Title: According to your deeds
Scripture portion Numbers 7
Key verse: verse Numbers 7:5 " to every man according to his service.”
January 7, 2023, Saturday, being my fasting day, I opened my Bible to read the portion that was marked for me to read in my journal, as I am meticulously reading the New Testament and Old Testament simultaneously every day. The portion marked was Numbers 7 - my spirits plummeted, (tough Book - I am smartly, stealthily avoiding the word boring), should I skip it, no...No...I could feel someone watching me....
Holy Spirit!
I obediently started reading it, (planning to read it fast and be done);however, I was arrested and captivated by the chapter that by the end of the chapter, I was tearing up.
If it is a pastor, missionary or servant of God, going through rough terrains, what I am about to write would directly speak to your heart. I write this sermon with wet eyes ...all choked up.
We as a family are ministering in India as missionaries, among the very downtrodden people of Telangana, where toddy and alcohol run like water. We run a free school for the poor, besides Church and other ministries. Everyday I have to deal with alcoholic fathers, children from broken homes etc. Yesterday, a drunk father came and created ruckus in my office. Now coming back to Numbers 7, I gave this information to let you know how exhausted and depleted I was while I opened this chapter.
I. (verses 1)” And it came to pass on the day that Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle, and had anointed it, and sanctified it, and all the instruments thereof, both the altar and all the vessels thereof, and had anointed them, and sanctified them..” As you scroll down, verse 4 says:
1) Verse 4 Then the LORD spoke to Moses….
?When Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle, the Lord spoke to Moses, you get to hear God only after completion of work. Are you listening? The closing scripture of this chapter is awesome, read with me: verse 89 Now when Moses went into the tent of meeting to speak with Him, he heard the voice speaking to him from above the mercy seat that was on the ark of the testimony, from between the two cherubim, so He spoke to him.”
The details that we read right from Leviticus to Numbers, requires patience and endurance to read it quietly and wait for God to speak to you. I certainly did not expect God to speak to me in this chapter; however, I am grateful to have heard from Him at a time I needed most.
The date which Moses accomplished this is recorded in Exodus –
“And it came to pass in the first month of the second year, on the first day of the month, that the tabernacle was raised up.” Exodus 40:17
2) Amazing dedication!
The chiefs and princes brought their offering:
Verse 2 ‘Then the leaders of Israel, the heads of their fathers' households, made an offering (they were the leaders of the tribes; they were the ones who were over the numbered men).’
? Leaders got to be an example.
3 they brought it before the Lord, at the end of verse 3 it says, “before the tabernacle.” They had taken lot of efforts to come to the tabernacle, for the presentation of their offering. Amazing dedication!
These words amazed me because we now live in an era, where believers think million times to even attend online, zoom services. Some prefer zoom so that they can skip offering. I have preached in zoom meetings where all the participants have their video closed, people join and leave as they like. I was preaching to black boxes, I wonder even if they're in the zoom. Utter chaos! I felt like logging out, I just had to calm down and preach. The heights of this comedy was that , the pastor who invited me also had his video closed. Ah, This chapter spoke of the past dedication of the people of God.
Look what they brought: “they brought their offering before the LORD, six covered carts and twelve oxen, a cart for every two of the leaders and an ox for each one, then they presented them before the tabernacle.”
Wow, this is huge , heavy stuff, you cannot put 12 oxen into a bag and carry it to Church, they had to be brought carefully, divinely in order to the tabernacle. I don’t know about you, but every word made huge impact on me because today people think 1000 times to do an online transfer of funds, because that requires registration of the name of the organization then they need to wait and do the transfer. The entire process may take ten to fifteen minutes which believers are not ready to spend. Google pay may be easy but for audit purpose, transferring of funds to the name of the ministry would be the right way. But many hesitate to do laborious work for the Lord, tell me the easy way is what they feel.
The Bible says: Genesis 4:4 And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering.
When we write our cheque the first thing after we receive our salary, that is is worship but giving the remaining portion after paying our bills is dregs and residue that we offer God. God looks at our heart and the love with which we give the offering.
Proverbs 3:9 Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops."
We need to honor God by giving the right way, don’t just throw the money into the offering box, but do it with respect. GOD IS WATCHING! Our cheerful attitude should convey to God that HE IS THE SOURCE OF OUR BLESSING. Say Amen.
The BEST has to be given to our Father. Adam’s son Abel was a shepherd and he brought God the first and best of his flock. And the Lord was pleased with this offering.
The Psalmist says: Psalm 96:8 “Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering and come into his courts.”
Illustration: I was conducting prayer cells in the afternoon, while I worked with a multinational bank before joining full time ministry work. We used to sit in staircases or terrace and I would have solid 45 minutes service. I preached on giving tithes to the Lord in a proper way, since all of us were earning good salaries. I would be so thrilled and happy to watch my colleagues who attended my meeting, write a cheque to their respective churches, after their salaries were credited to their account. Even after two decades, (as I write this) they still follow, I must mention about one particular dear lady who even after receiving voluntary retirement (VRS) from the bank, she got a good posting in another reputed company abroad. The Lord challenged:
“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.”Malachi 3:10
3) ACCEPTANCE:
5 "Accept these things from them, that they may be used in the service of the tent of meeting, and you shall give them to the Levites, to each man according to his service."
God was pleased with not only the offering but the attitude in which they brought them, therefore God said, ‘ACCEPT THESE THINGS FROM THEM!’ Let our offerings please the Lord, let us not do it with grumbling and complaining but let us do it wholeheartedly and cheerfully. Please note a cheerfully giver will be surely blessed. 100%
• 2 Corinthians 9:6 Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.
• 7 Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
• 8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed;
I would like to quote the words of author Tommy Tenney from his book “The God Chasers”. This book touched my heart and challenged me to get to know Him MORE! More than theological facts, we need to know HIM more! Hosea 6:6 says, “For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.” The author says, “God is calling you to a new level of intimacy. If you dare to answer His call, the Lord will reveal a fresh part of His character. He will pull you so close that you will be breathing the very rarefied air of Heaven. The only way to the place David called “the secret place” is through the door of focused worship, when you lay aside every distraction and focus your body, soul and spirit upon God. When His presence becomes so strong that you are oblivious to everyone and everything else around you, then you will never ‘recover’ from this.” Amen.
Dear friend, it is not all about you, it is all about God and how He feels! How to satisfy Him and make Him happy! It is all about pleasing Him and loving Him! Jesus, we love you!
Dear friend, you would risk your life for Jesus, if you truly love Him. ‘You would not be a knee-shaker believer but a world-changer believer when God pours out His Spirit on you.’ You can never be in the closet when you are burning for Christ, the smoke would be seen. Did you get that? When a person is burning thus, people close would surely catch fire too. The girl who sat next to me at my work spot (the woman whom I had mentioned above) started attending my afternoon prayer-cell in the bank. The dramatic change in her affected other members of her family too. In a short time, she along with two other family members accepted Jesus and took full immersion water baptism. Fire spreads! The cleaner who cleaned my desk got touched by the power of Jesus. The young computer Engineer who attended my computer got touched. There was Holy Ghost fire on my floor! Are you on fire for God or are you like cold water? Just shove away everything else and concentrate on God hence forth.
What comes next is awesome....
4) ACCORDING TO HIS SERVICE
5 " to every man according to his service.”
Hear me friends! God is watching us! He is watching the burdens we carry...Wow! Carefully read the scriptures and hear the voice of God today. I write this sermon in the beginning of this year 2023, we would be blessed for what we sowed last year. Anybody listening? How much of the Bible have you read in the year 2022? How many hours have you spent with God in the last year? God has got an account of your spiritual investment, therefore you would be rewarded accordingly.
Look at this:
Verse 7 Two carts and four oxen he gave to the sons of Gershon, according to their service.
Mark it!
The Gershonite’s service was recorded in Numbers 4. There it said –
“They shall carry the curtains of the tabernacle and the tabernacle of meeting with its covering, the covering of badger skins that is on it, the screen for the door of the tabernacle of meeting, 26 the screen for the door of the gate of the court, the hangings of the court which are around the tabernacle and altar, and their cords, all the furnishings for their service and all that is made for these things: so shall they serve.” Numbers 4:25, 26
These things were heavy and bulky. God watched their work! Now let us read the next verse…
Verse 8 and four carts and eight oxen he gave to the sons of Merari, according to their service.
Merari gets double! Hey, you might feel, this is not fair.
Double the amount of carts and oxen went to Merari. Details of the weight he carried are given below:
“And this is what they must carry as all their service for the tabernacle of meeting: the boards of the tabernacle, its bars, its pillars, its sockets, 32 and the pillars around the court with their sockets, pegs, and cords, with all their furnishings and all their service; and you shall assign to each man by name the items he must carry. 33 This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari…” Numbers 4:31-33
Now wait a moment…..
But to the sons of Kohath he gave none, because theirs was the service of the holy things. What? Nothing?
Kohath, as you read from Chapter 4, carried all of the holy things recorded in verses 5-15 – from the Ark with its coverings, to the brazen altar and everything in between. It was a great deal of things to carry, and some of them were rather heavy. But they were most holy, and were never to be placed on a cart.
Levi had three sons: Gershon, Merari and Kohath; read verse 9 – ‘But to the sons of Kohath he gave none..!’
As I write this portion, tears welled up in my eyes…..
We don’t have to grumble, we are blessed according to our service! If you feel the burden is more, be assured you will be given necessary strength at the appropriate time! The urgent requirements for our various projects like: teachers, helpers, volunteers, cleaners, cook, musicians, worship leaders, translators, office assistants, office equipment did not come immediately – we got them after severe trials and long delays; nevertheless, God supplied the energy and strength. -
As I write this portion, (January 7, Saturday 2023)Abide School, we are running short of cleaners and teachers;yet, the work is going on, NOT EASY THOUGH. I type this portion from my Abide School office room, on my mobile (not swanky laptop) Glory be to God!
Observe something striking above, the wagons and oxen were not distributed randomly but ‘according to their service!’ Did you get that?
Coming back to Kohath, why were they denied wagons and oxen? Read on’…because they were charged with the service of the holy things that had to be carried on the shoulder. ’Wow!
None had the privilege of carrying the holy things on their shoulders except the Kohathites! Praise the Lord! The ‘I got none’ stage is pretty frustrating, excruciating, painful and agonizing; nevertheless, surrender to His plans!
Note: Hey is there someone out there, other than me, who feel, 'the weight is too heavy, but the returns are low?'
Those carrying the most holy things are remembered, noted , observed and names engraved. Rewards are coming in different packages!
God bless you!
