Good morning. Our text this morning
is going to be in Numbers 16. But before we go there, open
with me to First Corinthians 13. First Corinthians 13. First Corinthians 13, I'm gonna
start reading in verse four and I'm gonna replace the word charity
with the word love. That's what the word charity
means. Love suffereth long and is kind. Love envieth not. Love vaunteth not itself, is
not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not
her own, is not easily provoked, thanketh no evil, rejoiceth not
in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things,
believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. As we read, I hope you noticed
how active love is. Love is displayed. It is working
and it is producing results. Bear this in mind as we turned
our text in number 16. In number 16, we have an account
of a rebellious and unthankful people, an offended God, and
a high priest with an atonement. The focus of the study this morning
will be concentrated on the activity of Aaron the High Priest. The
title this morning is The High Priest Love. Number 16 records for us the
events that transpired in three days while Israel was in the
wilderness. And those who study such things
and the history of such things believe that these events occurred
about 20 years after the Lord, due to the unbelief of the people,
judged Israel that they would not enter the land of Canaan
for 40 years. At the opening of the chapter,
we are presented with three men, Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. These three men were influential
members of Israel who rose up in a rebellion against Moses
and Aaron. They had two purposes in their
rebellion. Korah was rebellious against
Aaron being the only high priest. Dathan and Abiram rose in a rebellion
against God, appointing Moses to lead Israel. And they led
many astray with them in their rebellion. The challenge that
Korah and his followers levied against Moses was that he had
appointed Aaron to be the only high priest to minister in the
tabernacle. Korah's argument was that all
of Israel were accounted holy before the Lord as his people,
and so they should be able to enter in and offer sacrifice
as they liked. Dathan and Abiram's challenge
was directed at Moses leading the people. Moses was of the
house of Levi, while Dathan and Abiram were of the house of Reuben,
Jacob's eldest son. And by tradition, the house of
Reuben should be the leader of the people. Both of these accusations said
that Moses took the honor and the glory to himself. And he
had no right to. That's what their argument was. These men and their followers
represent every one of us, every child of Adam in our natural
condition. Adam, when he rebelled, said,
I will not have God to reign over me. But God, in mercy, provided
the way for men to be accepted with God, the way of the priest,
the high priest offering a sacrifice to cover our sin. And we reject
that way. We want and demand to come to
God in our own way, with our own merits, Just as Cain brought
unto the Lord the labor of his hands, that's the way we desire
to come. Without a priest to intercede,
without a sacrifice, without blood, and without an atonement,
our hearts are blackened and dead so that we cannot see that
in doing so we deny the holy, righteous, living God who will
by no means clear the guilty. Now Moses did not confront these
men and their folly directly, but as soon as he heard their
challenge, verse four says, he fell upon his face. Moses sought the Lord's guidance
and direction before he answered. And when he answered, he basically
said, the Lord will reveal who he has anointed and who he will
accept. Moses then gave direction to
Korah and those who followed him, being 250 strong, to gather
with Aaron and himself the next day before the door of the tabernacle
of the congregation with their censers, fire, and incense. He also reminded Korah of the
honor that was bestowed upon his house to bear the holy things
of the tabernacle. And he pointed out that this
challenge was not simply against Aaron. but was against the Lord. In verse 11 he says, speaking to Korah, for which
cause both thou and all thy company are gathered together against
the Lord? And what is Aaron that you murmur
against him? Korah found this acceptable and
he agreed to Moses' word. I found it interesting in reading
this that Moses didn't call all the congregation of Israel together
to the temple that next morning. It was Korah that brought these
men. Love covereth multitude of evils. And Moses wasn't willing
to make Korah a public example. But it was Korah lifted in pride
and arrogance, feeling assured that he was correct in challenging
Moses and Aaron, that he gathered all the congregation to come
and watch as Moses and Aaron, he was certain, would be disgraced. As Korah led the congregation
against Moses, look in verse 20. And the Lord spake unto Moses
and unto Aaron, saying, Separate yourselves from among this congregation,
that I may consume them in a moment. But look how quickly these men
interceded on behalf of the people. Verse 22. And they, Moses and
Aaron, fell upon their faces and said, O God, the God of the
spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and wilt thou be wroth
with all the congregation? How often do we find Moses interceding
on the behalf of Israel over and over again throughout their
journey? Every time they murmured against
the Lord, we find Moses interceding on their behalf. And once again,
God heard his prayer and acted in mercy towards Israel again.
In verse 23 and 24, the Lord sent his messenger to warn the
people. Verse 23, And the Lord spake
unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the congregation, saying, Get
you up from the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. And
Moses rose up and went to Dathan and Abiram, and the elders of
Israel followed him. And in grace, God led the people
to hear the warning of Moses, and they departed from Dathan
and Abiram. Korah wasn't interested in leading
the people. He wanted the honor of the priesthood
for himself. So he had stayed behind with
Aaron at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. After the
people separated themselves from Dathan and Abiram, Moses let
it be known how the Lord would show that he was his appointed
messenger and the anointed of God. that the men with Dathan
and Abiram would be swallowed by the earth." Immediately after
Moses gave this word, the Lord did just that. And the earth
swallowed Dathan, Abiram, their families, their goods, everything
pertaining to them was swallowed by the earth. The people of Israel
ran from the scene, fearing that the same punishment would fall
upon them. And at the same time, fire came
from the Lord and consumed the 250 men standing with their censers
of incense, leaving Aaron, the high priest, alone. One would think that after seeing
such judgment fall quickly, that all thought of rebellion would
be set aside, at least for a little while. But sin is what we are. Sin is our nature. Rebellion
is all we know. And the very next morning, verse
41 says, But on the morrow, all the congregation of the children
of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron, saying, Ye
have killed the people of the Lord. The people have moved on from
the rebellion of the day before, which was to unseat Moses and
Aaron. They just wanted their position.
This morning, they're out for blood. Now they accuse them of
murdering the people of the Lord. As Cain, who was angry at God
for not accepting his sacrifice, could not lash out at God himself. Turned upon his brother and murdered
him. So these people, knowing that
Moses didn't have the power to have the earth open and consume
their brethren, turn upon him. They can't touch the God that
did this, but they can touch his messenger, his anointed. But the Lord did not forsake
his anointed men. Verse 42 says, And it came to
pass, when the congregation was gathered against Moses and against
Aaron, that they looked toward the tabernacle of the congregation,
and behold, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord
appeared, and Moses and Aaron came before the tabernacle of
the congregation. While they were there, the Lord
commanded them again to separate themselves from the congregation,
that they be not consumed with them. And now, I hope we will
see the glory of mercy and the love of our great high priest
that is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God. Before
Adam rose in rebellion, before I uttered out my first cry of
murmuring against him, my Lord stood as my high priest. Using
Aaron here as the type of our Lord that he is, may we learn
more of him who loved us and gave himself for us. Let's read
Numbers 16, 46 through 50 together. And Moses said unto Aaron, take
a censer and put fire therein from off the altar and put on
incense and go quickly unto the congregation and make an atonement
for them For there is wrath gone out from the Lord. The plague
is begun. And Aaron took as Moses commanded
and ran into the midst of the congregation. And behold, the
plague was begun among the people. And he put on incense and made
an atonement for the people. And he stood between the dead
and the living, and the plague was stayed. Now they that died
in the plague were 14,700, beside them that died about the manner
of Korah. And Aaron returned unto Moses
unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and the
plague was stayed. I want to call out five things
from these verses of scripture to our attention. First, the
love of the high priest to his people. the preparation of the
high priest, the atonement made, the results of the atonement,
and finally, the last state of the high priest. First, look
at the love Aaron showed towards the people. Verse 47 says, Aaron
ran into the midst of the congregation. At this point, Aaron is probably
over 100 years old. When they left Egypt, I think
Aaron was about 83. Moses was about 80. So he's likely
100 plus at this point. He has been journeying with these
people for a long time, and he has witnessed them time and again
murmur against Moses and against himself. And just this morning,
they came wanting his blood. All the same, he didn't delay
in going out to them to intercede on their behalf, but he ran into
their midst. The just condemnation of God
is upon them. He himself has nothing to fear
while he's in the tabernacle with Moses. He's no reason to
leave there. If he departs, he may well be
identified with them, and the plague, the wrath may fall upon
him. Still he goes out quickly, for
the matter is urgent. Our Lord saw us in our fallen
estate, dead in trespasses and sins, separated from God, the wrath of God abiding justly
upon us for the sins that we have committed against him. Yet
in love, first for his father, then for those to whom the father
gave him, he ran, as it were, to our aid. Having no sin of his own, He
had no reason to fear, no reason to dread God's wrath upon him,
but knowing that if intercession were not made, there could be
no peace between God and men. Everything that follows, all
the rest of the acts that the high priest did on this day for
the people, would be meaningless if it wasn't for his love that
he had for those people. Because of his love for his people,
the high priest made his preparation. Out of love, he made the atonement.
Had Aaron not loved these people, he would not have been willing
to run into their midst. And had Christ not loved us,
we would have perished in our sins. Seeing the love of Aaron, the
high priest, now we see his preparation. Verse 46, and Moses said unto
Aaron, take a censer, and put fire therein from off the altar,
and put on incense, and go quickly unto the congregation, and make
an atonement for them. For there is wrath gone out from
the Lord. The plague is begun. Aaron didn't
leave the tabernacle empty-handed. He dare not intercede on behalf
of the people with his own merits or his own righteousness, even though he were a high priest.
This very Aaron had made a golden calf for the people to worship
not that long ago after they left Egypt. Aaron came not in
his own righteousness, But he came the way the Lord had commanded,
with a censer of fire from off the altar. He came with a sacrifice. Christ Jesus, our high priest,
also came prepared for interceding on our behalf. Hebrews 10.5 says,
a body hast thou prepared me. A body was prepared for him that
he might identify with us. that he might know our frame
and the infirmities of our flesh. He came as the God-man. As God,
he is able to satisfy his own law and to keep it perfectly.
As man, he can pay the sin debt of death that we owe. Aaron the high priest loved the
people and he ran to their aid and he came prepared to intercede. and he made an atonement for
the people. I don't know, my mind can't,
I don't know if any of us can imagine what it was that Aaron
was running into. 14,700 people died this very morning. Hold your place here and turn
with me to Psalm 91. Psalm 91. The psalm doesn't declare who
penned it, but could it be that the events
of this day were on the writer's mind? Psalm 91, we'll begin reading
in verse five. Psalm 91.5. Thou shalt not be
afraid for the terror by night, nor for the arrow that flyeth
by day, nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness, nor
for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall
fall at thy side, and 10,000 at thy right hand, but it shall
not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou
behold and see the reward of the wicked. Back in Numbers, Aaron ran into
the midst of death and put on incense and made an atonement
for the people. As heinous a scene as we can
imagine Aaron running into, pales in comparison to the scene
our Lord came into. He who is life came and dwelt
with death. While Aaron carried the censer
far from the altar and burned incense, our great high priest
was led to Calvary's tree where he was hung upon that tree, shedding
his precious blood and making an everlasting atonement. What were the results of this
atonement that was made? Verse 48. And he, Aaron the high priest,
stood between the dead and the living and the plague was stayed. Aaron, with the burning incense,
stands between the dead and the living. What about that atonement
stop this plague? The incense that Aaron offered
pointed to the coming of our Lord and his shed blood. That's what made Aaron's atonement
effectual to stop the plague. Those who remained alive Were
they not as guilty as those who died? Yes, they were. The difference was the atonement
was between them and the plague. Consider these questions as I
answer them for myself. Am I guilty of sinning against
God? Have I murmured against his anointed? Have I murmured against his providence? To my great shame, I have to
say yes to all those. And even greater shame than that,
after the Lord has been merciful to me and revealed Christ in
me, I still do the same thing. One more question. just in case
I might have any trust to place on not having broken his law,
just in case I believe, as Paul once did, that I stand perfect
before his law. Have I, whether awake, asleep,
from conception to this very moment, kept in word, thought,
and deed the great commandment, thou shalt love the Lord thy
God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy
mind. No, not a single moment in all
my life have I done this of my own accord. In breaking one commandment,
I justly deserve God's wrath. But I have hope. Christ Jesus
came into the world to save sinners. Bearing our sin upon that tree,
shedding his blood for our sin, he has made atonement for his
called elect sinners. those given to him by the Father
before the foundation of the world. When the accuser of the
brethren stands and declares all that I have done against
God, Christ stands and points to his
wounds and says, those sins are covered by my atonement. To condemn
that sinner that Christ has died for would require the justice
and holiness of God to trample underfoot the atonement of Christ. And that can never happen. Finally, what is the last state
of this loving, prepared high priest who made atonement for
the people and stopped the plague? Verse 50. And Aaron returned
unto Moses unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation,
and the plague was stayed. Having provided the atonement
for their sin, Aaron returned to the tabernacle with Moses,
our high priest. After he had shed his blood,
was buried, and on the third day he rose again to send back
to his father where he ever lives as our high priest making intercession
for us. To close, I want to turn to two
passages of scripture. First, let's open to Romans chapter
five. Romans chapter five. Verse 8, and we have a high priest who
loves us, even in our unlovable and hateful state. Romans 5,
8, but God commendeth his love toward
us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more, then, being now justified
by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if,
when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death
of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved
by His life. And not only so, but we also
joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received
the atonement. And then our high priest offered
his own blood, an everlasting atonement which atones eternally.
Turn over to Hebrews chapter 9. Those that were spared the wrath
of God on that day by Aaron's atonement faced another day when
another atonement had to be made for them. But Christ, our great high priest,
has put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. Hebrews 9, verse
11. But Christ, being come and high
priest of good things to come, by greater and more perfect tabernacle,
not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building,
neither by the blood of goats and cows, but by his own blood,
he entered in once unto the holy place, having obtained eternal
redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls and
of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean,
sanctifyeth to the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall
the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself
without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to
serve the living God? Now skip over to verse 24. For
Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands,
which are the figures of the true, but into heaven itself,
now to appear in the presence of God for us. Nor yet that he
should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into
the holy place every year with blood of others. For then must
he often have suffered since the foundation of the world.
But now, once in the end of the world, hath He appeared to put
away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. And as it is appointed
unto men once to die, but after this the judgment, so Christ
was once offered to bear the sins of many. And unto them that
look for Him shall He appear the second time, without sin,
unto salvation." Thank God. We have a loving High Priest. Amen.