Numbers 28-29 record an extensive list of offerings the people of Israel were to present to the LORD. The first offering listed was the “daily” offering, and was to be presented 365 days a year. All the other offerings were in addition to the daily offering. The Sabbath offering was to be presented each week. An additional offering was to be presented on the first day of each month. Then we are presented with a list of offerings for the various holy days of the Jews. These offerings include: animal sacrifices, grain, and “alcoholic drink.” The number of animals and quantity of grain and alcohol varied with the particular holy day or feast being celebrated, but the principle is clear: God is to be worshiped through the giving of offerings daily. While we no longer present such offerings to the LORD, the principle applies to us as well. We speak often of presenting our time, talent, treasure and touch to the LORD as a response of gratitude for who He is and all He has done in our lives. The practice is not just for Sunday, or the weekend, but is to be carried out daily. As we become more and more generous with our time, talents, treasure and touch, we reflect the heart of God who is the most generous being in the universe. While the extent of the sacrifices God required of the Israelites, might seem significant to us, let’s remember every animal, quart of grain, or ounce of alcoholic drink given and poured out as offerings to God were provided by God in the first place. The same is true for us. God created us, and God gives us every good and perfect gift we possess. That we are here to present our time, talents, treasure and touch in offering to the LORD and in service to others is a gift God has first given to us. All we give is merely a response of gratitude to Him, and a token of His great blessing to us.
Numbers 30 offers us a restatement of laws concerning vows and pledges. The principles we learned in past chapters and books are the same: If a man made a vow, he was bound by it. If a woman made a vow and her father or husband didn’t object the day he heard of it, the vow stood. But the father or husband had the right to nullify the vow or pledge when he first heard of it. When Jesus came to earth, He would tell us not to make vows or pledges, but simply to say, “Yes,” or “No.” In Moses’ time, the vows and pledges people made demonstrated their commitment to the LORD. The LORD called them to honor those vows and pledges or suffer consequences for it. Once Jesus came and established the new covenant, and gave each of us the Holy Spirit to empower us to carry out our commitments, He removed the requirement for the external vow or pledge to keep us to our commitments. That does not mean our yeses, or noes are not binding. It means we don’t need an external source of confirmation to make them binding.
John 12 marks the turning point in John’s gospel. From here to the end of it, Jesus moved toward His death and resurrection. The first significant sign of that transition was Mary’s anointing of Jesus at their home in Bethany. While some complained of the “waste” of the money, because the ointment could have been sold and the money given to the poor, Jesus affirmed Mary’s extravagance, and said she was preparing His body for burial. (As a side note, some religious leaders were in attendance at this event, and they decided not only to kill Jesus, but Lazarus as well, because Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead. Killing Lazarus would remove some of the evidence of Jesus’ miraculous power.)
The next significant moment in John 12 was the triumphal entry. While all four gospels record this event, only John tells us they put palm branches on the path before Jesus. This is where we get the term “Palm Sunday,” in reference to the day of the triumphal entry. In the remainder of the chapter, Jesus told the crowds of His impending death. They didn’t understand, because in their view the Christ or Messiah was to live forever. They couldn’t understand how Jesus could say He must be “lifted up” or crucified. As we remember from John 3, this method of death, was foretold by Jesus, and His cross would have the same saving effect eternally, that Moses’ bronze serpent had physically for the Israelites, when they were bitten by the poisonous snakes the LORD sent as punishment for their disobedience. The Jews continued their disbelief and unwillingness to trust Jesus as Messiah.