May 19, 2023

Today's Reading: Numbers 11:24-29, 12:1-16

Daily Lectionary: Numbers 11:24-29, 12:1-16; Luke 17:20-37

“Hear my words: If there is a prophet among you, I the Lord make myself known to him” (Numbers 12:6)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. There was a problem with Moses: He couldn’t do it all. Today, we would have said Moses was close to burnout. There needed to be others to share the burden of spiritual headship. So, seventy men were appointed to serve as elders, and the Lord took some of the Spirit that was on Moses and put it on them. Well, actually, 68 of them were present. When Moses heard of it, he—perhaps in exasperation—says, “Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!” This turned out to be a prophecy.

At Pentecost, the Lord again pours out His Spirit on His people. Peter explains this is something the Lord had promised through Joel: “I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.” (Acts 2:17, Joel 2:28-32) However, Aaron and Miriam show that sin can still spoil God’s work in giving the Spirit.

They became resentful toward Moses saying, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us also?” They wanted to seize the Spirit to give themselves what they considered a promotion. The Lord checks such uppity “spirituality.”

It’s true that the Lord continues to pour out His Spirit on His servants—young and old, men and women. What they all have in common is, “Everyone who calls on the Name of the Lord will be saved” (Joel 2:32). But as Paul teaches in 1 Corinthians 14, the Spirit gives us gifts according to our vocations. Don’t get jealous of your fellow servants, but be content with the vocation He has given you in the Church.

If you are a woman, it’s clear that you are not called to the role of pastor (“public prophesy”). Nevertheless, there are so many other ways the Spirit has gifted you to serve in the Name of Jesus. Parents can delight in prophecy by teaching and modeling the faith to their children. Friends can prophesy by sharing their faith and even inviting others to church. Our Lord Jesus has gifted us with His Spirit, and put each of us exactly where we need to be in His Church to fulfill His purpose.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Almighty and ever-living God, You make us both to will and to do those things that are good and acceptable in Your sight. Let Your fatherly hand ever guide us and Your Holy Spirit ever be with us to direct us in the knowledge and obedience of Your Word that we may obtain everlasting life; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

- Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.

Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.