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Follow His Lead

In my reading through a chronological Bible this year, I’ve just read in Numbers 9.  It has been one year since God’s people were rescued from Egypt.  Now, they are hearing from God at Mt. Sinai.  God has given Moses instructions for the people, as well as for the building of the Tabernacle.  The Tabernacle would be the place where God would live among His people.  As they set it up for the first time, the Bible says that God showed up in a big way.

"Then the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.  Moses could not enter the Tent of Meeting because the cloud had settled upon it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle."  Exodus 40:34-35

God made it clear to His people that He was among them; He would not be distant or far off.  Rather, He would be with them in a close way.  This is what He had promised.  How incredible to know that God has chosen to live with us and among us.

"I will put my dwelling place among you, and I will not abhor you.  I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be my people."  Leviticus 26:11-12

As the story continues, I find another incredible aspect of God’s involvement with us.  It is evidence of His pursuit of us for intimacy.  It is proof that He desires to be in relationship with us.  What I find is that God’s presence among the people was also the way He led them.

"Whenever the cloud lifted from above the Tent, the Israelites set out; wherever the cloud settled, the Israelites encamped.  At the LORD’s command the Israelites set out, and at his command they encamped…Whether by day or by night, whenever the cloud lifted, they set out.  Whether the cloud stayed over the tabernacle for two days or a month or a year, the Israelites would remain in camp and not set out; but when it lifted, they would set out."  Numbers 9:17-22 (portions)

Imagine being led that clearly by God.  Imagine having no doubt about when to go or where to go.  Imagine seeing the signs for your life that well.  The cloud stays – you stay.  The cloud moves – you move.  Your only responsibility was to be aware of the cloud that was among you and respond to its actions.

Whoa!  Think about that for us.  What if we simply were aware of God’s presence among us and responded to His actions.  God is still pursuing us and directing us.  But instead of a cloud, God uses His Holy Spirit.  We can learn to clearly see Him among us and discern the way He would have us to go.  We can have great assurance that we are following His plan for our lives.

Continue to look to Him.  Continue to spend time with Him.  Continue to get to know Him better through His Word.  And as you do these things, you will be able to follow His lead.

Not On My Own

The story of Job is an incredible picture of God’s sovereignty.  Satan, the great enemy, is given permission by God to test Job regarding Job’s faithfulness.  Satan believes it is only because God has blessed Job that he is faithful.  The test comes as Satan is allowed to pull God’s material and physical blessings from Job.

 

While this cosmic battle is taking place in heaven, Job is on earth suffering from the loss of his family and possessions, as well as being in physical agony.  His friends come around him to sympathize and comfort him.

 

The rest of the story of Job revolves around a series of conversations that Job has with his friends.  These conversations give insight into the nature of God and our position before Him.  Job’s friends assume he is guilty of something which has resulted in his suffering.  Job maintains his innocence throughout, but concedes that he is unable to stand before a holy God.

 

What would it be like to stand before God on your own?  What if the only defense you had in God’s presence was what you could come up with?  What if your position before God was based on your own deeds?

 

Imagine Job’s hopelessness as he stood before God.  Even though he was innocent, the presence of God was terrifying to him.  “Then Job replied: ‘Indeed, I know that this is true.  But how can a mortal be righteous before God?  Though one wished to dispute with him, he could not answer him one time out of a thousand.’” Job 9:1-3

 

Then, as if foreshadowing the resolution that would come one day, Job says, “If only there were a mediator between us, someone who could bring us together.”  Job 9:33 (NLT)

 

For us, we instantly realize that Jesus fulfilled Job’s “if only” hope.  Jesus came to be the One that would go between God and man.  We read in 1 Timothy 2:5, “For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.”

 

We DON’T stand before God on our own.  It is NOT by our own deeds that we come before Him.  Rather, we have a mediator, Jesus, Who is before God on our behalf!

 

 

Let's Take a Walk

For me, the beginning of the year is the beginning of the Bible.  I have started again to journey through the entire Bible in 2009.  I believe this approach to God’s Word helps me to see the overall picture of God’s message to us and assures that I will find myself reading all He has written.  This is my way of being in God’s Word in a way that is daily and intentional.

 

So, starting from the beginning, I have just read about God’s magnificent creation (Genesis 1 & 2), the fall of man (Genesis 3), the struggle of Cain & Abel (Genesis 4), and Noah and the flood (Chapters 6-9).  But this time along the way, something caught my attention tucked away in Chapter 5.  One phrase stood out like it was never there before.

 

Genesis Chapter 5 presents the family tree taking us from Adam to Noah.  It ties the story together and allows us to move forward through hundreds of years of history.  In fact, we trace the 10 generations that there were between Adam and Noah.  As we travel through the years, a repetitive, if not boring, pattern emerges.  First we read the father’s name, for example Adam.  Next we read how old he was when he had his first son.  We then read how many more years he lived and the fact that he had other sons and daughters.  Finally we read about his death.

 

So we are presented with this list; this seemingly endless repetition of names and years and names and years.  Then, all of a sudden, we are introduced to generation number seven.  A man named Jared has a son named Enoch.  Jared’s story is predictable, but then we read about his son.  Here is what we find in Genesis 5:21-24.

 

When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah.  And after he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters.  Altogether, Enoch lived 365 years.  Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.

 

Did you catch it?  You might need to pull out your Bible to see the significance.  This incredible phrase is introduced in the midst of this rather mundane list of names and dates: Enoch walked with God.  Now, I know I’ve read Genesis 5 before.  But somewhere during the third or fourth generation I must have skipped over to the good stuff in Chapter 6.  So seeing this phrase, “Enoch walked with God,” really caught my attention.

 

Walking with God.  That’s what we read in the NIV.  That phrase in the NLT is “Enoch lived in close fellowship with God”.  The Amplified Bible says, “Enoch walked in habitual fellowship with God.”

 

Being close to Him.  Isn’t this what it’s all about?  Having the pattern of my life, the direction I take be reflective of Who He is.  Making choices day-by-day to live in such a way as to put a smile on God’s face.

 

So that’s my plan for 2009 – taking a walk with God each and every day.  Allowing His Word to challenge and change my life as I commit to spending time walking through the pages each day.