Two Stories, One Message No. 7

The People Rebel

          The Israelites are the chosen people of the Lord God but most were not loyal him. God made them wander in the wilderness of forty years and all the while they rebelled. In the end among the 20 or more years who were numbered only Caleb and Joshua survived, for their heart is with the Lord.
           All the rest perished.

Numbers 14: 1-12

That night all the members of the community raised their voices and wept aloud. All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole assembly said to them, “If only we had died in Egypt! Or in this wilderness! Why is the Lord bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and children will be taken as plunder. Wouldn’t it be better for us to go back to Egypt?” And they said to each other, “We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt.”

Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown in front of the whole Israelite assembly gathered there. Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had explored the land, tore their clothes and said to the entire Israelite assembly, “The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them.”

 But the whole assembly talked about stoning them. Then the glory of the Lord appeared at the tent of meeting to all the Israelites. The Lord said to Moses, “How long will these people treat me with contempt? How long will they refuse to believe in me, in spite of all the signs I have performed among them? I will strike them down with a plague and destroy them, but I will make you into a nation greater and stronger than they.”

Continue reading: verses 13-45

The Parable of the Weeds
           
As with the Israel generation of the people of God, the Church generation beginning in the time of the disciples, i.e., the Twelve, until now and at the time of  the yet to come generations will be made up of true and false believers, whose hearts only God will know.

The totality of various Christian congregations will be worshiping and pledging allegiance to God, but the bigger part will be false believers which God will deliver at the last day into the fire of destruction. They will suffer this fiery and horrible death together with the already condemned, the outright unbelievers.

Matthew 13: 24-30

       Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.  “The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’
“‘An enemy did this,’ he replied.
“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’
“‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’”

Continue reading: verses 36-43