Any leadership program needs to have a plan of succession. Moses would not be around forever and so a new leader needed to take his place. Joshua the son of Nun was that leader.
Numbers 27: The Daughters of Zelophehad
1 Then drew near the daughters of Zelophehad the son of Hepher, son of Gilead, son of Machir, son of Manasseh, from the clans of Manasseh the son of Joseph. The names of his daughters were: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.
2 And they stood before Moses and before Eleazar the priest and before the chiefs and all the congregation, at the entrance of the tent of meeting, saying,
3 "Our father died in the wilderness. He was not among the company of those who gathered themselves together against the LORD in the company of Korah, but died for his own sin. And he had no sons.
4 Why should the name of our father be taken away from his clan because he had no son? Give to us a possession among our father's brothers."
5 Moses brought their case before the LORD.
6 And the LORD said to Moses,
7 "The daughters of Zelophehad are right. You shall give them possession of an inheritance among their father's brothers and transfer the inheritance of their father to them.
8 And you shall speak to the people of Israel, saying, 'If a man dies and has no son, then you shall transfer his inheritance to his daughter.
9 And if he has no daughter, then you shall give his inheritance to his brothers.
10 And if he has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to his father's brothers.
11 And if his father has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to the nearest kinsman of his clan, and he shall possess it. And it shall be for the people of Israel a statute and rule, as the LORD commanded Moses.'"
Joshua to Succeed Moses
12 The LORD said to Moses, "Go up into this mountain of Abarim and see the land that I have given to the people of Israel.
13 When you have seen it, you also shall be gathered to your people, as your brother Aaron was,
14 because you rebelled against my word in the wilderness of Zin when the congregation quarrelled, failing to uphold me as holy at the waters before their eyes." (These are the waters of Meribah of Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.)
15 Moses spoke to the LORD, saying,
16 "Let the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation
17 who shall go out before them and come in before them, who shall lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of the LORD may not be as sheep that have no shepherd."
18 So the LORD said to Moses, "Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him.
19 Make him stand before Eleazar the priest and all the congregation, and you shall commission him in their sight.
20 You shall invest him with some of your authority, that all the congregation of the people of Israel may obey.
21 And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire for him by the judgment of the Urim before the LORD. At his word they shall go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he and all the people of Israel with him, the whole congregation."
22 And Moses did as the LORD commanded him. He took Joshua and made him stand before Eleazar the priest and the whole congregation,
23 and he laid his hands on him and commissioned him as the LORD directed through Moses.
Things to think about…
1. Praise the Lord for godly, bold women. The daughters of Zelophehad, Num 27:1-5 were bold enough to ask for an inheritance from their father in the Promised Land. This showed faith by asking for a share in what they believed would be Israel’s inheritance. Their male cousins had an inheritance, why not them, as Zelophehad had no sons. Our Lord acknowledged their argument was valid, vs 7 and makes a decree that if a man does not have any sons, that the inheritance goes to the daughters rather than other males who are the next nearest of kin. These would normally be uncles and cousins. Our inheritance is in Christ and should not be squandered. Our Promised Land is in glory and like these sisters we need to ask the Lord for an inheritance that would extend into a blessing for future generations. Pray that our involvement in church, influences and blesses future generations.
2. It is interesting that Jewish inheritance laws down through the generations have followed the principles of inheritance that the Lord decreed to Moses in Numbers 27:7-11. Sons have traditionally received an inheritance, then daughters (as daughters who marry receive an inheritance through their husband’s line). Those who have no brothers receive an inheritance. After that the wider circuit of relatives receive the inheritance. Order, structure and generational blessing are part of the order, structure and character of our God. May blessing of the inheritance of faith in Christ bless our children with an eternal inheritance from our heavenly Father. In the story of Ruth, Boaz is a kinsman redeemer, but he was not the nearest male relative. He negotiates the sale of Naomi’s dead husband’s inheritance with the nearest male relative and promises to marry Ruth a Moabitess to raise up a line of inheritance. This line would of course led to the ultimate Redeemer, Jesus.
3. Moses is reminded of the painful reality that he would not go into the land of Israel because of his rebellion, “because you rebelled against my word in the wilderness of Zin when the congregation quarrelled, failing to uphold me as holy at the waters before their eyes”, Num 27:14, when he struck the rock at Kadesh. This must have been a horrible blow for Moses. Remember he had a calling to leadership at the age of 40. He was taken on his own wilderness experience for 40 years in Midian. He then returns to Egypt to lead the people out of Egypt and then has to endure another 40 years in the wilderness with a rebellious people. After this an act of anger kept him out of Canaan. He of course inherited the heavenly Canaan which was far better. Moses is an example to us that this earth is not our eternal resting place. Something far better awaits us. Sometimes we lay the groundwork for the next generation to experience the blessings of the fruit of our labours. Let’s keep our eyes upon Christ looking forward to inheritance of Immanuel’s land, our true home.
4. Joshua succeeds Moses and Eleazar succeeds Aaron Num 27:12-23. Recognising the future leadership of Israel as the Lord had commissioned was vital for the future cohesion of the nation. Note that Joshua is recorded as having God’s Spirit within him. Please continue to pray that the Lord raises up leaders of His calling filled with the Holy Spirit, especially within the church. This requires discernment. People who offer themselves up as leaders may have issues with pride– just like Korah, Dathan and Abiram. The greatest shall be a servant, as Jesus said, the last shall be the first, Matt 20:16. May we continue to be on the lookout for such servant leaders.
Vision statement for CBC
CBC’s Vision :- To be a growing biblical church community, significantly influencing our city and beyond, through intentional outreach, fulfilling our mission.
Prayer points
1. Pray for the local family that lost their 7yo daughter to drowning at Colleges Crossing recently. Pray as a church we might even be used as an instrument of healing and grace.
2. Pray for our Mother’s Day event
3. Pray for Iran and the overthrow of a wicked regime.
May the Iranian people see the prophesy of Jer 49:34-39 fulfilled over the coming weeks and months.
4. Pray for the Sacred Minds podcast – starting to come online.
5. Pray for One for Israel and their witness in this time of challenge and conflict.
6. Pray for the church in Australia that it focuses on Christ, His Word and holiness.
7. Pray for our leaders in Australia that they press in closer to Christ.
8. Pray the influence of Russia and China is minimised militarily.
9. The Royal Commission that the Jewish people will feel safe in Australia.
10. Pray for new people to step into ministries at CBC – eg worship, café, sound/technical, giving, podcast.
11. Reform and Revival over our city and country.
12. Finances to cover our needs
13. Growth, conversions, joy in the Word and Spirit to increase.
Praise Points
1. Praise the Lord for the encouragement the Word of God brought people over the weekend.
2. Praise God for ministries – Life Groups, Prayer meetings, Kids@Church
3. Café team every week. Thankyou to all those who serve and bring food. Especially Fiona, Maddie and Suzy and those who supply it every week Eg Ros - Milk.
4. Worship, Admin and Technical teams – Peter, Nita, Brendon, AJ, Suzy, Maddie, Mathys, Doug.
5. Kids Church teachers – Jacqueline, Maddie, Elise, Anastacia and Fiona
6. The Lord’s faithfulness this year to CBC and all who have served in ministries
7. Joy, peace and grace we see at CBC. Thankyou Lord
Announcements
1. Ministries back - Prayer meeting Wed 5:30pm at church. Life group begins at 6:30pm. Going through the book of Romans.
2. All Life Groups - Wednesdays.
3. Kids@Church starts up this week.
4. Mother’s Day High tea celebration – Saturday morning, May 9th at Church.
5. Church bank details bsb:- 704 913 and Acc number:- 4000 4388 1
6. Tune in again this week on our YouTube page. Subscribe to the CBC channel Chuwar Baptist YouTube channel.
Catechism questions for April...
Q. 7. What is meant by the Atonement? A. Christ satisfying divine justice, by his sufferings and death, in the place of sinners.
