Mon.’s Devo - Sending the Spies

Read: Numbers 11:24-13:33; Mark 14:22-52; Psalm 52:1-9; Proverbs 11:1-3 God had told Moses to gather 70 faithful leaders from among the tribes and he would give them instructions. He had also told them that he would give them meat till it was up to their nose. 
 *** Moses called the 70 leaders to the tent but only 68 came. God came down in the cloud and spoke to them and filled these men with His Spirit. The men began to prophesy and the two who had not came out began to prophesy in the camp. *** Joshua told Moses to stop the two who were prophesying in the camp. Moses refused to do it and told Joshua he wished everyone in the camp were prophets. *** God sent a wind to blow in quail from the sea which fell all around their camp. The next day, the people went out and gathered them. The least anyone gathered was 60 bushels! They were like ravenous beasts. (I wonder if they drained them and cooked them first.) Before they could take a bite, God was so angry with them that he struck them down with a plague. They were buried there named the place Kibroth-hattaavah which means “the graves of lust.” *** Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses’ marriage to a Cushite woman. Cush was the son of Ham so I can see the problem they had, but God didn’t seem to have the same problem with it. God called the three of them: Moses, Aaron and Miriam to the tent of meeting. God defended Moses who he spoke to face to face. He asked them why they were not afraid to speak against Moses. When the Lord left in his cloud, Miriam was covered with leprosy. Aaron immediately repented for both of them. Miriam was set outside the camp for seven days then brought back in. *** The Lord had Moses send out 12 spies to the promised land of Canaan. Each tribe sent a spy. Joshua went from Judah and Caleb went from the tribe of Issachar. The twelve traveled the land for 40 days and saw the cities, the hill country and the land by the sea. Everywhere they went they saw the assets of the fruitful land, but they also saw the giants living there. Moses had told them to bring back the produce from the land so they brought back the first fruits of the grape harvest which tells us this was the time of the fall feasts. They should have blown their trumpets and taken the land and set up God’s kingdom there. Caleb stood up and encouraged the people to take the land at once, but fear and the bad reports caused them to miss their opportunity. They looked at the circumstances and forgot God’s promises and all he had done to get them there. *** In Mark, Jesus gave his disciples the bread, blessed it and broke it. He told them that it signified his body. Then he gave them the wine and gave thanks. He told them to drink it because it signified his blood and the covenant they had with him. He would not drink from the fruit of the vine till he drinks it in the new kingdom. *** They sang a hymn, then Jesus took them to the Mount of Olives. He told them they would all fall away from him. Peter, of course, said he wouldn’t. Jesus told him he would deny him three times before the rooster crowed. *** They went to Gethsemane and Jesus asked them to pray. Jesus was deep in prayer wanting not to have to go through this great trial, but he wanted what God wanted more than his own life. Jesus came back to find them sleeping three times. He named Peter and asked him why he couldn’t pray for an hour with him. *** Finally, the last time he returned to them it was time for his betrayer to come. Judas arrived with a crowd armed with clubs and swords. He kissed Jesus and called him Rabbi. This was the sign for the leaderss to seize Jesus. Peter drew his sword and cut off the servant of the high priest’s ear. In another gospel, Jesus healed his ear. *** There was a young man in a linen cloth who was a follower of Jesus. They seized him but he fled leaving his linen cloth behind. All through the Bible you will find these “watchers” in linen. *** Lord Jesus, thank you for coming to earth and teaching us about God. Thank you for enduring the cross so that we might have everlasting life. Thank you for your great plans for our future. May we purpose to walk worthy of your sacrifice.

Sun.’s Devo - The Trumpets

Read: Numbers 10:1-11:23; Mark 14:1-21; Psalm 51:1-19; Proverbs 10:31-32 God told Moses to make two silver trumpets to use to bring the congregation together and to signal the time to break camp. When both trumpets were blown, the people were to gather. When only one was blown, only the heads of the tribes were to gather. When an alarm was blown, which consisted of several short blasts, the tribes on the east were to begin their march. When it was blown again then the tribes on the south would begin their march and it would continue till they were all moving. *** To gather all the people a long blast was sounded like the one that sounded when Moses went up on Mt. Sinai. A separate alarm was blasted when they were to go to war. This one would reach heaven and God would save them from their enemies. They were also to sound these trumpets at their appointed feasts and at the first day of their months. These trumpet blasts would remind them that they belong to the Lord. *** On the 20th day of the 2nd month of the 2nd year the cloud lifted and the people set out by their stages from Mt. Sinai. It took them to the wilderness of Paran where Ishmael had ended up (Gen. 21:21). They traveled for three days. At the start of each day, Moses would declare, “Arise, O Lord, and let your enemies be scattered, and let those who hate you flee before you.” Then at the end of the day, when they stopped to rest he would say, “Return, O Lord, to the ten thousand thousands of Israel.” *** The Holy Spirit is the trumpet in our spiritual ears who warns us, calls us to meet with the Lord and tells us when to go to minister. It is up to us to heed the sound. *** The people complained about how unfortunate they were and when the Lord heard it, he sent fire to burn among them and it consumed some of the outer parts of the camp. The people went to Moses who prayed to God for mercy. He called the place Taberah which means “burning.” *** The instigators among them complained there was no meat to eat. They reminded the people of the fish they ate in Egypt and all the vegetables they had there. All they ate day and night now was manna. *** Moses went to the Lord and complained that the people complained all the time and the burden of them was too much for him. *** God told Moses to find 70 elders and meet with them. They were to help Moses carry the burden of all the people’s complaints. He also told him to have the people consecrate themselves because they were eating meat the next day. In fact they would eat meat a whole month till it was coming out of their nostrils. When Moses questioned how the Lord was going to do this since they didn’t have enough animals to kill and feed this crowd, God told him to wait and see. He was true to his word. *** Is there anything too hard for the Lord? In our lives, that is the question God is asking us. Nothing comes as a surprise to the Lord. He has already come up with the solution to every problem we have and will ever have. *** In Mark it was two days before the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. The chief priest had decided they would kill Jesus in private after the feast because there were too many people during the feast. God had other plans. *** In Bethany, Jesus was anointed for his burial by a woman who would always be remembered for her act of love. *** This was the last straw for Judas Iscarot when he saw the costly perfume being wasted on Jesus. He went to the chief priests and made a deal to betray Jesus for money. *** On the first day of Unleavened Bread, Jesus sent two of his disciples to find a place for them to eat the Passover. It was a room God had prepared for them. *** At this last meal, Jesus told them that one of them would betray him. They were all sorrowful, hoping it wasn’t them. Jesus exposed him as the one who was dipping out of the same dish. Jesus pronounced a curse on him. He said it would have been better for him if he hadn’t been born. Judas had seen all the miracles and had experienced deliverances from his own hand and yet he turned his back on Jesus and gave him over to his enemies. *** Lord, today’s Psalm is our prayer. May we not judge but be humble and grateful for your merciful salvation. Thank you for giving your life as a ransom for our souls.

Sat.’s Devo - Stay Awake!

Read: Numbers 8:1-9:23; Mark 13:14-37; Psalm 50:1-23; Proverbs 10:29-30 Moses was to set up the lamp stands so that the light was in front of the lamp stand. It was made of hammered gold to resemble almond branches. *** The Levites were to be cleansed by shaving all of their skin and washing themselves and their clothes in the water of purification. Moses was to bring the whole congregation to watch him lay his hands on the heads of the priests and offer them before the Lord as a wave offering from the people. Then the Levites were to lay their hands on the heads of the bulls transferring their sins to the bull and offer one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering to the Lord to make atonement for their sins. This was to make them separate from the people. The priests, now, took the place of the first born. *** This purification made them authorized to minister in the tabernacle. The Levites were also authorized to do their duties of serving the priests and guarding the tent of meeting. *** A year from when they had left Egypt, they were going to celebrate the Passover for the first time in the wilderness. There were a few men who were unclean because they had touched a dead body. They wanted to be part of the celebration so Moses asked God what they could do. *** The Lord told them that if they were unclean or out of town on the day of Passover, they could wait and serve it in the second month instead of the first month. But, if they were clean and present and didn’t celebrate it then they would be cut off from their people. Passover represents salvation from sin. Our only way to eternal life is to celebrate the death and resurrection of Christ. *** When the tabernacle was all in place the cloud of God’s glory covered the tabernacle. It became fire at night. Whenever the cloud lifted and moved, they broke camp and moved with it. *** In Mark, Jesus continues his teaching about the end times. When they witnessed abomination going on in the Temple they were to run. This will be the sign that great tribulation was upon they land. God will shorten those days for the elect. False saviors will arise, but don’t be fooled. They will try to deceive even the elect, if possible. *** The sun will be darkened and the moon will not shine and stars will fall from the sky. The powers in the sky will be shaken. They will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory. Angels will be sent out to gather together God’s elect on the earth. *** These signs will be like the fig tree bearing its leaves. That happens in the summer. This will tell us that the time is very hear. This generation will not pass away till all the things he said, take place. Heaven and earth will pass away but his words will not pass away. *** No one knows the hour that will happen, not even the angels or the Son, only the Father. Our job is to always be awake, alert and ready. *** We have seen many of these things already manifested in the natural. 1 Corinthians 15:46 says that first we see the natural, then the spiritual comes afterwards. Paul goes on to say that our mortality will be swallowed up in immortality in the blink of an eye. I have more questions than answers. Revelation becomes clearer and clearer the closer we get to the time of its revealing. *** Lord, we may not understand all you said, but we can be awake, alert and ready. May we not get entangled with the things of this world and become spiritually asleep.

Fri.’s Devo - Endure Till the End

Read: Numbers 6:1-7:89; Mark 12:38-13:13; Psalm 49:1-20; Proverbs 10:27-28 A Nazarite vow was when someone promises to do something concrete for the Lord or to give a certain thing to the Lord. That person is not to drink wine or strong drink because this is something he should be very sober about. Also he must not let a razor touch his head which is to remind him of his promise. In the Hebrew a razor meant to “empty or make bare.” I wonder if this means he is not to empty his mind of or let anything distract him from his vow. He is not to go near a dead body. In the Hebrew one of the meanings of the dead was “anyone worthy of death.” I wonder if this means, we are not to get involved with the world while we are fulfilling our vow. Apparently, this vow is a very serious thing and should not be taken lightly. *** When the vow is completed, the man can finally shave the burden of his hair. He is to bring the hair and put it on the fire that is under the peace offering. Then the priest will take the shoulder of the ram when it is cooked and one unleavened wafer and put it in the hands of the Nazarite. The priest will wave them for a wave offering before the Lord. Then the Nazarite may drink wine. He may have joy! *** God told Moses to have Aaron bless the people with a blessing of peace. He put his name on the people of Israel. *** When Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle the chiefs of all the tribes brought six wagons full of sacrificial animals. Two tribes went together to fill one wagon. He gave two of these wagons and four of the ox to the sons of Gershon and the other four wagons and eight ox to the sons of Merari. He gave none to the sons of Kohath because their duty was the sacred holy things. *** For twelve days the different tribes brought their offering to the Lord. They each gave silver plates, basins, flour mixed with oil, a golden dish, a bull, a ram, a lamb and a male goat. Also two oxen, five rams, five male goats and five male lambs were given. *** They all gave the same offering in the order that they marched with Judah going on the first day and Naphtali ended on the twelfth day. All of Leah’s sons, except Asher were listed first, then her concubine’s sons, then Rachael’s sons then her concubine’s sons. *** These offerings ended the dedication ceremony of the altar. Moses went into the tent of meeting and heard the voice of the Lord speaking to him above the mercy seat. Tomorrow we will hear what God said. *** In Mark, after reading all the great offerings that the tribes brought to the Lord, we read about a widow how brought two small copper coins which total one cent. Jesus made the comment that she had given more than all the people who gave out of their abundance. She had given all that she had. He was trying to tell us that it is not how much to give but how you give. *** The disciples were leaving the temple and commented on the wonderful stones and buildings around the temple. Jesus told them that the day was coming when not one of these stones would be left in its place. Jesus was not only referring to the buildings, but the whole system of worship. *** When Jesus was alone with his disciples on the Mount of Olives, Peter, James, John and Peter came and asked him when all this would happen. He told them that when people rise up claiming to be the Messiah, and when they see kingdoms rising up against one another, and hear of earthquakes, and famines, then the birth pains have begun. *** During that time his followers will be persecuted and lied against. They will be brought to trial and judged wrongly, but the Holy Spirit will give them their defense. Families will turn against one another and his children will be hated for bearing the name of Christ. Those who endure till the end will be saved. *** Lord, we rejoice because we are living in these times of birth pains. We can rejoice because the Kingdom of God is at hand! May we endure till the end!

Thurs.’s Devo - Holy Service

Read: Numbers 4:1-5:31; Mark 12:18-37; Psalm 48:1-14; Proverbs 10:26 God told Moses and Aaron to take a census of all the sons of Kohath 30 to 50 years old. When they got ready to move and take down the tabernacle, the sons of Kohath were to take down the veil of the screen and cover the ark with it. Then they were to cover it with goatskin and a cloth of blue. The were to cover the bread of Presence with a blue cloth and put the plate, bowls, dishes and shewbread on it. Then they were to cover it with a scarlet cloth and then goatskin. The lamp stand and all the accessories that went with it were only to be covered with blue cloth. They were to cover them with goatskin and put on a cart to carry. The altar of incense was to be covered with a blue cloth then goatskin. The ashes from the altar were to be spread with a purple cloth and all the utensils for the altar were to be covered with goatskin. All these things were to be carried by poles by the sons of Kohath. *** What is the significance of all the cloths? I wonder if the ones with blue cloth were ones that are in heaven. The red cloth was only used on the table where they ate the bread. This bread stood for Jesus who became our high priest when he shed his blood for our sins. He turned the stone law to palpable bread that we can eat. We are now the temple of the Holy Spirit so the goatskin might represent our skin. All of these things are in us. We can eat of his Word and absorb it. We have the light of his revelation. We have the very presence of the Lord. We have the ability to pray and cover people with forgiveness and healing. *** Eleazar who represents the Holy Spirit was over the whole tabernacle - the oil for the light, the incense and grain offering and anointing oil. *** Then they were to take a census of the sons of Gershon. They were to serve and carry burdens. They carried the curtains and the coverings. *** The sons of Merari were also counted and they were to carry the frames of the tabernacle with its bars, pillars, and bases. *** There was atonement for anyone who repents and pays the price and offers the sacrifice for his sin. ** If a man felt his wife was unfaithful to him yet had no proof, he was to bring her before the priest along with the required offering. He was not to add incense or oil because this was not a pleasing offering but an offering of jealousy. It was to expose iniquity. *** Then the priest would set her before the Lord. The priest would mix holy water with some of the dust on the floor of the tabernacle in an earthenware vessel. Then the priest would unbind her hair so all her sins would be exposed and place in her hands the grain offering of remembrance. She shall take an oath saying that she has not lain with a man while she was married to her husband. If she is innocent, she will be free from the curse of the bitter water. But, if she is guilty, and she lies in her oath, then the priest will declare that her thigh will fall away and her body will swell. She must agree. *** The priest will write the curse in a book and wash the words away with the water. He then makes the woman drink the water. If she is guilty, she will immediately feel bitter pain like she is in labor. Her thigh will rot, which means her genitals will be disfigured. Her belly would swell as if she was pregnant but she would have no fruit inside. She will be barren from that time on. *** Jesus drank this bitter water for us. We are the adulterous wife, but Jesus took our curse from us and we can now produce fruit. *** In Mark, the Sadducees were next up to try and trick Jesus. Of course, they would ask him a question about resurrection because they didn’t believe in the resurrection. Their question was ridiculous, but the real issue was whether Jesus would support resurrection or not. *** Jesus went straight for the real answer. They did not believe in the power of God to resurrect. He proved the resurrection with what God told Abraham. He is the God of the living, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. *** A scribe asked Jesus which of the commandments were the most important and Jesus answered with the quote every Jew knew. “Hear of Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your hear and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” The second he said was to love your neighbor as yourself. The scribe agreed that he had answered correctly. Jesus told that scribe that he was not far from the kingdom of God. *** Everyone thought that the Messiah was going to be a son of David but Jesus corrected them. David called the Messiah his Lord, not his son. *** Lord, thank you that you cover us with your blood. You protect us from the storms and you guard over your temple which is with in us. May we strive to keep your temple pure and holy.

Wed.’s Devo -The Traveling Cross

Read: Numbers 21:1-3:51; Mark 11:27-12:17; Psalm 47:1-9; Proverbs 10:24-25 Each tribe had their own symbol which they put on their flag. They camped and marched with their tribe. All the tribes camped around the tabernacle. Judah, who led the way, Issachar and Zebulun were always on the east. Reuben, Simeon and Gad marched and camped to the south. Benjamin, Manasseh and Ephraim on the west and Dan, Asher and Naptali to the north. From heaven, they looked like a huge cross traveling through the land. *** The Levites and priests camped around the tabernacle in the center. Gershon’s clan camped west of the tabernacle and were in charge of the tent and all the curtains. Kohath and his clan camped south of the tabernacle and were in charge of the altars and the vessels of the sanctuary. Merari’s clan camped to the north and carried the frames of the tabernacles with it bases, pillars and all the accessories that went with them. Moses, Aaron and his sons camped to the east and were in charge of guarding the tabernacle against outsiders. *** God had Moses list all the firstborn because he was substituting the Levites for the firstborn. There were 273 more firstborn than there were Levites so they redeemed them with five shekels a head. God was teaching them that it is not just being born first or being Jewish that constitutes what he wants. You must be chosen or redeemed. Jesus took it a step further when he told them they must be born again. *** In Mark, Jesus was walking into the temple when he was stopped by the chief priests and the elders. They asked him who gave him the authority to do the things he was doing. He answered them with a question. He asked them if the baptism of John was from heaven or from man. They couldn’t answer him because it would expose their hearts, so they said they didn’t know. So Jesus told him he wouldn’t answer their question either. *** Then Jesus answered them with a parable about a man who planted a vineyard and leased it to tenants and left the country. He sent servants to get the proceeds but were treated harshly and given nothing. He finally sent his son thinking they would honor him, but they killed him thinking they would then own the vineyard. Jesus asked them what the owner should do. They answered that he should kill them and put someone else in charge. 
 *** Jesus reminded them of the scripture in Psalm 118:22 that said the stone that the builders rejected became the cornerstone. With this parable, Jesus was telling them that God had sent him to take his vineyard back from them who had usurped the true worship of God. *** The religious leaders knew he had given that parable against them and wanted to arrest him but feared the people would riot so they tried to trap him in his teaching. The Pharisees asked him if it was lawful to pay taxes to Caesar. Jesus asked for a coin and asked who’s likeness was on it. Then he told them to give to Caesar whatever was his and to God the things that are God’s. They marveled at his wisdom. He was able to get out of all their traps because he is wisdom. *** Lord, thank you that you guard us and keep us in your will. We pray that you raise up godly ministers who desire to honor you above all. We pray that you raise up godly leaders to lead our country, our counties and our cities. May your peace reign in our land. May your peace reign in our hearts. Thank you for your marvelous plan.

Tues.’s Devo - The Mountains Leveled

Read: Leviticus 27:14 - Numbers 1:54; Mark 11:1-25; Psalm 46:1-11; Proverbs 10:23 There were laws about dedicating things to the Lord as a holy gift. If is was a house, then the priest would determine its value in proportion to its seed and how close it was to the next jubilee. Taking all this in mind, the priest would set a price. If the man changed his mind and wanted to buy it back, it would cost him the price plus 5%. *** The house in the Hebrew means “family.” The year of jubilee stands for the last day. The value of the lives of your family are determined by its seed and how much it gave of itself to the Lord. Joshua proclaimed that for him and his house, they would serve the Lord. They would have been estimated at a high price. This does not determine salvation but rewards. But, it a person decides to buy back its house for himself, then he will lose his reward. *** In verses 28-29 it talks about things and people, man or beast that is devoted to the Lord. If they are devoted for destruction from mankind, there is no way to redeem them. They must die. He is talking about those who are created for destruction like Pharaoh in the Exodus. They can not be saved. Their fate was determined from the foundation of the world. (If you have trouble with that, read Isaiah 45. *** Even the tithe can be redeemed back, for a price. *** On the second year, the first day of the second month, God told Moses to do a census of all the people from twenty years old and older of each of the tribes that can go to war. The tribe of Judah had the most which is no surprise, but the tribe of Dan came in second with 62,700. Sadly, we will see Dan dwindle to the smallest tribe because of the idolatry it became involved in. It is not even mentioned in the list in Revelation. I see the tribe of Dan as the Judas Iscarot of the tribes. *** The Levites were not to be counted since they kept the Tabernacle and camped on the inside keeping guard over the testimony. *** In Mark, Jesus was coming to Bethphage and Bethany and sent two of his disciples ahead telling them exactly what to do. I love when God is that specific with me. *** He told them to go to the village and immediately they would find a colt tied. (It must have been super obvious because these were men. Lol!) He even told them what to say in case someone questioned them about it. The disciples followed Jesus’ instructions and came back with the colt. *** They threw their own cloaks on it to make a comfortable saddle for Jesus to sit on. Others along the way threw they cloaks or their palm branches they were waving on the ground so he could walk on them. They were rolling out the green carpet and praising him as the Messiah. They were actually singing the Hallel which is in the Psalms. *** When they came to Jerusalem it was late, but Jesus went and checked out the temple before he went to Bethany with his disciples to spend the night. *** The next morning they headed to Jerusalem and Jesus stopped to notice a fig tree with leaves. It was not time for fruit but Jesus cursed it and said, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” *** When he came to the Temple, he drove out the sellers and the money-changers like he had done the year before. He proclaimed that his house was to be called a house of prayer for all the nations, but they had made it a den of thieves. This just made the chief priests want to kill him all the more. *** That evening they passed the fig tree again and it was completely withered to its roots. The fig tree represented the hypocrisy of the Temple. Jesus explained that they could bring down mountains when they believed in prayer. *** But when we pray to bring down mountains, we are to forgive them so our sins will be forgiven. *** Lord, we pray that the mountains of society that are in the hands of evil people will be brought down. We forgive the ones who have been used by the devil to rule over us in terror and oppression. We pray that they will repent and come to salvation but that their power over us will be broken and their kingdoms shattered. We pray that the mountains will be leveled and godly people will serve as a dedication to the Lord.