Handouts: None given
Reminders:
- Service Project: The 10 hours, 2 forms, and 1 essay are due on Apr 23, 2018
- Devotion 2 Presentations: Be ready for your presentation day!
Journal 6-4: Study Packet, Page 14
- 1) Why do you think God has mercy on people who keep sinning against Him?
- 2) Who are some people that keep ‘sinning against you’ that you need to have mercy on?
- 3) How do you think that you can change your heart to have more mercy on other people?
- All done?
- - Catch up on incomplete Study Packet pages
- - Study for Friday’s test
The Lows: Many sad things happen to Israel in the next years
- Death: Miriam & Aaron both die of old age
- Doubting God: People continue to complain against God’s provision and care. One consequence was a plague of venomous snakes. A person could be healed from the venom if they looked at a bronze snake statue that God told Moses to set up in the center of camp.
- Moses Sins: God tells Moses to speak to a rock for it to produce water. In anger & pride, Moses rebukes the people & hits the rock for water. Consequently, he will die before entering the Promised Land.
- Edom: These distance relatives of Israel make them travel miles out of their way to go around their land.
- Moab’s Attacks: Balak, Moab’s King, hires Balaam to curse Israel. This doesn’t work, but they later successfully tempt Israel w/sexual sins that also cause them to worship false gods at Baal Peor.
The Highs: Thankfully, several good things also happen!
- Blessings: Each time Balak tried to get Balaam to curse Israel, God turned it into a blessing for Israel’s great growth, prosperity, & success, God’s faithfulness to them, & future conquering ruler
- Victory: Israel wins their battles against: Arad, Amorites, Bashan, & Midian (who drew them into the sin at Peor, even Balaam is killed)
Preparing to Enter Canaan:
- A new census is taken of the land: They now have 601,730 fighters
- God chooses Joshua to lead Israel when Moses dies
- New laws help Israel transition to being settled in a land
- Reuben, Gad, & half of the tribe of Manasseh are given permission to settle in Gilead, east of the Promised Land’s Jordan River border.
- Cities of Refuge & the Levite cities are set up to care for Israelite physical & spiritual needs throughout the land
Numbers 20-36 – 40 Years in the Wilderness: Study Packet, Page 3
- Theology:
- - God’s plans for His people are full of great blessings
- - God fulfills His promises, even when it take years & seems unlikely
- - A sinner’s curse has no power compared to God’s blessings!
- - God requires unqualified commitment & obedience from those who follow Him
- - Jesus’ salvation was symbolized by the Bronze Snake:
- - - Both were “lifted up . . . in the wilderness” (John 3:14)
- - - Looking at the snake brought physical healing—
- - - - Looking at Jesus in faith brings spiritual healing!
- - God can use sinful people for His good works (like how He used Balaam to prophesy about Jesus as a conquering ruler to be recognized by a star coming from Judah [Numbers 24:17])
- Anthropology:
- - Sin has severe consequences and stubborn rebellion against God leads to failure in our lives
- - Success in life depends on doing God’s will in the way He prescribes.
- - Spiritual healing is not earned, it is received as a gift when we look to Jesus in repentance & faith
- - Even godly people can fall into big sins
- - - We must always guard our hearts!
- - Leading others into sin leads to terrible consequences
- - Our relationship w/God is healed when we confess and repent of our sins & follow His way for atonement.
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