Hugh Stephenson

Good morning Martha! How fortunate we are to have you and Ivan on staff and serving the body. Love your focus on purpose. Too long I lived without one. Rudderless. Q1.- Q3. In study, I came across several statements by Thomas Carlyle on purpose “A person with a clear purpose will make progress, even on the roughest road. A person with no purpose will make no progress, even on the smoothest road.” “Have a purpose in life, and having it, throw into your work such strength of mind and muscle as God has given you.” ‘Blessed is he who has found his work; let him ask no other blessedness. He has a work, a life-purpose; he has found it, and will follow it! How, as a free-flowing channel, dug and torn by noble force through the sour mudswamp of one's existence, like an ever-deepening river there, it runs and flows.” For a long time I operated with no purpose. Just whatever seemed right at the time. Then I was taught about Genesis 1:26-28; the creation/cultural mandate. https://www.gotquestions.org/creation-mandate-cultural.html As best as I am able to discern God has called me into discipleship ministries; both for recovery and for traditional discipleship.

Hugh Stephenson

LOVE THIS OVERVIEW "For the first time after the formative events of the Exodus deliverance and the revelation on Mount Sinai, the people of Israel are organized into a holy people on the march under the leadership of Aaron and Moses with the priests and Levites at the center of the camp. A whole new chapter has opened in the life of the people of Israel, and this new beginning is marked by the toledot formula." https://www.gotquestions.org/toledot.html “Knowing the toledot they came from gave the Israelites context for what God was asking of them when they entered the Promised Land and linked later Israelites to the great men and the mighty deeds of long before. Most of all, the toledot showed them how God had worked in the past and how He was sure to work in the present.” GQs ———————— https://www.gotquestions.org/difference-priests-Levites.html https://www.gotquestions.org/God-inheritance-Levites.html https://www.gotquestions.org/tribe-of-Levi.html https://www.gotquestions.org/chief-priests.html https://www.gotquestions.org/Levitical-priesthood.html https://www.gotquestions.org/Kohathites-Gershonites-Merarites.htm The key for me in some much of what we have been reading is a combination of the holiness and purity of God along with His deep desire to dwell among us and to have a deep and intimate relationship with us. As always. The notes edify- “Theologically the section as a whole explores the theme of God's holiness. Viewed in one way the priestly hierarchy is a means of protecting Israel from divine holiness. The introduction of another sacred order between priests and people emphasizes the difference between the fallibility of man and the perfection of God. ... Viewed in another way the hierarchy constitutes the recognized channel through which God brings stability and well-being to his people."

Hugh Stephenson

I am confident most of us has heard of “The Horse Whisperer”, https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0119314/ But how many of us have heard of “the dog whistler”? What if I told you God can come in a whisper…but Satan can come in a whistle. Please click through to this passage from 1 Kings 19:9-18. Please read it through carefully. I am confident it will bless you as it has me. Here’s an analogy I’ve been taught- Imagine a dog owner who hates his dog and mistreats his dog. Horribly. Beats it. Doesn’t care for it. Gives it no affection. Only yells at it. Feeds only at a sustenance level. But here’s what he does do. He trains that dog to respond to his whistle. And when he whistles that dog does what ever he wants. Attacks people. Barks incessantly. And loudly. Scares adults. Terrifies children. Tears up any house its in. Fouls his own yard and the yard of everyone else. Fights all other animals. Mauls and even eats smaller weaker animals. And more. All with a whistle. Now- Imagine that dog gets rescued by a new master. One who loves it. Cares for it. Heals it. Teaches it to be kind. Gives it affection. Guards other dogs and keeps predators at bay. Protects families. And more All with a whistle. But there is one difference. Sometimes he whispers. Now- What if the old master seeks and finds the dog. And whistles for it. At the same time the new master whistles for it. To whose whistle does the dog respond? ———————— What does this have to do with Numbers 3? God appointed the first born to be priests. They failed when tested, c.f. golden calf in Exodus 32. So God now appoints Aaron and the Levites to guard the tabernacle and to minister to the people. This is how important it is to God that He is in our presence and dwells with us. And is available to us for atonement and reconciliation. And trains us to hear his voice, (whistle), so that when we do hear it we know what He commands us to do. We know where He is so that we can go right to Him and have the love, care and healing He promises. And joy, peace, and rest. --------------------------------- Even though I know I will always hear His whistle- Even though I know He might speak to me in the wind, earthquake, and fire- I’m still listening for the whisper.

Michael Sisson

Re: Num 3:4 Num 3:4 (NASB) But >>>Nadab and Abihu died before the LORD when they offered strange fire before the LORD in the wilderness of Sinai;<<< and they had no children. So Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests in the lifetime of their father Aaron. See Lev 10:2 Re: Num 3:7 See Jer 33:17-18 Re: Num 3:10 (NASB) “So you shall appoint Aaron and his sons that they may keep their priesthood, but the >>>layman<<< who comes near shall be put to death.” “layman” or “stranger” comes from the same Hebrew root as “strange” fire (see Num 3:4; Lev 10:1). Re: Num 3:12 (NASB) “Now, behold, >>>I have taken the Levites from among the sons of Israel instead of every firstborn, the first issue of the womb among the sons of Israel.<<< So the Levites shall be Mine. See Ex 13:12 Re: Num 3:46-48 Such attention to accounts here leads one to believe G-d quite literally does number the very hairs on our head. (Mt 10:30)

Michael Scaman

In the exodus, God said to the nation "you shall be a kingdom of priests, a holy nation". This was put 'on hold' in a sense with the golden calf incident where the levites punished and killed 3000 people related total the golden calf. They have the priest from a group of them like sons of Aaron and the levites because helpers Isaiah 61:6; Exodus 19:6; 1 Peter 2:9; Revelation 1:6 3000 dies at the giving of the law Ex.32:28, 3000 people lived at the giving of the Spirit at Pentecost with Peter's sermon. Acts 2:41. Peter also says to the whole church ' you are a kingdom of priests, a holy nation' and this became a big issue in the protestant reformation and 'the priesthood of believers' not merely clergy. 1 Peter 2:9; Spoiler alert! One group of Levites were the sons of Korah. Korah rebelled against the holiness of God and was swallowed up by the earth. Numbers will say 'but not all the sons of korah died" Numbers 26:11. Some became bouncers in the temple, gate keepers protecting God's holiness and wrote Psalms. They should be in the grave with Korah but were redeemed. In fact many people in the Old Testament were descended form Korah like some of David's nightly men and Samuel and another sub group being the Asaph musical psalm writers and musicians.

Amy Lowther

1. Yes. Yes. I believe God cares. It is not a debate for me. For answers of why I was created and what I am supposed to do, I go to God because He is good in those areas. 2. I find myself focusing on God because He can help you achieve, maintain, and progress in positive ways in activities and in opportunities once you identify your purpose. Idols can be overcome by understanding and practicing God’s values as you live and participate in life. 3. Yes. Yes.

Sue Bohlin

Thanks, Martha! I was struck by how the ESV translates this chapter--I had never before seen that part of the Levites' responsibility was to serve as guards. That makes so much sense: tons of gold and silver in the tabernacle, and the extremely important role of the priests and especially the high priest. I'm thinking that someone on guard duty might look like they're just standing there, doing nothing, but it's a very important job--regardless of whether it looks like they're doing anything or not. And I love that God always knows what we're doing, particularly when we are serving Him, even if onlookers don't see what we're doing because they don't know what the job is. (And how easy is it to judge others on the basis of an incomplete perspective . . . ?) This chapter details the Levites' role to serve. It was incredibly important. Serving is still incredibly important today. In studying spiritual gifts, I have read that it seems the Holy Spirit distributes the gift of service to more people than any other gift because it is the greatest need. (Someone has said that people gifted to serve are "the muscles of the body of Christ.") Whether someone is setting up chairs, or cleaning the bathroom, or directing traffic in the parking lot, or making and serving coffee, or greeting, or collating and stapling papers, or any number of little-appreciated acts of service, God sees, He appreciates, and He will reward every one of them.