Making a Differencewith Pastor Phil Erickson

Feb 21st A Tithe of a Tithe

Today’s Passage – Numbers 16 – 18 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers also read – Acts 22 – 24; Proverbs 21; Psalms 106 – 110)

Listen to this morning’s Scripture Song – Psalm 121

Read the “0221 Evening and Morning“ devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.

Read a previous post from this passage – “Standing Between the Living and the Dead” 

“25 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 26 Thus speak unto the Levites, and say unto them, When ye take of the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them for your inheritance, then ye shall offer up an heave offering of it for the LORD, even a tenth part of the tithe. 27 And this your heave offering shall be reckoned unto you, as though it were the corn of the threshingfloor, and as the fulness of the winepress. 28 Thus ye also shall offer an heave offering unto the LORD of all your tithes, which ye receive of the children of Israel; and ye shall give thereof the LORD’S heave offering to Aaron the priest. 29 Out of all your gifts ye shall offer every heave offering of the LORD, of all the best thereof, even the hallowed part thereof out of it. 30 Therefore thou shalt say unto them, When ye have heaved the best thereof from it, then it shall be counted unto the Levites as the increase of the threshingfloor, and as the increase of the winepress. 31 And ye shall eat it in every place, ye and your households: for it is your reward for your service in the tabernacle of the congregation. 32 And ye shall bear no sin by reason of it, when ye have heaved from it the best of it: neither shall ye pollute the holy things of the children of Israel, lest ye die.” (Numbers 18:25-32)

Did you know that the Levites who received their support from the tithes and offerings from God’s people, were also supposed to give a portion of that which they received back to the Lord. It was literally a tithe of a tithe. The Israelites presented their tithes to the priests, which was then distributed to all the Levites to feed their families. The Levites then took ten percent of what was given to them and offered it back to the Lord. It was actually then given specifically to the family of Aaron who served as the priests. Remember, the tribe of Levi was made up of three families: Kohath, Merari, and Gershom. These families had different responsibilities as servants within the Tabernacle (and later in the Temple). From the family of Kohath came Moses and his brother Aaron. Aaron and his sons were given the special distinction of serving as the priests within the Tabernacle.

This offering from the Levites was referred to a few times in vs. 27 – 29 as an “heave offering.” The “heave offering” (תְּרוּמָה – tᵊrûmâ) was first mentioned in Exodus 29:27 and is mentioned twenty other times after that. Bakers Encyclopedia of the Bible describes this offering as: “portions of the sacrifices and offerings set aside for the Lord and for the priests.”^[1]

My thought this morning is that these servants of God who received their support from the offerings of God’s people were also expected to participate in the giving of offerings themselves. It almost seems to not make sense. If God is giving the money (or in this particular case, food) to the ministers from the offering, then why should they have to give it back to the offering. Maybe, they should only be given ninety percent of the tithe so that they would not have to go through the process of giving back the other ten percent. But God set it up this way for a couple of reasons:

• There is great joy in giving.

“35 I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35)

People who are inside the will of God and filled with His Spirit receive tremendous pleasure out of giving to God. All of God’s people love to give, and God’s ministers are no different.

• By giving back the Levites were being examples to the people.

In that great passage for pastors written by Peter, he exhorts them to be examples to the flock:

“1 The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed: 2 Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; 3 Neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. 4 And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.” (1 Peter 5:1-4)

It has been my observation that some preachers are a little stingy in their giving. I must confess that this is a “pet peeve” of mine. I have heard about preachers who did not give any offerings at all to their churches. Who am I to judge them their motivation in neglecting this basic duty, but I can judge the wrongness of the action itself. Preacher, if we are going to encourage the congregation to give, we had better lead the way in giving. By the way, preachers should not be stingy in other ways, either. Pick up the tab once in a while when eating out with church members; give a generous tip to the waitress; give gifts at Christmas and birthdays, etc.

• Giving demonstrated their love for the Lord.

Paul told the Church at Corinth that their freewill offering for the poor saints in Jerusalem would prove the sincerity of their love for the Lord:

“1 Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia; 2 How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality. 3 For to their power, I bear record, yea, and beyond their power they were willing of themselves; 4 Praying us with much intreaty that we would receive the gift, and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering to the saints. 5 And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God. 6 Insomuch that we desired Titus, that as he had begun, so he would also finish in you the same grace also. 7 Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also. 8 I speak not by commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness of others, and to prove the sincerity of your love. 9 For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:1-9)

• Giving demonstrated their faith in God.

By participating in this process, the Levites were demonstrating that they believed that God was going to continue to meet every need that they had:

“But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19)

“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33)

“Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.” (Luke 6:38)

^[1] Walter A. Elwell and Barry J. Beitzel, “Heave Offering,” Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible(Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1988), 941.

Feb 19th And When the People Complained…

Today’s Passage – Numbers 11 – 13 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers also read – Acts 16 – 18; Proverbs 19; Psalms 96 – 100)

Listen to this morning’s Scripture Song – Psalm 92:1 – 4

Read the “0219 Evening and Morning“ devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.

Read a previous post from today’s passage – “We Could Use Some More Spirit-Filled Preachers“

“And when the people complained, it displeased the LORD: and the LORD heard it; and his anger was kindled; and the fire of the LORD burnt among them, and consumed them that were in the uttermost parts of the camp.” (Numbers 11:1)

Boy, I hope that you enjoyed today’s reading as much as I did! Sometimes when we read these Old Testament passages, especially the chapters containing the genealogies, they can be less interesting and lacking of action, but that was certainly not the case for Numbers 11 – 13.

In Numbers 11, we have an account of the people of God murmuring and complaining, which is something they did often, and God hated it. Anyway, here in chapter eleven they are complaining about the manna that God provided for them everyday. Imagine not having to work for your food but simply going out every morning and gathering it up from off of the ground. We do not know exactly what manna tasted like but I’d bet it was good, and since it came directly from God as bread from Heaven, I can guarantee that it provided perfect nutrition. Yet, the people were tired of manna every day. Keith Green wrote a great song that described the frustration of the Israelites with their day to day wander in the wilderness and their lack of desire for manna. Here is a portion of “So You Wanna Go Back to Egypt:”

Well there’s nothing do but travel
And we sure travel a lot
‘Cause it’s hard to keep your feet from moving
When the sand gets so hot
And in the morning it’s manna hotcakes
We snack on manna all day
And we sure had a winner last night for dinner
Flaming manna souffle

Well we once complained for something new to munch
The ground opened up and had some of us for lunch
Ooh, such fire and smoke
Can’t God even take a joke? Huh? NO!

Oh, Moses, put down your pen!
What? Oh no, manna again?

Oh, manna waffles
Manna burgers
Manna bagels
Fillet of manna
Manna patty
BaManna bread!

I think the main reason that the people complained was because they were on a different timetable than God. I know I am. I want what I want, when I want it, which is usually immediately. The people liked the manna at first but they got tired of it. I am sure that God knew that they needed a little more variety in their diet but He wasn’t providing it as fast as the people wanted. So what did they do? They griped and complained. They wanted MEAT! And, they wanted it NOW! They more than desired it; they lusted after it. So, what did God do? He gave it to them in the form of quails. So many of them that they were piled up three feet deep in a large area surrounding the camp. They ate so much of it that it came out of their nostrils. They loved the quail that God provided at first but they would soon tire of it as well.

Why is it that God’s people get tired of the good things that He provides for them. Why is it that we always want more; we are never satisfied, never content.

In chapter twelve, we see that the complaints were not limited to just the lay people. Apparently Aaron and Miriam were upset about the fact that Moses had chosen an African wife. God was not pleased with their criticism either, and Miriam was stricken (at least temporarily) with leprosy.

Then in chapter thirteen, God sent twelve spies in to check out the land of Canaan. He didn’t want them to figure out how God was going to bring them in to defeat the Canaanites, He just wanted them to see how beautiful and abundant the land was so they could get a vision for what God had in store for them. Instead of coming back excited, they came back scared. They did not believe that their God was able to defeat the Canaanites and they, too, griped and complained.

When are we going to learn? Why can’t God’s people see that their cups are overflowing with blessings, instead of always viewing them as half-empty. Is this the way you see things? Do you tend to see the negative side of everything? Learn from all of these examples from Numbers 11 – 13. God is good and He is very good to His children. He has dealt with us far better than we could ever deserve.

Feb 18th Wait Until I Pray

Today’s Passage – Numbers 8 – 10 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers also read – Acts 13 – 15; Proverbs 18; Psalms 91 – 95)

Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Joshua One and Verse Eight

Read the “0218 Evening and Morning“ devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.

Read a previous post from today’s reading – “Don’t Move“

“And Moses said unto them, Stand still, and I will hear what the LORD will command concerning you.” (Numbers 9:8)

In our text today, a group of men come to Moses with a problem: they wanted to observe the Passover, but they were ceremonially unclean because they had come in contact with a dead body. Moses did not just give them an answer based upon what he thought would be right. He told them to wait until he prayed about it, and then he would give them God’s answer. The Lord determined that these men should wait exactly one month and then observe the Passover. The Lord also revealed to Moses that this would also be the rule for people who were on a journey when the Passover was being observed. They would just wait a month and observe it in the second month. 

A similar situation happened in Numbers 27. The daughters of Zelophehad had a question about their inheritance, but Moses did not give them his answer: “… Moses brought their cause before the LORD.” (Numbers 27:5)

My thought this morning is that we need to make sure the counsel that we give other people, and even the decisions that we make for ourselves, are all bathed in prayer. People come to me all of the time for advice, or perhaps to ask me about some new thing that they would like to do in their ministry within the church. Oftentimes, I tell them what I think they should do without first checking with the Lord. That is not a wise thing to do. I should have an automatic reply similar to what Moses said: “Wait until I pray about it.” Of course, we should also seek answers for them from the Word of God as well. Waiting to pray and seek God’s will will ensure that good counsel is given and bad decisions are not made. Take time to pray before you tell somebody else what they should do, and also before you do something yourself. 

“But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.” (Acts 6:4)

“Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” (James 5:16)

“Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;” (Ephesians 6:18)

“Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.” (Philippians 4:6)

Feb 16th The Nazarite Vow

Today’s Passage – Numbers 5 – 6 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers also read – Acts 7 – 9; Proverbs 16; Psalms 81 – 85)

Listen to this morning’s Scripture Song – Psalm Sixty-One and Verses One – Three

Read the “0216 Evening and Morning“ devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.

Read a previous post from this passage – “The Lord Bless Thee”

“Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When either man or woman shall separate themselves to vow a vow of a Nazarite, to separate themselves unto the LORD: He shall separate himself from wine and strong drink, and shall drink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of strong drink, neither shall he drink any liquor of grapes, nor eat moist grapes, or dried.” (Numbers 6:2 – 3)

Numbers 6 discusses the Nazarite vow. (Note – don’t confuse Nazarite with Nazarene. Jesus was a Nazarene from Nazareth in Galilee)

The vow of a Nazarite involved these three things:

1. Abstinence from wine or anything from the vine, including grapes or raisins.
2. Hair could not be cut.
3. No contact whatever with a dead body, or even a dead animal.

This vow was a temporary vow of separation in most cases, though there were a few who were Nazarites from birth:

1. Samson (Judges 13:5 – 7; 16:17) Samson violated his vow by breaking all three of the restrictions of the Nazarite vow. He went to the vineyards, He touched a dead body, and he cut his hair)
2. Samuel (1 Samuel 1:11)
3. John the Baptist (Luke 1:15 – though the Scriptures only mention that John would not drink wine or strong drink, but he was definitely separated unto the Lord).

When the Apostle Paul returned to Jerusalem after his third missionary journey, he may have been participating in a Nazarite vow by paying the offering for four men who were coming out of their time of separation (see Acts 21:24).

There was no mandate that anybody take part in this season of separation: it was the free-will choice of whoever desired to do it. The application that we can make concerning this vow is that during the time of this vow, the person was to be completely separated from sin and devoted to the Lord. That is a good thing for us to be at all times, but there may be seasons in our lives and ministries where we may want to refrain from certain entertainments and activities and, perhaps even, fast from food. During this period, we could also extend our time in prayer and Bible study.

According to Manners and Customs of the Bible:

This institution was a symbol of a life devoted to God and separated from all sin—a holy life (Numbers 6:2–21).

When the period of the continuance of the vow came to an end, the Nazarite had to present himself at the door of the sanctuary with three things.

1. A male lamb of the first year for a burnt-offering.
2. A ewe lamb of the first year for a sin-offering.
3. A ram for a peace-offering.

After these sacrifices were offered by the priest, the Nazarite cut off his hair at the door and threw it into the fire under the peace-offering.

As to the duration of a Nazarite’s vow, everyone was left at liberty to fix his own time. There is mention made in the Scriptures of only three who were Nazarites for life, Samson, Samuel, and John the Baptist (Judges 13:4, 5; 1 Samuel 1:11, Luke 1:15). In its ordinary form, however, the Nazarite’s vow lasted only thirty and, at most, one hundred, days.^[1]

^[1] Freeman, J. M., & Chadwick, H. J. (1998). Manners & Customs of the Bible (pp. 533–535). North Brunswick, NJ: Bridge-Logos Publishers.

Feb 14th The Center of the Camp

Today’s Passage – Numbers 1 – 2 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers also read – Acts 1 – 3; Proverbs 14; Psalms 71 – 75)

Listen to this morning’s Scripture Song – Psalm 51

Read the “0214 Evening and Morning“ devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.

“Then the tabernacle of the congregation shall set forward with the camp of the Levites in the midst of the camp: as they encamp, so shall they set forward, every man in his place by their standards.” – (Numbers 2:17)

In Numbers chapter 2, God gives us a description of what the camp of Israel looked like when they were not on the move. A careful reading of this chapter will reveal that the nation of Israel was divided into 13 different groups, which included 11 of the original 12 tribes; and also the two half-tribes of Joseph (Manasseh and Ephraim). These groups were all strategically placed around the tabernacle. Immediately surrounding the tent on all four sides was the tribe of Levi. They were placed there as closely as possible to the tabernacle because that was their place of service. They were the ministers and priests of the Lord. Beyond the Levites the remaining twelve tribes and half-tribes were positioned by threes in each direction. For instance, on the east side of the tabernacle, beyond the Levites, were the tribes of Judah, Issachar, and Zebulon. There were also three tribes on the west, south, and north.

The thought that I am trying to develop here, however, is that the tabernacle was in the very center of the congregation. The tabernacle was the place where God dwelt between the cherubims on the mercy seat in the Holy of Holies. God and His chosen place of worship was the very center of the lives of the people of Israel.

Now let’s fast forward a few thousand years to the time of the local church. I realize that today God dwells in the hearts of His children but the local church is God’s chosen place for corporate worship, and it is also the place where we are to be organized in the fulfillment of the Great Commission.

“But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.” – (1 Timothy 3:15)

God should still be at the center of our lives and the local church should be at the center of the life of our families. I have been a pastor now for many years and I have been involved in God’s work as a layman even longer. I have observed that the families who place a high value on the local church, recognizing it’s importance, tend to be stronger and happier than the families that do not. Don’t misunderstand, I do not think that the church has a higher priority than the home but I do believe that successful homes are built around a strong, Bible believing, New Testament church. The church’s role is critical to healthy marriages and to the spiritual development of our children.

Take a moment to consider the role that the local church plays in your life and then consider the role that you play within your local church. We need to keep our local churches strong and I believe that there are many ways that you can help:

1. Participate in the local church – attend the services and find something that you can do that will serve others. God has uniquely equipped you in certain areas that can be used within the local church.
2. Pray for your church and your pastors and leaders. The ministry can be very discouraging at times for your leaders but you can be an encouragement to the people that minister to you simply by lifting them up in prayer. It wouldn’t hurt for you to let them know on occasion that you are praying for them.
3. Support your church with your tithes and offerings. The work of God cannot go forward without the financial support of God’s people. When you don’t give financially to the church you are telling God and the church that they have no place of value in your life.

You can also support the church by not bashing it. Let people know where you stand by verbally commending the church and its ministers to others. If you are for the ministry speak out for it, and don’t let others run it down in your presence. Negativity and complaining are like cancers inside the church that will destroy it from within.

Is the local church important to you or isn’t it? God says that it should be. Remember, He died for the church. It’s His body. He places a great value on it and so should we.