(Numbers 19:1-22) Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, 2 “This is the statute of the law which the Lord has commanded, saying, ‘Speak to the sons of Israel that they bring you an unblemished red heifer in which is no defect and on which a yoke has never been placed. 3 You shall give it to Eleazar the priest, and it shall be brought outside the camp and be slaughtered in his presence. 4 Next Eleazar the priest shall take some of its blood with his finger and sprinkle some of its blood toward the front of the tent of meeting seven times. 5 Then the heifer shall be burned in his sight; its hide and its flesh and its blood, with its refuse, shall be burned. 6 The priest shall take cedar wood and hyssop and scarlet material and cast it into the midst of the burning heifer. 7 The priest shall then wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward come into the camp, but the priest shall be unclean until evening. 8 The one who burns it shall also wash his clothes in water and bathe his body in water, and shall be unclean until evening. 9 Now a man who is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer and deposit them outside the camp in a clean place, and the congregation of the sons of Israel shall keep it as water to remove impurity; it is purification from sin. 10 The one who gathers the ashes of the heifer shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening; and it shall be a perpetual statute to the sons of Israel and to the alien who sojourns among them.
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
In this scripture reading, there are many parallels to Jesus' work on the cross. Not only were red heifers rare, but the red heifer for this sacrifice had to be unblemished - flawless - perfect. Jesus came in flesh, born of a virgin, so He could be 100 percent man while still being 100 percent God. In this way, He could be 100 percent perfect - flawless - sinless - and therefore able to live and die in our place and make the payment for all sin for all time. And just like the sacrifice above, Jesus was taken outside of the city to be crucified.
The scarlet sash could either be a prophecy of the (purple) sash that was placed on Jesus at the time leading up to His crucifixion (Mark 15:17-20), or it could simply illustrate the blood that Jesus would shed. It is Jesus' blood that washes our sins away. And Jesus, the Living Water, who rose again, gives new life to those who believe in Him.
Jesus died and rose again for everyone - no matter what culture or skin color or... Jesus paid the price for sin - for everyone. All we have to do is accept and embrace His gift. This is a heart-thing, which is to humbly realize our sinfulness and our need for a Savior. And just like our physical bodies need water, we should daily be craving Jesus' Living Water - His word, His strength and His guidance.
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