Numbers 19 - Isaiah 11 – Romans 16 – James 4

Numbers 19
- God spoke to Moses and Aaron and told the people to bring a spotless never worked red heifer.
- Eleazar was to slaughter it outside the camp.
- He shall sprinkle its blood 7 times on the front of the tent.
- The heifer shall be burned with cedarwood and hyssop and scarlet yarn.
- He shall wash his clothes and body before entering into camp. (He is unclean until evening)
- A clean man shall deposit the heifer's ashes in a clean place outside the camp.
- The ashes were kept for the water of impurity (a sin offering)
- The ash gatherer shall also wash and be unclean until evening.
- Those who touch a dead body will be unclean for 7 days. He will cleanse himself on the 3rd and 7th day.
- If he doesn't cleanse himself he will not be clean.
- If he is not cleansed with the water of impurity he will be cut off from the people.
- If someone died in a tent, everyone in it and who enter it will be unclean for 7 days.
- Every open container is also unclean.
- If someone touches a dying soldier, bone, or grave they shall be unclean 7 days.
- They shall use the burnt ashes and water to cleanse themselves.
- A clean person shall take hyssop and sprinkle it on the vessels to clean them.
- The clean person shall sprinkle it on the unclean person on the 3rd and 7th day.
- If a person doesn't cleanse themselves they shall be cut off from assembly for defiling the tabernacle.
- The person who touches the water of impurity shall be unclean until evening.
- Whatever the unclean person shall become unclean.

Isaiah 11
- A "shoot" will sprout from the stump of Jesse and bear fruit.
- The Spirit of the Lord will be on this man
- The Spirit is wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge and fear of God
- His delight shall be in fearing God.
- He shall judge not by what He sees or hears but by righteousness.
- He will strike the earth with the words of his mouth.
- He will kill the wicked by his breath.
- Righteousness and faithfulness shall be his belt.
- The wolf shall lie with the lamb, the leopard with the goat, the calf and the lion, the cow and the bear, nursing child and cobra, weaned child and an adder shall all be at peace and not destroy each other on God's holy mountain.
- The time of the "root of Jesse" people shall inquire about Him.
- The Lord will recall the remnant of the remains of his people.
- He will recall those banished from Israel and Judah
- Those who harass Judah will be cut off.
- Judah and Ephraim shall get along.
- Those in Judah shall go with Philistines against those in the east.
- They will go against Edom, Moab, and the Ammonites
- The Lord will destroy Egypt with His scorching breath.
- The Lord will create a highway for His people to return from Assyria like He did when He called His people back from Egypt.

Romans 16
- Paul commended Phoebe from Cenchreae to them.
- Paul tells the Romans to welcome her for her service to him and the saints.
- Paul also told the Romans to welcome Prisca and Aquilla who risked their lives to save Paul's life.
- Epaenetus was Paul's first convert in Asia.
- Mary worked hard for the Romans
- Andronicus and Junia were imprisoned with Paul.
- Paul then lists several others to greet warmly: Ampliatus, Urbanus, Stachys, Apelles, the family of Aristobulus, Herodion, the family of Narcissus, Tryphaena and Tryphosa, Persis, Rufus and his mother, Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers who are with them, Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them
- Greet one another with a holy kiss.
- Paul greets the Romans from all the other churches in Christ.
- Paul warns them to watch out for those who create divisions and create doctrinal obstacles.
- Those who create divisions serve themselves rather than God.
- They deceive the naive with flattery.
- Paul commends the Romans for their faith and points out again what is good and evil.
- The God of peace will son crush Satan
- Timothy, Lucius, Jason and Sosipater also send the Romans their greetings.
- Tertius who wrote the letter for Paul also greets them.
- Gaius, Erastus, the city treasurer, and our brother Quartus, greet you.
- Paul ends by reminding them of the power and truth they now have through Christ that has long been hidden from man.
- The prophetic writings are now being made known to all nations.

James 4
- James 4 talks about the root of all quarrels.
- James says warring passions cause quarrels.
- People murder and covet for what they desire and don't have.
- James says that they don't have because they don't ask or they ask wrongly for their passions.
- James calls us adulterous people
- Befriending the world is being an enemy of God.
- Where does the quote "He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us?" come from?
- God gives us more grace.
- Where does the quote "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble" come from? (It is also found in 1 Peter 5:5)
- We should submit ourselves to God.
- If we resist the devil he will flee from us.
- As we draw near to God, He draws near to us.
- We need to purify our hearts because we are double-minded.
- Why does James tell our joy to turn to gloom?
- If we humble ourselves before God, He will exalt us.
- We aren't to speak evil against fellow believers.
- Speaking evil against our brother, speaks evil of God's law.
- God is the only law giver and He alone is able to save and destroy.
- Who are we to judge anyone?
- James cautions against saying what we will do tomorrow or next year because we don't know what the next day will bring.
- Our lives are a brief mist.
- Our posture should be, "If the Lord wills....we will do this or that." (This acknowledges God in what we decide to do so that we can't take the credit for what we accomplish)
- We boast in arrogance.
- This is one of the most catch-all convicting verses that I know, "So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.
- If we know what God wants us to do and don't do it, we sin.