Numbers 4:29-33, “(29) As for the sons of Merari, thou shalt number them after their families, by the house of their fathers; (30) From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old shalt thou number them, every one that entereth into the service, to do the work of the tabernacle of the congregation. (31) And this is the charge of their burden, according to all their service in the tabernacle of the congregation; the boards of the tabernacle, and the bars thereof, and the pillars thereof, and sockets thereof, (32) And the pillars of the court round about, and their sockets, and their pins, and their cords, with all their instruments, and with all their service: and by name ye shall reckon the instruments of the charge of their burden. (33) This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, according to all their service, in the tabernacle of the congregation, under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.”
- The sons of Merari were tasked with doing what we now have the privilege to do.
- Merari = can mean “bitter, sad” –OR- “strong, fierce” (as in a bitter taste that has a strong flavor).
Isaiah 54:2-3, “(2) Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes; (3) For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.”
- “Curtains” are a canopy or cloth used in a tent. The boundaries of the church have been enlarged in order to accommodate the vast conversion of the Gentiles.[1]
- Where once only Gentiles lived, now the Gospel of Christ has been carried, preached, and believed and millions of souls have been born again.[2]
- Now, because of God’s grace, a spiritual seed, the seed of the church, inhabits those formerly desolate places, until the fulness of the Gentiles.[3]
- The desolate cities here we empty of the knowledge of Christ and the Gospel of salvation. In fact, all divine and spiritual things have now been made accessible all who will believe in Christ, profess his name, and obey the Gospel.[4]
Isaiah 33:20, “Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.”
- Zion refers to the Church: God dwells, inhabits, her.
- Zion is a strong city, it is the perfection of beauty, and the joy of the whole earth (Ps. 50:2; Lam. 2:15).
- It is here where the saints gather to worship their Lord.
- Rev. 21:3, “…the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.”
- Every true believer is a “stake” or pillar in the church of God, which shall never be removed (Rev. 3:12) from the heart, hands and love of God.[5]
- No born again Christian can be removed from the family of God. You can’t be “un-born again,” and so all the privileges and blessings of being part of the Body of Christ belong the believer.
- The “cords,” which represent the everlasting love of God, will never be broken and so they are always firm and sure, secure and stable, eternal and unending.[6]
- Jesus’ cords of love on one side and your cords of love on the other create a safe boundary, a bulwark of salvation, a wall of integrity.
Brass Pins/Stakes were used in the Tabernacle in the wilderness to secure the gold pillars of the Outer Court upright.
These pins were driven in the ground at one end and fine twined linen was attached to the pins and to the top of the wooden pillars overlaid with gold to which sheets of fine linen were attached.
This created a type of fence and there was only one entrance into the outer court.
The Ark had one entrance, one gate to the sheepfold, and one way to the Father.
Jesus saith unto him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”[7]
The wood of the pillar represents Christ’s humanity.
The gold of the pillar represents Christ’s divinity.
Humanity wrapped in deity.
God manifest in the flesh.
Fine twined linen was drawn tightly and fastened with the pins.
They speak to us of the drawing power of God and His love for men and women:
“I drew them with cords of a man, with bands of love…” (Hosea 11:4).
We also have a part in the drawing power of love in our relationship with Jesus: “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.”[8]
Without the cords, the pins and stakes would be useless.
It is God’s love that constrains us, that holds us together: “For the love of Christ constraineth [to hold together] us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again” (2 Corinthians 5:14-15).
Unfortunately, there are times when we speak love, but do not demonstrate love, or as Jesus said, “This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.”[9]
- It seems that when our hearts harden, or become distant, we choose man’s rules, commands, and sacred cows over relationship.
Our text tells you to, “lengthen your cords, and strengthen your stakes.”
STORY: I went camping one night when the wind began to blow and a strong storm blew in. Someone forgot to fasten the tent to the ground with the provided stakes.
A stake, a pin, will do you no good if left on the ground and not driven into the earth.
The strength of the stake refers to it being secured into the ground, not whether it is steel, iron, or brass.
There are some stakes we need to secure firmly into the ground, and keep coming back to them in order to make sure they remain strengthened.
There are four pins of our faith that will keep us attached to the love of God, if we are vigilant in strengthening them regularly:[10]
- Dogma = One God
- Gen. 1:1, “In the beginning God created…” God here is the transliterated form of Elohim, which means “plenitude of might,” or more simply, “one God whose characteristics are many.”Dogma = “a principle or set of principles laid down by an authority as unquestionably true.”[11] The source of the pin of our dogma is God’s Word.Deut. 6:4, “Hear, O Israel: the LORD our God is one LORD.”In Colossians 2:9 we are told that in Jesus dwells all the fullness of the Godhead (all the characteristics of God) bodily, and we (the Church) are complete in Him (Jesus).Paul did say that the Godhead was a mystery, but then he went on to explain what the mystery was, “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”[12]
- Only Jesus Christ fulfilled those six points. Therefore, Jesus Christ of the New Testament is Jehovah of the Old Testament
- Duty = Love (to God and to one another)
- Jesus & People
- “Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”[13]“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”[14]
- A pin and a cord
- Jesus & People
- Discipline = Study of Scriptures
- John 5:39, “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.”2 Timothy 2:15, “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
- 2 Timothy 3:16-17, “(16) All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: (17) That the man of God may be perfect [complete], throughly furnished unto all good works.
- Doctrine = What is right
- Reproof = What is not right
- Correction = How to get right
- Instruction = How to stay right
- Method = Union (Balance) of the Spirit and the Word
- John 1:17, “For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.”2 Corinthians 3:2-6, “(2) Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men: (3) Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart. (4) And such trust have we through Christ to God-ward: (5) Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God; (6) Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.
- Philippians 4:5, “Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.”
- Modesty, Humility, Gentle, Patient = Balance
A word of warning:
“(19) Woe is me for my hurt! my wound is grievous: but I said, Truly this is a grief, and I must bear it. (20) My tabernacle is spoiled, and all my cords are broken: my children are gone forth of me, and they are not: there is none to stretch forth my tent any more, and to set up my curtains.”[15]
Instability in the Church, in our lives, occurs when we do not strengthen our stakes and lengthen our cords by drawing closer to God.
James 4:7-8, “(7) Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (8) Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.”
Psalms 73:28, “But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.”
Psalms 145:18, “The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.”
He’s as close as the mention of His name. Jesus. Jesus.
Lengthen your cords, and strengthen your stakes
[1] Albert Barnes
[2] F. B. Meyer
[3] Ibid.
[4] Ibid.
[5] John Gill
[6] Ibid.
[7] John 14:6
[8] James 4:8a
[9] Matthew 5:8-9
[10] Source: Dr. Joe Nelson. (n.d.) Four Fundamentals of Faith Necessary for New Testament Living. Parkersburg Bible College.
[11] https://www.dictionary.com/browse/dogma
[12] 1 Timothy 3:16
[13] Matthew 22:36-40
[14] John 13:34-35
[15] Jeremiah 10:19-20
