“The LORD said to Moses, ‘Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, has turned My anger away from the Israelites; for he was as zealous as I am for My honor among them, so that in My zeal I did not put an end to them. Therefore tell him I am making My covenant of peace with him. He and his descendants will have a covenant of a lasting priesthood, because he was zealous for the honor of his God and made atonement for the Israelites.’”
- Numbers 25:10-13 (NIV)

Tucked away in a generally unread portion of the Bible, God records the story of the Israelites being seduced by the Moabites. The Moabites enticed the Israelites and conned them into worshipping the Baal of Peor and commit heinous sexual acts with Moabite women. God’s anger burned against the Israelites and a plague broke among the people. Moses told Israel’s judges to execute all of those who have joined in worshipping the Baal of Peor. Despite this, an Israelite man flaunted a Midianite woman in front of Moses and the entire assembly of Israel as they are weeping for their sins. When our hero, Phinehas of Eleazar, sees this outrageous display, he grabs a spear and stabs the spear through the woman and the man, killing them both. After that, the plague was lifted – not before killing 24,000.

Imagine. We are suckered into doing so many stupid things when we listen to the lies that are whispered in the ears of our soul. Worse yet, even when we know it’s wrong, we brazenly let God know that we don’t care about His standards, nor are we afraid of the judgement we face. Crazy.

And yet God is so zealous for the honor of His name that He would punish sin, so that He would not be defamed. He delights in those who are also zealous for His name’s honor, who would take drastic measures to make sure that He doesn’t get slanged or scorned. He doesn’t need our help for it – He certainly can take care of everything – but there’s something that glorifies Him greatly because His creation stands up to defend His name.

I wonder how zealous we are for our own honor. I remember listening to Tommy Nelson’s exegesis of Song of Solomon, and his emphasis on the importance of our reputation, or name. A man with a strong reputation brings honor to the woman he pursues, and a woman with a strong reputation brings honor to the man who pursues her. Our reputation can often prejudice someone for or against us before we even meet them. I would venture to guess that most of us want to have a good reputation, one that people respect and honor, one that strengthens friendships and doesn’t alienate people. But how many of us are willing to be zealous for someone else’s reputation?

As I ponder this question, I keep going back to the phrase that God says of Phinehas – “zealous for the honor of his God”. I haven’t looked at the Hebrew or any commentaries, but let’s look at it using inductive study methods. The word zealous connotes strong emotion, almost irrational passion. Zealots are pretty focused on whatever they believe. It’s hard to dissuade them from anything else. Phinehas was strongly passionate about God’s honor. This honor is probably closely tied into God’s reputation, the way He is known and considered among the nations. When someone is honored, they are held in high esteem for some reason. It seems like Phinehas was strongly passionate for God to be held in high esteem. And why was this important? Because this was Phinehas’ God that was being dishonored. When someone very close to us gets hurt, we are often hurt with them. I remember one time when my sister got hurt by a guy who was being a jerk to her. I remember the pain she felt, and the pain I felt because she was hurt. I became zealous for her honor and wanted to go punch that guy’s lights out (though that probably wouldn’t have been a bright idea – pun intended). It’s probably the kind of emotion that Judah and rest of Jacob’s sons (minus Joseph because he was sold off already) felt when they found out that their sister had been raped by the King of Shechem’s son. I think that this zeal was what Phinehas felt when he saw this punk of an Israelite strutting his stuff with some pagan girl who was accomplicit in hurting and defiling and essentially raping God’s bride. Whoa. I’d be pretty mad too – probably mad enough to kill both the guy, the girl, and everyone who was like them. Thank God for grace and for salvation.

Anyways, I expound on all of this to bring my thoughts back to this idea of the Great Romance. This story’s mostly about God’s reputation – okay, the whole Bible’s about God’s reputation. But in application, I see some important parallels between Phinehas’ zeal for God’s honor and how we ought to respond to God’s lead and how we ought to treat each other.

1. First of all, are we that zealous for our God’s honor? The more I consider this passage, the more I realize that I don’t care that much about God’s reputation. I let people talk trash about my Savior, my Friend, my Lover all the time. I don’t even attempt to defend Him, let alone take offense whenever He is being ridiculed. Do I dare speak up to say hey, stop talking that way about my God? We’re comfortable enough telling people to stop ridiculing our family, our friends, our boyfriend/girlfriend, but what about our God, the Creator and Sustainer of the entire universe? I feel like Peter after he realized his denial of Christ. Ouch.
2. Secondly, are we that zealous about other people’s honor, to the point where we lay down our own reputation and honor to defend someone else? It’s a bit more instinctual and natural to defend our friends and family; we’re even comfortable defending our ideologies and politics. But what about those who are always marginalized? What about those who are just plain difficult to love? What about those who disrespect us, or those who even torment us? Can we be zealous for their honor as well? Jesus is.
3. Finally, I realized why this zeal was so evident in the love relationships I see with my friends. I’ve often asked myself, “Self, why is it that guys are so prickly when other people tease their girlfriends?” Or, “Self, why do women automatically deny slander against the men they love?” And from meditating on this passage, I see that the reason for this behavior is because zeal is inextricably linked to love. That’s why God says, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay” (Romans 12:19). He is zealous for us, because what the world thinks of us (Christians) is what the world thinks of Him. We are now linked to His reputation; because of this, how we live is infinitely important in Kingdom work. Every little action of ours affects people’s perceptions of God, as Christ’s ambassadors (2 Corinthians 5). Scary.

I could go on and on, but this is just a smidgen of what God’s been showing me recently. I’m floored by the intense emotion that God feels for me, and that I am created to feel for Him and for the rest of His creation. Dare I love people as He loves them? Dare I love Him as a reflection of His love for me? Lord help me, I want to.

“The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.”
- Genesis 3:21 (NIV)

If you recall my last post about the Great Romance, I was saying how it’s amazing that God pursues us diligently. Even when we’ve disobeyed Him, He calls out to us, hoping that we will turn back to Him. This passage continues along those lines. The verse above follows the curses God pronounced upon the serpent, man, and woman.

Now, at the time that Adam and Eve ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, their eyes were “opened” and realized they were naked. Because of their shame, they scrambled to find cover for their nakedness. Verse 7 says that they “sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.” Now, even after the curse that God places upon the man and woman, He is still showing His goodness and provision. What He cursed was just – a fair consequence for disobedience. But what follows the curse was His mighty provision. He made clothes for Adam and Eve out of skin, which was probably a more suitable (not to mention more comfortable) alternative to wearing leaves.

How awesome is that? Even when we sin and turn from the Father, He will not turn His hand of blessing away. That “kindness that leads to repentance” makes me want to shout from the depths of my heart, or dance with all of my might.

So how can we apply this? Well, for starters, I’m definitely going to praise God for His infinite mercy. He deserves all of the glory and honor we can give Him. In the way we conduct ourselves towards others, this may be forgiving and serving our enemies. It may look like providing abundantly for our children even when they are disobedient (obviously there’s still a need to discipline them if they do wrong). This is a life of consistency and commitment to love unconditionally.

What an amazing challenge for us. May God grace us with His love today!

“Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as He was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. But the LORD God called to the man, ‘Where are you?’”
- Genesis 3:8-9 (NIV)

I think that this passage, albeit really sad, shows a very important quality of how God pursues us. Background: Adam and Eve were deceived and sinned against God by eating of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (try saying that fast five times). Because of Adam and Eve’s guilt and shame, not to mention their realization that they were naked, they covered themselves and hid from God.

Now here’s the really interesting thing. God, being the all-knowing Almighty being He is, calls out to the man and asks, “Where are you?”

I’m still in shock as I consider the implications of this question. The question suggests that our Heavenly Maker continues to search for us, even when we sin and turn away from Him. How wonderful it is to know that He calls out to us, waiting for us to respond to His leading, even when we have royally messed up and want to hide. I see this question, not as an indication of God’s ignorance, but His “kindness that leads to repentance” that Paul writes about (Romans 2:4). After I make a mistake, the last thing I want to do is to turn to God. I’m thinking, “oh boy, I’ve messed up yet again.” Then I want to find the largest blanket I can find and hide under it. But God, in His rich mercy and love, initiates the restoration by looking for us. Wow.

In light of this marvelous truth, I’m challenged by how I must treat other people, in order that I might reflect God’s character in the manner previously exposited.

1. Well, this revelation challenges me to initiate restoration with people who wrong me. Even if it’s just a perceived wrong and it’s just me being super sensitive, I should reflect Christ by taking the initiative and lovingly address the wrong with whoever’s involved.
2. I see this passage reflect God’s unending “search” for us. Likewise, I need to be more intentional in how I “search” for people – that is, don’t passively wait for others to invite me to do stuff, but also welcome others to share life with me.
3. With that being said, I also need to learn how to “call out” to other people. What I mean by this is the pursuit of people’s hearts. More specifically, this application could be shown in the way we should treat the romantic pursuit between man and woman. God’s pursuit of us is constant and isn’t hindered by sin or any other obstacle. Likewise, the way men ought to pursue women needs to be that of a “call” – an invitation to join them in life, consistent and constant.

May we all reflect God’s pursuit of us this week.

“The LORD God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.’ Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name.”
- Genesis 2:18-19 (NIV)

I think the coolest thing about this passage is not the man-centered application of “we were created for relationship,” but in the observation that our Creator made about our needs, and His delight in providing for those needs.

God takes care of our needs. He sees what we need in our lives, and He provides for them in miraculous ways. He delights in “coming through” for us and giving us what we need and desire.

He also loves to show off His creation. In verse 19 it says that God brought all that He created to the man to be named. I think it’s safe to say that God was delighted to reveal the glorious beauty of His creation to the man. It was to God’s glory for the man to name all of the animals as well – it is a reflection of the authority that God has.

Likewise, when we see someone who has needs for which we can provide, it ought to be our joy and delight to serve them in any way possible. In helping to meet other people’s needs, we are reflecting the nature of our Provider God, Jehovah Jireh.

We also need not be ashamed to delight in revealing our creativity to others in a humble manner. Each of us has some element of creativity within us – it is a reflection of our Creator God. So whether we are musically creative, artistically creative, poetically creative, spatially creative, or what have you, we can use those gifts to encourage and bless others. This is important, especially for those people who are pursuing romantic relationships. Just think – the creativity we pour into coming up with fun encouragement for each other is actually a reflection of the creativity and delight that our God has when He revealed all of creation to us.

So let us joyfully reflect our Creator’s heart in serving each other and creatively encouraging each other. Let us also give thanks and praise to the God who provides in every possible way. He knows our every struggle and need!

“God saw all that He had made, and it was very good.”
- Genesis 1:31a (NIV)

God is very creative. Every intricate detail flows out of who He is to make the world as it is. Everything He does is very good. He separates opposites – He is the arbiter of every contrast. He needs only to say/think something, and it is done. Everything He created is a reflection of His beauty. He commands reproduction.

And we are made in His image, His likeness. Both male and female reflect His image.

So what’s the implication? It means that we, the crown of creation, have echoes of the creativity of our Creator. When we build things, design things, make music, create art, dream worlds, etc., we are reflecting the heart of the Creator God. And the greatest of what we can create is new life.

Another point to ponder is how we approach prayer. I often come before God, not fully trusting that He can give that for which I ask. Yet He’s the Almighty Creator! He “made the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1); His creation was “very good” (Genesis 1:31). Why should I ever think that He is not capable of satisfying my every desire? Wow, this passage challenges me to pray with confidence that I am asking the omnipotent God to work. He is able to do “immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine” (Ephesians 3:20-21)!