Connect Numbers 9:13 with New Testament teachings on obedience to God. Numbers 9:13—The Call and the Cost “But if a man who is clean and not on a journey refrains from keeping the Passover, he must be cut off from his people because he did not present the LORD’s offering at its appointed time; that man will bear the consequences of his sin.” Why the Command Matters • Passover commemorated salvation from Egypt; neglect showed disregard for God’s redemptive act. • “Cut off” underscores that disobedience separates from covenant blessings. • Personal accountability—“that man will bear the consequences of his sin.” Foreshadowing Christ, Our Passover • 1 Corinthians 5:7 “For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.” • Participation in Passover anticipated sharing in Christ’s sacrifice; refusal mirrored rejection of the future Messiah. • Obedience to the feast pointed ahead to obedience to the Lamb who fulfills it. New Testament Echoes of Obedience • John 14:15 “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” • Luke 6:46 “Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I say?” • James 4:17 “Whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” • Hebrews 10:26–29 warns of fiercer judgment for willful sin after receiving knowledge of the truth. • 1 John 2:3–4 ties assurance of salvation to keeping His commands. Consequences Then and Now • Old Covenant: physical exclusion (“cut off”). • New Covenant: spiritual distance, loss of fellowship, discipline (Hebrews 12:6), and potential eternal loss for the unbelieving (Hebrews 10:27). • Both covenants affirm that deliberate disobedience has real, not merely symbolic, repercussions. Obedience as Love in Action • Romans 1:5 speaks of “the obedience of faith”—trust that acts. • 1 Peter 1:14–16 calls believers “obedient children” who reflect God’s holiness. • Obedience flows from gratitude for redemption, just as Israel’s Passover obedience flowed from deliverance. Living It Out Today • Treat every command of Christ with the same seriousness Israel owed the Passover. • Approach the Lord’s Supper reverently (1 Corinthians 11:27–29), remembering its Passover roots. • Cultivate prompt obedience; delayed obedience is disobedience. • Rely on the Spirit (Galatians 5:16) to translate love for Christ into daily faithfulness. |
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