Numbers 12:1 – 2
Numbers chapter 12 talks about
The story of Aaron and Miriam
Speaking out against Moses
But you need to read Numbers chapter 11
To get a fuller understanding of the story
“Now when the people complained,
it displeased the Lord; for the Lord heard it,
and His anger was aroused.
So the fire of the Lord burned among them,
and consumed some in the outskirts of the camp.”
(Numbers 11 verse 1)
Chapter 11 continues with the people complaining
And Moses himself cries out to God
As he feels the weight of the burden
Of carrying the problems of the people
“I am not able to bear all these people alone,
because the burden is too heavy for me.
If You treat me like this, please kill me here and now
—if I have found favour in Your sight—
and do not let me see my wretchedness!”
So the Lord said to Moses:
‘Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel,
whom you know to be the elders of the people
and officers over them;
bring them to the tabernacle of meeting,
that they may stand there with you.’ “
(Numbers 11:14 – 16)
And God provides Moses with an answer
Gather seventy (70) people together
These 70 become helpers of Moses
Leaders, in their own rite, with Moses
As the Chief Leader
Today we are familiar with this picture
In the work place the owner of a Business
May have a Managing Director who is in
Charge of Managers who manage the workers
ALL the Managers, manage
But there is ONLY one Managing Director
So now we come to the story of Aaron and Miriam
“Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses
because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married;
for he had married an Ethiopian woman. So they said,
‘Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses?
Has He not spoken through us also?’
And the Lord heard it.”
(Numbers 12:1 – 2)
Miriam and Aaron were two of the seventy
Notice the phrase “And the Lord heard it”
Both here in Numbers 12:2 and earlier
In Numbers 11:1
Obviously God HEARS everything
But when it is recorded in the Bible
That He HEARS – it means it is very important
In both cases the scripture goes on to say
That God is angry
In this case with Miriam and Aaron
God speaks about a comparison between
The 70 and Moses
“Then He said,
‘Hear now My words:
If there is a prophet among you,
I , the Lord, make Myself known to him in a vision;
I speak to him in a dream.
Not so with My servant Moses;
He is faithful in all My house.
I speak with him face to face,
Even plainly, and not in dark sayings;
And he sees the form of the Lord.
Why then were you not afraid
To speak against My servant Moses?’ “
(Numbers 12:6 – 8)
Thankfully we live in New Testament times
After Easter and Pentecost
We ALL as born again, spirit filled Christians
Can meet with Jesus face-to-face
For Almighty God is a person – Jesus Christ
And He is seated on the right-hand side
Of the Father in Heavenly places
But God has called people to different roles
“And He Himself gave some to be apostles,
some prophets, some evangelists,
and some pastors and teachers,
for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry,
for the edifying of the body of Christ”
(Ephesians 4:11 – 12)
The picture here is similar to the one
In Numbers chapters 11 & 12
However, we ALL can meet with Jesus
As I have already said
But the roles we are called to are different
Everyone is not a Pastor – or minister,
Or clergy.
Different titles but the same position.
The Pastor is the head of the church
With the job of equipping the saints
For works of ministry
That ALL may grow in the knowledge
Of God
How he or she does that (like Moses)
Is between them and God
For they ARE the Leader