Restoring the Neglected Virtue, Part 4A

Let's pray together. Father, we thank you so much that the child born in Bethlehem was the king. And, Father, we pray today that everyone with us who might be hearing, whether on the radio or by way of tape or even in person this morning. That the kingship of Christ would be uppermost in their thinking this morning as they come to worship the King of kings and Lord of Lords. We ask that as we open your word and examine it together, that our hearts would be stirred once again, as we see you for who you are.

And understand your call upon our life to follow your life, to be like you, that we might represent to the world Jesus Christ. A forgiving God, a loving God, a merciful God. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. This morning, as we continue our study on forgiveness, I want you to turn with me to the book of Numbers, Numbers chapter 12.

In the book of Numbers, we have specifically, in Numbers chapter 12, three characters: Miriam, Aaron, and Moses. Miriam, of course, was the oldest of the boys, of the three children of Am and Jac. Then there was Aaron and then there was Moses. As you recall, Miriam was that young lady who at a very early age would take her younger brother Moses and weave for him a basket, place him in that basket, put him in the river. And then watch for the princess as she would come down to that river. And as the princess would see this child Moses in that basket, she would then.

That is, Miriam would come and recommend to the princess a Hebrew woman who could nurse that child. And of course, that Hebrew woman was her mother. And that's how we were introduced to Miriam. She became a great leader in Israel. She was a great prophetess. And she would be used to lead the nation in singing praises to God. She was a very popular woman, well known among the nation of Israel. Then there was brother Aaron. He was the middle child. He was the younger of Miriam, the older of Moses. And he was the prophet.

He was the priest. He was the great leader of the priesthood of Israel. And then, of course, there was Moses. And most of us know all about the life of Moses, that great leader of Israel. Well, one day there became a conflict in the family. Maybe you've experienced conflict in your family. Jealousy arose in the life of Miriam, in the life of Aaron, mainly because Moses had superiority. He was the younger one, yet he was the leader. Jealousy rose because God would speak to Moses, and Moses then would communicate to the people of God the things that God had spoken to him about.

And so Miriam and Aaron became very jealous of the leadership of Moses. Story goes as follows: Numbers chapter 12, verse number 1. Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married, for he had married a Cushite woman. And they said, Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us as well? We'll stop right there for a moment. The text tells us that the conflict arose because of Moses' second marriage to a Cushite woman.

We don't know exactly what the problem was. But evidently, there was some insecurity there on the part of Miriam. There was some jealousy there. Sapphorah had died, and evidently Moses had married another woman. And we don't know all the ins and outs and all the things that took place in the family as to why they were upset about Moses' remarriage, but they were. And then they were upset by the fact that is Moses the only one that God speaks through? What about us? We're significant people. We're good people.

In fact, maybe even Miriam said, You know, I was the one who even allowed Moses to live. If it wasn for me, Moses would be dead. I mean, I was his provider. I was his protector. I was his bigger sister. And now God only speaks through Moses. What about me? I'm a great prophetess. Jealousy arose in the family. The Bible says, very next phrase, and the Lord heard it.

I like that. The Lord heard it. The Bible says in verse number 3: Now the man Moses was very humble, more than any man who was on the face of the earth.

I like that verse. Who wrote num? Moses did. Numbers is the book about humility and how Moses attained it. But it's significant because really it was the Spirit of God through Moses who wrote Numbers, right? And Moses certainly would not have written verse 3 if God had not inspired him to write it. But Moses wasn't always that way. Moses was an arrogant man. He was a prideful man, at least way before Numbers chapter 12. When you read about Moses and his upbringing and how he would kill an Egyptian and try to convince the nation of Israel that he was their leader and they refused his leadership.

Because of his arrogance, because of his pride. And God would humble that man. Take God 40 years to humble Moses, but when he finally humbled him, he was a new man.

We'll have a great time studying the book of Exodus after we finish the book of Genesis, looking at this man Moses, how God dealt with this man and how God used him in a very significant way. But the Bible says that he was the meekest man on the face of the earth.

Then the Bible says And suddenly the Lord said to Moses and Aaron and to Miriam, You three come out to the tent of meeting.

So the three of them came out. Then the Lord came down in a pillar of cloud and stood at the doorway of the tent. We'll stop right there. Whenever you read the phrase, and the Lord came down, listen, the Lord never comes down unless the Lord means business. And when the Lord comes down, He comes down in one of two ways. To bestow grace or to inflict his wrath. God came down. God wanted these three to understand something. Now think about this. Miriam would speak against Moses. The nation of Israel would hear.

Here was the leader of praise for Israel. That was Miriam. She would lead them in the song there after they crossed the Red Sea. She was a great woman. And as a leader, there were great requirements for her, but she would sow discord among the children of Israel. She would become the leader now of discontent. She would become a leader that would move the people of God not closer to God, but away from God because of her jealousy. God heard it. God said, Aaron, Miriam, Moses, it's time for us to have a meeting.

So the Lord came down in a pillar. Cloud, or cloud represented a pillar, and it says this: when they had come forward, he said, Hear now my words. If there is a prophet among you, I, the Lord, shall make myself known to him in a vision. I shall speak with him in a dream. Not so with my servant Moses. He is faithful in all my household. With him I speak mouth to mouth, even openly, and not in dark say and he beholds the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant? Against Moses.

God says, when I make myself known to a prophet, I make myself known through a dream or through a vision.

But not with Moses. Moses is different than all the other men. Moses is a man I speak with face to face. Moses is a man that has seen the form of the Lord. Moses is different than any other servant of mine. And Moses and I have a unique relationship. Why then, Miriam? Why then, Aaron, would you speak against my servant? Why would you come out against him? He is my man for my people. Text says this in verse number 9. So the anger of the Lord burned. Against them. The anger of the Lord burns against those who have a jealous spirit.

The anger of the Lord burns against those who let their lives be governed by insecurity. The anger of the Lord burns against those who would speak against his people. And then it says this: And God departed. But when the cloud had withdrawn from over the tent, behold, Miriam was lepros, as white as snow. As Aaron turned toward Miriam, behold, she was lepros. Then Aaron said to Moses, O my Lord, I beg you, do not account this sin to us, in which we have acted foolishly, and in which we have sinned.

Oh, do not let her be like one dead whose flesh is half eaten away. When he comes from his mother's womb. Stop right there. Aaron begs Moses. Moses. Do something. We've sinned against you, Moses. We've sinned against God. Moses, we were wrong. Don't let our sister be this way. Don't let her look like this. Do something, Moses. What would you do? Maybe you'd say, you know what, she got what she got. She should have kept her mouth shut. How dare she speak against God's chosen? Did Miriam get what she deserved?

No. She should have died. She got better than what she deserved. But listen to Moses. And Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, O God, heal her, I pray. But the Lord said to Moses, If her father had but spit in her face, would she not bear her shame for seven days? Let her be shut up for seven days outside the camp, and afterward she may be received again. So Miriam was shut up outside the camp for seven days And the people did not move until Miriam was received again. Listen, everybody knew about Miriam.

Because she was shut up outside the camp, because of her leprosy, the whole nation had to be put on hold until she was received again. What I want you to see is this man Moses was a great man of mercy. His family would go against him, his family would speak against his wife. His family would speak against his leadership. His family would sow discord among the nation of Israel. And Moses, being a man of mercy. Would extend kindness and grace to his sister Miriam and beseech God on her behalf that she might be healed.

And that she might be restored back again, made whole again, because Moses was that kind of man. Which poses this question: What kind of man are you? Remember, Moses was the greatest leader Israel ever had. God said so. There was no leader greater than Moses. And his greatness was centered around the fact that he was a man of supreme mercy. Grace and loving kind, always beseeching God on behalf of the people in order that they might live and not die. That a sister might be restored and live this way.

You will note that Miriam is never spoken of again in the Bible in a positive light. Her leadership was forfeited. Because she spoke against the leadership of Israel. But God did heal her. And she was received back into the camp because of her brother's mercy. Because of her brother's kindness, because of her brother's willingness to forgive all the evil she said about him and his wife. How about you? Are you that kind of person? Do you want to be that kind of person? Then you need to be able to restore that neglected virtue.

The forgiving attitude that God wants you to demonstrate on a daily basis. Sin and to release them and to say, Yes, I forgive you. Why? Number one, it a pattern we're committed to follow.

Number two, it's a picture of Christ to the world. Number three, it's the priority in caring for other people.

Those are the three principles we've addressed over the last two weeks. Principle number four is this. It is a prerequisite. Listen carefully. It is a prerequisite to commun with God. It is an absolute prerequisite in order for you to have communion with God that you forgive your brother his sin or her sin. Fav Bible, turn with me to the book of Matthew, fifth chapter.

Christ addresses worship. The Pharisees, the religious people of the day, were big on worship. That is, they were big on the externals of worship. They were big into the show of worship. I mean, they dressed like they worshiped God, they acted like they worshiped God, and they wanted everybody to know that they would come to worship God. But in their heart, They were far from God. And so the Lord in the Serm on the Mount would begin to address these people and help them understand a prerequisite to communion with Him.

Matthew 5, verse number 23. If therefore you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go your way. First, be reconciled to your brother and then come and present your offering.

Christ says, if you're going to worship me and you're going to present your offering for the forgiveness of sins, before you do that, Drop it.

And the text says: if you're presenting your offer and you remember that your brother has something against you, not that you have offended your brother. But that your brother has an offense against you, something that you might not even be aware of, necessarily, or you are aware of, but it's not something that they did to you, it's something that maybe you did to them. Your brother has an offense against you or a problem with you. You go to your brother, you stop what you're doing, you go and be reconciled to your brother, and then come back and offer your gift.

God says this: it is a prerequisite that if you're ever going to commune with me, that you deal with the issue between you and your brother first before you come to worship me.

First, you got to do that first. Why? Because God says, listen, if you regard iniquity in your heart, I will not hear you.

Psalm 66, 18. Listen. When you come to church to worship, what hinders your worship is not m. Whether it be good or bad. People say, you, you know, Sparks have been to your church, man, and the music's just too slow. I just can't worship the Lord because of the music there at your church. It's not the music that's the problem. I had one man talk to me a couple of months ago. He says, You know, I'm really having a hard time at your church. I said, Really? He says, yeah. He says, I'm not sure I can handle the music.

He goes, I know what you're going to say. He goes, you're going to say it's not the music. It's my heart. I said, that's right. I'm going to say that to you. But because you've already admitted that, I'm not going to have to say anything. Because the true issue in worship is not the music, it's not even the preacher or his preaching. Oh man, that guy is so long and so boring that how can anybody ever worship God there? It's not about the preacher. It's not about the preaching. It's not about the music.

And it's not even about the building for crying out loud. Say, oh man, have you ever been to that building? Oh, it's smell. I'm going to worship God there. It's not about that. Worship is intern. And everything that's external is affected by what's going on inside you when you come. See, we miss that. See, we think worship is external. That's what the Pharisees thought. Whenever you say, I can't worship because of the music, or I can't worship because, you're like the Pharisees. Because you see, they were governed by the externals.

God's people are governed by the internals. And so, if your heart's not right with God, if your heart's not right with your fellow man, guess what? You can't worship God. You can't. Because there's something on the inside that's a problem. There's a bitterness there, there's a rivalry there, there's a jealousy there, there's an anger. Angry spirit, there, there's something there that's keeping me from communing with God. And God says, if you regard iniquity in your heart, I'm not going to hear you.

It's not going to happen. Let me tell you something. You can worship anywhere with anyone if your heart is right with God. He can. And God says: if you're coming to do the external thing, if you're coming to offer your gift, if you're coming to put money in the offering plate, if you're coming to look like.

To everybody else, you're worship God, and yet you know in your heart your brother has nothing against you. Stop right where you're at. Turn around and go and be reconciled to your brother. It a word that means to alter or to change a condition. And because of the prefix attached to it, it's a process of change. It's a process that alters the situation. What you do is you need to go to your brother and talk to him and deal with the issue at hand. You say, well, what if they don't forgive me? What if they are unwilling to forgive my attitude or they're unwilling to forgive what I did to them?

What do I do then? That's their problem now. What you have already done is demonstrated your obedience to God. You have gone to them. You've done all you could to make the situation right. You've been obedient to the Lord, and that's what's required of you. If they forgive you, they do. If they don't, they don't. But that's not your responsibility. Your responsibility is to be obedient to the Lord. And some might say, well, what if I go to them and they do forgive me, but the situation gets worse, not better?

A lot of times that does happen, doesn't it? David and Saul. Talked about that last week with David when he forgave Saul and let Saul go without killing him. Things got worse for David, not better. And even Saul, even though he had a tear in his eye, and even though Saul had recognized that God had made David the king of Israel, Saul would still continue to pursue David to kill him. Things got worse, not better. Again, the important thing is that you'll be obedient to what God says in His Word.

The nation of Israel should have known this. Why? Because the Old Testament prophets spoke about it. Let me read it to you.

Isaiah chapter 1 verse number 10. Hear the word of the Lord, you rulers of Sodom. Give ear to the instruction of our God, you people of Gomorrah. Who's God referring to? People of Sodom and Gomorrah? They were evil, evil, wretched people. God is calling the rulers of Israel just like The people of Sodom and Gomorrah, because they were wretched on the outside, as well as on the inside. And then he says this. What are your multiplied sacrifices to me? says the Lord. I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed cattle, and I take no pleasure in the blood of bulls, lambs, or goats.

When you come to appear before me, who requires of you this trampling of my courts? Bring your worthless offerings no longer. Incense is an abomination to me. New moon and Sabbath, the calling of assemblies. I cannot endure iniquity. And the solemn assembly. I hate your new moon festivals and your appointed feasts. They have become a burden to me. I am weary of bearing them. So, when you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide my eyes from you. Yes, even though you multiply prayers, I will not listen.

Your hands are covered with blood. Wash yourselves. Make yourselves clean. Remove the evil of your deeds from my sight. Cease to do evil. Learn to do good. Seek justice. Reprove the ruthless. Defend the orphaned. Plead for the widow. Come now and let us reason together, says the Lord. Though your sins are as scarlet, they will be as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, they will be like wool. He says, listen, you've gone through all the externals. You've done everything on the outside, but on the inside, things aren't right.

You've got to get right with your brother. You've got to get right with those that you've offended. You've got to get to the. To the importance of worship, and that's what's on the inside. You're not clean on the inside. So he's come, says, Come, let us reason together. Th your sins be a scarlet, they shall be. As white as snow, God wants to heal them. But see, that's the way, that's the way a lot of people are. And God says, listen, there is a prerequisite to communion with me.

You have to get right with me on the inside. And so he says: if you know a brother who has something against you. Before you ever come into the assembly of my presence to worship me, make sure you get it right. Do that first and then come and worship me because How you deal with your brother and the importance of dealing with him is important to God.

It's a prerequisite to communion with God. You see, God never moves from us, we move from God. We turn our back on God. Our bitterness and our angry spirit keep us from communing with God. He wants to commune with us, but our fellowship is broken because of our heart's attitude, not because of God's. Heart toward us. It's us. So God says, make sure you get things right with your brother.

That's of utmost import. So, forgiveness, if we're going to restore that neglected virtue, it's a pattern we're commanded to follow. It's a picture of Christ to the world. It's a priority in caring for others, and it is the prerequisite in commun with God. Matthew 6, 14 and 15. If you forgive your brother his sins, so will your heavenly Father forgive you your sins. But.

But if you do not forgive your brother his trespasses, neither will your heavenly Father forgive you your trespasses. There it is. If you're unwilling to forgive your brother, you can't have fellowship with me. You can't have communion with me. And next week, we'll hit Matthew 6:14 and 15. So, you understand it completely. But that's next week. But the point is: the prerequisite to communion with God is your desire to forgive your brother and to be forgiven by your brother. It's important in your life.

Let's pray.