End of

Numbers Chapter 27







 

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GiGi's Numbers Chapter 27 comment on 7/28/2023, 5:05pm...

Numbers Chapter 27

cont.

The 'mantle' signifies and anointing from God that empowers a leader to do the work of God. Joshua already had the Holy Spirit working in him, but to do this job of leading this people into the land and conquering the peoples that resided there, he needed the anointing that Moses had. So Eleazar laid his hands upon him for the reception of this anointing.

When the Bible says not to be hasty about the laying on of hands, this is a good example of the wisdom of this verse. Choosing people to serve the body of Christ in leadership is not just a matter of a person wanting to do it or their training or there sincere devotion to God or their talent or who the people want. It is a matter for God to select and appoint, so all involved need to be sensitive to the will of the Holy Spirit in these situations and to anoint only those they are certain God chose.

This also demonstrates that leaders cannot be self-appointed. They need to be selected by God through others, as demonstrated in this chapter, for the selection of David as king, for the selection of each apostle, for the selection of the writers of Scripture.

 


GiGi's Numbers Chapter 27 comment on 7/28/2023, 4:57pm...

Num. Ch. 27

cont.

Moses did not make this choice, YHWH did. Moses knew that he was just a man corrupted by sin. But he also knew that YHWH always chooses rightly. In such an important appointment such as this, it was vital for God to appoint the leader, just as God had appointed Moses as the leader.

Moses set a very good example about bringing matters to the Lord before making decisions, when the people sinned and rebelled, when God brought plagues and death to the camp for sin, and most importantly, in writing the Scriptures as the Spirit moved him. He knew he was not just writing historical accounts, but that God was inspiring him in the writings that are our Scriptures. Even above these things, Moses knew that he was called God's friend and friends foster relationship with one another. Moses must have spent much time in prayer and in the presence of God in the pillar of fire and clouds and in the tent of meeting, as it is stated that he was often there with YHWH and the people would stand and face the tent of meeting while Moses was within. Moses valued building this relationship between himself and the Great God of all. He treasured his privilege that God initiated with him 40 years earlier in the desert at Mr. Horeb. He walked with God for 40 years under tremendous strain and the burden of leading such a people so immense in number.

Moses was instructed to bring Joshua before Eleazar the high priest to be consecrated to the YHWH as Moses' replacement. All three must have been both happy and sad. Happy to know that YHWH chose Joshua and sad because they knew that Moses would soon die. But as great leaders do, they stayed the course YHWH had put before them and completed the task of consecrating Joshua and presenting him to the people when they were all assembled together.

The last thing that I noticed was that YHWH told Moses that Joshua would receive from Moses what God had placed on Moses to be a leader and prophet-often called the mantle...cont.

 


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