Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/Sermons/zz20120527.htm
THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION Numbers: Lessons From Spiritual Casualties And Conquerors Part XL: Trusting God's Long-Planned Institution Of The Church (Numbers 28:26-31 et al.)

Introduction: (To show the need . . . )

In our era, opposition to and disrespect for the Church and its beliefs in general is rather common, a fact we can easily illustrate:

(1) Michael Medved, a radio talk show host and a member of USA TODAY's Board of Contributors, wrote in his May 14, 2012 USA TODAY article, "Banning crosses erases history" about the "American Atheists" organization's law suit "to block display of the Ground Zero Cross anywhere on the grounds of the new memorial museum planned for the World Trade Center site." This "huge cross beam" stood amid the debris of the fallen buildings and, in Medved's words, "became an informal shrine for the tireless crews who labored to clear Ground Zero."

The article alludes to opposition to or disrespect for the Biblical Christian faith in a number of statements like: "Contrary to popular belief, it's not Christian conservatives who normally start these bitter disputes", or "Had fate shaped the steel beams into any form other than a Christian cross, American Atheists would never think to object to its museum display", or "For skeptics, prominently displayed crosses convey the uncomfortable message that the great majority of Americans still honor a faith that self-proclaimed free-thinkers hold in undisguised contempt." (Ibid.)

Medved even alluded to the Jewish Anti-Defamation League's usual opposition to Christian symbols in writing, "Meanwhile, the Anti-Defamation League, which often takes a dim view of religious symbols in government-owned locations . . ," though he added that this group "fully supports'" the inclusion of the cross at the museum, Ibid.

(2) Josh McDowell's book, A Ready Defense, 1991, p. 8 has a whole section on "Questions Most Asked About Christianity" where he deals with questions from critics of the Christian faith who ask, "Is God Different in the Old and New Testaments?" and "What About All the Hypocrites in the Church?" Some critics think the Old Testament God is warlike versus the New Testament God of love, that the Bible then paints an inconsistent and thus a false view of its own God. Others think the presence of hypocrites in the Church means it is not an institution from the good God alleged to be presented in the Bible.

Need: "With all the opposition to and disrespect for the Christian Church, is there any evidence outside the Church for its validity?!"


1. Conservative Christians date the book of Numbers about 1406 B. C. (B. K. C., O. T., p. 215), and the Dead Sea Scrolls force even liberal theology scholars to accept that Numbers in its present form existed hundreds of years before Christ, Z. P. E. B., vol. Two, p. 68.
2. Well, Numbers 28:26-31 with Leviticus 23:15-22 typologically predict the rise, form, function and beliefs of the Biblical Church:
1. Numbers 28:26-31 repeats some of Leviticus 23:15-22 on the Feast of Weeks or Pentecost, as pentekoste in the Greek at Acts 2:1 means "fifty" since it came 7 weeks and 1 day after the waving of the barley sheaf in the Feast of Unleavened Bread, Ibid., B. K. C., O. T., p. 206.
2. Pentecost was a Sabbath (Num. 28:26) when the bountiful New Moon sacrifices were repeated (Num. 28:27-30; Ibid., p. 250) along with a wave offering of two leavened loaves of newly harvested wheat (Lev. 23:15-17; Ibid., p. 207) and a fellowship wave offering of two unblemished male lambs, Numbers 28:31; Leviticus 23:19b.
3. In the context of this feast, God directed that grain harvest gleanings and the corners of the fields be left for the poor and alien, Lev. 23:22.
4. These directives extensively typologically predict the rise, form, function and doctrine of the Biblical Church (as follows):
1. The firstfruits sheaf of the barley harvest was waved before God on Nissan 16 after the Nissan 14 Passover and the ensuing Nissan 15 Sabbath, Leviticus 23:15, 4-8. This all typifies Christ dying as our Passover Lamb on Nissan 14 and rising again the 3rd day, Nissan 16, as our "Firstfruits" from the dead (1 Cor. 15:20). Like a kernel of barley dies and "rises" as a sheaf (1 Cor. 15:37-43), Christ died and rose as our "Firstfruits," the pledge of our future resurrections!
2. Christ showed Himself alive for 40 days after His resurrection before ascending to heaven (Acts 1:1-3, 6-9), and ten days later came Pentecost (Acts 1:5) and the Acts 2:1-47 birth of the Church! [Incidentally, Pentecost this year occurs tomorrow, May 28, 2012!]
3. The day of Pentecost is set for fifty days after the barley sheaf is waved (Lev. 23:15-16), so Christ's death and resurrection sets the Church's doctrine of the Gospel of His death for sin, burial and resurrection, that those who believe it might be saved, put into the spiritual Church and one day raptured as the "remainder of God's harvest," 1 Corinthians 15:1-11; 12:13; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18!
4. Pentecost was a Sabbath "rest", and on it were repeated the ample New Moon sacrifices that depict God's vast grace in Christ, so the Church is comprised of believers who are saved by God's great grace through the "rest" of faith apart from works, Eph. 2:8-9.
5. The TWO LEAVENED loaves of the later Pentecost wheat harvest prefigure the formation of Jewish (one loaf) and Gentile (other loaf) believers in imperfect states (leaven) in one body of the Church by God's grace, Ephesians 2:11-22; 1 John 1:8-2:2.
6. Though the leavened loaves depict the imperfect believing Church on earth, the two fellowship lamb offerings were without defect, so Christ as God's Sinless Lamb is the basis for the Jew first (one lamb) and also the Gentile (the other lamb) to be saved and to know holy, joyous spiritual fellowship with God and one another (Rom. 1:16; 1 John 1:1-4) regardless of weaknesses caused by sin!
7. These blessings are to spread out as the Church disciples the world:
1. The leaving of the gleanings and corners of the grain fields for the poor and alien teach Christians are to minister and give of their goods for the discipling of folk spiritually impoverished and alienated from the Lord, 2 Corinthians 9:6-10; 3 John 5-8.
2. The next feast in the context (Numbers 29:1-6), the Feast of Trumpets, came on the first day of the 7th month (Sept.-Oct.) after the summer grain harvests ( Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978, ftn. to Ex. 12:2; Ibid., Z. P. E. B., v. One, p. 75-77), and was followed that month by the Day of Atonement (on the 10th) and the Feast of Tabernacles (starting the 15th) that we will see in future lessons depict God's turning back to work with Israel after the rapture. Thus, the Church disciples others for the "rest of the fruits" who turn to Christ (John 4:35), our "Firstfruits", until the rapture. Then God turns to work with Israel, Rom ans 11:25. This timeline demands the dispensational, premillennial, pretribulational theology that we conservative Christians hold!

Application: May we (1) trust in Christ and be put into the Church, 1 Cor. 15:1-11. (2) As we anticipate the rapture (1 Thess. 4:13-18), may we heed God's will to use our equipping and resources to disciple others for Christ, (3) knowing we belong to the Church that was extensively foreplanned by Israel's Old Testament Lord!

So, we ask, "With this rather common opposition to and disrespect for the Christian Church and its beliefs, is there any evidence outside the Christian Church itself as to its credibility?!" Conclusion: (To illustrate the message . . . )

In our sermon introduction, we alluded to Michael Medved's May 14, 2012 USA TODAY article, "Banning crosses erases history" where Mr. Medved told of the American Atheists organization that is bringing a law suit in reference to the Ground Zero Cross, remnants of steel girders in the rough form of a cross after the World Trade Center terrorist attack. They want to keep it out of the Ground Zero museum.

When I first glanced through the article, I was amazed at the American Atheists' intense opposition to this symbol of Christendom until further review revealed that great spiritual need was behind it:

(1) First, "(t)he lawsuit cites mental pain and anguish' suffered by the plaintiffs due to the knowledge that they are made to feel officially excluded from the ranks of citizens who were directly injured by the 9/11 attack.'" (Ibid.) The presence of this cross apparently hurts these atheists as it leaves them feeling estranged from the realm of others they feel are included by the presence of the symbol of the cross.

(2) Second, when Michael Medved invited Edwin Kagin, the national legal director for the American Atheists as a guest on his radio talk show, Kagin "denounced the potential placement of the cross as unfair because there would be no comparable display of atheist or Muslim symbols." Yet, as Medved added, "(b)ut no one happened to recover atheist symbols (whatever they might be) from the rubble."

I suddenly felt sorry for these atheists! They feel so alienated from what they themselves view are more fulfilled folk simply because they as atheists lack an external symbol of their beliefs that they are willing to put up serious money to sue to keep others as alienated from feeling included as they are in a kind of brotherhood of the alienated!

In contrast, as a believer in Christ, since I serve a risen LORD Who is abundantly fulfilling in my life, on 9/11, I did NOT find solace in clinging to any external symbol at Ground Zero or anywhere else, but in turning to my living Lord and reading in His Word His nurture for that day's events, and then praying to Him about it!

This matter illustrates the spiritual need of the lost world about us: millions live in spiritual darkness and alienation since they do not have a personal, fulfilling relationship with our risen Lord Jesus Christ!

May we believers in Christ LIVE the risen Lord through our lives by faith, and may we TESTIFY the GOSPEL of His salvation to the world of "poor", "alien" folk so greatly in need of the Savior!