It’s not about us; It’s about God: "Decision making within the community of faith"
Numbers 27:21 “When direction from the Lord is needed, Joshua will stand before Eleazar the priest, who will use the Urim—one of the sacred lots cast before the Lord—to determine his will. This is how Joshua and the rest of the community of Israel will determine everything they should do.”
This is the scripture where Moses passes the baton of leadership to Joshua for leading the people into the promised land. We get a glimpse of God’s justice that will not allow Moses to enter into the promised land because of his/aaron’s unfaithfulness in leadership. It’s a glimpse of the same justice that will not welcome humanity back into His presence until all sins are paid in full. In this verse I learn how decisions are to be made within the community of faith. Decisions are not based upon what Israel wants or desires; there is not a vote to be taken; decisions are made based upon the direction and guidance of God. This is God’s chosen people and it only matters what God wants; this is not a democracy. It is through seeking God’s will and guidance that the community moves forward and makes decisions about the direction God wants them to take. Its as if God is saying that the Israelites are not capable of making faithful decisions without the guiding grace of God. It is only through this guidance that Israel can move forward.
What a wonderful picture of what it means to act and move as a community of faith. This is a wonderful reminder that God is not our’s but we are God’s. We belong to God and we are His people and it only matters where He wants us to go; it only matters what He wants us to be; it only matters what He wants us to do. Our job is to stand before the Lord and seek His direction for our lives and the community of faith. So often we get this reversed; we assume that God is here for us and we make decisions based upon our wants, our desires, our visions and then ask God to bless those things. This verse calls us back to remember that we are here for God and that being a follower of Jesus means doing what Jesus wants us to do regardless of our own ideas, desires, or wants. We are not the consumer; we do not consume God. God is the consumer; God consumes us through Jesus Christ and we become His and He can then use us as He wants for His purposes regardless of our desires or wants. We are the possession bought by the blood of Christ and now God can do with us what He desires.
God, I belong to you. Through Jesus Christ you have bought me and adopted me back into relationship with you. I am your possession; I am your consumption. May you use me today as your groceries; may I be a piece of the puzzle that you use to shape the world into the meal you are desiring to create. Whatever little part I have to play is not important what is important is that I even get to be an ingredient in the recipe. I pray today that Crossroads would be yours; that we would be an ingredient into this recipe of reconnection through Jesus Christ. May you give us the strength to practice a faith that knows you are not ours but we belong to you. Remind us that you are the consumer and we are the product. Make Crossroads into the kind of place that our decisions are based upon your will; may every decision be by your guidance and direction. Protect us from the temptation to talk about what we want, what we desire and then ask you to bless it. Empower us to seek your guidance as to what you want to bless through us and then take action upon it. God we will give you the glory for the creation you are creating through us; may it have your fingerprint all over it. Thank you for this guidance and revelation. I love you. Amen!!!
God is the chef and through Jesus Christ we’ve been invited to be a part of the recipe.
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