The Ragtown Pulpit

Looking back on our journeys through the Numbers, we come away with a handful of important Kingdom principles to have under our belts as we seek to be Kingdom people in a wilderness world.

Answering pertinent questions. This one is particularly timely: Now that an election has (supposedly) been stolen, what will it mean for Christians to live and work under an illegitimate administration?

This is the penultimate message in our Numbers series, Drama in the Wilderness. In this chapter, instructions are given for dealing with accidental homicide, instructions which have informed Western judicial systems ever since; and which tend to raise the community out of barbarism.

Moses slips some interesting information into a chapter that details all of Israel's journeys. Not to be missed. Strong encouragement to keep moving forward without carnal fear.

The 2 1/2 tribes get their "Promised Land" on the wrong side of the Jordan. Has something gone wrong here? Or was expansion always the plan? Numbers 32

We come to a passage that is a bit obscure and strange, and, thus, mostly overlooked. Husbands/fathers given the legal ability to nullify a woman's religious vows. But there is much to chew on here, with real-world application and a nice look forward to Christ's redemption.

The daughters of Zelophehad (Numbers 27:1-11) prompt a discussion of the concept of familial inheritance and the roll it plays in extending the conquest of God into all the earth.

We come to the second "numbering" of the people, from which the English name of the book is taken. Historically, a bit of a challenge for both readers and preachers. But we walk away instructed in both the faithlessness of man to God, and God's faithfulness to remain the same.

How much of what Phinehas did can serve as a model for modern believers? What does Biblical zeal look like? And, have you noticed the piercing-death-atonement-covenant pattern that is present in the story?

Balaam predicts a Scepter rising out of Israel that would smash through Moab's forehead. We look at the fulfillment in time-and-history and the later expansion in the Messiah's life, and address the question, "Why should anyone have expected the Christ to have authority over demons?"

Balaam's second attempt to curse the Israelites winds up blessing them with certain victory, both over Balak and his people, and over the whole promised land.

QAnon is an increasingly visible phenomenon, both online and in modern politics. This presentation introduces the story behind it, and the outline of its central conspiracy theory, and compares it to Biblical truth. Take every thought capitve!

We talk about Balaam's first attempt at cursing Israel. We discuss a magical worldview; condemning what Christ condemns; God's promises and our sure defense.

Israel undergoes an unmentioned revival of sorts, in the wake of the incident with the serpents, and proceeds to go from strength to strength, in this understated passage. What might God do if you replaced complaining with singing and obedience?

We walk through the incident of the fiery serpents, and the bronze snake on the pole that cured the people. Christ's surprising use of the story. Dispelling some bad ideas.

We look at the death of Aaron and its implications for priesthood. We also explore the notion that priesthood is an inescapable concept. You are accepting that someone in your life speaks for God. If that's not Jesus, it's someone else.