Why You're Tapped.

Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman he had married (for he had married an Ethiopian woman). They said, “Has the Lord only spoken through Moses? Has he not also spoken through us?” And the Lord heard it. (Numbers 12:1-2)

A colleague of mine, in referring to the above passage several months ago, coined a phrase: “God has tapped your line.”

In this past Sunday’s sermon, Pastor Sam urged us to keep in mind that God is ever present. He sees, hears, and knows all things. In God’s realm, which exceeds all we can know or comprehend, there is no such thing as a clandestine meeting or a secret conversation. It's all open to Him.

The community of faith is sometimes challenged by what I will call the spirit of Miriam. We find that our best people, those filled with potential, those who have been firsthand witnesses and proclaimers of the greatness of God, revert to cultural microaggressions when their cultural preferences clash with the life choices of their brethren in the faith.

Pastor Sam referred to the dichotomy of “what they are talking versus why they are talking”, and it is a dichotomy we must keep in mind. The content of the conversation between Miriam and Aaron centered around Moses’s leadership, but the true source of their discontent centered around Moses’s marriage to an Ethiopian woman.

[In the interest of full disclosure, I am an American woman married to a man who is not American. I have heard my own share of comments and criticisms from brilliant, faith-filled people who display an open dislike of my husband’s choice to marry me instead of someone from his own culture. Thank God for Numbers chapter 12. It is good to be able to read in Scripture that this sort of response to cross-cultural relationships is nothing new.]

Moses’s siblings expressed their dislike by making critical comments about their brother’s position as God’s representative. But, God tapped their line and entered into two conversations: the open conversation about Moses’s leadership, and the secret conversation about Moses’s wife.

What did our Lord say in response?

• “Come to the Tent of Meeting, all three of you.” (see Numbers 12:4) The instigator (Miriam), the collaborator (Aaron), and the one slandered (Moses) all stood in the presence of the Lord.
• “My servant Moses is faithful and dependable and trustworthy.” (see Numbers 12:7) In response to the slander of Miriam and Aaron, God counter-responded with His word of commendation.
• “Why were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?” (see Numbers 12:8) The Lord indicates to Miriam and Aaron that, if they had a consciousness of the special relationship their brother Moses held with God, they would not have been so unwise as to criticize Moses’s marriage choice.

Well, that was then, and this is now. Pastor Sam spoke very openly about the challenges we face, and how the Scripture served a warning to him: “Sam, you better watch yourself.” We are all in the same boat; we all need to be watchful and prayerful about the role of culture and its ability to subtly undermine the plan of God.

We hear You, Lord, and we heed Your warning. Oh, Lord, may the culture of the kingdom of God be the culture that matters!