Sharpen Your Spears
Reconstructing Christianity does not endorse physical acts of violence. The spear we use today is a sword, God's Holy Word.
The story of Phinehas is one of the most overlooked passages in the scriptures. My personal theory is people skip over this section because it's hard to swallow in our current culture. However, there is true manly beauty to be found in the aggression within these pages.
We open our story in Numbers 25. Conquering Israel is camping out in Acacia Grove, men from the camp begin having sexual relations with foreign women from Moab. "While Israel was staying in Acacia Grove, the people began to have sexual relations with the women of Moab." (Num 25:1 CSB). Israel had started to syncretize with foreign pagan nations, much like our current church today.
"The women invited them to the sacrifices for their gods, and the people ate and bowed in worship to their gods.
3 So Israel aligned itself with Baal of Peor, and the Lord's anger burned against Israel." (Num 25:2-3 CSB).
God commanded these syncretists to be executed to keep His Holy Nation pure and undefiled. It is hard to understate the societal destruction that begins to take place when paganism is allowed into pure religion. But then again, it's right in front of our faces and most of us completely miss it.
"The Lord said to Moses, "Take all the leaders of the people and execute them in broad daylight before the Lord so that His burning anger may turn away from Israel."
5 So Moses told Israel's judges, "Kill each of the men who aligned themselves with Baal of Peor."(Num 25:4-5 CSB).
This is the setup for the hero of our story, Phinehas. We do not know much about this man outside of our little story, but we do learn that he is someone men need to be looking to in our cultural crisis. After God's command not to syncretize an Israelite man parades a pagan woman in front of Moses and the people and brings her into his tent. "An Israelite man came bringing a Midianite woman to his relatives in the sight of Moses and the whole Israelite community while they were weeping at the entrance to the tent of meeting." (Num 25:6 CSB). The sheer boldness of this man's sin. a direct violation after God commanded people to be executed for this very crime. Have no fear though brothers, when there is blatant rebellion, God always raises up some godly testosterone-fueled man to set things right.
"When Phinehas son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw [this], he got up from the assembly, took a spear in his hand,
8 followed the Israelite man into the tent, and drove it through both the Israelite man and the woman-through her belly. Then the plague on the Israelites was stopped," (Num 25:7-8 CSB).
While this man was attempting to destroy Israelite society through his tent curtain, many men were simply sitting around, listening in shock. Not a single masculine cell in their body drives them forward to stop this horrendous act. Not so for Phinehas, he grabs his spear, goes into that tent, and drives them both through. We are told this plague on Israel was stopped with one mere action, no words, just action. And tying all of this together, not only does God allow for this violence to take place, but He blesses it!
"Phinehas son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back My wrath from the Israelites because he was zealous among them with My zeal, so that I did not destroy the Israelites in My zeal.
12 Therefore declare: I grant him My covenant of peace.
13 It will be a covenant of perpetual priesthood for him and his descendants, because he was zealous for his God and made atonement for the Israelites." (Num 25:11-13 CSB).
Where are our modern-day Phinehas' at? J.D. Greear recently stated that the church should be the safest place for LGBTQ+ people to "come out". God's Holy Bride, perverted with sexual sin in its midst. And before you try to nuance Mr. Greear, just know that LGBTQ+ people know exactly what he means when he says "come out". Not only is he syncretizing the Bride of Christ with the culture, but he is also syncretizing Biblical language with pagan language. Greear is just the tip of the iceberg, many more leaders of the church need a good stabbing. Are you the man to do it? Or will you simply sit by and listen to the mockery of God? Be a wall for your family, church, and community, stand in the gap. Not only defend, but take action, take initiative, do not wait for these things to happen, actively protect. It's our duty.
Today we obviously are not called to go around stabbing people. Syncretism comes in different forms today than it did in Biblical times. Today it comes in through cowardice, weak leadership, and desire for
acceptance from the culture. How does it need to be addressed today? 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 rings true,
"For although we live in the flesh, we do not wage war according to the flesh, since the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but are powerful through God for the demolition of strongholds. We demolish arguments and every proud thing that is raised up against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive to obey Christ." (CSB)
At the end of this blog I would like to provide a warning. Follow these principles and you will not be popular, you will be maligned by both those within and outside the church. But men take action, damn the consequences. There are more important things at stake than whether or not we are liked.
Reconstructing Christianity does not endorse physical acts of violence. The spear we use today is a sword, God's Holy Word.
https://www.istockphoto.com/photo/sword-on-old-bible-gm497346457-41764962
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