Purity in the Camp of Israel and the Life of the Believer Today

Purity.  Not a popular subject.  Purity.  What God wants from us.  Purity.  What God gives to us.  We want to be pure in heart.  Being in the world tarnishes our purity.  How can we be pure?

As we move on to Numbers Chapter 5, we see that order is still being kept in the camp in that God is telling Moses to send anything impure outside the camp.  God lives in the camp and He cannot tolerate impurity.  The correlation to our lives is direct in this instance. We need to do the same in our houses: keep God at the center and remove any impurities.  How do we purify our homes today? Is there something in your home that is impure and needs to be dealt with?  God says, "If we confess our sin He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9).

Think about this:

The impurity could be an attitude of yours or of another family member.  Anything come to mind?

It could be behavior that is not honoring to God.  What could that be?

It could be something you should be doing for your spiritual walk, but you are not. Any thoughts?

Dig deep and question yourself.  Be honest with yourself about your motivation for things that are very important to you.  Then continue to question if you are getting to the core of the matter. Could the  behavior in question be considered worship?

The way I hear from God is usually repetition.  I was at a woman's retreat this weekend and the teacher challenged us to take a step of obedience to God to ignite a fire in our spiritual walk.  This could be something physical, emotional, or spiritual that will show that I trust God. What came to my mind immediately was giving up dark chocolate.  You have to understand that my use of dark chocolate is truly an addiction.  I have to have it after lunch and dinner.  I have thought of it many times when confronted with a desire for sacrifice.  So, I half-heartedly told myself I would TRY to give it up.  Then the next morning, the daily My Utmost for His Highest (Daily Devotional by Oswald Chambers) addressed this issue of giving up.  It challenged me to examine my life for "high places" or places where I was "incomplete in my external obedience." And if that wasn't enough to convince me, I watched the video for my current Bible study and wouldn't you know, the teacher was challenging us to examine our lives for things that were not worship!  OK, God, I get it.  The dark chocolate addiction has got to go.  I am excited for how this is going to draw me closer to God as I go through my "withdrawal."

One day, God will judge the dead and cast the ones not found in the book of life into the lake of fire and then there will be a new heaven and a new earth where there is no impurity. (Revelation 20:11-21:4) In fact, there will not even be any crying or pain! Once again God will dwell with us.  Amen and Alleluia! But we do not have to wait until then to have fellowship with God.  If we return to 1 John 1, God tells us that if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with each other and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:7).  When we are cleansed from unrighteousness, we are right with God and can enjoy close fellowship with Him as well as the body of Christ (believers).

In Numbers 5, God now moves from the more open obvious sins in the camp like leprosy, to covert, personal sin that is not readily apparent to others.   Anyone who wrongs another in any way is being unfaithful to the Lord.  They must confess the sin to God and man, make a sin offering and make restitution.  Who do you need to apologize to today?  Who do you need to forgive?  Do the hard business of dealing with the hardness of your own heart and you can be pure before God today.

If a woman was unfaithful to her husband, according to the Scriptures we are in, she would be cursed.  If a husband suspected her unfaithfulness, there was a ritual for the priest to perform that allowed the woman to be cleared from the accusation if she was innocent.  There must be a reason for the husband to be suspicious in order to perform the ritual.

Notice that a wrong against your brother is judged as unfaithfulness to the Lord.  Joseph refused to touch Potiphar’s wife and so sin against God in Genesis 39.  Jesus asked Saul on the road to Damascus why he persecuted Him (Acts 9) when Saul had been persecuting Christians.  In Matthew 25, God said whatever we do for the least of His people we do for Him.  Our wrongs are not only against another; they are against the Lord.  Our good deeds for others are thankfully for the Lord as well.  He who gives to the poor lends to the Lord and will be repaid. (Proverbs 19:17) How can this knowledge change how you view the times when you do what you should not or fail to do what you should? James tells us that if we know what we should do and do not do it, it is sin. (James 4:17)

SECRET SINS

Note that in Numbers 5 the wife is suspected of adultery in the next purification command.  Nothing is mentioned of accusing men, whether her partner or her spouse.  Adultery is a capital offense (Lev. 20:10).  Unresolved suspicion can wreck a marriage.  Since men control legal matters, a woman was especially vulnerable to being accused of adultery.  However, there are times that the husband making the accusation may have had reasonable grounds and was fighting for his marriage and had a concern for the purity of the camp. (NIV Application Commentary) Another viewpoint might be to suggest that this passage supplies a limitation on an angry, suspicious husband.  In this male-dominant culture, a man might harm a woman physically or emotionally.  God is here providing a means to escape.  The entire community is affected by sin.  The man or woman would be humiliated by bringing this case before the priest.  This is an “expression of the mercy of God to women who are so often abused by prideful men.” (Expositor’s Bible Commentary)

“From the whole we may learn, (1.) That secret sins are known to God, and sometimes are strangely brought to light in this life; however, there is a day coming when God will, by Jesus Christ, as here by the priest, judge the secrets of men according to the gospel (Rom. 2:16) . (2.) That, in particular, God will judge adulterers. The violation of conjugal faith and chastity is highly provoking to the God of heaven, and sooner or later it will be reckoned for. “ (Matthew Henry)  Jesus said that if we even look lustfully upon another while married, we are committing adultery in our hearts (Matthew 5:27-30).  Followers of Christ, this is a subject to be taken very seriously and prayerfully!

NOTE: All three commands in this chapter begin with “The Lord said to Moses…”  It is important to always remember that these commands came from God.  Moses communicated them to the Israelites in obedience to God’s directives.  He also wrote them down for us to read today. We should not judge the priests or leaders of Israel for what we may consider harsh directives.  God speaks to us through His Word and the Spirit within us.  We are not commanded to use this test for unfaithfulness today because the Gentiles are not under the full extent of the Law. (see Acts 15:24-29)

Another situation in which a woman is charged with adultery is found in John Chapter 8.  Jesus did not condemn this woman and through His wisdom rid her of the crowd ready to stone her.  Jesus set her free and told her to sin no more (John 8:11). “The verdict: guilty as charged, but forgiven.  Christ’s forgiveness did not mean that he was lowering the moral standard.  In his Sermon on the Mount he raised it by condemning even lust of the eyes (Matt 5:27-30, see above). It is not that his standard is weaker, but that his ‘new covenant’ forgiveness is stronger.”  (NIV App Commentary p. 527)

Today, in the church, we do not expel member believers for struggling with weaknesses.  Christ’s church is where the weak belong.  Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.” (Mark 2:17)  However, the church is a community and our actions affect others.  If we are working toward victory in an area, that is much different than continuing unrepentant in our sins.  If a rebellious individual needs to be dealt with, elders should look to Matthew 18 for the pattern of church discipline.

What weakness in your life are you struggling with? 

Write one verse from God’s word that addresses the heart matter involved with this sin.

Memorize the verse you found.  When you struggle, say the verse aloud (God can bring it to mind as well). 

If you need further help, find a confidante by whom you can be held accountable.

Let's strive for purity because Jesus said we are already clean and the pure in heart will see God.  Not just in heaven but today!  This is exciting news!  I can see God in creation, in His blessings, in His Word and I just need to be in tune with Him.  Purity helps us make that connection.  Purify yourselves today.  Go to God and ask for His help.  May God bless you!