Cities of Refuge

Transcript

for our bible class topic tonight i'd like to consider the six cities of refuge that ancient israel established and to look at their significance in the first kingdom age as well as what their application is for us today and ultimately the type that they portray a very soon coming kingdom

i hope everyone has their gold and silver jewelry settings ready to install some serious bible gems from the study that i'm excited to share with you i hope you are able to find it easy to do some bible markings as we go so let's start bedazzling

we'll start by reading through numbers chapter 35 so we can come to understand these six cities role in offering a sanctuary and a refuge from the avenger of blood that is obligated to fulfill god's command of shed blood for shedded blood recorded in genesis chapter 9 verse 6

which we will revisit later with more depth so numbers chapter 35 starts with telling us that while the children of israel were not yet in the land god had provided an opportunity for salvation from the harsh atonement requirements in the law that he had given

i'm not sure if i can turn my mic up more um

i don't have any way to do that i'm sorry sister sharon

if i continue uh speaking at this tone is everybody able to hear me okay

we can hear you yeah if you could if you could be less canadian just harness that american in you

that speech impediment is one i am cursed with for life unfortunately brother

i'm working on it though i've been here a while and hopefully it'll by osmosis filter out

so uh reading in numbers chapter 35 and starting just at verse 1

if you would like to read along that would be splendid

and it says

the lord spoke unto moses in the plains of moab by the jordan near jericho saying command the children of israel that they give unto the levites of the inheritance of their possession cities to dwell in

he shall give also unto the levites suburbs for the cities around about them and the cities shall have they shall have to dwell in and the suburbs of them shall be for their cattle and for their goods and for all their beasts

and the suburbs of the cities which ye shall give unto the levites shall reach from the wall of the city outward a thousand cubits round about it

and you shall measure from without the city on the east side two thousand cubits on the south side two thousand cubits and on the west side two thousand cubits and on the north side two thousand cubits and the city shall be in the midst and this shall be to them the suburbs of the cities and among the cities which ye shall give unto the levites there shall be six cities for refuge which ye shall appoint for the manslayer that he may flee to there and to them ye shall add forty and two cities so all the cities which you shall give to the levites shall be forty-eight cities then you shall give them you should give with their suburbs

and the cities which ye shall have given to them to be a possession of the children of israel from them that have many you shall give many but from them that have few you shall give few every one shall give of his cities unto the levites according to his inheritance which he inheriteth

so we see the curse that was placed on levi back in genesis chapter 49 playing out here on his descendants as they are not allotted any specific territory for their inheritance in the land of israel so the levites only had cities given to them and not a full tribal alliance and once again they had to rely on the charitable support from their surrounding tribes just as they relied on the rest of the nation in the wilderness to provide for them in exchange for them to be workers in the temple and to be teachers of god's laws

back in genesis chapter 49

jacob who is now called israel in egypt gathers his sons together and bestows upon them blessings and curses before he dies

let's read from verses

5 to 7 of levi's endowment from his father

genesis chapter 49 starting in verse 5

simeon and levi are brethren instruments of cruelty in their habitations will my soul come not into their secret into their assembly mine honor be not thou united for in their anger they slew a man and in their self will they dig down a wall

cursed be their anger for it was fierce in their wrath for it was cruel i will divide them in jacob and scatter them in israel

we remember the dark story of the daughter of jacob who was seeking companionship in the wrong places and how her brothers exterminated the whole city of shechem to retrieve her and to satisfy their wrath

god's command through moses in numbers chapter 35

ensures that the levites were provided for by the rest of the nation once again the cities given to the levites are all throughout the land of the promise

this ensured that the teachers of god's laws would be spread throughout israel once they had removed the wicked inhabitants much like how we have the clegias all throughout the world each with their own assembling of bible scholars to teach and preach to all those that we come in contact with and who are willing to listen

so let's continue in numbers chapter 35

and we're back at verse 9

and the lord spake unto moses saying speak unto the children of israel and say unto them when ye become over jordan into the land of canaan then he shall appoint you cities to be cities of refuge for you the slayer may flee thither which killed any person unawares and they shall be unto you cities for refuge from the avenger but the manslayer die not until he stand before the congregation in judgment

the court hearing for this manslayer would be held in the gate of the city and of course the gate of any city represents the people within and the city as a whole which is what we've come to understand from deuteronomy chapter 12 verse 12.

it was all important it was where the king would give his address like in second samuel 19 verse 8.

the king is or the gate is where lot sat and preached and judged the people of sodom in genesis 19 verse 1.

the gate was also the marketplace where business would be conducted as we see from the example where boaz sat with his kinsmen speak of business concerning having ruth for his wife in ruth chapter 4 verse 1

and 2.

where the law was read and judgment was held by the elders of the congregation that's what nehemiah chapter 8 verse 1

tells us when an enemy takes the gate of the city the city is lost they would have slim chances to survive an invasion the walls were impenetrable so the attack would be focused on the gates which would need to be reinforced for several bars that span the gates it could be inserted into pockets that are in the walls to tie the blockade all together

and the people were to respect the levites decisions so that there would be no more further bloodshed after they made this judgment

deuteronomy 21 verse 3 talks about the law regarding unsolved murders and the elders and the priests together would make this decision

and this is because so that the city or cleja is making a decision for the whole ecclesial body

when we are in a covenant relationship with god we have an opportunity for forgiveness and we believe the covenant with god in jesus we would die

back in numbers chapter 35 verse 13

and of these cities which you shall give six cities you shall have for refuge you shall give three cities on this side jordan and three cities you shall give in the land of canaan which shall be cities of refuge

turn with me now to have a look at the first of these cities of refuge being allotted by moses now in deuteronomy in chapter four

and we're going to jump in at verse 41

where it says then moses

served three cities on this side of the jordan toward the sunrise

and there might be there which should kill his neighbor unawares and hated him not in times past that to fleeing unto one of these cities he might live namely beezer in the wilderness in the plain country of the reubenites and raymoth and gilead of the gadites and golan invasion of the mana sites

i don't have much to present about these first three cities they were established first and they were on the east side of the jordan this these first cities dedicated by moses do however make up half of a type

just as the old testament and the mosaic law for the jewish community and the new testament and fulfillment of the law by christ allowed the gentiles to be grafted in we see the jew and gentile represented here with the cities appointed by moses being the jews

and the three cities appointed by joshua being the gentiles salvation grafted into the promised promises to god's holy nation

these cities talk to us about fellowship from their names as well

these are which means strong and we see that's that's what our lord jesus christ is that's what our fellowship our uniting together is it was in reuben there was an outpost city on the border of an anime animite and the night territory

remoth which was in gilead means the heights are lifted up we are lifted up high together in the lord jesus christ

golan means circle

which is the circle fellowship that we're all part of

the next three cities on the west side of the river jordan are recorded for us in the third parallel account to numbers 35 and these are in joshua chapter 20.

and verse 7 says and they appointed kadesh in galilee in mount naphtali and shechem in mount ephraim in kirjath arba which is hebron in the mountain of judah

there is not a whole lot recorded about kadesh kadesh means holy that of course is what our fellowship is it was located in the northwest part of the promised land

let's move on to shechem

czechum is established as a place of meditation and remembrance throughout the canon of scripture

the ancient name of shechem was tel balata

the first account regarding shechem is in genesis chapter 12

verses 1-7

where abram enters the land of canaan and builds his first altar to god after he appeared to him with the promises of his descendants inheriting the land that he was shown on mount moriah

in verse seven we are told that abram comes to the oaks or plains of mora that adamantite who was whose name was mora it also meant his name and teacher

so we have abram at the folks of the teacher oaks and planes are cross-translated

as well so it gets a little tricky sometimes but i'm going to try to point out which one to go with

we know abram was promised a seed and that it would have dominion in the land this is added to the promises that were told to him in iran that we will look at in a few minutes galatians chapter 3 tells us the seed is jesus it will possess the land forever so this now is the core summary of the whole gospel

the very promises god gave to him are asking him to develop a faith this is the same for us in learning lessons through trials that are personal and that cause us to have have to develop a faith that god knows what is best for us our trials are perfectly fitted to us just like they were for abram

and abraham which his name was later changed to meant exalted father abraham was here looking for a family just like god was looking for a family that would produce fruits of righteousness

jacob is all about finding a family and seeking your brethren but at the same time it was the place of cursing and deceit where levi and his brothers lied to the inhabitants of the ancient city of shechem and so brought about the curse on their family

in genesis chapter 33 verse 18 to 20

we hear that jacob next comes to shechem to shalem a city in chekham and buys land from hamor and names the altar there this is the second piece of land in the promised land purchased by the descendants of abraham the hebrew or cross are over also known as from ur the colbians

from genesis chapter 35 verse 1

god tells jacob to go to bethel and build another altar there after his sons have broken down or dig down the wall

after killing the inhabitants of shechem all the men of shankham jacob tells his family to put away the gods and the clothes of the people of shechem who were slain that they plundered afterward

we also learned that in john

chapter 4 verse 5 and 6

the jacob built a well in shechem this is the same well where jesus finds a woman and brings her into the family of god and tells her that he is in fact the messiah

not given the woman's name

only that she was a samaritan

jacob sends joseph to check on his brothers so he's seeking for his brothers in shechem where he ends up meeting a certain man who was possibly an angel sent to guide him

on to save the whole land from the famine that was to come

as a side note in hebrews chapter 11

verse 9

it tells us that abraham isaac and jacob were dwelling in tents

they would have had about 15 years overlapping together to talk about the promises from god while esau in contrast was in the field

shechem is in the middle of the land of israel between two mountains mount gerizim mountain of blessing and mount ebal the mountain of cursing recorded in deuteronomy chapter 11

verse 26 to 32

israel is told to go to shechem where these mountains were for israel a blessing

or a curse according to their inheritance adherence to the law or not

deuteronomy chapter 27 and verse 11

speaks about where moses puts up the tribes to blessings of truth and curses of lies

the 12 curses that were announced

to them i want to just mention two of them in passing

in deuteronomy 27

15 we have the first curse which is upon idolatry and secret just like jacob's sons had idols that were buried under the oak after he told them to purify themselves before moving on to bethel and as rachel who stole her father lavin's household idols and hid them under her sack under her camel's sack

we also read later the idols that he can hid under the ground in his tent causing israel to suffer great losses as they tried to conquer the land

in verse 24 of deuteronomy 27

we have the tenth curse which is the secret smiting of a neighbor which is relevant to our considerations here because we come to understand that it was talking about gossip later in james chapter 3 verse 5

that it mentions smiting here this word smiting as a neighbor in secret was the smite to smite with our tongue

all the people say amen after each curse as well

and isaiah 65 verse 16 tells us that amen meant so be it or truth or so i agree

moving on to when joshua comes now to shechem to fulfill what moses commanded

the account in joshua 24 verse 1 says joshua gathers all the heads of the tribes of israel and the judges of the tribes go before god

in verse 15 he commands all those who followed other gods to put them away then we have the famous verse

which we um

sorry let me start that again

so jacob or joshua tells everyone to put the gods away from them and we we then read the famous verse as joshua proclaims as for me and my house we will serve god

and so in verse 24 to 27

joshua makes a covenant with all israel and sets up a stone on mount ebal and writes the law on it to witness against them that they will follow god

also in joshua 24 and verse 32

it's recorded that the bones of joseph were buried in shechem in the plot of land that jacob bought from hamor

and the land was given to the descendants of joseph as an inheritance

later that descendants of joseph would subdivide that land and give this land of shechem to the levites as a city of refuge

means a shoulder and how appropriately appropriately so because this is the work of christ to take away the curse from all creation and to shoulder our burden of sin

isaiah chapter 9 verse 6 says the son giveth

the government upon his shoulders

first peter chapter 4 verse 4 to 5

talks about the non-believing community that will give our accounts to jesus our new king

for governor

are we receiving the words of jesus or are we rejecting them something to consider

john chapter 12

verse 46

says jesus came to save the world not just to judge it that by him we may have everlasting life

christ was not shaped by this world or tooled by an iron tool

just as the three altars in shechem were made with rocks that were not yet shaped by man's hands

psalm chapter 22

says jesus was learning from god even before he learned to speak

these three altars by the way were we referenced one by abraham one by jacob and one built by joshua so now on to the last city of refuge which is hebron it's one of the most ancient cities in the world

and the other name for it was kiryat jarva

i think i said that wrong something like that

um

hebron meant the seed of association or fellowship

or a bridge which that carries us over to christ

and fellowship

it's mentioned 40 times in the old testament and never in the new

genesis chapter 11

to 13

talks about abraham's journey toward hebron

after separating from lot abraham settles in the plains of mamre

in hebron aka the oaks or the terabyth tree of mammary

in chapter 14 of genesis verse 13

you read that mamrie was the it was an am ammonite

that was an ally of abraham who helped rescue lot from the confederation of the five kings in genesis chapter 14.

this is possibly also where abraham and sarah's abram and sarah's name was changed and the promises of their son was given to them

the covenant of circumcision was given here also in genesis chapter 17.

these oaks of memory were also the location where abraham met the three angels and where he pleaded with god to save sodom and gomorrah from god's righteous judgmental destruction

genesis 18 as well occurred here in the oaks of memory

the cave of mcphela was also located in hebron in genesis 23

and that was the very first land that a hebrew brought had bought

of course we talked about the second being land that jacob had bought in shechem

mcphela means doubled or multiplied

numbers chapter 13 verse 22

talks about how the spies go to hebron and they gather the grapes there from the valley of eshkol

hebron was built seven years before zoan in egypt which was approximately with the time stamp of

1430 to 1730 bc

and the children of anak were there in the land at the time

of course 40 years later they had to be removed

joshua chapter 14 verse 6 to 15 talks about how hebron was given to caleb that faithful foreigner who came into the land as an inheritance because he was he had fully followed the lord

caleb then in chapter 15

of joshua

fights off the sons of anak recorded in verse 13 to 19.

joshua chapter 21 verse 11 to 13

says that the city was given to aaron's sons

and the villages of the field were given to caleb's who were from the tribe who was from the tribe of judah of course

this would be talking about the suburbs that we read earlier in numbers chapter 35.

in joshua 21 verse 18 20 now caleb had in fact defeated the sons of anak

and drove them out

the inhabitants were not removed from the if the habit inhabitants were not removed from the land we know that they would become a thorn in their side just like for us if we do not remove the bad influences on our lives they will continually prick us

deuteronomy chapter 20

says those who are not driven out would be put into forced labor as well

judges chapter 16 verse 103

talks about how samson carries off the gates of gaza and these gates would have probably weighed around 500 pounds at least and he carries them about 40 miles to the top of the hill in hebron

this is a very important thing because in genesis chapter 22 verse 16 and 17

we know that the blessings to abraham were that his seed would possess the gate of his enemies

the gates again represent the dominion of the whole city

this is a representation and a literal fulfillment of the promises to abraham the stronghold of the philistines or the stronghold of sin

had their gates carried off and laid at the feet of abraham

these were the enemies of abraham being delivered into his hand

of course we know that

david is promised something similar that all of his enemies made his footstool

and both of these promises from god are fully coming to fruition through christ

second samuel

chapter 2 verse 1

speaks about how david inquires of god where he should start ruling and he is told to go to hebron as an anointed king over judah and he reigns in hebron for seven and a half years there

over just the kingdom of judah at this time

in 2nd samuel chapter 3 we're told that david has six sons born to him while he is in hebron

later we hear about joab which seems to have violated this this law of a refuge by killing abner presuming that abner had killed abhishe

something

by accident why would he go inside to talk with joab in the gate unless possibly to have passed judgment where any man slayer would go to receive judgment in that city

and david condemns drug for killing him in this sneaky deceitful way

david honored abner by burying him in hebron instead of his homeland in benjamin

second samuel verse or chapter four and five

verse five talks about israel chess murder and how david avenges him and buries his head in abner's tomb as well in hebron

and all the leaders of israel come into hebron to anoint david king over all of israel later on

second samuel chapter 15

we read about absalom how

and how he seeks to become a king and starts a coup in his birthplace of hebron likely to likely station this coup and hebron there because he wanted to take away a stronghold from david

and then we read in a second

i'm gonna skip that nope

uh nehemiah chapter 11 verse 25

speaks about the return of the exiles

to re-occupy kirat arba which was hebron

hebron was located on the ridge route which is also known as the patriarchs highway in the hill country of judah between jerusalem and beersheba

it's the most continuously occupied city in the world and it was the city of giants

and the city of giants of faith and has over 2000 years of recorded history

even still called hebron today and i believe route 6

is running right through it

new jerusalem will of course be the final city of refuge right in the center of the promised land

let's return to the chapter that we are dissecting now though

and we're reading at numbers chapter 35

verse 15

it says these six cities shall be a refuge both for the children of israel and for the stranger and for the sojourner among them and everyone that killed any person unawares may flee thither

we are all traveling on the road to the kingdom just like the manslaughter on the road to the cities of refuge

for them they had signs that marked the way

we are very blessed with god's word that has been passed down through the ages having yahweh's match a message to teach us how to avoid life's turns off course as well as keeps as well as it keeps us from misstepping and falling into the avenger of blood's hands that it that is sin of course that is so easily found outside of the refuge that god has provided for us

numbers chapter 35 verse 16 now says and if you smite him with an instrument of iron so that he die he is a murderer the murderer shall surely be put to death and if you smite him with a throwing stone

or we're throwing a stone whereas he may die and he dies he is a murderer the murderer shall be put to death or if he smite him with the hand of a weapon of wood or a hand weapon of wood wherewith he may die and he dies he is a murderer the murderer shall be put to death

the revenge of blood himself shall slay the murderer when he meeteth him and he shall slay him

so these instruments these weapons here

also have significant meetings when we think about how they could be applied in our spiritual walk not of course talking about slaying one another but in causing one another to stumble or those who may kill the hope that we have where iron represents false doctrine stone represents harshness with the law and wood which represents human nature and not having the mercy for the failures of which of human nature

numbers chapter 35 and verse 20 now

but if he thrusts him of hatred or hurl at him by laying of weight that he die wherein enmity smite him with his hand that he die he that smote him shall surely be put to death for he is a murderer the revenger of blood shall slay the murderer when he meet him but if he thrusts him suddenly without enmity or have cast upon him anything without laying in weight with any stone wherewith a man may die seeing him not and cast at him that he died and he was not his enemy neither sought his harm then the congregation shall judge between the slayer and the revenger of blood according to these judgments

the congregation shall deliver the slayer out of the hand of the revenger of blood

and restore him to the city of his refuge whether

where he was fled and he shall abide in it until the death of the high priest which was anointed with the holy oil

so this is saying that after being judged as being innocent and not hating him in times past

that the witnesses from his home city where the death occurred

would have

the court hearing in that city and if he was proven innocent he would be able to return to the sea of refuge where he'd escaped while fleeing from the manslaughter while fleeing from the avenger of blood but if he was found guilty of hating the man in times past he would be put to death by the avenger of blood in the city which the death occurred

so in the cities of refuge

we think about the watchmen where their job was to be on the lookout not only for invading armies but also for the manslayer who was fleeing to the city for his life from the adventure of blood

watchmen would then have to send for the priest to run out and meet the pursued manslayer as he reached the 2000 cubit boundary of the city which is the suburbs and then to bring him in to the rest of the congregation to be tried for the first trial before then moving on to the second trial with witnesses in the city of which the death occurred

as these who are in the congregation

speaking about us we need to be watchmen on the lookout for those coming afar off from the world to the ecclesia of refuge

watching for those who run from sin and death so that we can send members

that they might or send members from within our refuge

to end the race of this sinful man that they might be saved from the grip of deadly sin and to bring them into the fold after hearing their petition

after bringing the manslayer in the elders of the city would evaluate the intents of his heart just as we have a baptismal interview for somebody who wishes to join our community joshua chapter 20 and verse 4

talks about a letter of recommendation to the elders which is just like a baptismal interview or like the letter of recommendation that i had when coming to the cranston ecclesia from my homeoclesia in canada

the elders would then give the manslayer a place in the city

do we make sure that our new brothers and sisters are given a place

when we are trying to figure out our part of the ecclesial body it is best to just get busy and help and work and to look for the areas of need and as time goes on we can see that a certain brother or sister isn't here because they're really good at listening or that they are the eye because they are always watchful and aware of the needs of others

or maybe they're the big toe because they're exceptional at balance between goodness and severity we need to gather in from time to time as well because we all stray near to the boundary just like the elders gathered in the innocent manslayer we know that we cannot go outside that boundary or else it would mean certain death

numbers chapter 35

and verse 26 says but if the man's slayer shall at any time come without the border of the city of his refuge wherewith he fled and the revenger of blood finds him without the borders of the city of his refuge and the revenge of blood kill the slayer he shall not be guilty of blood because he should have remained in the city of his refuge until the death of the high priest but after the death of the high priest the slayer shall return into the land of his possession

so this two thousand cubits around the city

where the manslaughter was able to safely live and work for the suburbs but going outside the city men's certain death

this is like going outside the ecclesia for us sin will find us and kill us just as just like we read from the apostle peter's first letter

chapter 5 verse 8 which says be sober be diligent because your adversary the devil as a roaring lion walked about seeking whom he may devour

we know that the devil spoken of here is a personification of sin

which without the protection of our covenant in christ and the ecclesia will bring us to everlasting death the grave

but in james chapter 1

verse 14

we read but every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lusts and entice then when lust has conceived it bringeth forth sin and sin when it is finished bringeth forth death

the manslayer was only free to live after the death of the high priest and the city of refuge served as a demonstration of our salvation from death and sin after the death of our high priest jesus christ

hebrews chapter 4

gives us some insight onto this to to confirm that jesus is back to our high priest

hebrews chapter 4 verse 14 says

seeing then that we have a great high priest that is passed into the heavens jesus the son of god let us hold fast our profession for we have not and high priest which cannot be touched without the feeling of our infirmities but when is in all points typed it tempted like as we are yet without sin let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need

back in numbers chapter 35

verse 29 now so these things shall be for a statute of judgment unto your unto you throughout your generations in all your dwellings whoso killeth any person the murderer shall be put to death by the mouth of witnesses but one witness shall not testify against any person to cause him to die moreover ye shall take no satisfaction for the life of a murderer which is guilty of death but he shall surely be put to death

and ye shall take no satisfaction for him that is fled to the city of his refuge that he should come again to dwell in the land until the death of the hype of the priest

so you shall not pollute the land wherein ye are for blood it defileth the land and the land cannot be cleansed of the blood that is shed therein but by the blood of him that shed it defile not therefore the land which ye shall inhabit wherein i dwell for i the lord dwell among the children of israel

the command that there was to be blood for blood shed because it pollutes the earth is found in genesis chapter 9

this is just after the world has been cleansed of all the evil that was in it by the great flood

god instructs noah the first part of the covenant of the rainbow

genesis chapter 9

reading verse 1 to 7

says and god blessed noah and his sons and said unto them be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth and the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth and upon every fowl of the air upon all that moveth upon the earth and upon all the fishes of the sea unto your hand they are delivered

every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you even as the green herb i have given you all things but flesh with the life thereof which is the blood thereof you shall not eat

and surely your blood of your lives will i require at the hand of every beast i will require it and at the hand of man at the hand of every man's brother i will require the life of man

whoso shout out to man's blood by man's my man shall his blood be shed for the image of god made he man and you be fruitful and multiply and bring forth abundantly in the earth and multiply therein

we know that god is seeking to manifest himself in a multitude because we are made in his image

yahweh is looking to see himself in us by seeing the fruits of his spirit

but unfortunately sin hides us from god and

and as it presents to us in the book of isaiah in chapter 59

it says behold the lord's hand is not shortened that it cannot save

either his ear heavy that it cannot hear but your iniquities have separated between you and your god and your sins have hid his face from you and he will not hear your hands are defiled with blood and your fingers with iniquity your lips have spoken lies in your tongue hath muttered perversiveness

none calls for justice nor any pleadeth for truth they trust in vanity and speak lies they conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity

we need to have an ecclesia that is a refuge and we need to be able to come into it and feel safe

and we need it to not be like a minefield where we feel that people are judging us or talking about us we need to make sure that we're not doing so to others

so i have a challenge for everyone not a challenge so much as

maybe a craft or a fun idea let's write down our own personal reasons for coming and staying in the ecclesia on a piece of paper

and then on the same piece of paper write down someone who we think or know that is in need of the provision a refuge from sin that we may quicken their walk to the kingdom and show them the paternal benefits of being a member that being a member provides

so that we may gather them into the fold and give them a place that their faith will be strengthened maybe this is a person in the world or one of our own who is headed towards the world then put the piece of paper in numbers chapter 35 so that on april 16th when we come to this chapter in our daily bible readings we can reflect again on our wonderful hope of salvation and our personal reasons for baptism at the same time remember the person that god may be calling and see if we have helped that person find their place amongst ourselves as heirs of salvation

so just take a moment and anybody who would like to do that please do so

so the exercise again uh the first part is

why we want to be uh with the ecclesia or what are the benefits

uh sure but also what was our reason for coming to the ecclesia

and staying in the ecclesia which is kind of what you explained

and then the next part is and the next time someone can help to get there

yeah basically

so just in conclusion here

we see

the types in this chapter that we read that jesus is the avenger of blood

and he is the city of refuge he is also the high priest

christ tells us to not hate lest we be guilty of murder and if we have hate in our hearts

and there occurred an incident we would have been found guilty with no chance for salvation in the cities of refuge

there was no prison in the law and the law was self-attoning

there was no compensation for breaking the law

pardon me there was compensation for breaking the law but you couldn't buy your salvation

even you had to sell yourself to make a restitution with some of the laws

they had to use the system that god had put in place

instead of buying their way out of blood guiltiness

our kinsmen also is jesus and instead of our blood being required he gave his blood to atone for us

we know that when it comes to any matter we need to have two or three witnesses

we need to also be careful not to slander or gossip because that will cause a person's character to be diminished and in a situation where a witness is required the previous gossip would affect the outcome of a trial and pros and possibly cause an innocent person to wrongly suffer punishment either removal of fellowship or in the first ecclesial age death

the three cities that were originally represented god's provision for israel and the later three were representing provision for us as gentiles

so let's keep these things in mind that we don't have to worry

for the revenge of blood coming after us

and that we may find our refuge in our cliches