In between

Numbers 16:48
And he stood between the dead and the living; so the plague was stopped.

I can’t begin to imagine how annoyed Moses must have been with the Israelites. First it was, “Get us out of Egypt.” Then it was, “This place is horrible. We should have stayed in Egypt.” Then they complained about the food. Then they decided that Moses had appointed himself as leader and that God wasn’t really leading them, so they had a rebellion.

It wasn’t so much the entire body of people, but a certain few led by one man, Korah, who were causing the trouble. Korah was a leader among the people of Israel and he was on a mission to oust Moses from his God-given position of authority. He was lying and starting rumors in order to accomplish his mission.

God, however, would have none of it. Instead He called Moses to bring the people together and tell them that if Korah and his companions died natural deaths, they were right. But if they died in some unusual way, like if the earth were to open up and swallow them, then it must be God’s doing and Korah was wrong!

Guess what happened? The earth opened up and swallowed Korah and his companions. The next day the people complained to Moses again. This time Moses made a different decision. When God sent out His wrath, Moses sent out Aaron into the congregation with specific instructions: “.....make atonement for them....” Aaron did just as Moses commanded. He went into the midst of the people and made atonement for their sins. When he did this, the plague stopped. Aaron stood firm and created a line between the dead and the living. Unfortunately, a lot of people still died, but many more were saved.

Our adversary the Devil, and his companions, are in our camp, that is, the world today. They have been walking about starting rumors and making false accusations against God. This constant whispering of untrust and disbelief is what he uses to further separate us from God. Satan himself started this tradition in the Garden thousands of years ago, and not much has changed since then. Fortunately, as Moses sent Aaron into the midst of the people, so too has God sent Jesus into the midst of the people.

Christ came to earth to make atonement for our sins, for our turning away from God, and for our lack of trust in His faithfulness. He came to redeem us from our ignorance in believing the Devil’s lies, and for our hubris in thinking that we could be like God. This act of grace is what has saved many and is continuing to save today. You see, today Jesus is standing between the dead (Satan and his army of demons) and the living. Jesus has STOPPED the plague, that is, sin and its deadly consequences, and is our atonement before a holy and just God.