“One ordinance shall be both for you of the congregation, and also for the stranger that sojourneth with you, an ordinance for ever in your generations: as ye are, so shall the stranger be before the LORD” (Numbers 15:15).
TEXT — Numbers 15:1-16
Message
One thing that our societies have not been able to eradicate completely is the issue of class differences. Though there have been efforts to bring about equal treatment of all classes of people in the society, there are still evidences of discrimination. No matter how we may try, the president of a nation cannot be treated the same way as the ordinary man on the street. The rich and highly placed enjoy privileges which those on the lower strata of the society cannot benefit from.
In our passage, God emphasises to the children of Israel through Moses that one law is to govern everyone in the community. There should be no discrimination between the citizens and the strangers among them. The standard that governs the manner and pattern of worship should be the same for everyone. Everyone is to approach God the same way. The condition of receiving is the same for all.
The condition for salvation is the same for all. The death and sacrifice of Jesus is for all: Jews, Gentiles, educated, illiterate and the religious. Everyone becomes saved the same way: through repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus. Also, the standard for Christian living is the same for all. There is no different standard for strangers and members, men or women, rich or poor, young or old. The demand of God is the same for all.
Sadly, many assemblies operate different standards for different classes of people in the church. The young people are indulged with a lot of permissiveness as though they have a different heaven from the adults. The children are not presented with the possibility of salvation. They are only left to play and kept away somewhere so they will not disturb their parents during service. Since we believe in one Jesus and hope to get to one heaven, we must keep to the same law.
Listed among “500 most powerful people on the planet” by the Foreign Policy magazine in 2013, Pastor (Dr.) William F. Kumuyi is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry (DCLM) headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria. DCLM started in 1973 as a 15-member Bible study group right in Kumuyi’s apartment at University of Lagos where he was a lecturer. His revolutionary Bible teaching on personal holiness and commitment to evangelism soon gained so much traction and resulted in a widespread revival.
