We have been reading most of this year from the books which Moses wrote. We did read Job because he was probably a contemporary of Abraham and lived long before Moses. Some of you might be saying, “Some of what we read was kind of entertaining or fun reading, but some of Leviticus and Numbers has been a lot like work.” Even though these two books are more laborious to read, they’re still part of God’s Word and they still give us background to the rest of the Bible, even some of Jesus’ very own words which we now read in red letters came from these books.
Speaking of work, today’s (March 1st) reading is in Numbers 14 and 15. There is a surprising section with a story about a Sabbath breaker, a person who worked on the Sabbath. We also come to a point when we might sprinkle in some Psalms along the way. Why? Well, for example today we read a prayer written by Moses in Psalm 90. Many believe Moses wrote it about the same time the events of Numbers 14 and 15 were taking place. Read the story of the Sabbath breaker and then read Psalm 90.
Psalm 90:16-17, “Let your work be shown to your servants, and your glorious power to their children. Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!”
This guy who broke the Sabbath probably thought, “The work I need to do today will save me ________ (fill in the blank with something like “time” or “trouble”) on another day.” Hmmm… “The work I do will save me”? If it isn’t work God wants us to do, it won’t save us anything. It sure won’t save us. We need God to establish our work. We need to do the work He calls us to do, not just whatever we think we need to do. Are we following God? Or, are we following our own plans?
We saw several people who did some great work this past month. Some taught Sunday School (some for the first time). Others shoveled snow. Longtime members joined some newer ones in the nursery. All of this is being done to help reach people with the Gospel. And, it is working! God is blessing us with fruit. He called His Church to do work like this. He established it. And, His favor is upon it. Keep up the good work!
In Jesus’ care,
Pastor Jerry Jeter
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