At the command of the Lord they remained encamped, and at the command of the Lord they journeyed; they kept the charge of the Lord, at the command of the Lord by the hand of Moses.
Numbers 9:23NKJV
Numbers 9:23NKJV
The children of Israel set an important example for us as they traveled through the wilderness. They followed the cloud. When it moved they moved-When it stayed they stayed. The verses before this one tell us that if the cloud was still for two days, a month or a year they stayed with it. If the cloud was moving, they were too.
Can you imagine just getting camp set up and seeing the cloud moving out? Can you envision walking for days not knowing when the cloud would stop or exactly where it was going? I think that could be a frustrating way to live. Yet that is exactly how Jesus ministered. Didn't He tell us He was just doing what He saw the Father doing? Didn't He call us to be like Him? It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. ... Matthew 10:25NKJV
Jesus warned us it was hard to get a fix on those who are led by the Spirit when He talked with Nicodemus. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit. John 3:7-8 If we truly follow the Spirit we will sometimes seem capricious to those around us. We can appear unstable and irrational but Jesus reminds us that wisdom is judged by the children she produces. Hosea declares the consequences have come to Israel because they consider the prophet a fool and the spiritual person insane. There is an incredible advantage to being Spirit-led but there is also a cost: Our Comfort
The children of Israel did not camp or journey based on their convenience or comfort. They moved or stood still based on the move of the Lord. Let me encourage us to do the same. It is not always comfortable to press into to worship. It isn't always convenient to go to church or minister to those around. It isn't always pleasant to follow Jesus. Today press in for God's best as we worship together. Put away notions of comfort and convenience and follow the cloud. If God allows us to settle in then let's make the best of it and not complain about the location we find ourselves in. If God moves let's go with Him and not be preoccupied with the difficulties the new thing He is doing has caused us.
Under The Cloud,
Pastor Jason
Can you imagine just getting camp set up and seeing the cloud moving out? Can you envision walking for days not knowing when the cloud would stop or exactly where it was going? I think that could be a frustrating way to live. Yet that is exactly how Jesus ministered. Didn't He tell us He was just doing what He saw the Father doing? Didn't He call us to be like Him? It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. ... Matthew 10:25NKJV
Jesus warned us it was hard to get a fix on those who are led by the Spirit when He talked with Nicodemus. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit. John 3:7-8 If we truly follow the Spirit we will sometimes seem capricious to those around us. We can appear unstable and irrational but Jesus reminds us that wisdom is judged by the children she produces. Hosea declares the consequences have come to Israel because they consider the prophet a fool and the spiritual person insane. There is an incredible advantage to being Spirit-led but there is also a cost: Our Comfort
The children of Israel did not camp or journey based on their convenience or comfort. They moved or stood still based on the move of the Lord. Let me encourage us to do the same. It is not always comfortable to press into to worship. It isn't always convenient to go to church or minister to those around. It isn't always pleasant to follow Jesus. Today press in for God's best as we worship together. Put away notions of comfort and convenience and follow the cloud. If God allows us to settle in then let's make the best of it and not complain about the location we find ourselves in. If God moves let's go with Him and not be preoccupied with the difficulties the new thing He is doing has caused us.
Under The Cloud,
Pastor Jason
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