Parashat Beha'alotekha 2022

Numbers 8:1-12:16

In Parashat Beha'alotekha the Lord directs Moses to begin the final organization of the community in preparation for leaving Sinai. Instruction concerning the setting up of the seven lamps and the purification of the Levites signaled the final phase of preparation before the cloud began to move. Trumpets were made to better organize movement for the camp and the sound of these trumpets, because they always turned the attention of the people towards God, became a “perpetual statute” throughout their generations. This final series of instructions provides the last orchestration of the community as a whole. It served to unify them as one with each other and before God.

Eph 4:16: From whom (Yeshua) the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase (causes growth) of the body unto the edifying of itself in love. (KJV)

I marvel when thinking about the sacred community. There are so many stories of deliverance and triumph. All of us are called uniquely to be a part of God's people. There is not one sin that someone in our community has not struggled with and overcome. We have all seen the grace of God move in profound ways through many lives. Every one of us brings into our communities a struggle, a victory, and a vision. When the hurting and the lost come to our communities for help this ensures that we are equipped as a body to minister. Being a “body fitly joined together” means that we all play a part of the whole in many ways.

God does orchestrate his people even in our current day. When we bring our struggles, victories, and vision into the congregation we also bring our testimony. Many people are discipled by walking with us and watching how we work. In a healthy congregation, they learn how to confront sin, pray, stand in the face of injustice, be a part of a larger spiritual family, and love God relentlessly. Having a holy passion for God is better caught through walking with others than learned from a devotional book. Part of the community's discipleship teaches spiritual courage, discipline, and unwavering obedience (a strong biblical example is desperately needed in our day). Everywhere a person has been and everything that has been done, God uses to strengthen the body. He calls us to him and directs us to our spiritual family where he continually uses us to elevate others and further the kingdom.

We don't have to be perfect for God to use us. The orchestration of God is done through faith, willing hearts, and unceasing love. Sometimes he ties us together in ways that don't become apparent for years as we benefit from our fellowship and grow in profound ways. In the end, God raises people up as pillars in the congregation. Some serve their congregation continually and some God separates to pursue other areas of his will. The orchestration of God means that his work is dynamic and continually changing. Some of you have prayed big prayers and have been given hell-shaking missions. The larger community means that it does not have to be done alone. Your struggles, victories, and vision came with a huge price that, in the end, produced faith. That faith is the substance of things you may not have seen...yet (Heb 11:1). Step out today and let your hands and hearts be active in God's work. Ignore the self-defeating voices that say you can't. Your voice and ministry are valuable and needed. If you have seen the cloud lift, it is time to move (Numbers 9:15-18).

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