Sermon

Now, before I even begin to speak, I can tell that you are already uncomfortable. We’ve come to the final story we will look at from the book of Numbers, and I know you don’t know what to do with it. For it deals with one of the touchiest subjects in today’s society: sex. Money, sex and power are the three things we have to tiptoe around in the Church today, even though they are the three things we need guidance on the most. And from our story today, we can see that Israel certainly needed some guidance. They got themselves into a heap of trouble. And so, lest we fall into the same trap, we’re going to take a look at their story today – and may God guide us and bless us with His wisdom and understanding as we seek Him in worship today!

You’ll remember from last week that Balak, king of Moab, was afraid of Israel. He has seen them in battle and knows that there is no way his own army could defeat them. And Israel has to pass through his land on their way to the Promised Land. Last week, we saw Balak trying to hire Balaam to curse Israel; his attempt failed. But Balak didn’t give up; he and Balaam found another way to bring Israel down – by appealing to their natural lusts and passions. (We find later in Numbers that Balak and Balaam are behind the events of chapter 25). And so, the Moabites hold a festival honoring their fertility god, Baal, and they invite Israel to come join with them. And since the Moabites are related to Israel – they descend from Abraham’s nephew, Lot – Israel decides to be neighborly. It’s a terrible mistake.

They should have known better. They should have remembered the Ten Commandments, given at Mount Sinai as they trembled before the Lord. They should have remembered the covenant they had with God, that He is their Holy God and they are His holy people. They should have remembered what happened to their parents when they worshipped the golden calf – the terrible tragedy and judgment that came from their idolatry. But they don’t remember. Instead, they go to worship Baal. And friends, in case you don’t happen to know, as a fertility god, one of the ways Baal is worshipped is through ritual temple prostitution – both male and female. One would go to Baal’s temple and pay to have sex with one of his priests or priestesses. Now do you see why this is such a big deal? Now do you see why Lord is so angry at His people? This is abominable. It’s a flagrant violation of the covenant, which says “You shall have no other gods before me” and “You shall not commit adultery” (Exodus 20: 3, 14, NIV). And so, “the Lord’s anger burned against them” (Numbers 25:3b, NIV).

This is a terrible problem which brings with it a terrible judgment. The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23), and of course, death shocks us, for we so easily forget the seriousness of sin. We so easily downplay our sins, saying “It’s not so bad” or “At least I’m not as bad as him or her.” But my friends, sin is a great offense to God. Sin is a slap in His face, a way of saying to Him “I don’t care what You have said is right or wrong – I know better and what I want is more important than You or anything You have said”. Consider what we find in verse six of our story: “Then an Israelite man brought to his family a Midianite woman right before the eyes of Moses and the whole assembly of Israel while they were weeping at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting” (Numbers 25:6, NIV). Not only is this man committing adultery with a Midianite woman, he’s brought her back to his own tent, and is parading her in front of God and everybody! It’s shocking, this brazen display of lust, this spectacle of sin. This is now how things should be.

For my friends, we are God’s people. We are not our own. We were created by Him, set aside to love and serve Him. Our purpose here on earth is to glorify Him and to enjoy Him forever. And yet, here on the plains of Moab, as Israel is about to begin a new era, as they are about to cross the Jordan to enter the Promised Land, Israel does not glorify God. Instead, they turn their backs on God. Instead, they use their bodies, their hearts and their minds to indulge in depravity. Instead, they glorify another god, Baal, while at the same time gratifying their own selfish and sinful desires. And God cannot let this stand. God cannot simply brush this one under the rug. God cannot allow this cancer to spread, not here, not now, not ever.

For as Solomon says, “The lips of an adulteress drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil; but in the end she is bitter as gall, sharp as a double-edged sword. Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to the grave. She gives no thought to the way of life; her paths are crooked, but she knows it not” (Proverbs 5:3-6, NIV). And friends, Solomon knew a thing or two about sexual sins. Not only had he learned from his father David, but he also had some first-hand knowledge. He knew that adultery led only to pain: “For a man’s way are in full view of the Lord, and He examines all his paths. The evil deeds of a wicked man ensnare him; the cords of sin hold him fast. He will die for lack of discipline, led astray by his own great folly” (Proverbs 5:21-23, NIV). And indeed, that is exactly what happened on the plains of Moab: God’s judgment was brought upon them – death. God had to stop this behavior before it led to more.

Even Israel’s leaders were judged, including Zimri, the prince who so flagrantly and openly paraded his sin before everyone. Zimri’s cancerous disregard for God’s law had to be cut out, so that Israel could begin its new life on a sure footing. Understand this, my friends – God doesn’t judge His people so harshly because He enjoys punishment. No, He disciplines Israel because He loves them, because He knows that these kinds of behaviors lead to pain, that they lead to a diminished kind of life, while He desires that we have abundant life. That’s why God takes sin so seriously – because He loves us and wants a good life for us. And sin does not lead to a good life, no matter what today’s culture may tell us. And so, God’s judgment also comes upon the Midianites, who joined with Moab to tempt Israel and to lead them into idolatry. I know it’s hard for us to hear, but God uses Israel here to bring these other peoples to judgment. After centuries of this kind of behavior, their time had come.

And so, my friends, if we learn anything at all from this passage, it is that God takes sin very seriously. We can’t just wink at sin or brush it aside. Sin is an offense to God, and the wages of sin is death. By all rights, our fate should be the same as Israel’s in the desert. That is what we deserve. And in case you think you are free and clear here, remember Jesus’ teaching in the Sermon on the Mount: “You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:27-28, NIV). Now, don’t get me wrong – I’m not trying to beat anyone down here or to make anyone feel horribly guilty. I know that there are probably some here who have stumbled. Maybe some of you have had an affair. Maybe some of you haven’t been as pure as Caesar’s wife. If not physically, I know that mentally most people have committed adultery. So I know that I’m poking at a nerve here. But this is the season of Lent, the time to drag all these skeletons out of the closet and into the light. This is the time to recognize that none of us are worthy. We have all broken God’s good creation. We all deserve death, the same death that came to some of the Israelites and Midianites in the desert. For we, too, have forsaken our God. We, too, have indulged in the lusts of the flesh as we chase after other gods. We all stand condemned, my friends. There is no one righteous! Not even one! (Romans 3:10).

But . . . there is Good News for us sinners, my friends! For even for things like this, even for adultery, fornication, sexual immorality and idolatry, even for Israel’s great sin on the plains of Moab – even for this, there is forgiveness! For all of us who carry a heavy burden, for all of us who are weighed down by guilt, shame, defeat and accusations – in Jesus Christ, we are able to lay all that down. For He has come, He has lived and died, so that we may be free from all those burdens. “But how can that possibly be?”, you may ask. “There’s no way He could ever forgive me for that,” you may say. Let me tell you right now – don’t listen to that. Don’t listen to Satan’s accusations and lies. Listen to the Truth, which is that no matter what you have done with whom or how often, Jesus Christ has taken your punishment for that upon Himself on the cross. The wages of sin is death, true – but Jesus Christ has died in our place. When He was on the cross, He was thinking of us, suffering for us, dying for us. He died so that we may life. As our second hymn says, “’Tis I deserve Thy place”.[1] And because He has died for us, because He has taken our place, we are now innocent and clean. We now have a new life and a fresh start.

And so, that means that when God looks at us now, He doesn’t see all of our sins, our adultery and idolatry. No, He sees the righteousness of His Son, Jesus Christ. All of those past transgressions, even the very worst, are gone, covered over by the blood of Jesus Christ. They are as far away from us as the east is from the west. And that’s Good News! That’s what we celebrate here each Sunday. That is what we are now preparing to celebrate in this Season of Lent – that Jesus bled for us to free us from the chains of Numbers 25, from the stains of sin, from the guilt and shame of our adultery and idolatry. Friends, believe this Good News! It is for you and for me. It is for all who accept, all who desire to be clean and free. Hallelujah! In Jesus Christ, we have a joyful new life, free from guilt, free from shame, free from sin and blame! To Him alone be the glory!

[1] 12^th Century Latin hymn, “O Sacred Head Now Wounded”. German translation by Paul Gerhardt, translated into English by James W. Alexander. Tune PASSION CHORALE by Hans Leo Hassler and J. S. Bach.