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NUMBERS
CHAPTER 15

1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land of your habitations, which I give unto you, 3 And will make an offering by fire unto the LORD, a burnt offering, or a sacrifice in performing a vow, or in a freewill offering, or in your solemn feasts, to make a sweet savour unto the LORD, of the herd, or of the flock: 4 Then shall he that offereth his offering unto the LORD bring a meat offering of a tenth deal of flour mingled with the fourth part of an hin of oil. 5 And the fourth part of an hin of wine for a drink offering shalt thou prepare with the burnt offering or sacrifice, for one lamb. 6 Or for a ram, thou shalt prepare for a meat offering two tenth deals of flour mingled with the third part of an hin of oil. 7 And for a drink offering thou shalt offer the third part of an hin of wine, for a sweet savour unto the LORD. 8 And when thou preparest a bullock for a burnt offering, or for a sacrifice in performing a vow, or peace offerings unto the LORD: 9 Then shall he bring with a bullock a meat offering of three tenth deals of flour mingled with half an hin of oil. 10 And thou shalt bring for a drink offering half an hin of wine, for an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD. 11 Thus shall it be done for one bullock, or for one ram, or for a lamb, or a kid. 12 According to the number that ye shall prepare, so shall ye do to every one according to their number. 13 All that are born of the country shall do these things after this manner, in offering an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD. 14 And if a stranger sojourn with you, or whosoever be among you in your generations, and will offer an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD; as ye do, so he shall do. 15 One ordinance shall be both for you of the congregation, and also for the stranger that sojourneth with you, an ordinance for ever in your generations: as ye are, so shall the stranger be before the LORD. 16 One law and one manner shall be for you, and for the stranger that sojourneth with you.

God has already given specific laws concerning sacrifices. But now He even details them further.
No portions for the flour and oil had been given before, but now God states them. Notice it
is when they come to the land that God gives them these instructions. When we become saved we then
enter a new dimension in a relationship with God.
Is it not true as we grow in that relationship with God, that our understanding grows also?
We should know more about God today than yesterday. And we should know more about how to please Him as
we grow in our relationship with Him. You can please God (verse 7).
Notice also that God places no difference between the Jew who would follow His law and the Gentile who
would willingly do the same (vss 13-14).
Truly God has "no respect of persons" (Acts 10:34). He made one law for all people. And God
provided ONE CHRIST for all people. However, the Jews never really tried to tell the world about
salvation. They really never were evangelical in nature. Instead, they became an exclusive
religious people.
We can see here that the exclusivity of others was because of the practitioners - not God.
And the same can be said abou the church today.

17 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 18 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land whither I bring you, 19 Then it shall be, that, when ye eat of the bread of the land, ye shall offer up an heave offering unto the LORD. 20 Ye shall offer up a cake of the first of your dough for an heave offering: as ye do the heave offering of the threshingfloor, so shall ye heave it. 21 Of the first of your dough ye shall give unto the LORD an heave offering in your generations.

Again, it is said "when ye come unto the land.." When God begins salvation in us, He will
certainly complete it (Philippians 1:6).
Here God calls for a "heave offering" to gratefully acknowledge Him as the Giver of their crops and to
sanctify the crops to His glory.
The heave offering of first-fruits were an acknowledgement of God's blessings and a request for Him to
bless the completion of the crops (Ezekiel 44:30).
We should realize that we are dependant upon God to make sure our labor.

22 And if ye have erred, and not observed all these commandments, which the LORD hath spoken unto Moses, 23 Even all that the LORD hath commanded you by the hand of Moses, from the day that the LORD commanded Moses, and henceforward among your generations; 24 Then it shall be, if ought be committed by ignorance without the knowledge of the congregation, that all the congregation shall offer one young bullock for a burnt offering, for a sweet savour unto the LORD, with his meat offering, and his drink offering, according to the manner, and one kid of the goats for a sin offering. 25 And the priest shall make an atonement for all the congregation of the children of Israel, and it shall be forgiven them; for it is ignorance: and they shall bring their offering, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD, and their sin offering before the LORD, for their ignorance: 26 And it shall be forgiven all the congregation of the children of Israel, and the stranger that sojourneth among them; seeing all the people were in ignorance. 27 And if any soul sin through ignorance, then he shall bring a she goat of the first year for a sin offering. 28 And the priest shall make an atonement for the soul that sinneth ignorantly, when he sinneth by ignorance before the LORD, to make an atonement for him; and it shall be forgiven him. 29 Ye shall have one law for him that sinneth through ignorance, both for him that is born among the children of Israel, and for the stranger that sojourneth among them.

We all fail miserably in keeping God's Word. I personally believe the main
reason for our failure is "ignorance" of the Word.
God states offerings to be made when a man sinned unwittingly - or because
he didn't know.
This law included individual responsibilities and congregational responsibilities.
If a man sinned unwittingly, the procedure was for the individual. But when a teacher or
leader causes an entire congregation to sin unwittingly, it also needs to be acknowledged
and forgiveness sought. Notice again that the law is for the Jew AND the "stranger."

30 But the soul that doeth ought presumptuously, whether he be born in the land, or a stranger, the same reproacheth the LORD; and that soul shall be cut off from among his people. 31 Because he hath despised the word of the LORD, and hath broken his commandment, that soul shall utterly be cut off; his iniquity shall be upon him.

"Presumptuos" sin is when a person knows the law but does wrong anyway. God says
this is a direct reproach to Him. And He states that person will be "cut off." High-handed
sin brings the penalty of death!

32 And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man that gathered sticks upon the sabbath day. 33 And they that found him gathering sticks brought him unto Moses and Aaron, and unto all the congregation. 34 And they put him in ward, because it was not declared what should be done to him. 35 And the LORD said unto Moses, The man shall be surely put to death: all the congregation shall stone him with stones without the camp. 36 And all the congregation brought him without the camp, and stoned him with stones, and he died; as the LORD commanded Moses.

As an exclamation point to His statement, God follows it up with an example.
Here's a man who only gathered some sticks for a fire on the Sabbath. But his
penalty was death!. Our thoughts wonder at such judgment. But God says,
"..My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith
the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than
your ways, and my thoughts that your thoughts." (Isaiah 55:8-9)
Friends, we must remember that GOD is in control! It is HE Who judges
the thoughts and intents of the heart (Hebrews 4:12).
We think, "How could God have this man stoned to death and let David live when
he commits both planned adultery and murder?" But the scheme of thins must follow
GOD'S plan, and not ours. We don't know how one instance relates to another.
Neither do we understand the affect one instance has upon another.
At this particular time in history, God was establishing a people who would
reverence His law. And these people have been rebellious and irreverent from the very
beginning. God is making a statement, "DON'T disregard the SABBATH!"
And, my friends, I beleive it is a "high-handed" sin for a person who is saved by
the Holy blood of Jesus Christ to disregard worship on Sunday!

37 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 38 Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue: 39 And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the LORD, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring: 40 That ye may remember, and do all my commandments, and be holy unto your God. 41 I am the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the LORD your God.

Now I'm not one for symbolic memos to be carried around constantly reminding me of
first one thing and then the other. For instance, I do wear a cross on my suit.
Because of that, I must behave a certain way, or people will call me a
hypocrite.
And don't get me wrong, I'm certainly not perfect - not even CLOSE! And I'm
quite sure I dishonor that cross and my Lord many times. However, more times than not,
the presence of that little symbol reminds me to try and uphold the values
it represents.
Integrity is what you have to rely on when you are faced with temptation
and realize that you would never be caught. The decision to KEEP that integrity
should be made BEFORE the temptation. At a time like that, memory is best
served with a reminder!
God told these folks to sew fringes (small tassels) on their garments, and to put a
"ribband" or strip of blue on the tassels. This would remind them to KEEP
the commandments God had given and to which they were committed (verse 40).
God's Word is not a set of "suggestions," which we may or may not follow. God's
Word is a set of COMMANDS to OBEDIENT servants!

Please continue to follow along in Bible study with us.