One In Jesus

We all know the story of God sending quail to the Israelites to provide them meat to eat in the desert. But much less well known is that God responded to the complaints of the people by ordaining 70 elders for a special service by giving them the Holy Spirit.

(Num 11:16-17 ESV)  ¹⁶ Then the LORD said to Moses, “Gather for me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them, and bring them to the tent of meeting [tabernacle], and let them take their stand there with you.  ¹⁷ And I will come down and talk with you there. And I will take some of the Spirit that is on you and put it on them, and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, so that you may not bear it yourself alone.”

The elders’ job was to “take their stand” with Moses (who was the victim of the complaints) and to help Moses “bear the burden of the people.” They were to help Moses defend himself from criticism. It was to help Moses provide strong leadership despite grumbling and complaining. Continue reading →

I want to share a few notes that didn’t make it into the earlier posts.

“Sick” in the Jewish mind

In Ezekiel 34, God says to Israel —

(Eze 34:4 NET) You have not strengthened the weak, healed the sick, bandaged the injured, brought back the strays, or sought the lost, but with force and harshness you have ruled over them.

(Eze 34:16 NET)  I will seek the lost and bring back the strays; I will bandage the injured and strengthen the sick, but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them– with judgment!

What does the writer mean by “sick” and “injured”? What does “healing” consist of? Well, the sort of thing that results in destruction and judgment by God, that is, sin. Continue reading →