Have you ever felt like God’s Word is full of rules and requirements, only to stumble upon a verse that suddenly reminds you how deeply He loves you? That’s exactly what happens at the end of Numbers 6.
“The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.”(Numbers 6:24-26)
Quick Review of Chapters Five and Six
In chapters 5 of the Book of Numbers, God is instructing the children of Israel about what they should do if a man suspects that his wife has been unfaithful to him. The Bible talks about “the spirit of jealousy” that comes upon a man if there is something going on behind his back. I believe the same holds true for the wife. While we often view jealousy negatively today, the Bible shows God is jealous over His children, and a healthy, controlled jealousy in marriage can reflect that protective love.
Chapter 6 discusses the rules concerning the vow of the Nazarite. When a person took this special vow of consecration in Old Testament days, he would not cut his hair or his beard, and he was not permitted to touch any alcohol, or come near anything (or anybody) that was dead. This vow was a vow of “separation unto the Lord”. The person that took this vow was declaring that his or her life was wholly dedicated to God. Usually, a person would be under this oath of separation for a period of time, not for his entire life. By the way, don’t confuse a Nazarite with a Nazarene, which is a person that comes from the city of Nazareth. Jesus was a Nazarene.
The Priestly Blessing (Numbers 6:24 – 26)
This morning, I was struck afresh by the prayer of blessing found at the end of chapter 6. It seemed almost strange for this beautiful prayer to be placed in this particular place. I mean, we have been reading a lot lately about commandments, sacrifices, rules, etc. Here, God tells Aaron that he wants him to pronounce this prayer of blessing over the people. I think God just wanted to remind the people that he loved them and that He was for them. I think we can learn a few lessons from this as well.
First, we need to be reminded that God loves us and wants nothing but the best for us. We sometimes picture God as an angry, cold dictator that is ready to pounce upon us when we do wrong. That is not God. He loves us and He wants to give us the richest blessings and a life full of abundance.
The second lesson that we should learn from this is that when we are trying to teach our children, we need to remember to let them know often that we love them. Yes, we need to give them all of the rules, commandments, and instructions; and yes, we ought to discipline them when they do wrong, but we also need to make sure that they know that we (and especially God) are in their corner, and that we want nothing but the richest blessings for their lives.
This principle extends beyond parenting and would also be a good lesson for preachers and spiritual mentors to learn as well. In our zeal to instruct, we sometimes come across as being uncaring and unloving. You have heard the old saying: “People do not care about what you know, until they know that you really care.” Well, we ought to really care, and we ought also to express that love and care often to the people that we are trying to help.
We ought to really care, and we ought also to express that love and care often to the people that we are trying to help. So this morning, why not follow God’s example? Speak blessing over someone in your life—your child, spouse, friend, or maybe your students—using these very words: “The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.”
Carry that assurance today: Your Father is for you, and His love surrounds you.
Remember: Amid life’s rules, requirements, and corrections, God inserts this beautiful reminder—He loves you, He’s for you, and He longs to bless you abundantly. Rest in that truth today, and let it shape how you love others.
Pastor Phil Erickson has been the pastor of Jersey Shore Baptist Church since 2002. Having grown up in Ocean County, Pastor Phil has always had a burden for the south Jersey area. After graduating from Bible College in Longview, Texas, he and his family moved to Galloway Township with the vision of digging in and serving the Lord and the people of Atlantic County. Pastor Phil and Cindy Erickson have been married for 34 years, and have four children and eight grandchildren. His oldest son, Phil Jr., and wife, Katelyn, are serving the Lord at a church in Paradise, TX. His oldest daughter, Melissa, is married to Wesley Clayton who is in the Air Force and is currently stationed in South Carolina. Samantha, his third child is married to Justin Mears and they are both serving the Lord here at the church in Galloway. Hannah is the youngest and is a sophomore at Vision Baptist College while also serving the Lord at Jersey Shore Baptist Church.
I love this thought. It reminds me of our Jr Church lesson yesterday. We started off our class singing Oh Be careful Little Eyes (ears, hands, feet, mouths, mind...) We were talking about King Saul and his disobedience. We stated that even partial obedience is disobedience. We talked about lying and blaming others just as Saul had done. And we talked about our own sin. Then we revisited the song because the lyric toward the end is one we especially do not want to miss, "For your Father up above is looking down with LOVE..." We want to be careful yes, we want to do the right thing and we need God to help us to do the right thing, but also God is looking down in LOVE. Because of his love I can if I choose, easily go to him and confess my sins and trust that he is not going to meet me with a scowl or disappointment. Rather, he will do what he says he will do, and forgive me and cleanse me of all my unrighteousness. I am so thankful for his mercy and grace.
So many children have never heard their parents say, "l love you," or felt their parents' arms around them. Sad. Great thought for the day. Amen.
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I love this thought. It reminds me of our Jr Church lesson yesterday. We started off our class singing Oh Be careful Little Eyes (ears, hands, feet, mouths, mind...) We were talking about King Saul and his disobedience. We stated that even partial obedience is disobedience. We talked about lying and blaming others just as Saul had done. And we talked about our own sin. Then we revisited the song because the lyric toward the end is one we especially do not want to miss, "For your Father up above is looking down with LOVE..." We want to be careful yes, we want to do the right thing and we need God to help us to do the right thing, but also God is looking down in LOVE. Because of his love I can if I choose, easily go to him and confess my sins and trust that he is not going to meet me with a scowl or disappointment. Rather, he will do what he says he will do, and forgive me and cleanse me of all my unrighteousness. I am so thankful for his mercy and grace.
So many children have never heard their parents say, "l love you," or felt their parents' arms around them. Sad. Great thought for the day. Amen.