#6 (The “Forgetting”
Series)
“FORGET THE OLD WAYS!”
TEXT: Numbers
11:1-35
INTRO: We are
stubborn creatures; change does not come easily for us human beings. When we are pressed or threatened we tend
to return to old ways out of a need for security. This can be a dangerous practice however
in the spiritual realm! As
Christians we need to be careful we are not lulled back to our old ways before
Christ, instead we must learn to live like lobsters!
ILLUS: FROM TIME
TO TIME LOBSTERS HAVE TO LEAVE THEIR OLD SHELLS; IT IS A NECESSARY PART OF
GROWING FOR THEM. THEIR SHELLS ARE
MADE ONE SIZE AT A TIME, AND AS THEY GROW THEY MUST CAST THEIR OLD SHELL ASIDE
AND MAKE A NEW LARGER SHELL. IF
THEY FAIL TO DO THIS, THEY WOULD SOON BECOME IMPRISONED IN THEIR OLD SHELL AND
NOT BE ABLE TO ESCAPE IT, THUS THEY WOULD DIE BY BEING CRUSHED TO DEATH OR
SUFFOCATE. THE TRICKY PART FOR THE
LOBSTER IS THE TIME BETWEEN SHELLS -- THEY ARE VERY VULNERABLE DURING THIS TIME,
WHEN THEY ARE BARE AND UNPROTECTED THE OLD SHELL MUST SEEM PRETTY ATTRACTIVE;
THEY AT LEAST FELT SAFE IN IT, YET THERE IS NO FUTURE IN THAT OLD SHELL, THEY
MUST ENDURE THE VULNERABLE STAGE WHILE A NEW SHELL DEVELOPS THAT CAN HANDLE
THEIR NEW LARGER LIFE ... THERE CAN BE NO GOING BACK TO THE OLD WAYS IF THEY
WANT A FUTURE! – SOURCE UNKNOWN
When we are feeling vulnerable, when
pressure is building up, there is always the temptation to return to old ways --
yet, to return to old ways would keep us from experiencing God’s new ways! It is better to FORGET THE
This was a struggle for
PROP.
SENT: The Bible teaches us to forget the
old ways of our life before Christ, to adopt the new life we have in Christ and
keep moving forward! We can only do
this by the power of His Holy Spirit in our lives!
I. OBSTINATE WILL! 11:1-15
A. Hardship’s Seduction! 11:1-9
1. How like us
a. The wilderness was not a theme
park!
b. Life is not always a bowl of
cherries!
2. It is somewhat ironic however that
these freed slaves who had just left Egypt loaded down with gold and goodies
should so quickly have turned to complaining!
a. Remember that they had plundered
b. They had a better quality of life
in the dessert than they did in
c. God’s reaction was quick and yet
graceful!
3. Fire breaks out on the outskirts of
camp; had God really wanted to fry them all He would have had it break out in
the center of camp!
a. These were not revival fires, they
were judgment fires!
b. Surrounded by judgment fires they
cried out to Moses for help, the prayer of Moses stilled the fires, God responds
to prayer!
c. The place was named “TABERAH” which means “burning” in Hebrew.
4. The message God sends is simple --
undeserved complaining brings judgment from the hand of God ... there are many
Christians and churches that have yet to understand this
principle!!
a. No one today wants to preach about
judgment; it is considered an old fashioned concept.
b. It is still part of God’s response
to sin when unconfessed.
5. Just when you think the lesson is
over some “RABBLE-ROUSERS” get them all worked
up!
a. The Hebrew word translated here “rabble” means most likely “outsiders” or “non-Jews.” There were many Egyptians that left
with
b. The craving for other food started
with this “rabble!”
c. These were members of the
congregation that weren’t interested in “Bread from
Heaven!”
d. Here is where many a denomination
and church have started to slide ... when members of congregations aren’t as
interested in the “Bread of Life” and are more interested in
programs, buildings, etc.
6. These “rabble
rousers” weren’t interested in God’s blessings, they just wanted
their former cushy life back ... they wanted to go back to their
a. These were cold hearted people,
selfish; they cared nothing about God or God’s people.
b. They only wanted blessings for
themselves, and if they couldn’t have them they would stir up a complaining
spirit among God’s people and make every one else miserable. They would rather have others miserable
if they couldn’t have their own way!
ILLUS: LIKE THE
TWO SHOPKEEPERS WHO WERE BITTER ENEMIES. THEIR STORES WERE RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET
FROM ONE ANOTHER, AND THEY TRACKED EACH OTHER’S BUSINESS EVERYDAY! AS A CUSTOMER WALKED INTO ONE STORE, THE
OWNER WOULD GLARE OUT THE FRONT DOOR AT HIS RIVAL AND BREAK OUT IN A BIG SMILE!
ONE NIGHT AN ANGEL APPEARED TO
ONE OF THE SHOPOWNERS IN A DREAM AND SAID, “I WILL GIVE YOU ANYTHING YOU ASK,
BUT WHATEVER YOU RECEIVE YOUR COMPETITOR WILL RECEIVE TWICE AS MUCH! IF YOU CHOOSE TO BE WEALTHY, HE WILL BE
TWICE AS WEALTHY. DO YOU WISH TO
LIVE LONG AND HEALTHY? HE WILL LIVE
LONGER AND HAVE BETTER HEALTH. WHAT
IS YOUR WISH?” THE MAN FROWNED,
THOUGHT FOR A MOMENT, AND THEN SAID, “HERE IS MY REQUEST, STRIKE ME BLIND IN ONE
EYE!” RATHER THAN CHOOSE BLESSINGS
FOR HIMSELF AND HIS ENEMY HE CHOSE TO SUFFER SO THAT HIS COMPETITOR WOULD SUFFER
MORE! – SOURCE UNKNOWN
7. The Israelites started wailing
again, how soon they forgot the previous warnings of
judgment!
a. They complained and their memories
changed their previous reality!
b. Notice what they said, “We remember the
fish we ate in Egypt AT NO COST ... also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions
and garlic.”
c. ARE THEY KIDDING? ... AT
NO COST!? They had been
slaves remember!!!
d. The costs had been very heavy; all
the male babies had been ordered killed by Pharaoh at one point, they had to
make bricks without straw, they had few food rations, they were beaten, raped,
used, sick, etc.!
8. It is amazing how a complaining
spirit changed their memory of past reality ... how good they perceived things
in the past and how poor they felt God was treating them in the
present
a. A bitter spirit alters reality in
the minds of those who embrace bitterness!
b. They begin to sulk and complain;
they have no appetite and gripe that all they get is “manna” (bread from heaven delivered by God
faithfully each day except the Sabbath -- God made home
deliveries!)
9. Thank God we are not like them ...
RIGHT? (Sure! Right!)
B. Heavy
Spirit! 11:10-15
1. Moses can’t help but hear the
people, they each sit in the entrance of their tent to
wail!
a. This indicated a planned protest
... this is how they took votes and decided group decisions, by each
representative standing at the entrance of their tent so group decisions could
be counted!
b. I wonder who helped organize this
public protest? The RABBLE no
doubt!
c. There are always those who will
take charge of grumbling.
2. Moses like any leader who had put
his life on the line reacts very normally to the constant spats of whining ...
he is sick of these people and God’s
call on His life!
a. He begins to gripe himself,
complaining is a very infectious disease of the human
heart!!!
b. Even Moses joins in the
complaining, he begins to ask God what he has done to deserve this wonderful
assignment and these people; was it Moses’ idea to bring them into the
world?
3. Moses’ complaint gets him off the
track of truth too, he asks God “Where can I get meat for all these people? I cannot carry all these people by
myself.”
a. God never asked Moses to secure
meat for them, God already provided their daily bread ... nor did God ever ask
Moses to carry them; only lead them!
b. A heavy spirit distorts even the
godliest of souls!
c. Moses was thinking from his own
abilities and strength, and yes, if he tried to lead
ILLUS: DR. PAUL
BRAND WAS SPEAKING TO A
4. Moses had forgotten the
oil!!
a. His request sounds silly to us, “If this is how
you are going to treat me, put me to death right now!” But I
wonder how many of us have said something similar when we have been mad at
God?
b. He sounded an awful lot like the
people he was leading!
5. God had a solution for Moses and
for Israel, a wonderful solution that is still available today! GOD’S SPIRIT!
II. ONLY WAY! 11:16-30,
35
A. Holy
Spirit! 11:16-17, 24-30,
35
1. God instructs Moses to
carefully select 70 leaders from among the 12 tribes of Israel, to these
men God will put the same Holy Spirit that was on Moses on
them!
a. God recognized Moses’ need for
Spirit filled leaders.
b. It wouldn’t matter how Moses
qualified them, God’s only way for their leadership included being full of the
Spirit of God!
2. They are brought together and told
to stand around the TENT, God’s house in the midst of
camp!
a. A “mighty
wind” came and the Spirit of God descended on them -- the Old
Testament Pentecost!
b. They “began to
prophesy” -- this word in Hebrew means to speak ecstatically, much
like tongues ... it was not necessarily Hebrew they spoke! This was clearly the evidence of being
filled by the Spirit in the Old Testament, much the same way tongues is the
evidence in the New Testament Pentecost.
c. There were 2 other guys in camp
that also got filled! I guess they
were just too close to the others not to get hit!!
d. The indication here is that these
70 (72!) only prophesied on this occasion, unlike today -- Pentecost can be an
ongoing experience!
3. Moses when asked to stop these 2
extra guys from being too Pentecostal simply states a New Testament hope and
promise ... “I
wish that all the lord’s people were prophets and that the Lord would put His
Spirit on them all!”
a. Hey, we’re in that day when this
can and should be true!
b. These Spirit filled leaders now
spread out in the camp, the ONLY WAY to deal with grumbling and complaining was
a BAPTISM OF GOD’S SPIRIT!
c. This oil of God’s Spirit would keep
the leaders and Moses from BURNING OUT.
B. Human
Spirit
11:18-23
1. While Moses and these 72 men were
filled with the Spirit, other preparations were continuing to satisfy the human
spirit, the meat issue!
a. Moses was still struggling before
this outpouring of the Spirit trying to understand how he was suppose to meet
the needs of these people who were craving meat!
b. They craved something for their
bodies while Moses craved something for his soul!
2. Moses gets what he was searching
for -- Spirit filled leaders; and the people were about to get what they were
searching for -- physical meat to the point that they would become
sick!
a. What a contrast in
desires!
b. What a contrast in fulfillment,
they both got what they wanted; Moses found strength and help with Spirit filled
leaders and the people found disgust and sickness in having their physical needs
met above their spiritual needs!
III. OLD WAY
A. Human
Solutions
1. It is no accident that these two
stories are placed together, they were meant to show a contrast between the WIND
OF THE SPIRIT IN THE CAMP ON THE 72 MEN AND THE WIND OF THE FLESH (MEAT) OUTSIDE
THE CAMP (the Quail)!
a. The word “WIND”
here is the same word for “SPIRIT,” it is “Ruach.”
b. The 72 received the Spirit; the
masses received the wind of flesh!
c. The Spirit fell inside camp ... the
wind of flesh fell outside camp!
2. It is amazing how committed to a
fleshly solution the people were ... “they went out
ALL THAT DAY AND NIGHT AND ALL THE NEXT DAY!” (
a. If they had only been half as
committed to getting the wind of God’s Spirit!
b. They didn’t have time to wait on
God’s Spirit but they found time to stay up for 36 or more hours and satisfy
their natural cravings for flesh!
3. They would not be satisfied with
meager amounts of flesh either, they wanted it all! The least amount gathered was “10
homers” 11:32b (about 500 gallons or about 60
bushels!)
a. This flesh was then spread all
around the camp; boy is there a spiritual point about to be made
here!
b. As soon as all this human solution
stuff invades camp the people forget God and seek to satisfy their cravings for
the good stuff of this world, and guess what happens? They get sick to their
stomachs!
c. In fact, many perish, many were
later buried!
4. This of course provided another
occasion to moan and wail though it was of their own
making!
a. The sickness struck as soon as the
meat was “between their teeth and before it could be
consumed.”
11:33a
b. God had given them “bread from
heaven” which would keep them strong but they had chosen an old way,
a human solution to a spiritual problem, and this flesh made them sick!
c. There is no substitute that can
satisfy the soul except the true “BREAD FROM HEAVEN” JESUS CHRIST!
d. Any other substitute will make our
souls sick!
5. Israel forgot that they were first
spiritual beings and not just physical ones, this mistake cost them a great
deal! It will cost us also if we
forget this.
ILLUS:
SCORES OF
PEOPLE LOST THEIR LIVES SEVERAL YEARS BACK WHEN
6. It is so tempting to think that we
can do God’s work by ingenious concepts or programs but the bottom line is that
we can’t do any of God’s work unless we are equipped with God’s
Spirit!
7. All the liturgy, rituals, doctrine,
hymns, offerings, etc. can’t replace the need of the spirit, to have God’s
Spirit filling us for His service!
8. They returned to OLD WAYS and
discovered an OLD TRUTH, the way of the world “leads to death
... but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our
Lord!”
B. Horrible
Satisfaction!
11:33-34
1. God had sent them an earlier
warning when the fire had burned just outside the edge of camp but this time it
states that the “Lord’s anger burned against the people” 11:33
2. God satisfied their demand for
meat, for abundant flesh, and the results were
horrible!
a. It is far more frightening to
think of the prayers God might answer than the ones He might not answer some
times!
b. They got exactly what they asked
for ... in great abundance, and it ruined them!
c. Man’s solutions to man’s problems usually end up being
stupid.
ILLUS: LIKE A
RECENT REPORT IN NEWSWEEK MAGAZINE ... IT REPORTED A STORY ON HOW THE POLICE
WERE ABLE TO PREVENT AND STOP A MAN FROM COMMITTING SUICIDE, THEY SHOT HIM, AND
IN THE PROCESS KILLED HIM!!!! – SOURCE UNKNOWN
3. This is just like the world, solve
a problem by creating a new one! (Sounds
a lot like some of our government programs!)
4. The place was named, “Kibroth
Hattaavah” ... translated this means: “GRAVES OF
CRAVINGS!”
a. The cravings of the Spirit cannot
be filled by the things of this world!
b. The attempts that people make to
satisfy their soul’s hunger only leads them to become sick spiritually as they
seek to fill that need by the stuff of this world!
c. What we need today is a fresh wind
of the Spirit, not a wind of the flesh! We need a fresh baptism of the
Spirit!!
CONCLUSION: While on the way to the