I was reading a passage from the book of Numbers this morning when I began to get envious again of the ease at which the people of the Old Testament could communicate with God. In Numbers 9: 22-23 it says, "Whether it was two days, or a month, or a longer time, that the cloud continued over the tabernacle, abiding there, the sons of Israel remained in camp and did not set out; but when it was taken up they set out. At the command of the Lord they encamped, and at the command of the Lord they set out; they kept the charge of the Lord at the command of the Lord by Moses."
I've often thought how nice it would be to have such a clear-cut sign about what to do. For instance, we are trying to decide if we should put our house up for sale. Well, if there was a big cloud over our house and all of a sudden it was moving away, we would know what to do. Or what about the men in Numbers 9:7? The Israelites were commanded by the Lord to keep the Passover, but there were two men who were unclean because they had touched a dead body, so they went to Moses and asked him what they should do. Verse 8, "And Moses said to them, 'Wait, that I may hear what the Lord will command concerning you.'" How cool would that be to have someone you could go to and get a direct answer from the Lord. I know you can go to a priest and ask him his advice, but then you could go to three other priests, ask the same question and get three different answers. What are you supposed to do then, average them out and go the middle ground? It all seemed so much more clear cut back then. But, alas, even though things were laid out so much more clearly for the Israelites, they still managed to mess it up pretty good at times. Maybe we're better off when we mess up being able to plead a certain degree of ignorance as to what it was the Lord really wanted. I just know that I get pretty frustrated when I really want to do the Lord's will in a certain situation and I can't because I can't seem to figure out exactly what the Lord's will is. Where is Moses when you need him?
God Bless!
