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Last week’s blog about King Balak’s attempt to get the “seer” Baalam to put a curse on the Israelites backfired because Yahweh, the God above all gods, had chosen to bless them. https://www.cosdavis.com/the-god-above-all-gods/ . God was fully aware that his chosen people would be confronted with pagan cultures and gods on their trek to the Promised Land. When He made the covenant with them, He specified that He alone was to be their God: “You shall have no other gods before you.” Exodus 20:3. That was the first commandment and the […]

What happened after God told Moses and Aaron they had forfeited the privilege of leading the people into the Promised Land? Numbers 20:12. The Lord told Moses to take Aaron to Mount Hor and  “strip” him of his priestly garments and put them on Eleazer, making him the new priest of Israel. Aaron died on Mount Hor at the age of 123. Numbers 21 details another rebellion of the Israelites, a meandering route, and battles of the Israelites as they came to the plains of Moab, just across from Jericho […]

“Sinful attitudes result in sinful actions.”  That was the essence of my comment at the end of last week’s blog concerning Moses’ failure to obey God, his only deliberate act of defiance I am aware of. Review https://www.cosdavis.com/moses-at-meribah/ to set the context for how God dealt with Moses’ disobedience and a brief discussion of why the penalty was so severe. The focus last week was on Numbers 20:1-11. Today, we will revisit that text to understand what Moses did and why God responded as He did in Numbers 20:12-13. Do […]

Last week’s blog emphasized two things about God’s character we need to take seriously. https://www.cosdavis.com/gods-response-to-faith-and-faithlessness/. Trust in God brings His pleasure and blessings, which Joshua and Caleb experienced, while the rebellious older generation of Israelites would never inherit the Promised Land. Numbers 14. As we resume the story in Numbers 20, the penalty-laden forty years of wandering in the wilderness are nearing a close. Moses, their faithful leader, is 120 years old. They have settled in Kadesh, close to the Promised Land. Moses has led this unruly gaggle of obstinate […]

Last week, we took a break from the weekly blogs to celebrate our country’s 250th birthday. Today, we return to what was going on with Israel as recorded in the fourteenth chapter of Numbers. Many of the Israelite leaders have crossed a forbidden line with God and sealed their fate concerning ever being able to enter the Promised Land. https://www.cosdavis.com/the-danger-of-forfeiting-gods-promises/ will refresh your memory of the tragedy they have brought upon themselves. Today, I want to remind each of us of the importance of faith and how God responds to our […]

We are just two days away from our country’s two hundred and fiftieth birthday, but the celebrating has been going on for some time. Although we are quite young compared to many countries, this is a big deal! It’s a big deal because, like no other nation, it was founded on biblical principles and a system of government that had never been tried before. Our constitutional republic democracy has survived wars, disasters, internal strife, and many politicians and others who have unwittingly or deliberately worked to destroy what our founders […]

Today’s blog is about the possibility of forfeiting, giving up, or missing out on promises God makes to us in the Bible. Forfeiting means losing or surrendering something for failing to fulfill our obligations or responsibilities. This idea of forfeiting can have broad application to our lives. We can lose our health, marriage, friendships, possessions, or a job by making bad choices or simply ignoring our responsibilities in those situations. You may have lost something important to you because someone else decided to renege on a responsibility. Our choices affect […]

God doesn’t forget His promises. Numbers 13:1 reminds us of the promise to Abraham, recorded in Genesis 12, when He chose him to be the father of the nation of Israel. Genesis 12:1 reads, “Now, the Lord said to Abram, ‘Go forth from your country, and from your relatives and from your father’s house, to the land which I will show you.’ Let’s connect God’s promise to Abram to where we are currently in this great story of God’s plan to save the world. Many years have passed, and generations of […]

Can God do anything He wishes?  Is anything too difficult for the Lord? Have you sometimes faced problems that you thought were beyond God’s ability to solve? Is something going on in your life that you wish God would help you with, but you are doubtful if He will? Today’s question, “Is the Lord’s power limited?” was not asked by a doubtful believer, but by God himself. It’s God’s question to Moses and presupposes the answer “No, of course not!”  What’s the background to God’s question? Last week’s post will […]

When we last looked into the narrative of Israel’s journey to the Promised Land in Numbers 10, they had ended a year-long encampment at Sinai, disassembled the tabernacle, and were moving it and all its furnishings to the wilderness of Paran. “Then it came about when the ark set out that Moses said, ‘Rise, O Lord! And let thine enemies be scattered, and let those who hate Thee flee from before Thee.”‘ Numbers 10:35. The closing verse of the chapter indicates the ark has arrived at its destination.  “And when […]