Parasha Bamidbar 5782

Me

I have spent an obscene amount of time driving in my life… In fact, Danielle and I have always been big fans of road trips, as an example, we drive to most of the conferences and such that we go to. But, we also live in Baldwin County where to get from the north most part of the county to the south most part is at least an hour and a half drive, and that’s assuming traffic is in your favor. And just getting from my house to the synagogue is a 20-25 minute drive on a good day.

But, despite traffic and all the headaches of road work and idiot drivers on the road, I love to drive and will almost always volunteer to drive the majority, if not all of our road trips.

But there’s one thing I’ve learned over the years about driving that is probably the most vital thing to keep in mind… You have to pay attention to everything around you… You have to pay close attention to the road in front of you, to the other vehicles around you, to the signs and displays along the road, to the turns you need to take, and the list goes on and on and on… Driving a vehicle is not something that is passive, it is very much an active reality.

If you’re not paying attention at all times then all sorts of unthinkable hazards await you… From potholes to idiotic drivers to lane shifts due to road work to traffic on the interstate going along fine then all of the sudden becoming a parking lot (as most of us are all too familiar with on the Bay Way)… And any number of things could cause you catastrophic issues.

But, when I maintain my focus on the road ahead of me and what’s going on around, when I limit my distractions (which with my attentions span is way more difficult than I’d like to admit), I tend to make it to my destination safe and sound.

We

And the reality is, the same is true in our walk with the Lord… Our destination is the Olam Habah and as long as we walk in faithfulness with Him, as long as our trust is in the Blood Atonement of Messiah, we will arrive at our destination safe and sound.

But more often than not, we have a terrible tendency of being easily distracted in our walks… Do we not?

And the enemy loves to keep us distracted, he loves to keep our attention on anything other than the Presence of God in our lives. He loves to keep us looking at this political issue, at that global catastrophe, at attractive men or women, at never ending rabbit holes on youtube, or any plethora of other distractions and temptations he likes to throw our way.

God

This week we read Parasha Bamidbar, Numbers 1:1-4:20, which translates to “In the wilderness” and is the first Parasha and Hebrew title of the book. Numbers as a whole gives us a glimpse into Israel’s wilderness journey from Sinai to the Promised Land, and is a substantial rollercoaster of ups and downs in Israel’s walk with the Lord in this journey.

Parasha Bamidbar begins with Adonai commanding Moses to take a census of the men of Israel from each tribe who are of eligible fighting age to be conscripted into the army of Israel, ages 20-60 years old. Every single tribe is diligently counted, with exception of the Levites as they were not eligible for battle in order to remain ceremonially clean for their service to the Mishkan. And we see that there is a total of 603,550 men of fighting age counted in the armies of Israel. The final few verses of the first chapter of Numbers reminds the Levites of their role of carrying for a transporting the Mishkan and all its furnishings.

In chapter 2 we see the detail of the way the camps of the tribes of Israel are to be situated, with three tribes on each side of the Mishkan under the banner of a specific tribe among each of those three. Judah’s camp was the first banner which also contained Issachar and Zebulun and they camped on the east side of the Tabernacle. Next was the camp of Reuben on the south side, which also contained Simeon and Gad. On the west side of the Tabernacle was the camp of Ephraim which also contained Manasseh and Benjamin. And finally, on the south side of the Tabernacle was the camp of Dan which also contained Asher and Naphtali.

Chapter 3 details instructions to the Levitical families, who camped around the Tabernacle as well, but in between the rest of the tribes of Israel and the Mishkan. To this end we see Moses and the Aaronic Kohanim camping on the east side at the entrance of the Mishkan by Judah. Then we see the Kohathites, which would have also included Moses’ children, who were responsible for the furnishings of the Mishkan camped on the south side by Reuben. Next would be the Gershonites who were responsible for the exterior of the Mishkan camped on the west side by Ephraim. And lastly, the Merarites who were responsible for the structure of the Mishkan camped on the North side by Dan.

The end of chapter 3 the Lord commands the firstborn be counted and redeemed by the Levites—as the firstborn are dedicated to Adonai. There were 273 more firstborn of B’nei Yisrael than there were Levites to serve as redemption for them so God required a monetary redemption for the remaining firstborn.

Parasha Bamidbar closes out with the first half of chapter 4 which describes the manner of which the Tabernacle is to be broken down and transported by the Levites when Israel is traveling for location to location along their journey.

But, as we take a further look at Bamidbar today, we’re going to focus on one specific aspect, which I believe was vitally important to the success of B’nei Israel, and should be vitally important to the Body of Messiah today. As we dig deeper I want us to keep this principal in mind today…

The central most important aspect in our lives as believers should be the power and Presence of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob dwelling in our midst.

(Repeat)

Let’s dig into the text together…

Numbers 1:47–54 TLV

The Levites, however, were not counted by the tribe of their ancestors, for Adonai told Moses saying, “Definitely you are not to number the tribe of Levi, nor take the sum of them among Bnei-Yisrael. Instead, you are to appoint the Levites over the Tabernacle of the Testimony, over all its implements and all pertaining to it. They are to carry the Tabernacle and all its utensils, tend to it and camp around it. Whenever the Tabernacle sets out, the Levites are to dismantle it, and whenever the Tabernacle is pitched, the Levites are to set it up. But the commoner who comes near to it must be put to death. Bnei-Yisrael will encamp, each man with his own camp, each with his own standard, according to their own divisions. The Levites are to camp around the Tabernacle of the Testimony, so that there will be no wrath unleashed on the community of Bnei-Yisrael. So the Levites are to maintain care of the Tabernacle of the Testimony. So Bnei-Yisrael did—all that Adonai commanded Moses, so they did.

Parasha Bamidbar opens with the count of the men of Israel eligible for war. As we move through the Parasha a little further we begin to discover that Parasha Bamidbar is less about the number of men capable of going to battle, but rather about the Children of Israel and their relationship to the Mishkan, the Tabernacle. As we just read, we see that the first chapter ends with the discussion of the Levites and their responsibility for the Tabernacle.

But, what strikes me as most interesting begins in verse 50, let’s read it again.

Numbers 1:50–53 TLV

Instead, you are to appoint the Levites over the Tabernacle of the Testimony, over all its implements and all pertaining to it. They are to carry the Tabernacle and all its utensils, tend to it and camp around it. Whenever the Tabernacle sets out, the Levites are to dismantle it, and whenever the Tabernacle is pitched, the Levites are to set it up. But the commoner who comes near to it must be put to death. Bnei-Yisrael will encamp, each man with his own camp, each with his own standard, according to their own divisions. The Levites are to camp around the Tabernacle of the Testimony, so that there will be no wrath unleashed on the community of Bnei-Yisrael. So the Levites are to maintain care of the Tabernacle of the Testimony.

The Levites were not only responsible for transporting and caring for the Tabernacle, its furnishings, and ministry to B’nei Yisrael, they are also to serve as a barrier of protection between the tribes of Israel and the Tabernacle. The Levites are to camp around the Tabernacle so that there will be no wrath unleashed on the community. In essence, the Levites not only serve as intermediaries (especially the Kohanim) between Israel and God, they are also to guard the Tabernacle from becoming unclean because of the sins of Israel.

Then, as we read through chapter 2 and 3 we see the manner in which the Nation of Israel as a whole is commanded to camp around the Tabernacle, particularly always with the Tabernacle in the middle of Israel. Three tribes on each side at a safe distance and one of the families of the Levites on each side between the Tribes and the Tabernacle.

But, most important about all of this is that the Tabernacle, whether setup and camped around, or when Israel was traveling from site to site, was intended to always be the central focus of the Nation of Israel. Why is this? Because of what the Tabernacle was home to… The Shechinah of HaShem, the Divine Presence of Adonai. He took up residence within the nation of Israel and the central focus of the Nation at all times was to be upon the Presence of God in their midst.

And do you know what’s really neat about focusing on the Presence of God at all times? It’s really hard to notice all the crazy crap happening all around us in this crazy and decrepit world we live in. When we are continually focused on the Presence of God it is much harder to fall to temptation, it is much harder to lose our cool on someone, it is much harder to make and worship idols in our lives, it is much harder to given into the ways of this world.

We see this very reality happen throughout the journey of Israel in the Wilderness… Israel sees the Fire of the Presence of God on Mount Sinai and hears the Baht Kol speak for the Aseret HaDibrot, yet just a few short weeks later they decide Moses has been gone too long and maybe he’s dead… So they take their focus off the Presence of God right in front of them and build the Golden Calf and begin to worship it in terrible ways.

Later in Numbers we see Israel take their focus off the Presence of God when they hear the evil report of the Promised Land and instead of moving forward they rebel and ultimately cause an entire generation to die in the wilderness without ever seeing the fullness of God’s promises.

Then we see the Lord protect Israel from the efforts of Balak to get Bilam to curse Israel, instead Bilam is only able to blesses them. Yet, Israel couldn’t keep their focus on the Presence of God in their midst and end up giving in to the terrible idolatrous temptation of the idolatrous prostitutes that Balak and Bilam end up sending into Israel’s camps afterward…

The central most important aspect in our lives as believers should be the power and Presence of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob dwelling in our midst.

Probably one of the most extreme examples we see of this problem in the Tanakh is in the life of Jeroboam, the first king of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Rehoboam (Solomon’s son), in all his wisdom, messed up in his response to the people of Israel asking for a lighter load than Solomon had subjected them to. This caused the nation of Israel to split into two… The Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah.

Then we read in 1 Kings 12:26-33

1 Kings 12:26–33 TLV

But Jeroboam said in his heart, “Now the kingdom may return to the house of David. If this people keep going up to offer sacrifices in the House of Adonai at Jerusalem, then the heart of these people will turn back to their lord—to King Rehoboam of Judah. Then they will kill me and return to King Rehoboam of Judah.” So the king sought counsel and made two golden calves. He said to them, “You have been going up to Jerusalem long enough! Here are your gods O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.” Then he set up one in Bethel and the other he put in Dan. Now this thing became a sin for the people went to worship before the one even up in Dan. He also made shrines on the high places and appointed priests from among the people, who were not sons of Levi. Then Jeroboam instituted a festival in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, imitating the Festival that is in Judah. He went up to the altar that he built in Bethel, to sacrifice to the calves that he had made. He installed in Bethel the priests of the high places that he made. Then he went up to the altar which he had made in Bethel on the fifteenth day in the eighth month—in the month that he had made up from his own heart—and made up a festival for the children of Israel, and went up to the altar to burn incense.

See, Jeroboam was afraid to loose his newly found kingdom, a kingdom he only had because of the favor of the Lord. And rather than walking faithfully in the Lord and trusting that the same God who anointed him king over the northern kingdom would protect him and his kingdom if he were faithful to maintain worship of the Lord as prescribed, he revolted against the Lord. He built altars and idols and prevented the people of the northern kingdom from going to Jerusalem to worship God at the Temple. He even went so far as to institute a fake version of Sukkot (which is one of the Shalosh Regalim) to be celebrated imitating Sukkot in Jerusalem.

Ultimately, Jeroboam’s actions began a continual descent of the northern kingdom and paved the way for the Assyrian captivity years later. And even though earlier the Lord spoke through Ahijah to Jeroboam about the soon to be established kingdom under Jeroboam’s reign these words:

1 Kings 11:37–38 TLV

“So I will take you and you will reign over all that your soul desires—you will be king over Israel. Then it will be, if you obey everything I command you and walk in My ways, and do what is right in My eyes, keeping My statutes and My mitzvot as My servant David did, then I will be with you, and will establish for you a lasting dynasty, as I did for David—I will give Israel to you.

Once God established Jeroboam’s kingdom the first thing he did was turn his back on the ways of Adonai and His Torah… In fact, turning his back on the Torah and to idolatry was his very first act as king of the Northern Kingdom of Israel…

And it is amazing just how quickly we forget who we are suppose to be when we take our focus off the Presence of God. And, despite all the headaches we have caused the Lord for millennia upon millennia since the fall of Adam and Chavah, the Lord’s call and desire is simply for us to make T’shuvah—to return to Him in repentance—to experience His restoration, and to maintain our focus upon His Power and Presence. And through the atonement provided in Yeshua HaMashiach we have unprecedented access to the Presence of God through the indwelling of His Ruach HaKodesh.

No longer do we have to rely on the Kohanim to serve as intermediaries between us and the Presence of God. No longer do we have to worry about the Levites serving as a barrier between our sins and the Dwelling Place of God. No longer do we have to look to the Tabernacle or Temple to see the Presence of God active in our midst. No, instead, we are filled with His Ruach HaKodesh, we are now the Tabernacle, the temporal dwelling place for the Presence of God in our midst.

But, it is maybe even more important for us in the Body of Messiah to make sure we still maintain our focus on the Presence of God at all times. To make sure He is the central focus of everything we do and everything we are.

The central most important aspect in our lives as believers should be the power and Presence of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob dwelling in our midst.

And here’s the reality of it all, when we first enter Parasha Bamidbar Moses is commanded to count the men of Israel, why? To determine the number of men in the armies of Israel. Israel is preparing to go into the Promised Land (remember, this is still before the spies) and when they enter the Promised Land they will be going to war to take possession of the Land. But, Israel’s success in warfare is contingent upon their relationship with the Lord, it is contingent upon their focus being upon the Lord not upon the ways of the world around them.

Remember, when Israel finally does go into the Promised Land in the book of Joshua they don’t fight at all when they come to Jericho, the Lord fights for them and prepares the way. And even once they do begin to fight, as long as their focus was on the Presence of the Lord they were victorious in miraculous ways. But, when the nation of Israel wasn’t fully focused on the Presence of God things were a little different… Such as Joshua making a treaty with the Gibeonites without seeking the Lord’s direction in the matter.

And in the Body of Messiah today we are facing unprecedented battles, especially as we draw closer to the return of Messiah. And we are watching all around us as different parts of the Body of Messiah is losing their focus on the Presence of God and are beginning to give way to to the ways of the world around us rather than remaining faithful to the Word of God.

And this is exactly what Paul is warning us about in Ephesians 6:10-18

Ephesians 6:10–18 TLV

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you are able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the worldly forces of this darkness, and against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you may be able to resist when the times are evil, and after you have done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm then! Buckle the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. Strap up your feet in readiness with the Good News of shalom. Above all, take up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Ruach on every occasion, with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, keep alert with perseverance and supplication for all the kedoshim.

I would submit to you that Paul’s description here of the full armor of God is in the same vein as the description of the camps of Israel securely positioned around the centrality of the Mishkan. When we are walking in the full armor of God we are maintaining our focus on His power and Presence in our life. And what exactly is the full armor of God? It is our discipleship... It is being faithful in worship together in community… It is being faith in spending time in the Word… It is being faithful in being on our faces before the Lord… It is in being faithful in relying on the Ruach HaKodesh to give us strength to avoid temptation just as Yeshua did in the wilderness… It is in covering our mishpacha in prayer… It is in spending time in solitude soaking in the Ruach HaKodesh… It is in loving the Lord our God with all our heart, all our soul, and all our strength… It is in loving our neighbor as ourselves…

In fact, our Torah service each and every week is a prime example of the need to keep our focus upon the Presence of God at all times in our lives. As the Sefer Torah makes its way around the sanctuary and everyone in the room follows the Torah with our eyes, turning in place to follow it all the way around the Sanctuary so as not to turn our backs on the Word of Lord and when our mishpacha gather around the Sefer Torah at the end of the procession and with great joy and with a heart of praise they dance in unity around the Torah Scroll. This is a weekly reminder for us to keep our attention focused on what really matters. To continue to walk in the full armor of God. To remind us, as Ephesians 6:12 says...

Ephesians 6:12 TLV

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the worldly forces of this darkness, and against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.

In the same sense that Israel was being prepared in the wilderness for struggle that laid ahead of them in the Promised Land, you and I are facing spiritual struggles and battles day in and day out. But the same God who fought for Israel is fighting for you and I. The same God who led Israel in the wilderness, provided miraculously for them, and protected them is doing so for you and I today… And if we take to heart the premise we see in Parasha Bamidbar of keeping the Presence of God as our central focus then nothing the world throws at us can rob us of what God has in store for us. The only way the enemy can best us is if we take our focus off of the Presence of God in our hearts and lives.

The central most important aspect in our lives as believers should be the power and Presence of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob dwelling in our midst.

You

What issues are there in your life today that you are finding are creating distractions taking your focus off of the Ruach HaKodesh in your life?

Are you facing marital issues? Financial woes? Health crises?

Maybe your children are making life choices you aren’t happy with? Perhaps your job is consuming all of your time and energy?

Maybe you’re struggling with some sort of conflict with someone else that is unresolved? Or maybe you’re carrying around the weight of pain and anger because you haven’t forgiven someone who has hurt you, or maybe you haven’t sought the forgiveness of someone you have hurt?

We

If our worship team will make their way back up to the stage. (Unmute worship team)

We all face distractions in our life every single day… The enemy loves to keep us distracted so we have a harder time keeping our focus on the Presence of God in our lives and what He has called us to do for His Kingdom. But the same Ruach HaKodesh that empowered Yeshua to overcome the enemy’s distractions and temptation is dwelling within us today and we have the ability to overcome anything this world throws at us. But the only way we can do that is to keep our focus upon the Power and Presence of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in our midst. And when we falter, when we allow the world to get the best of us, to overcome our misstep all we have to do is realign our focus on the the Power and Presence of God.

The indwelling of the Ruach, the reality of our lives individually and corporately now being the Mishkan, the Tabernacle, the temporary dwelling place of the Shechinah should be the centrality of our hearts, our thoughts, our words, and our actions… In the same way that the Mishkan was the centrality of the camps of Israel in the Wilderness.

So let us choose this day to put on the full armor of God and to prioritize our walk with Him day in and day out.