Today’s Bible Reading: NUMBERS 27:1-29:40
Numbers 27:21
And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire for him by the judgment of the Urim before the LORD. At his word they shall go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he and all the people of Israel with him, the whole congregation."
We all want to know God’s will. We search for God’s directives to direct us. We yearn to determine what to do and when to do it. We want to know if we should go out or come in. In the text we find a unique tool that was used to detect the course that the people were to choose on their journey. In this way they found clear direction in their decisions.
God had devised a method by which His will could be discovered. The priest carried two stones in a pouch, the Urim and Thummim. These stones were employed to discern God’s direction. One stone was white, the other black. The priest was the one assigned to inquire of the Lord. A yes-no question was posed to the priest. He in turn would petition the Lord for the answer. The priest would probably then place his hand in the pouch and pull out one of the stones. If he retrieved the white stone the answer would be yes and if the black on the answer would be no. In this manner they could determine God’s clear direction.
At this point in their wilderness wanderings there was a transition in leadership. Moses would not cross over into promise land. Thus, a new leader was installed to lead the people. Joshua was chosen. He now would lead the people in conquering and controlling the land of Canaan. To do this he needed definitive divine direction. He needed to discern God’s directives so he could direct the people.
Moses inquired from God face to face. Joshua would go through a priest. He would go to the priest to seek God’s guidance. The priest in turn would inquire of the Lord on Joshua’s behalf via the Urim. Thus, the direction given to Joshua through the priest was a word from the Lord.
In prayer we inquire of the Lord. We call to Him. We seek to hear from Him. We want a word from Him. Yet unlike Joshua, we have a more direct access to the Father. We have a beeline into His presence. We don’t have to go through any “earthly” priest to petition Him. We have access, an entrance into His presence. We have an unhindered audience with Him.
But like Joshua we still go through a “priest” to petition Him. We come to Him via Jesus. Jesus is our eternal heavenly high priest. He has secured our access before the Father. He removed the hierarchy in approaching Him. It is in His name that we can freely inquire of the Lord. It is through Him we can come boldly before the throne of Grace. We no longer consult stones to determine God’s will. We now go through Jesus, the stone that the builders rejected, the chief cornerstone of our faith. We call on Christ.
The Lord answers us personally. Not through stones in a priestly pouch, but through His Scripture and by His Spirit. His answer is firsthand. We don’t wait to see what stone the priest has selected. The Lord’s reply is to us and for us. We come before Him and He counsels us. We seek Him and He speaks to us. He eagerly awaits an audience with us. We can approach Him. We can ask of Him. He will answer us. He will directly divulge His directives. At His word we will know whether to “go out or come in”.
Today thank the Lord that we no longer have to rely on stones to discern His will. Praise Him that we don’t have to go to the tabernacle to talk to Him. Thank Him that we can petition Him from any place. Praise Him that we no longer have to prepare yes and no questions to petition Him. Thank Him that He will clearly counsel us through scripture and His Spirit whether we are to “go out or come in.”
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