Trumpets In The Wilderness

Holland Davis

Tested Faith • Sermon • Submitted 4 years ago

Numbers 10:1–10

Prayer

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The Silver Trumpets (chatzotzrot) were used to call the nation to war and worship.

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INTRODUCTION: NUMBERS 10

· TO RECAP: In Leviticus 1 God calls Israel to draw near to Him and to be completely dedicated to Him

· In Numbers 1-6 God presents Israel with the Ketubah, the Covenant promising an eternal relationship with Israel

· The blessing at the end of Numbers 6 is God’s gift to Israel should they accept His Covenant and become separate for God alone

· In Numbers 7 Israel accepts the Covenant by presenting offerings... which always speaks of drawing near to God

· In chapter 10 of Numbers, God is preparing Israel to leave Mount Sinai and journey to the Promised Land God prepared for them.

· God commands Moses to make 2 silver trumpets that are to be used to communicate from God to the people

Numbers 10:1–2 (NKJV)

10 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 2 “Make two silver trumpets for yourself; you shall make them of hammered work; you shall use them for calling the congregation and for directing the movement of the camps.

· These trumpets are different than the “shofar”

· In Hebrew they are called “chatzotzrot” and they are made out of hammered silver... not a piece of dead flesh like a “shofar”

· They were only to be used by the sons of Aaron (the Kohanim)

· On the first day of a Feast Date or New Moon, only one shofar was used to announce the beginning of the celebration to the people

· But up to 120 silver trumpets could be used and every time they are mentioned, some variation of the word “remembrance” occurs

· Thus the silver trumpets represent a call to remembrance

The silver trumpets had 2 primary purposes... war and worship

Numbers 10:9 (NKJV)

9 “When you go to war in your land against the enemy who oppresses you, then you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, and you will be remembered (here’s this word remembrance) before the Lord your God, and you will be saved from your enemies.

The first purpose was to assemble the nation for war

· Notice it says... when you go to war, not if you go to war but “WHEN”

· There is a reality that you and I must face in this wilderness called life

· Whether we are aware of it or not, there is a spiritual battle being waged all around us and we are in a state of war against Satan and his demons

Paul says we do not wrestle against flesh and blood

Ephesians 6:12 (NKJV)

12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

· The word wrestle is in the Present Active Indicative Tense which indicates that you and I are in a continuous lifestyle of spiritual warfare

· This is not a possibility or a probability but a fact

· We are at war... but notice who the enemy is...

· Paul says we’re not fighting against flesh and blood... against people

· People are not the enemy... the enemy is the enemy... people are casualties of war, held captive by the power of Satan over their life

· SIDE NOTE: When you don’t forgive, you open yourself to demonic manipulation and torture. When you give into idolatry through addiction, you open yourself to demonic control. (Forgive, Walk In Freedom)

The enemy is spiritual and there are 4 realms of battle...

· Principalities (which are the same demonic powers that have been around from the beginning)

o Molech is the false god behind abortion

o Baal is the false god behind pornography

o Ishtar is the false god behind false religions

· Powers is the word “exousia” which speaks of legal power or power that is gained through the law

· Rulers of darkness speaks of world influencers who are in places of authority over governments and world organizations (social media)

o Think of this... CNN has a viewership of 1.95 million... Donald Trump’s twitter account is 87.3 million... who has more influence?

· Hosts of wickedness speaks of those who use their position of influence to promote perversion (Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift)

· TRUTH: The devil is a terrorist... he hides behind people, he manipulates and uses people, he manipulates emotions, he is a master of disinformation and psychological warfare

· The Bible says he is a liar from the beginning

Because the enemy is spiritual... our weapons must be spiritual

2 Corinthians 10:3–4 (NKJV)

3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds

Ephesians 2 tells us what 2 of these weapons are...

Ephesians 6:17–18 (NKJV)

17 the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit

· The two weapons we have in our arsenal are God’s Word and prayer

· I would also want to interject the charismas (referred to as gifts) of the Spirit because it is through the charismas of the Spirit that God’s grace (charis) sets captives free from demonic bondage

· If you want to learn more about operating in the gifts of the Spirit I would encourage you to attend our Afterglow Service

The first weapon Paul mentions is God’s Word

· God’s Word is truth and Jesus said you will know the truth and the truth will make you free...

Psalm 107:20 (NKJV)

20 He sent His word and healed them (made them healthy physically and spirituall), And delivered them from their destructions.

· God’s Word brings freedom to the prisoners of war

The second weapon Paul mentions is prayer

· But not just any kind of prayer... persevering prayer in the Spirit

· NOTICE: Paul says... praying always with all prayer and supplication

· Praying always means “at all times” and “through all times” from beginning to the end

· It’s prayer that doesn’t stop until the job is finished... it perseveres

· Not only must we pray persevering prayers, but we must pray in the Spirit... which means praying in tongues

There are times we don’t know how to pray... but the Spirit does

Romans 8:26–27 (NKJV)

26 Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27 Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

· In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul says when I pray in the Spirit I am praying directly to God (which means Satan can’t understand you or harass you)

· And Romans 8 says when I pray in the Spirit and I’m praying according to the will of God (which means every prayer you pray will be answered)

· Now who doesn’t want to pray God’s will perfectly 100% of the time?

· Who doesn’t want to pray unhindered prayers?

· If you haven’t received the grace to pray in the Spirit, simply ask for it and receive it by faith because God wants you to fight a good warfare

The second purpose of the silver trumpets was worship

Numbers 10:10 (NKJV)

10 Also in the day of your gladness, in your appointed feasts, and at the beginning of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; and they shall be a memorial for you before your God: I am the Lord your God.”

· Notice they were to blow the trumpets in the appointed feasts and over their burnt offerings and their peace offerings

· Whenever you see the word feasts... you should think worship

· Whenever you see the word offerings... you should think drawing near

· Whenever you see burnt offerings... you should think total surrender to God, total dedication to God

· Whenever you see peace offerings... you should think fellowship with God and giving thanks to God

· Thus we see the purpose for corporate worship

· It is to say with one voice... thank you for all you’ve done

· It is to draw near to and to fellowship with God and each other as one

· It is to affirm our love for God by submitting ourselves to God and surrendering ourselves completely to God as one offering

Psalm 95:1–3 (NKJV)

1 Oh come, let us sing to the Lord! Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation. 2 Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving; Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms. 3 (AND HERE’S WHY) For the Lord is the great God, And the great King above all gods.

Psalm 29:2 (NKJV)

2 Give unto the Lord the glory due to His name; Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.

1 Peter 2:9 (NKJV)

9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;

Now... I want you to understand the WHY OF WORSHIP

· IT’S TRUE! We are created to give glory to God... that’s where we find our greatest fulfillment

· BUT that is not why we give glory to God

· We give glory to God because He has brought us out of darkness into His marvelous light... not just light... but marvelous light

· So it’s not that we worship God or else... God doesn’t force us to worship Him... we worship Him because He’s good

· But there is one more dimension of worship that is not spoken of often and that is worship is warfare!

Isaiah 30:29–32 (NKJV)

29 You shall have a song As in the night when a holy festival is kept, And gladness of heart as when one goes with a flute, To come into the mountain of the Lord, To the Mighty One of Israel. 30 The Lord will cause His glorious voice to be heard, And show the descent of His arm, With the indignation of His anger And the flame of a devouring fire, With scattering, tempest, and hailstones. 31 For through the voice of the Lord Assyria will be beaten down, As He strikes with the rod. 32 And in every place where the staff of punishment passes, Which the Lord lays on him, It will be with tambourines and harps; And in battles of brandishing He will fight with it.

Now I want you to picture what is happening

· As you worship the LORD... as your praises ascend to heaven... the enemy is beaten down... how awesome is that!

· As you sing to the LORD... come to the mountain of the LORD... dance and play songs of praise to the LORD... the LORD fights your battles

· He devours the enemy with His all-consuming fire

Now there is one more thing I want to share about the silver trumpets

· They are made out of silver which is symbolic of redemption

· Remember... every time the silver trumpets are mentioned they are associated with some form of the word “remembrance”

· What are you to remember? That you are redeemed

When you go to war... remember, you are redeemed

· God is the One who redeemed you, delivered you, rescued you, healed you, saved you, restored you

· He is the God who will not only protect you, but fight for you and He never loses a battle

Colossians 2:15 (NKJV)

15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.

When you worship... remember, you are redeemed

· That is the basis of our worship

· I am so thankful for all God has done in my life... how can I not praise Him... how can I not glorify Him...

Psalm 103:1–8, 10-12 (NKJV)

1 Bless the Lord, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name! 2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits: 3 Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, 4 Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, 5 Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. 8 The Lord is merciful and gracious, Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. 10 He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor punished us according to our iniquities. 11 For as the heavens are high above the earth, So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; 12 As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us... and Psalms 103 ends with.. Bless the LORD, O my soul!

· In war and in worship... we never forget that it is God who brought us out of darkness into His glorious light... and has accepted us in the beloved

· This is the significance of the silver trumpets... they remind us... we are at war, we are created for worship and we are accepted by God

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