In Australia we fill out a census every 5 years. We read the census of Israel as they enter into Canaan. This is the second one after 40 years wandering in the wilderness.
Numbers 26: Census of the New Generation
1 After the plague, the LORD said to Moses and to Eleazar the son of Aaron, the priest,
2 "Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel, from twenty years old and upward, by their fathers' houses, all in Israel who are able to go to war."
3 And Moses and Eleazar the priest spoke with them in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, saying,
4 "Take a census of the people, from twenty years old and upward," as the LORD commanded Moses. The people of Israel who came out of the land of Egypt were:
5 Reuben, the firstborn of Israel; the sons of Reuben: of Hanoch, the clan of the Hanochites; of Pallu, the clan of the Palluites;
6 of Hezron, the clan of the Hezronites; of Carmi, the clan of the Carmites.
7 These are the clans of the Reubenites, and those listed were 43,730.
8 And the sons of Pallu: Eliab.
9 The sons of Eliab: Nemuel, Dathan, and Abiram. These are the Dathan and Abiram, chosen from the congregation, who contended against Moses and Aaron in the company of Korah, when they contended against the LORD
10 and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up together with Korah, when that company died, when the fire devoured 250 men, and they became a warning.
11 But the sons of Korah did not die.
12 The sons of Simeon according to their clans: of Nemuel, the clan of the Nemuelites; of Jamin, the clan of the Jaminites; of Jachin, the clan of the Jachinites;
13 of Zerah, the clan of the Zerahites; of Shaul, the clan of the Shaulites.
14 These are the clans of the Simeonites, 22,200.
15 The sons of Gad according to their clans: of Zephon, the clan of the Zephonites; of Haggi, the clan of the Haggites; of Shuni, the clan of the Shunites;
16 of Ozni, the clan of the Oznites; of Eri, the clan of the Erites;
17 of Arod, the clan of the Arodites; of Areli, the clan of the Arelites.
18 These are the clans of the sons of Gad as they were listed, 40,500.
19 The sons of Judah were Er and Onan; and Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan.
20 And the sons of Judah according to their clans were: of Shelah, the clan of the Shelanites; of Perez, the clan of the Perezites; of Zerah, the clan of the Zerahites.
21 And the sons of Perez were: of Hezron, the clan of the Hezronites; of Hamul, the clan of the Hamulites.
22 These are the clans of Judah as they were listed, 76,500.
23 The sons of Issachar according to their clans: of Tola, the clan of the Tolaites; of Puvah, the clan of the Punites;
24 of Jashub, the clan of the Jashubites; of Shimron, the clan of the Shimronites.
25 These are the clans of Issachar as they were listed, 64,300.
26 The sons of Zebulun, according to their clans: of Sered, the clan of the Seredites; of Elon, the clan of the Elonites; of Jahleel, the clan of the Jahleelites.
27 These are the clans of the Zebulunites as they were listed, 60,500.
28 The sons of Joseph according to their clans: Manasseh and Ephraim.
29 The sons of Manasseh: of Machir, the clan of the Machirites; and Machir was the father of Gilead; of Gilead, the clan of the Gileadites.
30 These are the sons of Gilead: of Iezer, the clan of the Iezerites; of Helek, the clan of the Helekites;
31 and of Asriel, the clan of the Asrielites; and of Shechem, the clan of the Shechemites;
32 and of Shemida, the clan of the Shemidaites; and of Hepher, the clan of the Hepherites.
33 Now Zelophehad the son of Hepher had no sons, but daughters. And the names of the daughters of Zelophehad were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.
34 These are the clans of Manasseh, and those listed were 52,700.
35 These are the sons of Ephraim according to their clans: of Shuthelah, the clan of the Shuthelahites; of Becher, the clan of the Becherites; of Tahan, the clan of the Tahanites.
36 And these are the sons of Shuthelah: of Eran, the clan of the Eranites.
37 These are the clans of the sons of Ephraim as they were listed, 32,500. These are the sons of Joseph according to their clans.
38 The sons of Benjamin according to their clans: of Bela, the clan of the Belaites; of Ashbel, the clan of the Ashbelites; of Ahiram, the clan of the Ahiramites;
39 of Shephupham, the clan of the Shuphamites; of Hupham, the clan of the Huphamites.
40 And the sons of Bela were Ard and Naaman: of Ard, the clan of the Ardites; of Naaman, the clan of the Naamites.
41 These are the sons of Benjamin according to their clans, and those listed were 45,600.
42 These are the sons of Dan according to their clans: of Shuham, the clan of the Shuhamites. These are the clans of Dan according to their clans.
43 All the clans of the Shuhamites, as they were listed, were 64,400.
44 The sons of Asher according to their clans: of Imnah, the clan of the Imnites; of Ishvi, the clan of the Ishvites; of Beriah, the clan of the Beriites.
45 Of the sons of Beriah: of Heber, the clan of the Heberites; of Malchiel, the clan of the Malchielites.
46 And the name of the daughter of Asher was Serah.
47 These are the clans of the sons of Asher as they were listed, 53,400.
48 The sons of Naphtali according to their clans: of Jahzeel, the clan of the Jahzeelites; of Guni, the clan of the Gunites;
49 of Jezer, the clan of the Jezerites; of Shillem, the clan of the Shillemites.
50 These are the clans of Naphtali according to their clans, and those listed were 45,400.
51 This was the list of the people of Israel, 601,730.
52 The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
53 "Among these the land shall be divided for inheritance according to the number of names.
54 To a large tribe you shall give a large inheritance, and to a small tribe you shall give a small inheritance; every tribe shall be given its inheritance in proportion to its list.
55 But the land shall be divided by lot. According to the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit.
56 Their inheritance shall be divided according to lot between the larger and the smaller."
57 This was the list of the Levites according to their clans: of Gershon, the clan of the Gershonites; of Kohath, the clan of the Kohathites; of Merari, the clan of the Merarites.
58 These are the clans of Levi: the clan of the Libnites, the clan of the Hebronites, the clan of the Mahlites, the clan of the Mushites, the clan of the Korahites. And Kohath was the father of Amram.
59 The name of Amram's wife was Jochebed the daughter of Levi, who was born to Levi in Egypt. And she bore to Amram Aaron and Moses and Miriam their sister.
60 And to Aaron were born Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.
61 But Nadab and Abihu died when they offered unauthorized fire before the LORD.
62 And those listed were 23,000, every male from a month old and upward. For they were not listed among the people of Israel, because there was no inheritance given to them among the people of Israel.
63 These were those listed by Moses and Eleazar the priest, who listed the people of Israel in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho.
64 But among these there was not one of those listed by Moses and Aaron the priest, who had listed the people of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai.
65 For the LORD had said of them, "They shall die in the wilderness." Not one of them was left, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun.
Things to think about…
1. The census here is a wonderful testament to the facts and data available to confirm and study who entered the land of Canaan before its conquest. What a shame on Eliab’s line Num 26:9. What a grief it is when our kids cause us pain. Here two of Eliab’s sons were listed – Dathan and Abiram as those who opposed Moses and as a result their families died. The same with Aaron, two of his sons Nadab and Abihu died due to their rebellion, Num 26:60, 61. This is where the church plays a vital role in holding each other accountable so the potential for moral failure is reduced. It’s horrible reading some of the moral failures that have been associated with churches. Where it does occur pray for grace to bring repentance, healing and forgiveness!
2. In Num 26:51 the total number of listed males twenty years old and above is 601, 730. In Num 1:46 that number was 603, 550. So the Lord had replaced the entire previous generation that left Egypt almost to a man, but they certainly had not grown in number. Rebellion never brings blessing. Jesus says the Lord can raise up worshippers even from the stones if required. The Lord builds His people and the church. If we are not obedient to His word, He will raise up someone who will be obedient. The only ones left of that previous generation were Caleb and Joshua, Num 26:65.
3. The larger tribes get a greater inheritance as opposed to the smaller tribes, Num 26:51. This seems logical. Judah of course gets the (pardon the pun) lion’s share. Jesus would ultimately come from this tribe. But note that the tribe of Levi while numbered at 23, 000, Num 26:62 was not recorded in the total number. This is because the Lord was to be their inheritance. We are the Lord’s people, and all our earthly possessions are to be counted as wood, hay and stubble. Let’s not makes set our hearts on earthly pursuits that have nothing to do with the kingdom of God.
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.
