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Who Cares? You Better!
“What is a random offering of a red heifer doing in Numbers 19? Why should I care?”
There are moments in daily Bible readings when one might wonder the need for certain instructions. Whether it be repetitious language, difficult or technical words, or seemingly useless topics (themes that have been fulfilled) one might be inclined to simply skip them. However, when these things are put in context with the whole of Scripture their significance and principles are not only revitalized but reemphasized!
The offering of the Red Heifer in Numbers 19 is no exception. There are important truths that are not only timeless, and, more, must not be forgotten! We too require such a sacrifice that produces the washing necessary to purify us from the deepest uncleanness, and if you haven’t been washed in that water then you are still unclean and separated from God.
First, how are we unclean? In God’s Law, being unclean was not a trivial matter. It meant that one was “cut off” from God’s presence (i.e. the tabernacle, temple) and people (Num. 19:20).
Even if one had not sinned but became defiled by some unclean thing (i.e. a dead body in Num. 19:10-19; leprosy in Num. 5:2-3) they had to be cut off until they were purified. This wasn’t because God was uncaring. It was because He is holy and pure, and nothing that is the opposite can or should be in His midst. Now, while one could be unclean without sinning, it would become sinful once he learned of his uncleanness but didn’t care to purify himself before the Lord. He would be treating God profanely and irreverently.
While not all uncleanness was necessarily sinful, all sin was -and still is- necessarily unclean. This is the point. If we don’t want to be cut off but desire to have fellowship with God we must be cleansed from the uncleanness of sin. The question is…
How am I made clean? Through waters of purification produced by the proper sacrifice. Hebrews 9:13-14 says, “For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled sanctify for the cleansing of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” How many times have you read that verse and thought of Numbers 19? The Red Heifer is a shadow of Jesus who truly washes away our uncleanness - even through “waters of purification.”
While some details differ, at least one remains the same: to be cleansed from sin (just like Israel) there is a physical and spiritual washing that must occur. The waters of purification that Christ’s sacrifice has produced are the waters of baptism (Acts 22:16; Eph. 5:25-26; Heb. 10:22).
If one rejects baptism then he is rejecting a washing that is clearly a part of God’s design; He is rejecting a divine pattern (Heb. 8:5); He is neglecting Christ’s word (Matt. 28:18-20; John 3:3, 5-6); He is neglecting Christ’s instruction given to the apostles (Acts 2:38; 1 Cor. 6:11). All of these are important, but one final argument should be given consideration.
If one rejects baptism then he is rejecting the fulfillment of God’s work of cleansing. Think back to Numbers 19. Would it have made any sense at all for the Israelites to say, “This cleansing is my accomplishment, not God’s,” simply because they went through the ceremony of sacrificing and washing? Such thinking would have been asinine! Moreover, it is equally absurd for one to make the argument that it is a human work of pride to steadfastly instruct the need for baptism. Especially since God clarifies that it is a conditional aspect of His salvation and cleansing for man. Is man responsible for going through that action to obtain salvation? Of course, but that doesn’t mean it is any less God’s work and achievement (Col. 2:12; Titus 3:5).
Thank God for our sin offering, for our waters of purification (baptism), and for our complete cleansing and absolving of sin achieved by Christ’s sacrifice. Let no man take it for granted.
