A Direct Connection

"...at his word they shall go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he and all the Israelites with him, the whole congregation." Numbers 29:21

Connecting with God
By Rev. William Dohle

Sometimes I wish I could sit down with God, face to face, and talk with him. Don't you? To know what God knows and understand what God understands. That would be awesome!

I know it's impossible. A mere mortal talking to the divine. Such a feat wasn't even possible for Moses who is said to have spoken personally with God. Moses caught God's backside, not his face.

But sometimes when I'm praying it'd be nice to have a direct answer instead of an inferred one. Sometimes I'd just like someone to talk to, face to face. To know what God thinks right then.

As Moses retires from being the leader of the Israelites, the people lose this direct communication. They lose a face to face interaction with the divine.

Earlier in the Exodus and throughout the wilderness, whenever Moses needed an answer, Moses would "inquire of the Lord" and the Lord would meet Moses in the tent of meeting. From the burning bush through the encounter at Sinai, God had always spoken and interacted with Moses directly. In the wilderness, at the tent of meeting, Moses would hear what God had to say and then pass that onto the people. It was as direct of a connection as anyone ever had.

But after Moses retires, that direct connection stops. God doesn't establish that direct line with anyone else. Instead, Joshua son of Nun is instructed to hear God's word through the Urim.

"But he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire for him by the decision of the Urim before the Lord." (Num 27:21).

What is the Urim, you ask. It's a divination tool, used to discern the will of the Lord. In a way, it's an ancient Magic 8 ball. The priest inquires of the Lord and consults the Urim and the Urim reveals the will of God.

Quite a difference from the face to face interaction the people had in the wilderness, huh?

So why would God change the way he interacted with his people? Why would the people suddenly start communicating with him via a Magic 8 ball tool?

As you read the Scriptures from the start all the way through, the way God communicates changes. In the beginning, God is walking in the garden, creating things with God's voice, and hovering visably over everything. In the Exodus, God does great deeds of power and leads his people out with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.

But then, starting here, God takes a step backward. God starts communicating through Prophets and priests who receive God's Word via tradition and vision.

So why the transformation from direct conversation to indirect? What's going on here?

Perhaps God was expanding the ways he would communicate with his people. Instead of relying upon the word of one person(a person whose word may be fallible) his people would have to discern for themselves what God's will was. Perhaps he was helping his people infer what to do. Or perhaps God was preparing the people for incarnation, where God would reside not in a tent or a temple but body of one man, Jesus, and thus in the hearts and lives of all.

For whatever the reason, we see the results of that decision today. For, listening closely, we can hear God incarnate in the world around us.

Ever see a sign on the road that gave you the answer you were seeking? That's God.
Ever hear a song on the radio that said exactly what you needed to hear? That's God too!
Ever get a phone call at just the right time from just the right person about an issue that had bothered you? That's God too!
Ever been hugged and feel the love and care of another human being...that's God.
Ever been told by someone you're worth something to them...that's God too!

In fact, Joshua's Urim reminds us that God may not speak audibly to us. But God still interacts with us and through us.

We are the messengers of God. We are God's angels on earth. We are the ones through whom God will speak and act in this world. We are!
We are the answers to someone else's prayers just as they are the answer to ours.
We are the answer we are seeking, the whisper in the dark, the voice that we long for.

We are the answer because of this event. Because God decided instead of communicating to one man to become incarnate, first in the Urim and then in Jesus and now, through the Holy Spirit, in us.

Speak to me and through me, God, that your will be done here on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.