Save the Day
Today’s Verse:
Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, hath turned my wrath away from the children of Israel, while he was zealous for my sake among them, that I consumed not the children of Israel in my jealousy. ~Numbers 25:11
Someone who saves the day either prevents or stops a major misfortune or problem from happening or continuing. He is heroic. He is one of a kind. He is someone who, by his action and involvement, saves many people from a terrible fate. This morning, we are considering a man named Phinehas. He is a powerful example of a Christian who saved the day.
We see a flagrant act.
The Israelites had joined themselves to Baalpeor. Overnight, they were worshiping the sensuous god of the Moabites. Accompanying their grievous, idolatrous worship was the gross sin of immorality on a national level. So wicked and flagrant was their sin that one man, openly before the eyes of Moses and the leaders of Israel, took a Midianitish woman into his tent. They had lost their sense of the holiness of God. The conscience of the men was seared and evil. No one was ashamed of what they did. Their carnality went from no shame, to no stopping, to no sense.
We see a fiery ardor.
Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, sees this man, Zimri, and the Midianitish woman, Cozbi, go into his tent. Unlike his peers and his elders who do nothing, Phinehas is moved with a fiery ardor to stop this sinful couple from going any further. He takes a javelin, runs into the tent, and thrusts both of these culprits through. God describes Phinehas’ action as being “zealous for my sake.” The Hebrew word for zealous is the same word translated as “envy” or “jealous.” Phinehas demonstrated an intense jealousy for the name and cause of the Lord. Many of us allow the pressure and influence of our peers to affect our intensity. We are thermometer Christians when we should be thermostat Christians. Phinehas stands alone as a man who was not ashamed to show his love for the Lord and jealousy for the Lord’s righteousness. When others had become cold or lukewarm, he exemplified a fiery ardor.
We see a favorable annulment.
His action turned away the wrath of the Lord from Israel. God had sent a deadly plague in the camp of the Israelites to judge their sin. One by one, people were dropping dead from this plague. Yet, it did not seem to bother any of them until Phinehas jumped in. Phinehas saved the day for Israel. His courageous action stopped the plague from taking further lives. When you and I are aggressively and compassionately winning souls to Christ, we are seeking to turn away a sinner from going to Hell. When a sinner accepts Christ as Savior, we are allowing the Lord to use us to save the day.
We see a faithful application.
All of us need to be a Phinehas. We must be willing to stand for God even if our peers and elders do not. We must say like Peter, “We ought to obey God rather than men.” We must be heroic and thrust sinful temptations and tendencies all the way through. We must exert great effort and boldness in our witness so that sinners can be saved from the judgment of God. We must be men and women who are jealous for the Lord’s glory and save the day. We also see one more thing: Phinehas is a type of Christ. Jesus, through His sacrificial death on the cross for every sinner, turned away the wrath of God.
Don’t be passive and let sin abound and people perish in their sins. Be fervently passionate for the Lord’s glory and holiness and stand in the gap. Your courageous act could save the day for others.
Have a zealous God Morning!
Bible Reading Schedule: Joshua 22-24