar for the beggar. Then, when the traffic light was green, she also drove away. The third person to drive through was a homosexual. The beggar asked for food again and the gay man stopped the car. He let the beggar get in his car, took the beggar to a restaurant to eat, and gave the beggar shelter so that he could rest. My teacher then asked us: "So, which one is the good neighbor and which one is the Good Samaritan here?"

 

Obviously, the Good Samaritan in this story is the homosexual. In the United States where the author lives, the issue of homosexuality can be said to be a very controversial issue. Many Christians oppose homosexuality not only because the Bible says that homosexuality is a sin, but more because homosexuality has become a “vocal minority” in the United States. They actively participate in social activities and politics, and thus, largely determine public opinion. Christians, who account for the majority of the population in the United States, are at a disadvantage. The level of hatred by most Christians towards homosexuality is similar to the degree of hatred of the Jews towards the Samaritans during the time of Jesus. If we only use the story of the Samaritans in the Bible times, we may not understand the deeper meaning, because the words "Good Samaritan" are deeply rooted in the hearts of the people today as something to be esteemed. It represents something good but for the Jews at that time, the Samaritans would compare to homosexuality in a Christian nation.  Christians are very uncomfortable with this lifestyle.

 

Why should the Israelites comply with the provisions of the law, whereas, the Lord Jesus doesn’t need to obey/follow them? Where are the limitations of the law? Paul in the New Testament tells us very clearly that the law was our guardian because the Israelites were held in custody under the law when they were still young. If we understand this, we will be enlightened.

 

In other words, it depends on who you are and how deep your spiritual maturity is.  For example,  Jehovah clearly stipulated that the Jews could not marry foreign women.  There was a Jew who married a Gentile woman and God sent a plague against them.  The plague didn’t stop until the Israelites got angry and killed the man and Gentile woman.  Then we have Moses, who married the Cush woman.  Aaron (the brother of Moses) and Miriam (the sister of Moses) harshly criticize and accuse him seemingly defending the law that they believe Moses violated.  Jehovah angrily summoned them and afflicted Miriam with leprosy.

A Christian man in our Bible study suggested that perhaps Moses’ relationship with God was very intimate so that his marriage to a Cush woman would not influence him to turn from God and worship idols.  Joseph also married a Gentile woman.  Perhaps God didn’t have a problem with it based on the nature of their relationship.  The average Israeli however was not like Moses who knew God’s principles.  They are limited to knowing and understanding only the acts of God.  If they mix marriages with the Gentiles, they might be influenced by their idolatrous customs and as a result pulled away from the Lord.  God established this law to protect the Israelites in their childhood keeping them from the influences of the Gentiles who were committing idolatry. The purpose is not to eliminate the relationship between the Jews and the Gentiles. If this is the case, why did God say (by the mouth of the prophet) that one day, the Gentiles will have a part in the Kingdom of God?

 

But the Israelites confuse the temporary means with the eternal goal. God does not allow them to intermarry with the Gentiles. The purpose is to temporarily protect them from the attack of the idols, but the Israelites misunderstood and regarded this as God wanting this to be their purpose and ultimate goal.

 

The mistake made by the Israelites is worthy of our careful attention. This error points out a principle that we may continue to make the same mistake today. Will we do what God calls us to do and make it perpetual as God’s eternal goal or God’s continuous calling for us? After God’s call to goes forward or is changed, we are tied up by the lessons from the past.  This leads to our hesitation to move forward. I used to hear people say that one mistake that a denomination or a Christian ministry often makes is to take the work that God has entrusted to us as His central work or His only work. Although it is true that sometimes, the entrustment is given to us by God,  we must not neglect that God has other work to do. There is no doubt that what God has entrusted to us is important but this is not necessarily His central work or only work.

 

When I was at the meeting, I mentioned with our members the story of a charismatic American woman that I’ve heard. This woman has the gift of prophecy and healing.   Many people in the United States are obsessed with pornographic videos. One study shows 70% of the Christians that were interviewed even admitted to watching pornographic videos. In order to help these Americans who were obsessed with pornographic videos, she led a ministry team to some Porn Conference in the United States. They set up their own booths at these conferences through the means of Christian dream interpretation, and using the gifts of the prophets and the gifts of healing to minister to those at this Porn Conference. They prayed and ministered healing to a lot of participants; they also helped a lot of people to get rid of their obsession towards pornography through deliverance ministries. This story is thought-provoking. If we based it in the general principles of law mentioned above, Christians are not allowed to participate in such activities, especially if they cannot overcome their sexual temptation in this kind of conference.

 

Doesn’t it stand to reason that a Christian participating in a porn conference opens themselves to temptation?

 

This Christian woman minister is not tempted by pornography.  She participates in these conferences because of her love for these people and desire to see them set free.  The power of God is with her as she ministers and the results are not bad. 

 

There is one more example. There is an American prophet who has the gift of dream interpretation. He was criticized by some traditional Christians as a person who is possessed by demons because God called him to explain the meaning of tattoos to people with tattoos through prophecies and tattoo interpretation. He said, God told him, "Look for these people who have tattoos. When you talk to them, I’ll tell you their initial thoughts on why they chose a certain tattoo. That way, they will be amazed and they’ll know that God is with you. At the same time, they will be open to you, and you can then preach the gospel to them.

 

Leviticus also explicitly mentioned in this chapter that people are not allowed to have tattoos. This American prophet said that since he had tattoos, originally, some groups in the Bible belt who had invited him to speak, no longer invited him. This prophet argued that Jesus also had a tattoo. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: king of kings and lord of lords (New International Version, Revelation 19:16) and God’s name was engraved on the one who is victorious. He also said that Leviticus had also recorded that you shouldn’t eat pork, but many people still eat pork.

 

 Of course, whether his debate is correct or not is not the center of my discussion. The problem is that there are so many people who have tattoos in the United States. God calls this prophet to love them and care for them. Using their tattoos is his way to share God’s love with them.  It is not wrong for him to obey God’s leading and pay the price in doing so, because this becomes a role model for others to minister to the outcasts.

 

So the key here is love. If you love someone, love and mercy should triumph over judgment. It’s true that the law is important, but don't forget that “Christ is the culmination of the law” (Romans 10:4).

 

 It doesn’t mean that we only need love and don’t need the law anymore. That’s not the case.

 

Jesus said that: “I have not come to abolish the law but to fulfill them. Not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law.” (New International Version, Matthew 5:17-18). The two greatest commandments are: love the Lord, your God, and love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus pointed out to the expert in the law that these two are the greatest commandments in the law. Jesus is the ultimate manifestation of God's love. He came and he turned the sinners into the sons of God, exalted them and let them sit on the throne with Him.

 

He came, and is willing to associate with people of low position and let them feel exalted. Jesus and the Israelites are not the same. The Israeli teachers of the law, elders, priests, and Pharisees treated tax collectors, sinners and the Gentiles that way because it would help them maintain a higher status. Perhaps they could trample these sinners, tax collectors, and Gentiles under their feet in order to exhibit their nobility. But Jesus is different. Jesus is God and a great person. A great person is never shy about sharing his greatness with others because he is great. A person who is not so great will have difficulties in sharing the greatness he has with others because he is not that great.

 

I’ll share a personal experience in order to further discuss about this truth. The Christians who have experience in the Chinese American Church discovered that in a lot of aspects, there’s a difference between a man who comes from mainland China or from Taiwan. One difference that surprised us is that we saw that some Taiwanese brothers don’t need to cook; it’s the wife who’s busy doing all the cooking. I have witnessed such a situation with my own eyes. Of course, for the brothers who are from the mainland, they feel surprised and envious. My wife and I  talked about these things.

 

Chinese men still have that “macho male” persona to a certain extent, but because of the liberation of women in modern China, that macho persona has been suppressed to some extent.  I’ve experienced this in my own marriage and the Lord has helped me continue to die to self and let go of my own ego.  He showed me that I lacked love and the power to love.

 

I went to Oregon to attend a special meeting in 2016. I brought a few books about Hebrew text back. The title of the book is God’s Secrets only Hebrew can reveal and the author is Dr. Danny Ben-Gigi. I didn't read them because I was busy, but my wife looked at them. One day, when we talked about the problem of me lacking the power to love, my wife shared her experience in reading this Hebrew writing. She said: "Did you know how the Hebrews understand the famous prayer written in Numbers, the three stages of priestly blessing?” She then shared the things that inspired her in these Hebrew texts.

 

Numbers 6 NIV

6:24 The Lord bless you and keep you;

6:25 the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you;

6:26 the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.

 

The teaching that we received is that the first stage of blessing is the Father’s blessing to you. The second stage is the grace of Lord Jesus Christ has blessed you; Jesus Christ is the human face of God.  The third stage refers to the Holy Spirit.

I later found out this might refer to the different stages of our relationship with God.  I even tried to explain this by using a camera as an example. I often do videography so I got my inspiration from videotaping. You see a person far away from the lens of a camera and only see the outline of a person. It is like the blessing of the first stage; we know God from a far-away distance. Then when you zoom in the lens to a medium shot, you can see the face of this person; in this stage you know God more. But when you zoom in to a close-up, you will see the wrinkles and expressions of the anchor’s face, which is like the blessing of the third stage. In this stage we know God more personally. This is the feeling of continuous progress with God.

However, what my wife learned from this book is that the first stage seems to be a father standing tall who’s laying his hands and praying for his smaller child for blessings and protection; the second stage is like a relationship between husband and wife. We are the bride of Christ so are on the same level. We can see God’s face and His glory; on the third stage, God lifts us up. That Hebrew textbook is accompanied by a picture of a father lifting up his little son. The father lifted up his countenance at his little son, which is the meaning of the lift up mentioned in the book. When God saved us from our sin and even lifts us up over His head, God will turn His face toward us.

 

My wife continued to share that when this book mentioned the word "marry,” is when a Hebrew groom marries his wife, which is what the phrase "turned one’s face" means in Hebrew. The New American Standard Bible and many other versions translate this as “The LORD lift up His countenance on you, And give you peace.'”

 

The Jews had also a ritual when they get married. They let the groom lift the wife. This shows that God's will is for the husband to love his wife through lifting her up, and not trampling her under foot. With this said, I feel really ashamed sometimes.

 

This level is like the level of the teachers of the law, elders, priests, and Pharisees; they held themselves aloof from politics and material pursuits and were not willing to reveal their real motives on why they didn’t want to be in touch with the Samaritans and the tax collectors. It’s not necessarily because they want to keep the law of God, their true intention maybe out of selfishness.

 

I talked about how male chauvinism is deeply etched in Chinese men earlier.  In my own life taking an equal or humble position in my marriage is like losing face.  That higher sense of self seems very important but can end up trampling my wife.

 

But as a good Samaritan, the Lord exalted the person who was wounded and robbed; He eats with the tax collectors and prostitutes in order to exalt the humble, and lift his children in the heavenly love of the Father, or letting a Christian groom lift his bride up. When God does this, it does not degrade His identity; it shows more of His exceeding greatness.

 

So returning to the theme of our article, which of the two is more in line with the Lord's will and disposition? Is it the Israelites who strictly abide by the law of not mixing two kinds of human seeds (meaning not to be mixed with Gentiles and sinners), or when Jesus came and He lifted up the sinners and the Gentiles?

 

Which of the following reflects more the essence/true meaning of the law? When Jesus exalted the sinners, tax collectors, prostitutes, and brings salvation to the Gentiles, the Israelites become jealous and envious? Or the examples mentioned before, the woman who is committed to helping those who were addicted to pornographic videos and the prophet who cares about people with tattoos? Let’s repeat it again. Jesus said that loving the Lord, your God and loving your neighbors as yourself are the two greatest commandments in the law.

 

In addition to discussing this issue, another woman asked, “How can we understand Leviticus 19:5-8 (NIV)?”

19:5 When you sacrifice a fellowship offering to the Lord, sacrifice it in such a way that it will be accepted on your behalf. 

19:6 It shall be eaten on the day you sacrifice it or on the next day; anything left over until the third day must be burned up.

19:7 ^If any of it is eaten on the third day, it is impure and will not be accepted.

19:8 Whoever eats it will be held responsible because they have desecrated what is holy to the Lord; they must be cut off from their people.

Why is it when you eat the flesh of the peace offerings on the third day, it’s profaning the holy thing of the Lord and that person shall be cut off from his people? Is the Lord too cruel here?

 

My answer is that this is about our wrong mentality. We are too concerned about punishment. God's words are from the perspective of love, but because of Adam's sin, we have been entangled in the orphan spirit and are too worried about punishment. Apostle John said: “Perfect love drives out fear, and there is no fear in love.” (New International Version, 1 John 4:18). If we can live in accordance to our love of God, others and ourselves, then there will be no fear. Because we are so afraid, we focus on the punishments imposed on us when we profane sacred objects.  The core message here is God’s desire for us to offer our sacrifices - our love and devotion to Him and for us to spend time having daily fellowship with Him. All of these are our sacrifices to God, and please Him.

 

It’s wrong to think that you can skip your morning prayer and fellowship with God because you attended Bible study the previous evening.  Fellowship and prayer need to be done daily, we can’t store it up for the next day.  God won’t cut us off but He delights in our daily sacrifice of prayer and fellowship which is similar to the peace offerings that were dedicated to God.  They offered food and we offer the sacrifice of praise, prayer and fellowship. God is our spiritual food and the sacrifices we offer him can be likened to our food to Him. The peace offerings were dedicated to God but the priests could also enjoy them.  Jesus is the bread that comes from heaven, and God Himself is our food.  When Abraham and Noah offered sacrifices to the Lord, the aroma pleased Him.  This satisfaction is the joy of the Lord.  You can eat leftovers, but God isn’t as happy with leftovers.  That is why He is saying he doesn’t like your left over foods or yesterday’s love and sacrifice.  He is simply saying, “get up early every day and talk with me, I really love it.  If you don’t do that, I won’t be happy.”  This is God’s way to woo us but not punish us.

 

God created everyone differently, just as every snowflake is unique. Although there are countless people who praise Him, your praise is irreplaceable by others. The unique happiness you bring to God is irreplaceable by others. Imagine a father who has ten sons, nine sons gave him gifts, and one didn’t. This doesn’t mean when his nine sons gave him gifts, he won’t want the gift from his tenth son. The joy that this tenth son brings is something that the other nine sons can never do. So, you can understand now why Jesus can leave the ninety-nine sheep and search for the lost one until he finds it.

We must break free from our fears and our orphan mindset in order to avoid cognitive bias when we look at the Bible from the perspective of God's love. Once we know the love of God perfectly, we will no longer bound by the letter of the law. We can grow up in everything unto the Lordship of Jesus Christ, so we can be His true manifestation on earth. We cannot afford to have today’s Pharisees and we cannot afford to misinterpret the law by missing His love.

 

Bible Study with Jairus - Leviticus 18

Bible Study with Jairus – Leviticus 18

 

Leviticus 18 talks about the 17 situations on the prohibition of fornication that God told Moses about. Have you ever wondered why there are a lot of details listed here?

Some people say that God the Father is a man of few words in the New Testament. He didn’t say much but in the Old Testament, He spoke to Moses about the unlawful sexual relations in detail. Isn’t this a bit overboard in detail?  For example, check out the following references: do not have sexual relations with your mother, your father's wife, sister, son’s daughter or your daughter’s daughter, father’s sister, mother’s sister, aunt, daughter-in-law, brother’s wife, both a woman and her daughter, with many women of different generations; you could not marry the older sister and younger sister at the same time; homosexuality is not allowed; do not approach a woman to have sexual relations during her monthly period, do not have sexual relations with an animal, do not give any of your children to be sacrificed to Molek. When we counted them, there were about 17 different references.

Let me ask you a question.  Don’t these verses seem somewhat repetitive, wordy or even unnecessary?  We don’t often hear our Father speak in the New Testament.  One preacher said that God had barely talked, yet here, God (our Father) and the Israelites (represented by Moses) engaged in a long-winded discussion about the unlawful cases of sexual relations.  It’s a bit confusing isn’t it?

I realized a few things after reading the Old Testament.  If you don’t get anything spiritually beneficial from what you’ve read, then you might not understand what it’s saying. There are a lot of chapters in the Bible that you may think are very simple but often these are the easiest ones for Christians to ignore.  What I mean is, you may take the words in their most basic sense but you don’t fully understand the deeper spiritual meaning. When you think about it, this is really the case. You know that the Bible is inspired by the revelation from the Holy Spirit, and John 21:25 NIV said, “Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them was written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written”. According to this principle, all that is written in the Bible whether the Old Testament or the New Testament can be said to have no-nonsense writing and everything written was on point.

The second thing I realized is that if you’re done reading a chapter of the Bible and it did not give you any inspiration for your present life or give you answers to the problems that you are currently facing; it   might be that you have’nt understood or fully grasped the spiritual meaning contained in this part of the Bible.

Third, if you’re done reading a chapter of the Bible and you have not experienced God's love in a deeper way this is also an indicator that you have missed the deeper and spiritual meaning of this chapter.

For example, after reading this chapter, what kind of inspiration will a person  get in order to be counted as understanding the deeper meaning? The Bible is inexhaustible. Everywhere you go, the Holy Spirit gives spiritual illumination, so there is not just one conclusion. The key is that the Holy Spirit speaks to you through the Bible and illuminates scripture to you. In addition, the deeper we understand the passage, the more real God’s love will be to us.

We have already read this week's readings and have specific experiences on these two points that we will share here. Not only this week but in previous times as well, every time we read the Bible, the Holy Spirit gives us fresh illumination. It also helps us understand the exhaustive and profound meaning of the Bible. In addition to this, it moved us, helped us to know more about God's love, ourselves, God’s calling and His glorious expectation of us, and the enemy's tricks. It helps us triumph over the spiritual and practical difficulties we face in our lives today. I also mentioned this point specifically in our meeting. I will talk about this in further detail later.

First, let’s discuss how this chapter will help us feel God's love in a more tangible way.

One man said that the first impression he had after seeing these 17 points was the difference between the civil law and the common law. The civil law is a general principle and it does not necessarily have many details. But in the common law, all cases are clearly written and are clearly laid out. The 17 specific rules here are more like common law. Each case was laid out one by one.  A lady in our study mentioned that the United States has many laws but behind every single law is a mountain of detail which could drive a person crazy.  Each detail of the law could be an case in itself.

To help you understand what we mean, we will give a few examples. One example is I grew up in a rural area and I’ve heard my family tell a story about a young man named Xiao Zhang (pronounced: SEE-yo Jong) in our village. He was my classmate during elementary school. I heard people say that his father committed incest and thus, he had become very angry. Another childhood friend told me how he got angry and crazy. This friend further told me that Xiao Zhang often wields a knife and doesn’t pay for his bus ticket. Others asked him to buy a ticket but instead of buying one, he said, "You’re playing with fire aren’t you?" which is in line with the Chinese proverb saying someone who doesn’t think of the consequences of his/her actions. This person may not want to live anymore, therefore, nobody dares to offend or mess with him. After some time, I heard from my family that Xiao Zhang died on the street on a snowy day. What kind of pain was Xiao Zhang in? For example, he may have thought of killing his father. However, although his father had committed incest, he loves his son. His son had been well-treated by his father since childhood. If he killed his father, it would be going against his morals and conscience. How much pain did these things bring to his inner heart?

The New Testament tells us that there is one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. (NIV, Ephesians 4:6). Jesus also mentioned that“Not one of the sparrows will fall to the ground outside your Father's care.” (NIV, Matthew 10:29).In layman’s terms, God is omnipresent, omnipotent, and omniscient. God surely knows Xiao Zhang’s pain.

Another reason why we may have a hard time understanding the Bible when reading it is that we are looking at it from the wrong angle. We often look at it  as though God is a judge and punisher.  . We may feel like a criminal who attempts to commit crimes but is afraid of being caught, or we may feel that it’s like the relationship between a mouse and a cat. We are too heavily influenced by the law and the concept of right and wrong. We often think that God has made these rules in order to restrain us from doing certain things. But if you change the way you think and put yourself in other’s shoes and view  God as a loving Father, which means what He said and do is all because He wants to care and help people, then it will be easier for us to understand the Bible because the Bible is God’s love letter. If you don't understand God's love, then you’ll have a hard time understanding this letter.

 

God's main goal is not to keep a close eye on you, but rather, to care for others. Before the Lord talked about these 17 cases, Leviticus 18:5 NIV said, "Keep my decrees and laws, for the person who obeys them, will live by them. I am the Lord.”We’ll be able “to live” by obeying the laws and rules set by God.

Using the example I mentioned earlier, Xiao Zhang’s father violated the law here. But it seemed that he did not receive any punishment. He is still alive, but his son died. Many people don't understand this. They often say, "God does not exist or is unfair. Why didn’t God strike the evil man with lightning and kill him for hurting me?   ?" Those who say things like this do not understand God. God loves you, so when you are hurt, God feels anger and pain because of His love for us. Thus, He doesn’t allow us to do bad things. God also loves the bad guy and He wants him to have life, so laws were also put into effect to keep us from doing such bad things. The Bible says, “Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked?” (NIV, Ezekiel 18:23).

For thousands of years, human beings were guilty of committing incest. How many instances are there total? We know that there were rumors that the legendary Emperor Gaozong of Tang（https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emperor_Gaozong_of_Tang） and Su Shi（https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Su_Shi） had committed incest. We often take the side of the perpetrator and ignore the victim's side. How many people were in pain because of this sin? We know that the Old Testament has repeatedly mentioned that the complaints or sins of the Israelites have reached the Lord, and the Lord has heard them. The Lord also heard the crimes of people during the time of Noah.

There is a place you could call the Courts of Heaven. The Lord is the judge, Satan is the accuser and Lord Jesus is the defender. But, what’s the use of the defender when there is no court? When the crimes of people have been passed and laid out to the Courts of Heaven, there may be a lot. Perhaps in terms of morals and ethics, people’s sins are too numerous to count. For a moment, I need you to open up your imagination in the spirit. Imagine the crimes committed by people in this area which are laid out to the Courts of Heaven. It may be countless. But perhaps after God had taken this into consideration, the cases or crimes in these 17 situations are the biggest, so He has especially written them down. In other words, the 17 rules here are probably the most notorious cases. And behind every case, there’s countless blood, sweat, and tears. Not only does Jesus often weep on earth but He also weeps in heaven. The Bible says that God will wipe every tear from their eyes, but it does not say that Jesus will not shed tears in heaven. On the contrary, many people who have the gift of prophecy have seen that Jesus still sheds tears for people’s sins and for people who refuse to repent.

Heavenly Father loves us so much. Every person, whether he is hurtful to others or he is the victim, is made by God. He loves them. Every time there’s a criminal case, it is like the mother mentioned in the Bible. One of her sons kills his brother; which makes her suffer. Every time you commit a crime, the pain that God feels will be doubled. He is deeply distressed for the victims and he’s also saddened by the perpetrators. As a result, many people complain that God is unfair and He seems to be inactive. Actually, you don’t know how difficult this is and how long-suffering God is in His love.  In Jesus Christ, God offered salvation to both victims and perpretrators.

I told another story during our meeting. One person prayed, asking God to let him feel what He feels even if it’s only for a day. He prayed very fervently. One day God answered his prayers, allowing him to have the supernatural gift of prophecy which enables him to know what God knows. On this day, he arrived in a parking lot and saw a woman, and immediately saw in the spirit how the woman’s father raped her and how much pain she was in. He was overcome and felt every heart-wrenching pain that the woman was feeling. It was so painful that he couldn’t stand it any longer. He quickly prayed to God to remove this gift. He didn’t want it anymore. He couldn’t bear this gift.

After I told this story, a lady sighed and said “It seems like only God and Lord Jesus can identify with the pain of others.” We can't sense or deeply feel the suffering of others.  We are God’s children and the body of Christ so God feels our pain just as we feel the stab of a thorn in our fingertip.  Another sister also sighed saying, “It seems that God has a very strong heart." Yes, unlike humans, God is not only love but powerful enough to handle our pain.  Many times, we don't understand why God  makes certain laws or regulations, mainly because we don’t have God's divine love and we don’t feel the pain that God is feeling.

After I believed in the Lord, I gradually experienced God’s love. This experience reminds me that I used to intentionally or unintentionally hurt people.  In the past, when I was a sinner, I was indifferent, even to the point of being complacent of the fact that I had taken advantage of other people. But I repented of my sins, especially after receiving the love of the Lord. Thinking about it now, I feel terribly ashamed. The reason why people sin is mainly that they do not know or understand God's love. Once a person knows and experiences God's love, will he or she still intentionally sin? No, this person will do their best to avoid sin.  As Christians, if we can’t help others or overcome our own weaknesses, there is a good chance we don’t understand God’s love.

Going back to my unfinished thought from earlier, this is what I have to say now. I mentioned in the meeting that the secret of a Christian's victory or the secret to winning battles is not to fight, nor to be spiritual warfare advocates who are always on the search for spiritual enemies. A victorious Christian is someone who really knows God, who wants to know more about God and His original calling and His glorious expectation towards us, that is, what we truly are in Christ. The more you know who God is and the more you know who you are to God, the more you can overcome sin and the enemy's attacks. Your authority over the enemy is not how high your voice is, but how much you know about God and how much you know about your worth to God. It increases your understanding and you will naturally overcome the enemy's deception and attacks.

This understanding should be applied when reading the Bible. Every chapter of the Bible should be read for this purpose – it should allow us to know God better and to know our worth to God and Christ. Every time we lead the Bible study, we should help our brothers and sisters to improve in these two aspects. Of course, there is a third aspect, which helps us to see through more of the schemes of the enemy. We will talk about this next. After reading a chapter of the Bible, many of us have the feeling that it fails to get to the heart of a matter. Why is that so? Mainly because we are only understanding the words in their literal sense; without the help of the Holy Spirit, you’ll not be able to get the deeper meaning behind these words. The Holy Spirit has come as our helper, but the extent of His help is the same as the gift of prophecies. It varies according to the degree of your faith. The more confidence you have in the Holy Spirit, the more you will rely on him to help you. God is not biased.

 

We’re almost at the end but to recap, we have just discussed an example of a case of incest and gaining a better understanding of God’s love and pain. We don't have time to analyze each situation one by one, but I hope you have understood this subject better. Let's talk about another aspect. Every time we read the Bible, it should help us understand the enemy's tricks and schemes in order for us to have a greater chance of defeating him.

Many times, Christians don't need evil spirits to personally attack them. As long as the evil spirits arouse the fleshy desire of the brothers and sisters, they will stir you up to fight with each other. The evil spirits and Satan don't need to show up at all. But if Christians can recognize the evil spirits behind them, will they still be easily fooled? Of course not. Although God made us a little lower than the angels (Psalm 8:5), we were appointed by God to judge angels (1 Cor. 6:3). The basic principle of the Bible is that God never calls us to do something and He’ll not personally equip us with the ability to accomplish it.

In addition to revealing God Himself and explaining how we communicate with God, the theme of the Bible is to reveal the workings and tactics of Satan, the enemy, and the evil spirits. These three are the basic pillars of the Bible. God, Himself is the center, but how we communicate with Him is also important how the enemy works and how we deal with them is also important.

These 17 points can also offer an explanation of God and his 17 ways of the dealing with the workings of the evil spirits in this area. When I learned deliverance in a Charismatic church, I learned this truth:  the enemy often gets a foothold through your sin or weakness and then takes root in you. A teacher named Rodney Houge, who is good at deliverance and who has a background of being in an American Baptist Church, gave a good example. The teacher said that the mountain climber has a basic tool called Piton. What is a Piton and how does it work? When climbing there are often rocky places where the footing is not good, but there are many cracks. Once the Piton is hammered into a crack it will expand. With this expanding force, you can hold on to rocks and let the climbers hang ropes as they climb. The teacher explained that evil spirits also work that way. Once you’ve committed a sinful act, the evil spirit will immediately be on the fly or piton’s radar, and then it stays and lives in your house, which will bring you a lot of trouble later. If you know that the sinful act  is a foothold for evil spirits, you will consider the consequences of not committing sins. But many people are ignorant about this, so they’ve continued to commit sins. The key to deliverance is to let this person repent of the sin that he/she has done and remove the legal means of which the evil spirits have entered in order to cast out the demons.

For example, we talked about the sin of fornication committed by David. This is not just David's weakness, but when his great grandmother Rahab was a prostitute, she gave opportunities to the evil spirits. This evil spirit is very powerful. Although Boaz, the son of Rahab, is a pious person and he prevails over fornication, this generational trait has become one of the roots of David's weakness.

We often cannot see the work of evil spirits in the spiritual realm, but God knows everything because He has specifically given us these rules for our own good. He doesn’t want us to be fooled by the enem. Of course, it will be more beneficial to obey God's word even if we are not aware of the work of evil spirits around us.  However, in terms of actual experience, it is important to be aware of how evil spirits work, which in turn will help us apply God’s word to the situation and subvert the tricks and schemes of the enemy.   

In this way, when we read the Bible, we will not only have more understanding about God's love, but we’ll also understand more about our calling to God and His glory and the enemy's tricks. We’ll be able to receive these practical benefits every time we read the bible. We can also help our brothers and sisters to advance in the kingdom. May the Lord bless you. May the Lord also bless more brothers and sisters who lead others to read the Bible, and know more about these three things in the spirit.

Bible Study with Jairus-Numbers9

Bible Study with Jairus – Numbers 9

Numbers 9 tells two stories.  In the first story, the Lord was telling Moses to let the Israelites celebrate the Passover, and He answered Moses' question about whether the Israelites could still celebrate the Passover since they were ceremonially unclean because of a dead body, and were away on a journey (Numbers 9:1-14, NIV).  The Lord said that even if they were unclean because of a dead body or were away on a trip, they could still celebrate the Passover (Numbers 9:10, NIV).  But if a man who was ceremonially clean and not on a journey failed to celebrate the Passover, that person must be cut off from his people (Numbers 9:13, NIV).  A foreigner residing among the Israelites could also voluntarily celebrate the Passover.

The second story recounts the details God leading the Israelites through the wilderness. There was a  cloud covering the tabernacle by day and fire by night. (Numbers 9:15-23, NIV).  Whenever the cloud lifted from above the Tent, the Israelites set out; wherever the cloud settled, the Israelites encamped (Numbers 9:17, NIV).  When the cloud stayed for a few days, the Israelites would set up camp for a few days, sometimes for a month or longer (Numbers 9:22, NIV).

What is the true meaning of Passover? What is the relationship between these two stories? The inspiration that I received was that the true meaning of Passover is to quiet down and wait to hear God's voice and enter into His presence.  The cloud over the tabernacle represents His presence.  This picture can be described with the verse, "Be still, and know that I am God." (Psalm 46:10, NIV).

When we take time out of our busy schedules to wait quietly before God as the Israelites did to celebrate Passover, we can enter into God's rest and presence.  We can then hear His voice and know that He is God.  Doing this enables us to live in His presence and follow His leading.

When it comes to celebrating the Passover, we need to answer a few questions. Why did Jehovah tell the Israelites to celebrate the Passover or keep the Sabbath?  Why didn't Jesus keep the Sabbath?  Instead, He healed the sick, cast out demons, and allowed the disciples to pluck heads of grain on the Sabbath.  We will be able to understand an essential spiritual principle and a mistake that the church has often made when we answer these questions.

Did God choose the Israelites to be Jesus' ancestors because they were special, or was it because God chose Jesus to be born amongst them that they became more precious to Him?  If you think about this, you might agree with my conclusion.  I believe that God's primary purpose for telling the Israelites to celebrate the Passover and Sabbath was to protect them from being occupied and defiled by worldly sin like the Gentiles. They remained holy so that Jesus Christ could be born into their nation at the right time.  God wanted Jesus to be born into righteousness.  Celebrating the Passover and Sabbath was a means and a tool to preserve the righteousness of the Israelites.  A similar example is when God chose Noah to multiply generations of people because he was righteous in God's sight.

Numbers 15 records a man who went out to gather wood on the Sabbath day and was stoned to death by Jehovah's order.  Why was there a need for such a severe punishment?  We need to understand that in addition to their many sins, the Gentiles were occupied with their own lives and didn't take time to draw near to God.  Ezekiel 28 describes God's judgment of King Tyre.  He specifically said, "By your great skill in trading, you have increased your wealth, and because of your wealth, your heart has grown proud." "Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: 'Because you think you are wise, as wise as a god... '" (NIV, Ezekiel 28:5-6).  Many commentators believe that King Tyre represents Satan.  We can see from here that a person who is too occupied with the world's business will gradually be led away from God and sin will enter in.

I've heard testimonies of devout Christians who sometimes work twenty hours a day at Wall Street.  When I was a reporter in New Jersey, I interviewed a person who worked alongside a Chinese billionaire that managed an investment fund.  He gave me the day to day routine of this billionaire.  At 5:00 am, the billionaire's driver takes him from New Jersey to New York.  He stays at the office until 11 or 12 pm then heads home, often sleeping in the car. It was observed by the person that I interviewed that this man had no life of his own.  I know some Christian young people who work at Wall Street also.  They were once devout Christians who attended church regularly when they were in high school, but once they started working on Wall Street, they gradually moved away from God.  Their lives were too busy with business and money.  Some fell into a sinful lifestyle.  The first step of falling away from God is not spending time with Him.  As time passes, God's presence will be less and less and lead to sin. I'm not trying to insinuate that all Christians that work at Wall Street are dominated by the world, living a sinful life.  Based on my experience in the United States, Christians working at Wall Street or Hollywood face greater temptation.

The Lord Jesus said in Matthew 24:37-38 (NIV),  "As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark".  The main idea of this sentence is "eat, drink, get married," which is the basic activity of human beings.  But there is an implication of human greed here. Yes, people need to eat, drink, and marry to survive.  In many cases, however, our business activities are no longer maintaining basic survival, but greed. And greed is endless. Returning to the example of gathering wood in Numbers 15, this Israelite may have gathered wood out of necessity or greed. The intention of Jehovah's severe punishment to him was for the Israelites to devote one day each week to worship and have fellowship with God alone.  They couldn't do anything other than this.

But over time, the Israelites have put the cart before the horse.  When the Lord Jesus came to the world as the Son of God, the Israelites condemned Him for not celebrating the Sabbath.  The original purpose of the Sabbath was to keep the Israelites from committing sins until the birth of Jesus Christ.  As Paul said, "Christ is the culmination of the law." (NIV, Romans 10:4). Paul also said, "The law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith.  Now that this faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian" (NIV, Galatians 3:23-24).  When Christ came, the purpose of the Israelites to celebrate the Sabbath was achieved.  At this time, the Jews should not have focused on whether the Lord Jesus was keeping the Sabbath.  Instead, they should have seized the opportunity to have fellowship with God, because He intended for us to have fellowship with Him in Christ.  But most Jews were completely mistaken and did not seize this opportunity.

Though this chapter is talking about Passover instead of the Sabbath, I felt to connect them in a way as God instituted them as laws for the Israelites to keep.  There would be consequences if they didn’t keep them.  So in a general sense, we want to discuss the laws and rules and how we handle it.  The Passover in the history of the Israelites was only a one-time event when they passed through the red sea.  Often Christians consider this a type of coming out of the darkness of the world typified by Egypt.  The journey of the Israelites in the wilderness often signifies the fact that we are experiencing the test in our soul. God enacted the laws on keeping Passover and the Sabbath in the wilderness. The purpose of these laws was to help the Israelites get rid of the influences of sin and the world through keeping the Passover in a yearly circle or keeping the Sabbath on a weekly circle.  When they did that, they would be continuously reminded that they were no longer in Egypt.  As we know, even though they left Egypt, they still missed the onions and fish of Egypt.  In other words, they were out of Egypt, but Egypt was not out of them.

It is relative to today's Christianity.  Many Christians are out of Egypt, but Egypt is not out of them yet. So likewise, they need a period of discipline by the Lord to go through their wilderness, and then enter the good land.  Using Paul's words, the law acts like the guardian until faith comes so that we become the mature sons of God (Galatians 3:24-26).

Another important purpose of establishing the Passover and Sabbath was for the Israelites to have a special time to separate themselves from the things of the world and be able to worship God.  But many Jews regarded it as a law and a ceremony.  A lot of hypocritical things happened.  A Chinese Christian leader in the United States told a story about this.  He had a Jewish neighbor who couldn't turn on the stove or cook on the Sabbath according to Jewish law.  This Jewish neighbor wanted to cook, so she circumvented the law by having the Christian leader's wife turn on the stove for her.  She could truthfully say that she didn't break the law because her neighbor turned the stove on.  This is just an example of how modern Jews hypocritically deal with the Sabbath.  I'm sure that there are genuine people who follow the law, but I cite this as an example.

Christians can also be hypocritical.  They may attend church but spend the whole time scrolling through social media on their phones.  Most Christians will admit that to get close to God, you need to pray.  They may talk the talk, but in actuality, prayer is more of a thought rather than an action. I've heard people say that if you don't have a fixed prayer time daily, you don't have a real prayer life.  Lack of prayer gradually leads to a weak spiritual life and can end up propelling a person into sin.  A woman in our study agreed and testified that she experienced moving away from God because she didn't spend time in prayer.  She noted that because of illness and the coronavirus, she was forced to stay home and had more time to read the Bible and pray.  During this time, her relationship with God became closer, and the Word of God came alive to her.  She also had a vision of a cross.  A man in our study who works for a large company said that he became very agitated after the coronavirus outbreak.  He and his wife set aside time to read the Bible and pray every day in the evening and realized that he felt God's peace and presence.

I had a similar experience of moving closer to God through dedicated, in-depth prayer time.  In 2010 the failure of my wife's first IVF was a huge disappointment.  Because of this and other mistakes I made in our relationship, our marriage suffered. During that difficult time, my wife didn't speak to me for a month.  I was miserable.  I spent hours a day praying to God, pacing back and forth on the road of our community.  I repented and continually dedicated myself to the Lord.  A month later, this situation was better, and my prayer time was less frequent.  I suddenly realized that I was coming down from the cloud, so to speak.  It was almost like walking down a stairway from the cloud of God's presence.  At a later date, at noon, I was consistently repenting, dedicating myself, and praying to have children.  The same process repeated. 

When I was continually praying, I wasn't aware that I had entered the presence of God or into the cloud.  I found myself coming out of the cloud when I stopped praying.  These two spiritual experiences are very real and although I can't describe what that cloud or presence inside of me was like, I know that when I constantly pray, I enter into God's presence.  It's only when prayer stops that I gradually descend from the cloud.

The cloud in Numbers 9 represents the presence of God.  The presence of God is with us through His Holy Spirit.  The cloud on the tabernacle described here is a real experience.  The two prayers that led me into the clouds are also real spiritual experiences.  This is the internal manifestation of God's presence.

Why did I find myself descending from the cloud when prayer was not as fervent?  Paul tells us to pray continually to stay in God's presence (1 Thessalonians 5:17, NIV).  Brother Lawrence and others throughout history practiced continually living in God's presence.  I'm still learning how to do this, but I understand from these experiences that it's important to set aside time to pray before we can enter into His presence.  I get easily distracted by other things when life is running smoothly.  I don't seem to diligently focus on God and prayer as much as I was compelled to in the difficult times.  It takes more work to enter into God's presence.  I dedicated countless hours of prayer through the painful ten years of infertility. 

A Korean prophet told me that God wanted to lead me through this difficulty and harvest my prayer. I've entered into God's presence through prayer many times.  Still, after the birth of our miracle baby, when life became less stressful, I found that at times my prayers were not as sincere, intimate, and passionate as before.  I sometimes miss the difficult times and urgency of dedicated prayer.  While I was sharing my testimony, a man in our study felt like the Holy Spirit was highlighting Numbers 9:8.  The verse describes people who were ceremonially unclean because of coming into contact with a dead body so they couldn't celebrate the Passover.  It goes on to say: "Moses answered them, "Wait until I find out what the Lord commands concerning you."  Even Moses wasn't sure what God meant and had to wait to get a reply from Him.  The man who mentioned this verse said that even though he was eager to pray and get closer to God, the distractions of the news and other things around him kept him from waiting quietly before God.  Although he wanted to hear and receive from God, he rarely heard His voice.

The word "busy" in Chinese is composed of two parts. On the left, it’s a "heart," and on the right, it’s "death." In Chinese, it literally means that when we become busy, we will have a "dead heart."  It is often true in our spiritual experiences.  Even being too busy with Christian ministry can cause a person to be spiritually dry and dead.  Slowing down our lives from the complicated and busy world outside and waiting quietly before God is the real purpose of the Passover or Sabbath.  We must do this every week or every day to develop a strong spiritual habit.  If we do this, we can enter into God's presence, as represented by the clouds on the tabernacle of this chapter.  We will become a person who lives in the presence of God.  As we mentioned in the beginning, "Be still, and know that I am God." (NIV, Psalm 46:10).

At the start of 2016, I felt burdened to fast and pray for 40 days for my wife's infertility.  My family didn't understand or agree with this burden and didn't support me in it.  The burden didn't subside, and I continued to seek God's leading as I walked in the park during lunch break.  I usually speak in tongues for a while to calm down my spirit and then sit on a bench waiting for God to speak.  One day after I had been doing this for a while, I sat on the bench and felt sleepy.  I heard the Holy Spirit say suddenly: "Don’t eat at noon.”  I waited a few more days, and after confirming the words of the Holy Spirit, I decided to fast and pray at noon Monday to Friday.  I calculated that 40 days of prayer would equal about 120 meals.  If I didn’t eat at noon for 22 days per month, it would take about five months.  I began fasting and praying at noon and continued this for three or four months.  On one particular day, I felt confident that God had heard my prayers, and I gradually stopped fasting and praying.

Because my family objected, I never told them about this. Recently I started fasting and praying against the coronavirus at noon.  My mother-in-law didn't understand.  She said, “If you don’t eat at noon, will the coronavirus go away?”  It was then that I told her and my wife about the story of fasting and praying in early 2016. My wife was miraculously pregnant in May 2016. I told my mother-in-law not to underestimate the power of prayer.  I told my wife that even when it seems that nothing is changing outwardly by our prayers, if we don’t pray, we will suffer the consequences. Our individual prayer can be as powerful as “the prayer of faith will save the sick” (James 5:15).  And if we pray together with others, it’s even more powerful.  We must do our part to cooperate with God's work.  I fast and pray for God to end the coronavirus but also to pray for a spiritual breakthrough so that I can break the strongholds established by the enemy in me, become a more obedient instrument, and a better channel of blessing before the release of God's revival fire comes.

We all need to quiet down and wait for God to realize that He is God and enter into His presence.  This is the spiritual significance of the Passover or Sabbath and the cloud in this chapter.  We may already get out of Egypt, but we need to get Egypt out of us.  The way is to stop engaging with the business of the world temporarily and wait and worship God.  Then when we behold him, he will transform us into the same image of him (2 Corinthians 3:18). It is not by our effort, but we must give him time to do this.

We pray that this study blesses you.

 

Bible Study with Jairus-Numbers6

Bible Study with Jairus – Numbers 6

Numbers 6 tells two stories.  The first is about how the Nazirites dedicated themselves; the second story is God speaking a blessing over Israel.  Is there any connection between these two?  We felt that Jesus Christ, dedicated Himself to God as a sacrifice, satisfying the requirements of God's righteousness, holiness, and glory. So the Nazarite here is a type of Jesus Christ. Since He became a channel of blessing, God could then give us all the blessings in Christ.  We must follow the example of Jesus Christ and become Nazirites who dedicate ourselves to God and become a channel for God's blessings.

When we were reading this chapter, we noticed that the dedication of the Nazirites was a gradually deepening process.

For example, at the beginning of Numbers 6, anyone could make a Nazirite vow.  The requirements were simple.  A Nazirite could not drink any wine or vinegar made from wine and grape juice.  Wine, vinegar, and grapes were considered a luxury rather than a basic necessity of life.  Being a Nazirite was just abstaining from some pleasures in life. You could make your own  dedication according to your situation and decide the length of dedication.  Some people dedicated themselves to God to be Nazirites for life, while others just devoted a period of time.

Numbers 6:5 in the English Standard Version says: All the days of his vow of separation, no razor shall touch his head, and he shall let the locks of hair of his head grow long.  Hair is like the crown of a priest. The word "crown" in Hebrew means separation, consecration, and crown. According to Exodus 39:30-31 (NIV), the crown is engraved with the words "Holiness to the Lord," and they must tie a lace of blue unto the crown to fasten it on high upon the turban.  The locks of hair here are like the blue lace.

But the difference between the Nazirites and the priests is God chose the priests while the Nazirites voluntarily dedicated themselves to God.  For example, Eli was a priest, but his priesthood declined.  God then raised Samuel, a Nazirite, to replace him as priest. One must be a Levite to be a priest, but Nazirites do not have to be from the tribe of Levi. Just as the priesthood of Melchizedek was higher than the Levitical priesthood, the Lord Jesus became our high priest in the order of Melchizedek.  The Lord Jesus was not from the tribe of Levi; he was from the tribe of Judah, so He became a Nazirite and voluntarily dedicated Himself to God.  The Bible tells us that no one could take the life of Jesus Christ; He laid it down of his own accord (John 10:17-18). So the Nazirite in this chapter represents Jesus Christ.

A dedicated Nazirite could not touch the dead during the period of his dedication.  Even if his parents, brothers, or sisters died, he could not defile himself.  But there was a turning point in Numbers 6:9. It says that if someone dies suddenly in his presence, and he defiles the head of his separation, he shall shave his head on the 7th day of his cleansing.  On the 8th day, he will present two doves or two young pigeons to the priest. One is for the sin offering, and one is for the burnt offering. This is to make atonement because he sinned by being in the presence of the dead body. That same day he is to consecrate his head again.  On the day he rededicated himself to the Lord, he needed to bring a year-old male lamb as a guilt offering. 

This is where we were confused. It's the person beside him who suddenly died. Why was the Nazirite considered as having sinned? I can understand that he was unclean, but verse 11 had also said that he offered a sin offering and a burnt offering to make atonement for himself because he sinned by being in the presence of the dead body.

We can understand the fact that someone died next to him, so he was defiled and unclean.  But how come it says that he sinned?  Was he just like a priest who offered sacrifices for the sins of the dead man?  Or does he need to make atonement because he sinned by reason of the dead man?

There are three parts to the story of the Nazirite vow.  The first part is they could not drink alcohol; the second part is they needed to rededicate themselves after being defiled. The third part is the regulations for various sacrifices after they fulfilled the entire period of their Nazirite vow.  Before we talk about the third part, let's discuss our thoughts on verse 11.  Why should the Nazirite offer sacrifices of atonement when someone died beside him?

The English Standard Version (ESV) says: "and the priest shall offer one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering, and make atonement for him because he sinned by reason of the dead body. And he shall consecrate his head that same day." Judging from the grammar, it does say: because he sinned by reason of the dead body.

 I could be wrong, but let's assume I'm correct and discuss how I came to this reasoning.

We understand that we are all born into sin and commit sins.  One is singular, and the other is plural. Sin in the singular form refers to the nature of sin in us. For example, when we preach the gospel to people, we often say that we are sinners, and we need God's salvation.  But many of our friends haven't been illuminated by the Holy Spirit.  They don't understand that they have been born into sin, nor do they feel they commit sins.  When we first started preaching the gospel to our friends, they justified that they had not sinned.  We then often say that "Even if you didn't have sins, you still have a sin nature, so you still need to repent and be saved." Eventually, the Holy Spirit illuminated them, and they had repented and received salvation. The first thing they felt was their "sins," which was their sinful behavior, and they repented accordingly.  But if the Holy Spirit continues to illuminate on them over time, they may realize that not only their "sins" but the "sin" in their Adamic nature crucified Jesus Christ on the cross.

This is the Nazirite's experience.  We couldn't understand why he was declared as having sinned and why sacrifices had to be offered when he had no control over this person who suddenly died beside him.   There were three sacrifices offered.  Doves and young pigeons were valued much lower than the male lamb, which was much more valuable.  When Joseph and Mary, the mother of the Lord Jesus, offered sacrifices to God in the temple, they offered doves or young pigeons because they were not wealthy.  We don't know whether this Nazirite was rich or poor.  The lamb could have been a tremendous financial burden for them.  Because this person suddenly died beside them, they suffered a financial loss.  Since his separation time was defiled, the previous days of his separation didn't count.  This seems like a huge loss overall.

This is where the problem lies. Let me ask you something.  Why did the Lord Jesus offer Himself as a sacrifice for our sins, even if he did not sin?   Did He suffer a great deal?

The Lord Jesus is God who became a human being who was flesh and blood just like us.  He had no sin but became a sin offering for us.  He offered Himself on the cross for our sinful nature, which is the singular sin, and our sinful behaviors.  The Lord Jesus also offered Himself as a burnt offering.  We can liken it to the story of Isaac, who was offered to God by his father Abraham as a burnt offering.  The burnt offering is burnt entirely and offered to God to satisfy His requirements. Bible scholars generally think of Isaac as a type of Christ.  According to Leviticus 1, every part of this burnt offering (for example, a male from the herd without blemish) must be burned completely as a fragrance to God. Christ's death on the cross is likened to an unblemished sacrifice that was pleasing to God.  Just as Noah offered clean animals as burnt offering, God was pleased.

That's why the Nazirites offered doves or young pigeons here, which are also offered as a sin offering and a burnt offering. It is not only to cover his sin but to offer fragrance to God for His satisfaction.

Numbers 6:12, NIV says, "They must rededicate themselves to the Lord for the same period of dedication and must bring a year-old male lamb as a guilt offering.  The previous days do not count because they became defiled during their period of dedication."

Here it talks about the guilt offering.  The guilt offering is a sacrifice for our trespasses and inadequacy. The sin offering focuses on whether we sin and the type of sin, however, the guilt offering focuses on our nature to commit a transgression and the sin that this brings.  The transgression dealt with by the guilt offering often doesn't contain deliberate sins. But because of our negligence, character flaws, and imperfections, resulting in harm to others, we must offer the guilt offering. For example, Leviticus 5 talks about various cases of guilt offerings.  If you encounter an unclean body, but you did not notice it, and you thoughtlessly take an oath, then you need to offer a guilt offering. This is a sin, but it is not a deliberate sin, so the sacrifice offered is a guilt offering rather than a sin offering.  

Here the person suddenly died beside the Nazirite, but it is not his fault.  Did he sin? Yes. What was his sin?  We need to give an example to illustrate. This example may be too layman, but it can explain the problem.  For example, a eunuch carrying an emperor while traveling falls. Naturally, the emperor will fall also.  The eunuch didn't fall on purpose, but does he have the sin of negligence?

The Nazirites separated themselves and consecrated their heads, which represented God's presence.  This was God's great trust in them.  We must understand that if the Nazirites are defiled, it will also bring defilement to God, so it is not allowed.  As a Nazirite, what we do and think is not just for ourselves; it is also for God who is with us. If we dedicate ourselves to God as a Nazirite, God's presence is also with us. Our words and deeds are not only about ourselves, but God's reputation is also at stake.  But many Christians do not see this.  Their words and deeds are often defiled by uncleanness. They never considered the fact that inappropriate words and deeds would defile God's presence and name.  This principle is also seen in God's command to the Israelites in the Old Testament, recorded in Deuteronomy 23:12-14.  The Israelites should find a place outside the camp where they can go relieve themselves, and cover up their excrement so that when the Lord moves about in their camp, He will not see anything indecent and turn away.  The camp of the Israelites is where God's presence is, so God cannot see anything indecent among them.

Although the sudden death of the man beside him was not the Nazirite's fault, it was not the crux of the matter. The crux of the matter was the presence of God. Because of the Nazirites' separation, God's presence is represented by their head.  If God didn't want to defile Himself, He could withdraw His presence from this Nazirite, so that He wouldn't be defiled.  But God values the Nazirite's dedication and was not willing to remove His presence from him.  So the only way is to let the Nazirite make atonement of this uncleanness so that God can continue to be with him.

Although this Nazirite paid the price of time and money, he did not lose the presence of God. In other words, it depends on what you treasure. If you treasure the presence of God over anything else, anything lost is considered nothing.

The experience of the Nazirite here is actually what Christians can experience every time we pray. For example, Christians all know they should set aside time to pray, so the time set aside is like the Nazirite's dedication.  

When you set aside special time with God to pray, keep your focus on the relationship, and fellowship with Him.  Avoid thinking about ministry or things you have to do that day.  Most people who take time to pray, find themselves distracted with their thoughts wandering.  The enemy often influences the mind with unclean thoughts.  Paul tells us that the mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace (Romans 8:6, NIV).  These unclean thoughts come from the flaming arrows of Satan to prevent your mind from being focused on the Spirit (Ephesians 6:16).  If you don't understand the enemy's tricks, you'll find your prayer time shallow, devoid of entering into God's presence, and feeling like a waste of time.  Prayer time should be intentional.  It shouldn't be a task that you check off your list of things to do.  The whole purpose of prayer is to enter into God's presence.  When your mind is distracted, it is defiled, which equals death and is no more than a religious duty.  We can liken it to the Nazirite who devoted himself to God.  The sudden death of a person near him defiled him, so the previous days of dedication didn't count.

Therefore, in this situation, you must use Christ, who is the sin and guilt offering to cleanse your mind of sin and eliminate the enemy's arrows that defile your Spirit. Don't give up; keep praying!  Dedicate your time to the Lord again and continue to work hard to enter His presence.  As long as you persevere, you will enter into God's presence.  I was saved in the Local Church Movement, and Witness Lee always taught that you must spend at least half an hour or more to enter into God's presence.  This is true from my experience.

I often practice this way. I pray at least half an hour every morning, devoting the day to God (just like the Nazirite devoted himself to God) and then pray that God is with me all day.  I use Christ as my sin and guilt offering to God so that I can enter into God's presence.  Throughout the day, I keep calling on the name of the Lord and pray-reading the Lord's Word.  After receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit, often I even prayed in tongues to continue to be in His presence.  There are times when I get up late and don't spend enough time in prayer to enter God's presence, which makes it difficult to live in His presence that day.   Sometimes, I am too busy, my mind is overactive, or I am excited by something in the natural realm, or I am defiled by something I saw, heard, or thought.  I find it difficult to enter into God's presence since the mind governed by the flesh brings spiritual death.  Sometimes at noon, I go out for a walk to pray.  By the time I'm finished, I've walked almost ten thousand steps, still focusing on my own thoughts.   The time that I was supposed to be praying passed without me entering into God's presence.  I ended up worrying more instead.

 That was an example of a failed prayer time. But many times, I do have successful experiences. Though dominating or unclean thoughts try to defile me and I feel the Spirit of death and an absence of God's presence, I don't give up.   I pray for the blood of Jesus to cleanse me by the washing with water through the word and His Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:26).  I offer my body as a living sacrifice to God and put on the whole armor of God and fight against the enemy's arrows by calling on the name of the Lord, pray-reading out loud, proclaiming and singing the Bible verses such as Colossians 3:2-4, "Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things for we already have died"; or Galatians 2:20, "We have been crucified with Christ, and we no longer live, but Christ lives in us"; or 2 Corinthians 3:16-17, "Whenever our heart turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." I use Christ as my sin and guilt offering, and through God's word, I win the battle in my mind and rededicate myself to Him. Slowly, I achieved victory over my mind and entered into God's presence.

 This is the process each time I pray.  If I dedicate myself in the morning, enter into God's presence through at least half an hour of prayer, and keep myself from being contaminated by the world, my body, and mind, I will live in His presence throughout the day.  But if at times vain imaginations, earthly thoughts, worries, or unclean thoughts from Satan come in, and I have no victory over the defilement or the death brought by the defilement, I will need to rededicate myself. I use Christ as the sin and guilt offering and pray again to enter into God's presence through Jesus Christ, the only mediator between God and men.

Many Christians experience failure in prayer though they are willing to pray every day and live in God's presence.  Most don't have victory due to their circumstances and a mind governed by the flesh, which causes spiritual death.  Prayer becomes a frustrating time because they can't control the multitudes of thoughts that flood through as they attempt to pray. 

Often a person's heart is open to pray, but because they spend too much time watching unhealthy programs on TV, their minds have difficulty focusing on spiritual things.  In America, even as Christians, we can easily be consumed with media, social networking, and TV.  The first step to change is to dedicate yourself to the Lord as a living sacrifice (Romans 12:1).  This doesn't mean you drop out of life, become a pastor, and preach full time or go to seminary.  To dedicate oneself as the Nazirites did, we just need to abstain more from the things that distract us from going deeper with God.  The Nazirite had to abstain from wine, which represents entertainment in life.  Is it wrong to drink or watch TV?  Like drinking wine, TV isn't wrong unless you abuse it.  Drinking too much alcohol makes you more susceptible to sin.  Watching unwholesome things on TV defiles your Spirit, making it difficult for you to enter into God's presence.

The paragraph above is similar to the early stage of our Christian experience.  The more fully dedicated to God you are, you will experience what Ezekiel did in chapter 47. God's presence is represented by flowing water in this chapter. This water can also be likened to the Holy Spirit. It's only ankle deep at first, allowing you to move freely in your flesh.  As you give more of yourself to God, the water gets deeper and deeper making it more difficult for you to behave in the flesh.  You have to swim in the water of the Holy Spirit to move.  This represents a life saturated and flowing with the presence of the Holy Spirit.

Let's return to the third part of the story of the Nazirite vow and continue the discussion.  When his period of separation as Nazirite is over, he would need to offer more sacrifices to God.  This includes a year-old male lamb without defect for a burnt offering, which represents that Christ has filled his life.  He would also need to offer a year-old ewe lamb without defect for a sin offering (Numbers 6:14, NIV), which represents that he has freed himself from the dominion of sin to a certain extent. He also needs to offer a ram without defect for a fellowship offering (NIV, Numbers 6:14), which represents that he has already pleased God.

Together with grain offerings and drink offerings, he will also offer a basket of bread made without yeast--cakes made of fine flour mixed with oil, and wafers spread with oil, (Numbers 6:15, NIV).  The Nazirite will also shave off the hair that he dedicated and put it in the fire that is under the sacrifice of the fellowship offering (Numbers 6:18, NIV).  After he shaves his head, the priest shall offer a wave offering and a heave-offering.  At this time, the Nazirite may drink wine.

 Why is it that the Nazirite couldn’t shave his head or drink wine before his separation period was over but it was okay to do so after the separation?  Why did God stipulate under the law that the Israelites had to obey keeping the Sabbath? Why then, when Jesus, the son of God, came, did he not observe the Sabbath?  Paul said in Galatians 3:24-24, "The law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith.  Now that this faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian." The Nazirite followed the law by not drinking wine or shaving his head to help him develop spiritual discipline so he could overcome the defilement of the world, including sin, flesh, and his mind.  This allowed him to be filled with God and become free in the Spirit of Jesus Christ.  By the time the Nazirite's separation and dedication is over, he has become spiritually mature and can overcome sin and worldly influences. It's not about what our outward behavior looks like; spiritual maturity is the important thing.

 This Nazarite has become spiritually mature by the time his training is finished.  He could now become a channel of blessing, bringing in the blessings of God.  When the Lord finished the instructions to the Nazirites, He told Moses to bless the Israelites and say to them, "May the Lord bless you and keep you; may the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; may the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace" (Numbers 6:24-26).

On the surface, this blessing has nothing to do with the story of the Nazirite vow, but it is actually very relevant.  Because God was pleased with the Nazirite's dedication, which opened up the channel of God's blessing to the Israelites. Think about the fact that Christians today can receive God's blessing because Jesus Christ dedicated Himself to God as a Nazirite.  If you dedicate yourself to God as a Nazirite, accept God's help and become spiritually mature, how much blessing will you bring to the people around you?

 

Bible Study with Jairus-Numbers4

Bible Study with Jairus – Numbers 4

Numbers 4 records how the Kohathites, Gershonites, and Merarites transported the things in the Holy of Holies, the sanctuary, and the outer court, respectively. The key verses that we will be discussing today are verses 17-20.

4:17 (NIV) The Lord said to Moses and Aaron,

4:18 (NIV) "See that the Kohathite tribal clans are not destroyed from among the Levites.

4:19 (NIV) So that they may live and not die when they come near the most holy things, do this for them: Aaron and his sons are to go into the sanctuary and assign to each man his work and what he is to carry.

4:20 (NIV) But the Kohathites must not go in to look at the holy things, even for a moment, or they will die."

According to the records of Chronicles, Levi had three sons - the eldest was Gershon, Kohath was the second, and Merari was the third.  But Kohath, the second son, was Aaron and Moses' grandfather.  The Kohathites were assigned to carry the things in the Holy of Holies and the sanctuary, while the eldest son Gershon and Merari, the third son, were assigned to carry some things in the outer courtyard.  Does this have any spiritual significance? Why did Jehovah choose the second son to carry the most important and holy objects?  Jehovah specifically instructed Moses and Aaron not to let the Kohathite tribal clans be destroyed from among the Levites, yet later the Kohathites (led by Korah) were not satisfied with their assigned service in the sanctuary, and were jealous of Aaron's work in the Holy of Holies and subsequently judged by Jehovah and went down alive into hades (Numbers 16:33).  What's the relation between these?

In the Bible, the Word of God transcends time and space.  The Holy Spirit can also speak to us through His Word in a timely manner (Rhema).

 As we seek to understand this chapter, God will enlighten us and apply it to our lives today.

In Leviticus 10:1-2, when Nadab and Abihu, Aaron's sons, offered strange fire before the Lord, they were burned to death by Jehovah because He didn't command them to do so.  This shows the solemnity of entering the Holy of Holies. It is recorded in the Old Testament that only the High Priest could enter the Holy of Holies once a year.  One can see from here that when the Kohathites were transporting the things in the Holy of Holies and the sanctuary, they could only carry them.  They couldn't touch the holy things, or they would die.

Here are a few interesting facts. Kohath, Gershon, and Merari could only carry the sacred elements and not touch them. Instead, Eleazar and Ithamar, along with their father Aaron, the priest, prepared them for them, and they are directly responsible to Eleazar and Ithamar.  We know that only Aaron the High Priest could enter the Holy of Holies.  Many of the things carried by Kohath were from the Holy of Holies and sanctuary.  This was done under the direction of Eleazar, the son of Aaron.  Meanwhile, most of the sacred elements carried by Gershon and Merari were the ones in the outer courtyard.  This was done under the direction of Ithamar, Aaron's son.

As we mentioned earlier, the Kohathites rebelled, and the Lord judged them.  In addition to the earth swallowing Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, the Lord struck the people with a plague.  Moses asked Aaron to take the censer and pray in the midst of the assembly, and the plague stopped.  But there were still 14,700 people who died   (Numbers 16).

When Saul violated the oath to kill the Gibeonites, a famine came to Israel (2 Samuel 21).  When David sinned by counting the Israelites, a plague struck, and 70,000 people died (2 Samuel 24).  The plague stopped after David's sacrifice.  God's judgment often included plagues.  Some believe the current outbreak of the coronavirus was sent by the enemy to instill fear and panic, as well as to stop evangelism in the world.  We understand that God can stop or prevent these things from happening. Why does He withhold his hand on this and allow it to happen?  God is a good God.  He is never the source of temptation.  It's our own evil desires and thoughts that lead us into sin, which eventually leads to death (James 1:13-15).

Jehovah is omnipotent and omniscient. Perhaps when He began to choose the Kohathites to serve in the sanctuary, He foresaw their rebellion.  Therefore, He specifically reminded Aaron and Moses too, "see that the Kohathite tribal clans are not destroyed from among the Levites" (NIV, Numbers 4:18).  Jehovah may have been reminding Aaron and Moses to intercede for the Kohathites for fear that they would be judged because of their future rebellion and that God would have no choice but to eliminate the family of Kohathites.  I guess maybe Aaron's initial prayer may not have been enough, because, in the end, Korah's descendants still rebelled. Later, Aaron took the censer to intercede in the middle of the assembly.  Not only did the plague end, but some descendants of Kohath and Korah also survived, because we know some of the Psalms were written by Korah's descendants (Psalms 42-49, 84-85, 87-88).

As mentioned earlier, when we sow to the flesh or sin, we will reap destruction.  One of the ways God intervenes for us today is to raise intercessors like Aaron to pray for us Just as Aaron prayed for the Kohathites and Abraham prayed for Lot, it's the same with the church today.  If God's people pray, unbelievers will repent of their sin, and God will forgive.   Although we live in the era of God's grace, if the church lacks in prayer, people's sin will accumulate, and eventually, people will reap what they have sown, and at the last day, the judgment will come.  So if we apply this principle today, we can see, on the one hand, God allowed the coronavirus to happen to lead people to repent.  On the other hand, He wants to raise the burden of intercession in churches.  Many people in the world are beginning to feel the fragility of life, and the rigidity in their hearts is gradually being shaken.  We can also see that the burden of stronger intercession is slowly rising in various churches.  When these two combine, it will be a "preparation" role for God's next move.

 This may be a very challenging time, but God's intentions are ultimately good.  God so loves the world and doesn't want to leave his people to destruction; thus, He allows destruction to come as a wakeup call.  The Bible says that God's judgment begins with God's household (NIV, 1 Peter 4:17).  Is God trying to wake up His church by allowing this virus?   Did this destructive virus come to China first because God has ordained a great revival in China, and this great revival will spread all over the world?  God told me through countless dreams that this great revival is coming.   I told the Holy Spirit that I heard that one out of ten Chinese had been saved since the revival in 1980.  He challenged me to imagine two out of ten or more, which would be over 100 million Chinese people saved in the upcoming revival.

No doubt, looking at this story in this context has timely significance.  We hope that after we finish our Bible study, readers will not only have the burden of interceding for unbelievers but also praying for God's mercy so that people can repent and end this pandemic as soon as possible.  Moreover, we must break our natural limitations. We should look at this problem spiritually, and see that God's beautiful blessings and great revival are about to come to China and the world like a tsunami.  Before this happens, cleansing is needed. Christians should not live in fear.  Instead, we should live in the promises of Psalm 91. This difficult trial period will help unbelievers to repent and be saved while helping believers to go deeper with God.  Our prayer is for God to intervene as we diligently intercede for unbelievers to repent and be saved, the pandemic to end and for revival to come.

If Aaron's intercession could stop the plague, then it could also have prevented Korah's rebellion in advance.  Of course, we know that the nature of human rebellion is very difficult to remove, but at least Jehovah's warned Aaron and Moses to intercede.

At our Bible study, I suggested that if Christians all over the world, or at least all Chinese Christians, got up at 5 a.m. every day to pray for China, maybe this coronavirus epidemic would not have come to China.  Although we know that some Christians pray faithfully, most Christians probably don't pray enough.  This pandemic can't be blamed only on unbelievers; the church is at fault for its lack of intercession and reflection before God.

First, let's look at why God chose Kohath to do the most important and holy work rather than his other brothers.  We aren't sure why God did this, but the Bible has a regular pattern of choosing the second child.  For example, Abel was the second son, and God accepted his sacrifice but despised Cain's, who was the firstborn.  He also chose Jacob, the second son over Esau, the firstborn.  God chose Joseph's second son Ephraim over Manasseh, the firstborn.  There are many other examples of this.  Spiritually speaking, it could mean that the first child represents the first man Adam, and the second child represents the las Adam, which is Christ (NIV, 1 Corinthians 15:45). Aaron and Moses were also descendants of Amram, while Korah and Samuel were descendants of another son of Kohath.  Samuel is also the descendent of Korah (1 Chronicles 6:38).  Amram's wife was Levi's daughter, so whether it was the genealogy from the father's side or the mother's side, Aaron and Moses were descendants of the Levites.

Apart from Moses, who could speak with God face to face, the person closest to God was Aaron, the High Priest.  Moses represents Christ because Moses said that God would raise a prophet like him and that the Israelites would listen to him (Deuteronomy 18:18-19).  Aaron also represents Christ being the High Priest of God, who still intercedes for us in heaven. The objects in the Holy of Holies and sanctuary carried by the Kohathites represent Christ, too, as well as the objects in the outer court carried by the Gershonites and Merarites. The entire tabernacle represents Christ. Aaron and his sons, Kohath, Gershon, and Merari, represent the three stages of service.  Their degree of holiness and intimacy is different, so their jurisdiction of coming near the sanctuary and the Holy of Holies is different.

Although the Kohathites could carry the objects in the sanctuary, as well as the objects in the Holy of Holies, Jehovah ordered them not to look at the sanctuary, or they would die.  Moreover, Jehovah specifically instructed Aaron and Moses not to destroy the Kohathites from among the Levites.  So why did Korah's rebellion still happen, and the Kohathites were almost destroyed amongst the Levites?

Let me use Confucius's words as a metaphor to explain. Confucius said, "Proximity incurs impertinence while distance incurs complaints."  He is describing a type of person - If you are too close to him, he will not respect you.  But if you are too far away from him, he will blame you or hate you.

I'll be mainly discussing the first aspect here.  Let me give a few examples to illustrate.  For instance, in ancient China, there are many stories of eunuchs killing the emperor and usurping power.  There are even stories about eunuchs taking advantage of the emperor.  One of these stories is "calling a stag a horse."  When Qin Shihuang, the first emperor who unified China, died, Eunuch Zhao Gao helped Qin Shihuang's second son Hu Hai to become emperor and killed the eldest son who should have succeeded to the throne.  But the second emperor, Hu Hai, was very weak, so Eunuch Zhao Gao wanted to usurp power. He wanted to test whether the ministers were obedient to him. Thus, one day he brought a stag to Hu Hai and said it was a horse. He asked the ministers just to say that it was a horse. Many people did not dare to offend Zhao Gao and said that it was a horse.  Those who said it was a stag were driven away by Zhao Gao.  Hu Hai was later forced to commit suicide.  But Zhao Gao did not become emperor in the end. Instead, he was killed by Qin San Shi, the third emperor.  I imagine that stories like this are part of Western history as well as Chinese history.When serving the king, there were people like Zhao Gao who didn't respect the king.  So, when serving God, would the Levites in the Old Testament make the same mistake and not fear God?  The answer is yes.

 

For example, when Jehovah commanded Moses to bring water out of the rock by speaking to it, Moses struck the rock twice instead.  Because of this, the Lord punished Moses, saying that he did not honor Him before the Israelites, so he could not enter the Promised Land (Numbers 20:12).  Aaron's sons Nadab and Abihu also didn't respect God because they offered strange fire before the Lord, which He did not command, and God struck them dead (Leviticus 10).   Aaron and Miriam were jealous of Moses and said, "Hasn’t Jehovah also spoken through us?” God got angry and punished Miriam with leprosy (Numbers 12). The Kohathites rebelled against God here in a similar manner.

Take a look at these verses in Numbers 16:

 16:8 (NIV)Moses also said to Korah, “Now listen, you Levites!

16:9 (NIV) Isn’t it enough for you that the God of Israel has separated you from the rest of the Israelite community and brought you near himself to do the work at the Lord’s tabernacle and to stand before the community and minister to them? 

16:10 (NIV)  He has brought you and all your fellow Levites near himself, but now you are trying to get the priesthood too.

As a descendant of Kohath, Korah and his fellow Levites were separated by God from the others to service the tabernacle of Jehovah.  Over time as they saw the priests packing the holy things, they felt that they, too, were qualified to do the same work as the priests.   Familiarity breeds contempt. This is what the quote of Confucius that I cited earlier is trying to say.  Aaron and Miriam, and Nadab and Abihu all made the same mistake - Aaron and Miriam were jealous of Moses while Nadab and Abihu offered strange fire to God.  Do we make the same mistake today?  We do.

This is one of the problems facing the church in the United States today.  The United States is a Christian country. Many people grew up in places where Christian culture was dominant.  It is very easy for them to make the mistake of equating “familiarity” with “intimacy.”

These people may possess a lot of knowledge about Christianity and think they understand who Jesus is mentally but haven’t openly accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior.  Salvation is not based on the knowledge that you’ve grown up with; it’s based on a personal relationship with Jesus.  I’ve met many people who have grown up in Christian families in the United States that have not accepted Christ as their Savior.Another example is someone who has been a leader in a Christian organization or denomination for a long time and has naturally assumed the position as a spiritual leader.  He may be taking this for granted.  Just because you’ve been there a long time does not necessarily mean that God has chosen you for the position.  It’s not about position and time as much as it is about intimacy with the Lord.  When you are close to Him, he calls and entrusts you to complete His mission.

There is an order of service in God's household. It’s not that we can’t improve or make progress.  Instead, our progress doesn’t come from our ambitions or serving out the measure God gave us, or self-approbation, but from the degree of our sanctification and intimacy with God.  In addition to serving God in the Holy of Holies, Moses and Aaron's duty was to intercede for people like the Kohathites, to make them more holy, and to pray that they would not go beyond the measure God had given them because they were not holy enough.   They also would not be judged because of this, which would lead to the danger of their tribe being destroyed.

For a country like China, most people still don’t know God.  Their situation is like what Paul described in Romans 1. God created everything for people to enjoy.  God’s nature and power are visible to all of His creation, but many people are blinded by darkness.  They do not acknowledge the existence of God. This is a form of contempt.

The service of the priests and Levites was to intercede for the Kohathites so they would be free from sin. This is also the duty of the church today.

The Bible records that God cannot be mocked (NIV, Galatians 6:7).

As servants of God, we should stay focused and intercede for the people that God entrusted to us and not concentrate on what others are doing.  This could lead to jealousy and strife. Instead, we should keep our eyes on God and take care of those He entrusted to us.  Christianity can become so familiar to us that we equate it with intimacy with God.  That is not often the case, and we must be careful to cultivate our relationship with God so we won’t be prone to mistakes.

Jesus said in Matthew 7:22-23 (NIV), "Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’  Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’  We need to recognize that Jesus is God and knows everything about us.  The tragedy of the verses above is that the people were familiar with Jesus thinking they knew Him, but He made it clear that He didn’t know them.  The bottom line is that you can’t pretend to know God and get by with it because you use the right terminology.  That’s like mocking Him.The spirit of mocking God comes from Satan.  He was “familiar” with God but sinned because he wanted to be equal with God.  This spirit is pervasive in countries where Christianity is a minority, as well as in the United States and their churches.

David counting the Israelites is a form of mockery.  David tried to count his personal merits without glorifying God, so he was judged by God, and the plague came to Israel.  The plague killed 70,000 people. Later, when the angel was about to destroy Jerusalem, Jehovah was sorry and relented from the destruction telling the angel that it was enough and to restrain his hand. When David saw the angel who was striking down the people, he said, "I was the one who sinned.  Why punish the Israelites?  Punish me and my father’s house."  Then the prophet Gad let David build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah, the Jebusite, and the plague ended. Although David sinned, his heart softened towards God, and he quickly repented.  The altar and sacrifice was only a symbol.  The true sacrifice penned by David in Psalm 51 is a broken spirit and a broken and contrite heart.  This is what He desires; other sacrifices aren’t pleasing to Him.

The best and fastest way to end the outbreak of the coronavirus is to repent.  We should posture ourselves like David and be quick to repent rather than like Saul, who tried to find excuses for himself.  We don’t want to have a hardened heart like Pharaoh, either.  The church must first repent and then intercede for the world to repent.  This is one lesson we can learn from the story of Kohath.If we want to grow spiritually and have more authority in the Lord, we need to follow Samuel’s lead and offer ourselves as willing servants to God, and in His time, He will raise us up.  We don’t want to be presumptuous as Korah was, assuming we know more than God when in fact, He hasn’t brought us to the place where he can trust us.

 

 

Bible Study with Jairus-Numbers 3

Bible Study with Jairus - Numbers 3

 

The Holy Spirit illuminated verses 44-46 to us in Numbers chapter 3. Let's look at those three verses.

 3:44 (NIV) The Lord also said to Moses,

3:45 (NIV) "Take the Levites in place of all the firstborn of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites in place of their livestock. The Levites are to be mine. I am the Lord.

3:46 (NIV) To redeem the 273 firstborn Israelites who exceed the number of the Levites, 

One of the questions raised at the meeting was, "Why were the firstborn male Levites who were a month old or more to replace all the firstborn Israelite males?" According to this chapter's record, the total number of Levites, including every male a month old or more, was 22,000, while the total number of firstborn Israelite males was 22,273. One male Levite (a month old or more) redeems one firstborn Israelite male, which accounts for 22,000 people. But they had to spend money to redeem the additional 273 people who exceeded the number of Levites. The price of each person was 5 shekels. Does the number 273 have any special significance?

We know that the numbers in the Bible aren't meaningless. Many numbers have meaning behind them.  Unfortunately, we tend to be limited by our lack of understanding of the Hebrew language and our shallow knowledge of the Bible, which can hinder our ability to discern the meaning of Biblical numbers.  While reading these scriptures, I was inspired by the Spirit to share and give some practical help for our Christian walk today.

To fully comprehend this story, we need to understand why the Levites were used to replace the firstborn Israelites.

In Exodus, the last plague sent by Jehovah in Egypt was the killing of the firstborn of all Egyptians. The Jews were obedient and ate the Passover lamb and smeared blood on the lintels, so the angel of death passed over the Israelites. In other words, because of the lamb's shed blood, the Israelites were forgiven. Almost all Christians acknowledge that this picture is a representation of New Testament believers. Through the redemption by the blood of Jesus Christ, those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ can experience what the Israelites experienced. We die with Him in Christ, and we will also be raised to life as He was. This is general knowledge for Christians; however, we won't focus on that topic here.

The focus of our discussion is why did the Book of Numbers (the book right after Exodus) record that Jehovah let Moses substitute all the firstborn Israelite males with the Levite males who were a month old or more? Many of us know that the experience recorded in Exodus is like a picture. It represents Christians transferring from Satan's kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of the light of God's beloved Son. The book of Numbers tells the story of Israelites wandering in the wilderness, and the book of Joshua tells the story of Israel entering the Promised Land.

Egypt, the wilderness, and the Promised Land represent three stages of our Christian spiritual growth. Egypt represents the world. So, leaving Egypt represents we can break away from the world's power. The wilderness represents our soul. Thus, the wilderness experience is to experience the change and salvation of our souls. The Promised Land represents our spirit. The experience of entering the Promised Land represents a spiritual stage wherein we can defeat our enemy.

It's like the journey of the Israelites – they left Egypt, experienced the wilderness, and in the end, reached the Promised Land. Our Christian experience should be salvation in the spirit, transformation in the soul, and redemption of the body. This is the salvation of our spirit, soul, and body. It's a complete salvation.

First, the firstborn sons of the Israelites in Egypt were covered by the blood in order to survive. The firstborn Israelite males born in the wilderness also needed this redemption. Second, this is not just a simple repetition, but an act of deeper spiritual significance.

There is a subtle point here that I didn't notice before when I read the Bible. The firstborn Israelite males had 273 more males than the male Levites, who were a month old or more. Does this mean that 273 people had no way of using the Levites to redeem their firstborn sons? What kind of family did these 273 people have? There are no more male Levites older than one month left, leaving them no choice but to pay money to redeem their firstborn sons.

Let me share my own experience to explain this. Chinese people place great emphasis on Guanxi, which means relationships or connections. In Chinese society, one person may not get anything done without Guanxi. But another person with Guanxi can do it. In China, people who have a lot of friends and who spend more time socializing will get things done easier and more conveniently.

When college students are looking for good jobs after graduation, in addition to having an excellent education, they need Guanxi. I came from a rural family in China and didn't have a lot of social connections, so I had no Guanxi. After graduating from college, some of my classmates stayed and worked in Beijing through Guanxi. I knew that since I had no Guanxi and wasn't the best student, that my chance of finding a job in Beijing was minimal.  I decided to go to graduate school in Beijing but didn't pass the entrance exam.  Most of the other students had already found jobs, but I still didn't have one and figured there was no chance of me getting one in Beijing.

Although I didn't know the Lord at that time, He was in the process of leading me to experience "Egypt." God's will was for me to come to the United States to study, come into contact with the gospel, and accept the Lord in this process. But at that time, I didn't know that this was God's plan for me. When I was studying at college, God inspired me to prepare to study abroad, but I let go of the opportunity. I told myself that I was going to graduate school in China. If I passed the entrance exam, I would not study abroad. If I didn't, I would consider studying abroad. I worked very hard to prepare for the postgraduate exam in China.  My total score was very high, but when I took the politics exam, I had a headache, and I ended up failing.  I was only 2 points away from passing this subject. I never have headaches, and I was good at this subject. Years later, after I was saved, I realized that God had intervened. He wanted me to study in the United States, but I didn't know at that time.

I didn't find a job, nor did I get into graduate school. Emotionally, I sank into a very dark and painful place.   Then something very unexpected happened.  A department of my university was planning on hiring a student who had been an intern in this department for a long time.  Unfortunately, they found out that his province had just sent him there to be trained and then return home to work.  The concept is a little confusing. But this is like the J-1 visa requirements in the US. J-1 visa holders in the US must return to his or her country of origin to work for two years or more. Because of this, one of my teachers recommended me because I didn't have a job at that time. The head of the department interviewed me and agreed to accept me, so I stayed in Beijing and worked at the university.

It may be difficult for people who don't understand China to understand what I'm saying.  This is most likely true for Americans because the United States is based more on equality, and situations like this more than likely don't exist.  This doesn't mean that Guanxi isn't needed or doesn't work in the United States.  For example, the President's son may be financially independent and not need to rely on his father for money; however, as the President's son, he would have a lot more Guanxi than an ordinary citizen just because of his connections.

I don't have any Guanxi. I don't have any relatives in Beijing. I come from a rural area, and my family doesn't have money to bribe people. I'm not exceptionally smart either, so it was tough to stay and find a good job in Beijing. Once I was sure I was staying in school, I met another teacher who didn't like me. But I knew that one of my classmates had a Guanxi with her. She tried her best to help him stay in another department of the school. I met her one day, and she asked me if I had a job yet. I said that I might work at the school. Immediately, she said scornfully, "That's impossible. Stop dreaming." "I put a lot of effort into helping your classmate get a job in school, and I'm not even sure if he can get one so you should stop dreaming."

From this story, you can see the importance of Guanxi in China. Without Guanxi, it's difficult to get things done. Thinking back, this was God's sovereign arrangement allowing me to stay in Beijing and continue to prepare to study abroad.  He made a way for me to continue my education in the United States, come to know the Lord and get trained. Looking at it from the outside, I have no Guanxi. But from a spiritual perspective, I have a "Guanxi " with God who created the universe and is the ruler of all things. The God of the universe ordained me to be saved and to come to America, so my Guanxi is huge. I was able to stay in Beijing because of my Guanxi with God. Although I didn't realize it at the time, as I look back at my life and experiences, it now makes sense. God is omniscient. Not a sparrow will fall to the ground outside of His care (NIV, Matthew 29:19), so I can say that it's because of my "Guanxi" with God that I stayed in Beijing. God also used many people to help me.  There were other teachers who didn’t think I was an exceptional student and discouraged me from working at the college. They strongly recommended another student to work there. They belittled me and even argued with the teacher who hired me. In the end, the teacher who hired me was enraged, saying she wanted no one else but me. Many others applied for the job later, hoping to take this job position, but none of them succeeded. I remember another classmate in my class also expected to get this position, and he also failed.  He was so angry about it that he smashed a table in the dormitory.

Similarly, the story in the Bible is also like that. God also looks at "Guanxi" or "relationship" with his people. He actually desires an intimate relationship with them. Your "Guanxi" with God is important. Though God is no respecter of persons (Romans 2:11), it doesn't mean that we all have the same intimacy with God. For example, Moses' brother and sister, Aaron and Miriam, complained, saying, "Has the Lord spoken only through Moses? Doesn't He speak through us also?" And Jehovah heard what they said and got angry, saying that he spoke to the prophets through dreams or visions, but he would talk to Moses face to face (NIV, Exodus 33:11). The Guanxi between Moses and God was different from the Guanxi between Miriam and God. This doesn't mean God despised Aaron or Miriam, but it states the need for us to develop an intimate relationship with God like Moses.

So what was God's purpose for the Levites to replace the firstborn Israelite males?  It was to build a close relationship with people, but this relationship would be established through the Levites (including the priests). The Levites would be building this relationship. If an Israelite approached the Levites often to offer sacrifices, he would establish a good relationship with the Levites as well as with the Lord. When the time came to ransom, why wasn't he able to find a Levite to redeem his firstborn son?

Many of the Levites at this time were only about a month old, but if the parents of these children had a good relationship or Guanxi with the Israelites, why couldn't they find a Levite to replace their firstborn sons?  I would imagine that if a person regularly offered sacrifices to God through the Levites, the Levites would fight to become a ransom for them.

The Bible does not record how Moses determined which Israelites had no Levites to redeem them. It just says that there were 273 Israelites who had no Levites to redeem them, and they had to pay for the redemption.   What I mentioned above is only a guess, and may not be correct. Regardless of this, there were more firstborn Israelite males than there were Levite males who were one year old or more. Where there is competition, there will be choices. With choices, Guanxi becomes very important.

Only a Levite male who was one month old could redeem one firstborn Israelite male, so there may have been a degree of competition.  Any competition involves choices, and this is where Guanxi becomes essential.

In the Old Testament, the Levites (and some as priests) were the mediators between God and mankind.  This is a type or symbol which represents Jesus Christ, who is the only mediator between God and mankind in the New Testament (NIV, 1 Timothy 2:5). To become a Christian, we come to God the Father through His son Jesus Christ our priest and mediator, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit (NIV, Ephesians 2:18).  Jesus Christ develops our Guanxi with God.  Without Him, we have no relationship or Guanxi with God.  Even though God is our creator, we still have to come to Him through Jesus.

Christians should always draw near to Christ and experience  His life-giving change in our souls. Let's continually be transformed into the image of the Son of God, with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit (NIV, 2 Corinthians 3:17-18),  just like the Israelites continuously came near the priests and Levites.

Perhaps the 273 Israelite families were negligent and didn't come near to the priests often enough. Maybe that's why they have to pay the price by giving redemption money. "God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life." (NIV, Galatians 6:7-8).

Perhaps the parents of these 273 Jews neglected to come near to the priests, or they didn't worship and offer sacrifices every year according to Jehovah's rules, so, in the end, no Levites could ransom them.   Perhaps they were at the bottom of the Levite's list of favorites and didn't get chosen in the shortage.  God is merciful and still gives them a chance by allowing them to pay redemption money to make things right.

 One of the biggest problems in the church today is Christians who are saved but live in the world like those who aren't saved.  They lack a holy life and a close relationship with God. This is wrong. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction (NIV, Galatians 6:8). We must "make the most of every opportunity because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." (NIV, Ephesians 5:16-20)

It's time to put neglectfulness behind and press into the transforming power of God because one day, we will face God's judgment. Complacency in the church is a big problem, especially in an affluent country like the United States.  Many Christians aren't in the habit of developing a close relationship with God.  We need to realize that if we are diligently praying for our loved ones and friends, they will get saved.  If every Christian in the United States were to take this seriously and appeal to God daily, revival would come.

And don't assume that God's discipline is only in the future; rather, He also disciplines us now. Remember the story of the Israelites in the Book of Judges? When the Israelites rebelled against God, God put them into the hands of their enemies. It's the same today whether it is the difficulties faced by the United States as a country, or some of the problems we face in our personal lives, which could be the Holy Spirit's discipline. ' Is it possible that God has allowed us to be put into the hands of  our enemies as He did to the Israelites in the Book of Judges?

The Israelites called on God for help in the book of Judges, and He raised judges to help and save them.  In the same manner, when we call on God through His son Jesus for help and focus on building a closer relationship or Guanxi with Him, God will save us from our enemies' oppression.

This isn't just a historical story, nor does it only apply to the Israelites.  We experience the same thing today. "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever" (NIV, Hebrews 13:8). Let's make the most of every opportunity we have to develop Guanxi with Him so that when we meet Him, he won't tell us, "I never knew you" as we try to convince him that we prophesied and cast out demons in His name (Matthew 7:22).  Jesus is our high priest and mediator between God and man.  The Levites in this chapter represent or are a type of Christ.  Developing an intimate relationship with Jesus is the most important thing we can do in our lives to experience the transformation of our soul and the redemption of our body.  As we lay our lives down and allow Jesus to live through us daily, we become transformed and our lives redeemed.

 Jesus died for us, and the Levites' redemption of the firstborn is a perfect picture of Jesus' substitutional death for us.

I believe that the redemption of the firstborn Israelite males by the Levite males who are one month old is not a simple repetition of what God did in Egypt for the first generation.  God generally doesn't repeat Himself unless there is a new meaning to it.  I believe the new meaning is that the first generation must come closer to God through the Levites to have the redemption of their future generations. Or, in other words, they must become more sanctified to have their son redeemed. This principle applies to the church today. The degree of holiness the church can obtain will determine the degree of her transforming power to the world.

 If the Levites represent the church and the male Israelites are the unsaved, the picture is clear.  The more the church becomes light, the more power it will carry to bring salvation to the world.  God alone saves us, but He chose to use us, the church to shine His light to a lost world just as He chose the Levites to redeem the male Israelites.  If individual Christians lived sanctified lives before the Lord, can you imagine the power that we can release to the world?  If the church as a whole sanctified itself unto the Lord, imagine how many people could be saved and redeemed.

Bible Study with Jairus-Numbers 2

Bible study with Jairus- Numbers 2

Numbers 2 records Jehovah’s arrangement of the encampment of the 12 tribes of Israel around the tent of meeting in the following order: Judah takes the lead in the east, next to Judah is the tribe of Issachar and Zebulun.  To the south is the tribe of Reuben; next to Reuben is the tribe of Simeon and the tribe of Gad.  On the west is the tribe of Ephraim; next to Ephraim is the tribe of Manasseh and Benjamin. The tribe of Dan takes the lead on the north; next to them is the tribe of Asher and Naphtali. The Levites were, of course, not counted.  The names of the leaders, as well as the division numbers in each tribe, were mentioned in addition to recording this order.

 Many readers may be confused after reading the names of these unfamiliar tribes, leaders, and numbers.  It’s enough to make one’s head spin.

Just this week, I saw one of my teachers from the United Theological Seminary, post a sentence on Facebook by John Wimber (the founder of the Vineyard Church).  It reads, "When we are losing the encounter of the Lord, we will start counting on people.” I am paraphrasing it as I did not know where it came from. This means that we should focus on meeting the Lord every day instead of the achievements we have done for the Lord.

The Bible records David's two sins.  His first sin was committing adultery by marrying Uriah’s wife. The other sin was counting the Israelites. This census was the sin of spiritual immorality. Why? As Joab (David’s general) said, if David is not satisfied, he can ask God to give him more. Why count Israel? When David was counting the Israelites, his heart became proud, and he had drifted far away from God. He was counting his achievements and those achievements became the idol of his heart causing God to be displeased.

Watchman Nee, the founder of the Local Church Movement, often said that God values more what we are than what we do. It’s not hard for us to draw inspiration from the story of David and the words of John Wimber and Watchman Nee. We don’t need to pay too much attention to the names and numbers of those tribes in this chapter. Rather, we should pay attention to how we can stay focused on the Lord. Under the illumination of the Holy Spirit, we did notice that a very important phrase in this chapter from the second verse "around the tent of meeting." Numbers 2:2 (NIV) says, "The Israelites are to camp around the tent of meeting some distance from it, each of them under their standard and holding the banners of their family." While we had our Bible study, the Holy Spirit especially illuminated this and reminded us to pay attention to these words “around the tent of meeting.” In the version of the Chinese Bible we used, it was translated as “facing the tent of meeting.” The translation in the NIV is not that clear. But the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) version says, “The Israelites shall camp each in their respective regiments, under ensigns by their ancestral houses; they shall camp facing the tent of meeting on every side.” It also says, “facing the tent of meeting on every side.”

In other words, Jehovah’s encampment isn’t just focusing on the order, division numbers, and the names of the leaders of the twelve tribes. These are important, but what’s more important is the principle of the encampment of the tribes of Israel: to "camp facing the tent of meeting on every side. " In other words, the principle of spiritual warfare is to "face God and turn one's back on the world and the enemy." This sounds different from the strategy in the world. We usually face our enemies.  What should we do if the enemy suddenly attacks?  It’s a different story here. Although we need to understand the enemy’s movements, the key to win at spiritual warfare is to “face God,” receive enlightenment and guidance from Him, rather than fighting the enemy according to our flesh.

Many pastors often testify that when they feel overwhelmed by the needs of the world and the busyness of working for the Lord, they slowly lose God’s presence and their peace in the Lord. They become overwhelmed to the point of suffering a nervous breakdown. “Burnout” is a word that can describe this situation.

The tent of meeting or tabernacle serves as the dwelling place of God. This is where God’s presence is. To the east of the tabernacle is the gate to the outer court of the tabernacle where the priests offer sacrifices, manage affairs in the outer court and perform their services. In the center is the Holy Place of the tabernacle, and to the west is the Holy of Holies.

Each tribe is to camp facing the tent of meeting on every side, each man under his standard with the banners of his tribe. Although the Levites were not counted here, it doesn’t mean that the Levites had no status. On the contrary, the Levites have a very important status here. They are the connection between God who dwells in the tabernacle and the different tribes of Israel who encamped facing the tent of meeting. By serving each tribe, the Levites brought their needs before God. At the same time, the Levites also brought God's presence and instructions to the tribes of Israel outside.

If you weren’t able to recognize the work of the Levites, it is easy to think of this arrangement of Jehovah as a few dots. But when you notice the work of the Levites, the arrangement of God is no longer a few dots, but rather, a net. In this net, God and man form a big wheel through the link between the Levites as priests and the cooperation amongst different tribes. It’s like what Ezekiel mentioned, wheel intersecting a wheel (NIV, Ezekiel 1:16).

No matter which tribe we belong to, or in which church God places us, our most important task every day is to draw near to God in Christ through the Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ is our High Priest. It’s just like what the ministry of the Levites represents here. Our most important task every day is to meet with God. Our hearts must be towards God. We must face God and turn our back on the world and its needs. It’s not that we shouldn’t get in touch with the world and carry out various activities. But rather, we must ensure that we don't deal with things for the sake of just dealing with them.

I often hear people say that it’s not the needs of human beings that motivated the ministry of Jesus. Rather, the will of the Father was what motivated Him. He only did what He saw His Father doing. If Jesus came to earth because He was merely trying to meet the needs of human beings, then his ministry was not successful, because many people's needs were not met. But the Lord Jesus came to fulfill God’s will for Him. If the Heavenly Father spoke, He spoke; if the Heavenly Father did something, He did it. Similarly, we should operate in this way to serve the affairs of the world, such as caring for the orphans and poor people. If it’s because we are simply responding to the needs of human beings, we will eventually collapse and fail to meet all the needs of the world. If we do it because of God’s will and guidance in our lives, no matter how much we do, we are filled with God’s presence and rest.

Many pastors and other spiritual leaders start their ministries by first waiting on God. But slowly, the needs that they are facing become greater, and gradually, the needs take all of their attention, causing them to unknowingly focus on the needs rather than God.  Remember, we cannot turn our backs on God and face the world and its needs; we need to turn our back on the world and its needs and face God.

There is a saying in China called "Take a coat by the collar,” which means if you grasp the main idea of something, the minor details will become clearer. The main point here is "facing the tent of meeting.” When each tribe is "facing the tent of meeting,” many of the following activities will be easier to do or manage afterward. But if a certain tribe begins to take his eyes off the tabernacle or off of God and turn to his enemies outside, or if he pays too much attention to the tribes next to him, which then generates competition, this main point or collar is destroyed. Problems will occur in the operation of this big net or this big wheel designed by God according to His wisdom.

For example, we know that God's chosen people should be in unity. But when we see the shortcomings of other Christians or denominations, it is inevitable to criticize and judge. It is not that we should not help other churches but that God leaves the right of judgment to Himself; therefore, it is not our responsibility to judge others. We should keep our eyes on God, and not others, denominations, etc..  When we are more focused on what others are doing either right or wrong, the enemy will take advantage of us creating discord and destroying the large net woven by God.  

We should not be jealous of other’s gifts and different callings. Just as the eyes should not be jealous of the ears, we should be satisfied with our own gifts and take hold of our calling firmly. Our eyes should be focused on God and treat other people and denominations from God's perspective.

Now that we understand this most important principle let's look at the order, names of the leaders, and the number of people in each tribe and see what kind of spiritual significance they each have.

First of all, let’s take a look at the tribe of Judah on the east, towards the sunrise. We know that Judah is the tribe of war.  The book of Judges records that when the Israelites went to fight against the Benjaminites, they asked Jehovah who should go up first to fight, and the Lord said that Judah should go first. The Lord Jesus is called the Lion of the tribe of Judah. ​​In Genesis 49,  Jacob prophesied that his son Judah was a lion’s cub.

Next is the tribe of Issachar. Judges said that the tribe of Issachar were men “who understood the times” (1 Chronicles 12:32 NIV). We can say this tribe has the gift of prophecy. We don't know exactly what the gifts of each tribe are, but it seems that Judah has more like the gift of an apostle, and Issachar has more like the gift of a prophet. Their different gifts complement each other.  The apostles and prophets are the foundation that the church was built on In the New Testament.

The next tribe, the tribe of Zebulun, may represent provision and gospel preaching because Zebulun is a harbor; his border will extend toward Sidon (NIV, Genesis 49:13). Perhaps the tribe of Zebulun represents the gift of the evangelists in the New Testament. This is only my guess, but in any case, I think the order of the twelve tribes here is not according to the natural order of their births, nor is it the order of whether they came from the same mother so that they may be arranged according to their gifts and their spiritual maturity before God. These three are collectively referred to as the camp of Judah.

Second is the camp of Reuben, which is located in the south. This includes Reuben, Simeon, and Gad. I think that the gift of Reuben is shepherding because he tried to protect Joseph when some of his brothers plan to kill him. The meaning of the name Simeon is “heard,” while the name Gad means “luck.” I don't exactly know what gifts Simeon and Gad represent. Maybe they represent God's mercy because Simeon slaughtered countless people and could have been the key person that participated in the plot to kill Joseph. But God pitied him. Reuben also sinned, but Moses prayed not to let the tribe of Reuben be few. Jacob prophesied in Genesis 49:19 (NIV), "Gad will be attacked by a band of raiders, but he will attack them at their heels.” Perhaps Gad has the gift of resurrection from failures.

Behind these two camps is the camp of the Levites. They are responsible for carrying the instruments of the tabernacle. We could say that they were moving tabernacles around, or in other words, they carried the presence of God around.

The third camp is Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin, which is located on the west. All three are descendants of Joseph. The West is where the Holy of Holies is. I feel these groups of people represent what John the beloved represented in the New Testament. John rested in the bosom of Jesus, and he was an intimate friend of Jesus. These three tribes are all dependents of Rebekah, whom Jacob loves most.

The fourth camp is the tribe of Dan, Asher, and Naphtali, which is located in the north. To me, they also represent certain aspects of Christ, who is our ultimate savior. Of course, other tribes also represent certain aspects of Christ as well.

 I’m not sure why Jehovah has arranged it that way. However, my guess is perhaps they are arranged according to their different gifts and the maturity of their spiritual lives.

Let's take a look at the leaders. The leaders of each tribe are mentioned here for the second time because the Lord has already appointed them in Chapter 1. For example, the leader of the tribe of Judah is Nahshon, son of Amminadab. There is no detailed record in the Bible, so we have no way of knowing what kind of a person Amminadab was, how he could give birth to a leader like Nahshon, and what education and help did Nahshon receive to become the leader of the Judah.

Nahshon commands 74,600 soldiers in the tribe of Judah. I don't know how many people you are shepherding or how many people God has entrusted to your leadership, but I know that a pastor leading a church of 2,000 people, or even a church of 200 people, is a very difficult job. Therefore, it was not easy for Nahshon to lead 74,600 people. He must have received excellent training and help from God to take such responsibility.

Being a leader is not a ruler but a shepherd. Nahshon would have to face God every day and bear the responsibility for 74,600 people. On the one hand, he was leading these people. On the other hand, he was shepherding them or carrying them on his shoulder or his back before the Lord because the New Testament had already told us that the responsibility of the elders was not to rule over but to shepherd. We are all priests who carry those who are under our shepherding.

I just cited Nahshon as an example to tell you that he has a legacy from his family, and he learned this from his father Amminadab. God knew him. God had personally called him to be a leader, indicating that God had already personally trained him. The same goes for the other tribes and their leaders. Not only was a tribe’s leader mentioned, but the names of their fathers were also mentioned. We won’t mention each one of the leaders of the other tribes. But hopefully, this helps you to see the principle behind each leader.

Let's take a look at the numbers now. Each tribe’s division numbers are different. Don't think this is just a trivial matter. This reflects the prosperity of the tribe. Naturally, the increase in number reflects that they have been blessed before God. Judah’s tribe was the largest. This may be one of the reasons they were in the first camp.

I don't know the meaning of each set of numbers.  I know God wasn’t happy when David was counting the numbers of Israelites. But it’s okay for Moses to count here. Why? It's still the principle that we talked about earlier, "camp facing the tent of meeting on every side" is the main point. When Moses was doing the counting, he had a face to face encounter with God. He was doing it in the correct order. But David’s heart was full of pride when he was counting the numbers. He was doing it in the wrong order.

Meeting God first is the priority. If God is first, counting the things that you do spiritually for God is okay.  If you neglect God and just focus on the spiritual needs in your ministry, it won’t be pleasing to God.   We must first pursue God before working for Him or pursing His gifts.  I’m not saying to neglect service or gifts but we need to balance it all correctly by seeking God with all of our hearts first. This will enable us to walk confidently in our calling and be victorious in battle.

 Let’s meet God first daily before we face the needs of the world. No matter what we do, hopefully, it is done out of our love for God instead of duty or ambition. In this way, we will certainly be able to please God. But let’s not overlook the fact that God has indeed given us different gifts. Just like the twelve tribes, they are all placed in certain places by God to carry out certain duties according to the calling and gifts that He has given us.