1 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Give this command to the Israelites and say to them: ‘Make sure that you present to me at the appointed time my food offerings, as an aroma pleasing to me.’ 3 Say to them: ‘This is the food offering you are to present to the Lord: two lambs a year old without defect,as a regular burnt offering each day.
Numbers 28
As the book of Numbers draws to a close, God gives the people of Israel some final instruction. Moses is departing. So how can a rebellious people draw near to a Holy God ... especially when Moses, their constant Intercessor, is gone?
How? It's not new rules. It's what they've been told before. 1) It's daily sacrifices -- a lamb without defect, an aroma pleasing to God. 2) It's also season festivals (see chapter 29) which have a dual purpose: to bless God ... and to bless us. (We bless God through our worship. We honor him. Furthermore, our own souls are blessed whenever we turn from our sins and return to God.)
But let's apply that to our own lives ...
· These chapters are a simple message from the Father: Your sin costs. It costs either your life ... or the life of a financially expensive substitute -- a perfect lamb.
· God was also saying that your repentance needs to be daily. Why? Because your sin is daily.
· Furthermore, in encouraging repeated festivals (chapter 29), I think that God was saying that your daily sacrifices will grow stale. Therefore, I'm going to call you back for special occasions. On these holy days, I want you to tell the stories of freedom over and over again to renew your faith and empower your (re-)commitment.
Yes, in these remembrances, God was also prefiguring the sacrifice of Jesus, the perfect Lamb of God, but ask yourself ... how well do my family and I follow this rhythm? Is our confession daily? And does it cost us anything? Furthermore, do we use the holidays of the faith as an excuse for a day off (and a party) or as a reason to return to him in repentance and praise.
We all need to be called back ... over and over again.
In Christ's Love,
a guy who loves the liturgical --
because it calls us back first
in confession and repentance
... and celebrates the festivals
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