Talk
This message is for someone who is looking for hope. If you need hope, this message is for you: the reason of the season of your life…
This is the message: Celebrate your appointment.
In the last few weeks, we have been walking through the wilderness and we’ve been seeing the Israelites—how they’ve been dealing with the situation that they’re in, and there’s one recurring theme.
You notice, when you read the book of Numbers, how the Israelites just love to complain? They’re blessed, but… there’s something good, but… There’s always a reason for them to complain.
In Talk No. 3, we saw how the Israelites had manna coming from Heaven— skybread, we said. And yet, they complained– they wanted more variety, they wanted more options. That’s in Talk 3.
And then last Sunday, in Talk 4, we showed you how the Israelites were complaining about this Land that God already promised them—and they were complaining that there were giants in that place. And so, they were afraid—they were operating in fear, not faith.
Today, you’re going to see, we’re going to show you, how the Israelites will
again complain, this time, about the Priesthood. They complain how Moses is being used by God.
They cry out, “Why not us? Why? What makes Moses so special that he’s the only one that God is using?”
When you read through the book of Numbers, from Chapters 1 to 10, you’ll note the Bible says that the Israelites did as the Lord commanded. But then Chapter 11 onwards, it went downhill from there. They became very disobedient.
And it’s like when you’re reading the passage, you’re thinking, “Really? You’re going to complain? Again? Like, this is the third time you’re complaining…”
This reminds me of the story of this man who’s walking around with two friends. The friends saw the guy had bandages on his ears.
One friend, pointing on the guy’s right ear, asks, “Why do you have a bandage on your ear?”
And he says, “I was ironing my shirt one day. The phone rang and I got confused—instead of picking up the phone, I picked up the iron…”
The other friend, pointing at the guy’s other ear, asks, “What about the bandage on your other ear? What is it for?”
“Well, my phone rang again…”
It’s like, what is the intention of the author writing the complaints of the Israelites again and again? What is this pattern all about?
And you’ll see this. It’s about the foolishness of the Israelites. And yet the author does not stop there. He creates another pattern that shows something else…
When you read through all the chapters in the different books and the verses in the book of Numbers, you’ll see that there’s a recurring theme of foolishness.
But you know what else there is? It’s the recurring theme of reminding all of us here of our own stupidity in life—how we repeat mistake after mistake, after mistake.
And also, in the midst of our recurring stupidity, there lies God’s reliable mercy.
How many of you need God’s mercy? Doesn’t it give you joy right now to know that God will continue to grant you His mercy again and again?
But why is it that the Israelites complain? I’ve got a simple reason: It’s because they always compared. Here’s the truth that you can take home today:
Comparing leads you to complaining.
Let me illustrate…
Let me give this bag of popcorn to someone who looks hungry… Please give this to that little girl… This is not planted or anything…
May I put some words in your thoughts now…
You’re probably thinking, “Why is it that she’s the only one who gets the popcorn? What has she got, to be so chosen? Why is she the only one special?”
Because she’s a little girl? Is it because, you know, she looks like she’s hungry?”
See, for a lot of us, that’s the framework of our thinking: When you see somebody holding something that you don’t have, you start thinking, “Why them? And not me?… Why has God blessed her and not me? What is it with her?”
Popcorn for You!
You see, the Israelites, that’s what they did.
They started comparing everything that was happening in their life. They compared their situation in the wilderness to their situation in Egypt.
Remember that? They compared their situation with Moses being the high priest.
And then they even went as far as comparing meat to manna: “Why do we have manna and not meat?”
You see, when you start comparing, that’s when you start complaining:
“Why is it that I don’t have what they have?”
Can you hold out that popcorn bag, little girl? Thank you so much for doing that—just a bit effort.
Did you know that before I gave you that popcorn, that popcorn started out as kernels of corn?
But I needed to put them in the microwave oven so they would pop—I did it just a while ago, so, they’re freshly popped. There are lots, so, you may share them to as many people as you can.
Before I gave you the popcorn, they started as hard kernels. How is popcorn produced? You put the kernels in heat.
But friends, think about it: that little bag of popcorn, it’s a bunch of kernels of corn, stored in the same bag, that’s cooked in the same heat, that’s cooked in the same oil — and yet, not all of the kernels popped at the same time.
What is my point? Stop comparing because your turn to pop will come eventually.
I want you to believe right now: “Hey, eventually, my breakthrough will come. My blessing will come.”
So, stop comparing. Stop complaining.
Instead, what do you do? Start celebrating your anointing. Start celebrating your calling. Start celebrating your God-given appointment.
Everybody, please welcome my dear, dear friend, somebody we love so much, Bro. Bo Sanchez!
BO SANCHEZ: Stand up a bit, raise your hand towards the Word…
Thy Word is a Lamp unto my feet And a Light unto my path.
Put your hand over your chest, and say:
Father, speak to me…
From Numbers 16: 1-3, this is the story of a guy by the name of Korah.
It sounds like Cora—
I know it’s a girl’s name. But Korah, with a K, was the name of a guy from the tribe of Levi.
And something about the Levites, I’m going to explain later.
But this guy, no matter how special the Levites were, his tribe was on a mission, and the appointment that he received, it was not enough. He was comparing – why Moses had the popcorn, and he didn’t.
Conspiracy
But this time, the Levites, some of the Levites, were complaining. One of them, Korah, was complaining why Moses had the popcorn.
And probably, Reuben, the tribe of Reuben, some of these guys—On, Dathan, and Abiram— they conspired.
They said, “Hey, let’s say there’s something wrong here. It’s unfair. Why only they have the popcorn?”
Here’s the paraphrase:
So, I want you to know that this is not new.
Four chapters before this event, the same complaint came from the lips of the sister and brother of Moses — Miriam and Aaron.
This is what they said:
Actually, that was just an excuse – smokescreen.
You know what I’m talking about? When you’re envious or jealous of somebody, you will look for what’s wrong.
But actually, this is the issue:
Which is true. Miriam and Aaron— very important: Aaron, high priest; Miriam, the prophetess…
But there’s something wrong… And that’s what we’re going to talk about today…
Who is Reuben? What’s the tribe of Reuben? Reuben is the eldest of 12 kids.
Now, I want you to think of this—very, very important: Reuben—probably the tribe of Reuben— is saying: “Why the Levites? Our younger sibling gets the special role of being the keeper of the Tabernacle, the sacred instruments of worshipping God. Why them? Why not me? I’m the eldest?”
Put your hand over your chest again, and Everybody, say:
Father, let your Word be so loud in my heart, it will shake me up and remove anything in my life that is pulling me away from you. Purify my soul to be ready for more of You in my life. More blessings– more grace, more abundance, more presence, peace, more love, more joy, more healing.
In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
Thy Word is a Lamp unto my feet And a Light unto my path.
Hyperlinks
I want you to know that the author of Numbers uses hyperlinks– just like Exodus, and just like Leviticus, and just like Genesis.
So, the author uses repetition to be able to wink at you and tell you:
“I’m telling you something that was spoken before. I want you to connect these two things together, these three things together, these ten things together —because they say the same thing.” Miriam-Aaron criticizing Moses.
Siblings—they’re brothers and sister. Korah in the tribe of Levi, criticizing, complaining against Moses.
Wait a minute… Where, again, to what tribe does Korah belong? The coup plotter, the one who wants to do the coup against Moses?
What tribe did Korah come from? Levi!
Moses—what tribe does Moses come from? Levi!
So, Korah was a brother of Moses in the same tribe. So, it’s the same theme— this is a repetition.
This is a wink from the author. This is a hyperlink.
What is he saying?
Now, I want you to know sibling does not only mean blood brother. We’re going to talk today about the evil of sibling envy.
So, the first hyperlinked story that the author of Numbers wants to bring us to is the Cain and Abel story in the book of Genesis.
Cain, the older brother of Abel, what does he do? He kills Abel. Because Abel and Cain, they present an Offering to God and God accepts the younger brother’s Offering—and does not accept Cain’s.
And Cain says, “Why? Why does he have the popcorn? Why not me?” Kill!
Cain and Abel’s story, the refrain, just keeps on repeating, again and again all throughout the Bible: Miriam-Aaron against Moses; Korah complaining about his brother—tribal brother– Moses. Sibling envy. It’s the evil of sibling envy.
My friends, I want you to think about this: Do you know someone in the office, in the family, among your friends, gym-mates, somebody, you know, co-alumni in your school…She was a good person. You know, generally good, generally okay. All of a sudden, it seemed there was a switch—this thing that happened… All of a sudden, she goes against you. Talks about you. Destroys your reputation. Does not want to talk to you anymore. You know, spreads lies about you, wants to step on you, wants to crush you.
You wonder, “What happened? Why? She was supposed to be this good person.
She’s my friend. Why?”
And then you find out why. Later on… Because you got promoted and she didn’t.
This is real. This happens everywhere.
Here’s the problem: They don’t even know they’re envious. Yes, or no?
They don’t. They are oblivious to the fact.
You ask them, “Uy, you’re just envious…?” They reply: “No! I’m not! This is injustice!”
They feel righteous indignation. They’re saying, “I just want to correct the wrong that’s happening here.”
Hmmm. You’re just envious.
The Half-Truth
This is the message here. Let’s examine what Korah said to Moses.
This is what you call a half-truth. It’s a mix of the truth and a lie. And I want you to know this is very dangerous. Why?
Because it is more deceptive.
And so, Korah says, Numbers 16:3:
Question: Is this true, or is this false?
It’s true. In fact, this is a biblically based statement. It comes from where? It comes from
Genesis 12. It comes from Genesis 28. It’s all over the place.
This is true. But he mixed it with a lie. What’s the lie? Next statement:
That’s a lie. Why?
God really told Moses to be their overall leader– Exodus 3, and so on… I mean, God really said, “Moses, you’re going to be the leader.”
Be wary, be very concerned, and be afraid of half-truths. Because a half-truth is a mixture of truth and a mixture of lie.
You know, I have a prayer. Let’s pray this prayer against half-truth:
Lord, if I believe in half-truth—any half-truth—bonk me on the head.
That’s my prayer. I pray it a lot because I can actually fall and slip into a half-truth.
Moses’ Response
This is Moses’ response to Korah: Love, love, love. Love is Moses’ response to Korah:
Moses is saying, “Korah, hello! May popcorn ka rin, e.
—You also have popcorn. It’s just in a different package—just a different brand. How special is your appointment! Korah, God has already given this special ministry to you and your fellow Levites. You know, the Levites are so special. Are you now demanding the priesthood as well?”
Friends, I need you to say this: Celebrate your appointment.
Korah comes from the Kohathites. This is their duty—Numbers 4, this is way in front of the book:
They were the keepers of the most sacred objects of the Tabernacle.
They were to construct, they were to carry Tabernacle.
That’s their work.
What Is Your Work?
You know, when I was reading about this, when I was unpacking this, I was reminded of one person I meet regularly. At The Feast in PICC, there’s a waiter at the backstage.
His name is Eugene. Eugene serves us coffee, or whatever. The first time I had a conversation with Eugene, this is how it went:
I asked him, “What’s your name?” He says, “Eugene, po.”
And, I don’t know when he said this— maybe the third or fourth sentence.
He said, “Bro. Bo, I have served four Philippine Presidents.”
Of course—PICC—Philippine International Convention Center. Global events, international events. So, Eugene has served four Philippine Presidents. I like that.
That’s how he introduced himself. He does not see himself as a waiter. He sees himself as a waiter of Presidents. That’s different.
You have a different stand. A different smile. A different perception of yourself. What is your work? “Waiter lang, po.”
What’s your work? “I’m a waiter of Presidents.” My dear friends, I’ve got news for you.
You do not serve Presidents. You serve the King of Kings. That’s what you do.
You serve Him in your family. Are you a son, are you a daughter serving your parents? You do not serve your parents only. You are serving the King of Kings.
Are you a husband? Are you a wife? Are you a mother serving your children?
You are serving not your kids. You are serving the King of Kings.
Are you an accountant? Are you an engineer? Are you a salesman?
Are you in customer service? Are you in a communication hub holding a phone?
My dear friends, you’re not serving your customers only. You’re serving the King of Kings.
When you go home, I want you to understand that your most important title in the world is not accountant, it’s not controller, it’s not customer service, it’s not doctor, it’s not nurse, it’s not teacher. Your title should be—and that’s something you chew on before you sleep and when you wake up in the morning:
I am a servant of the Almighty God.
That’s who you are.
What Is Your Appointment?
When I meet an usher, when I meet a person in our awesome Kids Ministry, and when I meet somebody backstage who you don’t see, you don’t even know the name—the person with the headphone. These people come here at 6:00 a.m. and they are the last persons to leave– these people you do not know… I think, it might be easy for them to be discouraged because these people— you know, nobody applauds them…
Everybody applauds me. Everybody applauds Audee. They don’t applaud the people who are there with the collection basket… These are the people— the security people, the people in the parking lot helping you park your car… the volunteers who serve coffee at the lobby… These people are nameless and faceless. And they do not get any applause.
How do they sustain their service week after week after week, after week? I’ll tell you how:
They tell themselves, “I’m serving the King. I’m serving the Almighty God.
I am a servant of the Living God.”
I want you to put your hands over your chest and say that with me:
I am serving the Almighty God.
That’s who you are. That’s your title.
We’re servants of the King. You do not compare. You do not say,
“Why does he have more? Why is his title better? Why does he have this prestige? Why not me?”
Saint Paul said the same message way forward into the New Testament.
He said:
Two Women’s Appointment
Saint Paul was right. When I think of all this, I’m reminded of one person in my life.
You know, think about it: She’s there—the lovely girl who got my coat a while ago. She does not preach. She does not want to. We force her once in a while.
But you see, that’s not her appointment. God appointed me to be a preacher. God appointed her to love the preacher.
Am I happy, or am I happy? That’s her appointment.
God has an appointment for you. You don’t compare. You don’t. My Mom did not preach—could not preach, either.
When I was 14 years old, I remember, my mom and my dad, they came up to me and said, “We’re going to start a little prayer meeting in our garage. We’ll call our group Light of Jesus—and Bo, you’re going to be the leader… Because you know how to preach.”
My Mom’s role was to believe in the preacher.
Ha-ha. That was her role.
I remember, I was 13 years old. I would be invited to different prayer groups to preach.
Can you just imagine? I was 13, I was thin—I’m thin now—I was thinner. I was smaller. I was ugly, yes, yeah, absolutely—past tense—was ugly.
I remember I would be invited to the prayer group. And I am there. You know, the moment
I am onstage, there is this woman coming somewhere from the back, walking through the aisle… I don’t not see her face. Why? Because she’s carrying this huge cassette recorder over her shoulder… Of course, I know who she is—her dress looks familiar…And then she sits there… I preach… At the end of my talk, you know, I go home… Once home, I hear myself… I am hearing myself… My Mom is in her bedroom, playing the recording of my talk.
I knock on the door and tell her, “Mom, you were there. You were there when I was giving a talk You just heard me live, and then now you’re listening to my recording… Why?”
You know, my Mom opens the door a bit, and says, “I’m busy. Good night.” Boom. She closes the door.
She believed in me so much – which made it easier for me to believe that God believes in me.
That was her role in my life.
You need to accept and celebrate your appointment.
Second Story: Adam and Eve Switching Labels
There is a second story in the book of Numbers where the author hyperlinks this entire Korah rebellion to.
It’s, of course, obviously, the Adam and Eve story. This is what Korah and the rebels were saying:
Moses called them already, but they did not want to go with him…
Is there something wrong with what they were saying?
What was the land of milk and honey? Was it Egypt? No! What was happening here? We talked about this last week. These rebels… switching labels of good and evil.
When you redefine good and bad apart from God, you do it on your own.
You switch the labels: the good becomes bad; the bad becomes good.
You’re switching labels. That is an Adam and Eve move. In Adam and Eve, temptation: “Eat the fruit.”
Why eat the fruit? God said that’s bad. But the Serpent says, no, it’s good. When you redefine good and bad, that is it: The Adam and Eve Fall.
Korah and the rebels are doing it: “You, Moses, you drove us out of Egypt— a land of flowing milk and honey.”
Huh? Egypt—that’s slavery.
You were under cruel slavery. What are you talking about?
Like slaves. This is the inversion. This is what happens.
And this is our temptation, my friends. And so, this is what has happened:
God’s Response
This is how God responded to these rebels:
My dear friends, what is this?
Bro. Bo, how scary! The Lord punished them!
Please know that this is an ancient book. An ancient literature has a very different way of conveying a message. You know what that incident was saying?
De-Creation.
Remember in the book of Genesis, when God created man? Man came from the earth. And now, the rebels are swallowed up by the earth.
It’s called de-Creation. What does it mean?
When you separate yourself from God and start redefining good and bad for yourself—apart from Him… This is good—it’s already bad. This is bad—it’s already good… You know, when you switch labels, what happens is de-Creation.
God is the source of Life. God is the source of joy. God is the source of peace.
When you separate yourself from God, you’re separating yourself from joy, from peace, from love. That’s what happens.
And so, in our life, we experience that– when we separate ourselves from God.
But you see, many more people would have died. Because a lot of people followed Korah and the rebels.
It says in the book of Numbers:
So many people! It was a coup d’etat!
They wanted to kick out Moses.
God Sends a Mediator
God, He sent a mediator. A mediator of mercy. That’s what God does.
The mediator’s name was Moses. I love this guy. Look at this guy…
People want to remove you. People hate you. People don’t like you.
They’ve sworn against you…
What does Moses do? Read 16: 22:
He prays to God to have mercy.
Do you know of another mediator who did that?
The Greatest Mediator of all history. He hung upon the Cross.
There were people who hated Him so much. But this is what Jesus did…
He said:
The Greatest Mediator of the Universe is here in our midst…
Have you fallen into envy? Or have you falling into complaining? Or have you been redefining good and bad apart from Him, from God? Have you not trusted Him enough that He will bless you if you follow Him?
Whatever situation you are in, here is a Mediator who says,
“I’m on your side. You know, you’ve fallen, you’ve made mistakes… I’m on your side… I really am…”
Let’s receive that mercy today.
Your Appointment
God has appointed you. And your first appointment is not to serve Him. Your first appointment is to be close to Him.
I want you to believe in that.
I want you to give yourself to Him. Put your hand over your chest, and Everybody, say:
Jesus, thank You for being my channel of mercy. I receive Your love. And I ask You, help me celebrate my appointment to be close to You. And to serve You for the rest of my life. Amen.
‘Here I Am, Lord’
Maybe there are people here … You’ve fallen… You’ve made mistakes… I want you to know that you can come to Jesus now, and just say, “Lord, help me to follow You for the rest of my life. I’ve made bad decisions. I’ve tasted de-Creation in my life. But hey,
I want to report back for duty. I want to celebrate my appointment. You’ve appointed me to be close to You. You’ve appointed me to serve You.
To be a servant of the Almighty God. To serve the King of Kings. I like that, Lord. In my life, in my job, in my ministry. So, here I am, Lord, I want to give myself to You.
If you’re ready to say this prayer, let’s do it.
Put your hand over your chest, or lift up your hand, whatever makes you feel comfortable, and say:
Jesus, I’m Yours. I accept You as my King. And I will serve You for the rest of my life. Life is short but this short life I’m giving to You. I want to follow You. I want to trust You I want to believe in You and I am Yours. I belong to You.
Amen!
