The Family Bible Journey Podcast

We see God working in unseen ways as He scatters the priests and Levites amongst His people. In some ways, their dispersion is counterintuitive. In other ways, it makes perfect sense. God keeps His people close by keeping them close to their spiritual leaders.

Where Adam failed, Jesus succeeded, by thwarting the temptations of the evil one. We learn some similarities between the temptation of Adam and Jesus. Both were the, "son of God." One brought death into the world. The other brought life. We rejoice that not only did Jesus atone for Adam's fall, but for every temptation to which we fall prey.

Joshua teaches important lessons about how to conduct business as the inheritance for the remaining seven tribes is allocated. He is open and fair. He invites the participation of those who are affected by these decisions. Here we learn deft ways to handle sensitive matters.

In a previous episode we learned where you're from matters. Today we consider how what we do matters. Living in a day and age when people are slow to act, yet quick to judge, we consider our own actions and responsibility.

Jesus, even though He is God, submitted Himself to the Law of the Father. This is why He was baptized. As He told John, "to fulfill ALL righteousness." Because He has taken our sin upon Himself, and fulfilled God's law, we are forgiven. Now, what the Father says of His Son in His baptism is true of us in ours, "You are my beloved! With you I am well-pleased."

Judah would become, in many ways, the preeminent tribe of Israel. Her land was a hard land, and they would be mighty warriors and leaders. We also see, in the story of a wise young woman named Achsah, a measure of their wisdom and boldness.

We consider how each of the tribal allotments affected the character of each of the tribes of Israel. They were entering a diverse land with diverse climate, geography and agriculture. This would make them a diverse people, whose character was shaped by the land they received.

Even when Mary doesn't understand how everything is working out, she knows her Son is the very Son of God. Instead of trying to comprehend these things, she contemplates them. As a parade of angels, shepherds, a prophet and a prophetess affirm her Son, and Jesus grows in grace, we join Mary in pondering these things in our hearts.

Living in a world full of sin and evil, sometimes the only way to peace and the only way to preserve peace is through conflict. This is a hard lesson to learn, but one that is essential as we wrestle with the conflict that was necessary to bring peace to God's people then. Still today conflict is necessary to protect peace today.

In today's episode, Israel is defeated by deceit and victorious in battle. We learn the folly of making decisions without the Lord's guidance. Yet God still loved and blessed His people by using their mistake to lure their enemies into one great battle that accelerated their conquest of the land.

All those who had waited to see the Day of Salvation, begin to see it's dawn in John and Jesus. John's father Zechariah lead a chorus of praises, inspired by the Holy Spirit. Many rejoiced in knowing God's promises were coming to fruition in two infant boys.

"When one fails, the whole team suffers." We will learn how the greed of one caused the defeat of Israel. Following this setback, Joshua and Israel redouble their efforts and win a mighty victory.

Jericho stood as an imposing fortress. Well-supplied, with unlimited fresh water, it was designed to withstand any seige. But God intervened and provided Israel with a miraculous victory, delivering the city into Israel's hands.

The angel Gabriel gives the virgin Mary impossibly good news that she will conceive and give birth to the Savior. Her son Jesus, she is told, will save her people from their sins. The miracle of the incarnation shows nothing is impossible for God.

Israel crosses the Jordan at the absolute wrong time of year, when the river is at flood stage. God doesn't care. He parts the waters before Joshua, just as He had parted the Red Sea before Moses. Joshua wants to make sure Israel remembers this great day and erects a monument to remind future generations of where they'd come from and how they got into the Promised Land.

Joshua assumes the leadership of God's people as a mighty type of Christ who leads Israel into the promised land. As they enter the land, we are introduced to Rahab, a Canaanite prostitute who was brought to faith in Israel's God. Not only is she a hero in this story, she will also be honored to become one of the ancestors of Jesus, who shares Joshua's name.

Luke's gospel begins not with the miraculous conception of Jesus, but the conception of John the Baptist. John's righteous parents were blessed with a miraculous conception, as they were well past the age of child birth. Luke makes poignant connections between the Old and New Testaments, seeing God's promises being fulfilled by John's miraculous conception.

We celebrate the life and work of Moses, who in many ways was the greatest prophet. He wrote God's law. He smote the Egyptians and redeemed Israel. Imperfect as he was, he was a faithful leader and remains a blessing to all God's people today.

Even as Joshua is commissioned to lead God's people, Moses sings a song of Israel's future disobedience. God is going to have to discipline His people when they go astray. He will redeem them, but not until they've learned their lesson in a foreign land.

The dawn of salvation was dark for the women. Even when an angel told them the good news of the resurrection, they didn't understand. We too are slow to believe God's promises. Yet we are redeemed, so that God's love may dawn even in our deepest darkness.

Grandpa Moses frames the law of God as the life of His people. His ways are good and just. To walk in any other way is foolishness and evil. Even today, we do well to listen to the Lord and will be blessed by the faithfulness we can muster by God's grace.

Grandpa Moses puts the responsibility fully on Israel's shoulders for their success or failure. God has given them a good foundation for their society in His laws. Whether or not they receive His blessing now depends on their faithfulness.

We hear God's pain when Jesus cries from the cross. He suffered as One of us and for us because we grieve God's heart when we sin. Yet, even as we hear His cry of pain, He suffers and dies so that we may be forgiven and accepted by the Father.

The end of Grandpa Moses's "random" rules safeguard and protect community by fair and equal treatment. Even practices that are foreign to us made sense when we understand how they protect the vulnerable. Caring for the needy is so important to God that the first fruits offerings of His people, when they crossed into the Promised Land, were reserved for those in need.

A seemingly random list of rules gives the impression of a rambling grandpa Moses struggling to finish his speech. But there are important themes in these "random" rules, as Moses tells God's people how they will witness to His character in this section.

Jesus was surrounded by strangers in His dying hours because all His friends had abandoned Him. We thank God that Jesus was undeterred by His friends' absence, because we often turn our back on Him. None the less, He continued and finished His work so that we can be forgiven when we flee from Him.

In the middle of Moses' last discourse we stumble across mighty types fulfilled by Jesus. Disobedient sons were liable for death. Those hung on a tree were cursed by God. Put the two together, and you see a prophetic picture of God the Father's view of His Son on calvary. He was killed and cursed, so that in Him, we may be blessed and live.

Like an eclipse, that darkens and alters our perception of the sun without changing the sun, lies have the power to completely alter perceptions of the truth. Grandpa Moses warned about the dangers of lies and proposed harsh penalties for those who falsely accused others. Learn how God expects His people to live as beacons of truth.

Have you ever been left by someone you love? If so, you know a measure of Jesus's pain when He was left by all who loved Him. He was forsaken, so that in Him, we would never be forsaken by God.

It does a soul good to know that God knows the future and sees around corners. In providing rules for a monarchy, God was addressing a need His people would have four hundred years in the future. How does it help you to know that God is already providing for future needs you couldn't even imagine?

How does God expect His people to deal with economic desparities that emerge due to human greed and sloth? How do work and worship play nicely together? In these chapters, we reflect on how faith provides the finances to be generous with others, and the time to spend with God in worship and His word.

When Jesus gave His disciples the blessing of His body and blood in communion, was He ushering in a new covenant? Or was He fulfilling the old? Or was He doing both?

God told his people that even if their dearest loved ones tried to lead them astray, they must trust and love the Lord above all others. He goes on to tell them specific ways that they would be distinct as his chosen people. In the purity and dietary laws of God people, we see how he protected them from unseen diseases.

As Israel moved into the Land of Promise, God told them to break idolatrous altars and pillars and to burn Asherah poles. We will learn why these hotbeds of paganism were destroyed in this fashion. We also consider how the "easy way" is still a temptation to God's people today.

Too much time on Christian airwaves is spent speculating on the day of Jesus's return. Instead of worrying about when it happens, how about we live as if today is the day of His return? This way, we make the best use of the time He's given us.

Grandpa Moses encourages God's people to listen to God because He intends to bless them. Common sense laws promote individual and community welfare. God knows what's best for His people and we will do well when we listen to Him.

Grandpa Moses reminds Israel that their goodness flows from the love and mercy of the Lord. They were not chosen for who they were, but rather by God's love, to become His great people. We consider how God's Word forms us as His people, as we seek to walk in His way.

"Work as if everything depends on you. Pray as if everything depends on God." ~Martin Luther. Jesus prepared His disciples for His inevitable departure and their inevitable suffering by blessing them with His Holy Spirit. In this episode we consider how, in one sense, there is nothing for us to do to be prepared for His return. On the other hand, there is a world of preparation for us to do.

As Grandpa Moses lays out God's law, he begins by reminding God's people that who they are flows from who God is. Just as He is the God of love, mercy and justice, so too they are to live lives of love, mercy and justice. Not because that's what they do. But because of who we are.

God blesses His people simply because He loves them. After recounting how the Lord's favor gave Israel victory over past foes, Grandpa Moses encourages Israel to future faithfulness. As God's chosen people, there is tremendous blessing when we listen to the Lord in faith.

Each of the major power players in Jerusalem tried to trick Jesus into saying something they could use to convict Him. Instead, He answered every question perfectly. He was, after all, wisdom and love personified. But in order to prove it, He would need to fulfill God's law by showing them the depth of His love.

Moses speaks to Israel as a loving grandfather, who blesses his grandchildren with his wisdom. We will learn how we are blessed when we listen to the Lord in faith. his law is love. We also learn the consequences of fear and disobedience.

Three classes of vulnerable citizens are given protection in the final chapters of Numbers- the Levites, those accused of murder, and women who are at risk of losing their inheritance. We consider how good governance provides for all people and the wisdom of God in protecting each of these groups.

In reponse to the leaders' hard-hearted rejection of Him, Jesus quotes a familiar parable from the prophet Isaiah and a popular line from a worship song of His day. We consider the unlikely allies who were Jesus's opponents, while we ponder His undaunted determination to fulfill God's will for His people.

Israel's "marches" since the exodus are recounted before God sets the boundaries for Israel in Palestine. Numbers recalled God's faithfulness to His people, and ends with an admonition to drive-out the inhabitants of the land. Israel's faithfulness to God, we are told, will be their success or their undoing.

As Israel inches closer to the Promised Land, Moses has two final battles. In one battle, Israel is avenged on Midian and Balaam. The other battle discussed is yet another internal squabble with leaders of Israel.

Jesus used the fig tree to teach His disciples of the destruction of the Temple, and all sacred institutions that no loger fulfill God's purposes. Church scandal is rampant and it is destructive. Here we learn how sin corrupts even sacred institutions, and how they can be restored in the same way sinful humans are restored.

God's laws about vows provided many protections for women and men. While some may suggest God was putting women into their place, you could also argue women had more protections under the law than men. Here again we see how God's governance protected all parties.

Good governance provides for the needs of all people. This principle is demonstrated when God's laws for inheritance were given to Moses. Too many people blame God for systemic injustice. Here we see how He provides good governance and leadership for His people Israel.

The Palm Sunday praise sung to Jesus was the very same praise the people had been singing to God in their annual ascent to the Temple. For hundreds of years they had sung these songs of worship. When Jesus came on Palm Sunday, they praised Jesus for lifting them up in love and looked for Him to fulfill all of God's promises.