LifeWay Bible Studies for Life Series for September 25: Come with us

In Numbers 10:29-32, Moses invited Hobab to share in a pilgrimage; to join a special people, a chosen people, a redeemed people, a people redeemed by the blood of the Lamb (Exodus 12:1-13). It’s the same invitation most congregations offer every time they gather for worship, or when a member of that congregation individually invites someone to accept Jesus Christ.

Believers in Christ are a special people, chosen by him and redeemed by him. And, they’re headed to a special place, an even greater, more wonderful place than the land of milk and honey to which the Israelites were going. It’s a land of peace, joy and sinless perfection—a land of blessing where none of the problems and afflictions of earth can follow. It’s heaven. And, when you offer someone an invitation to join you on a journey to heaven, what greater invitation could there be?

Hobab was not an Israelite, not a part of the covenant of Israel, not a part of the promises God made to Israel. Still, Moses invited him to join up with Israel and to share in their blessings. He told his father-in-law, “Come with us and what belongs to us will belong to you, too.”

We have the same privilege of saying to those who have not yet trusted Christ, “Come with us.” And, it costs us absolutely nothing when we invite those who don’t know Jesus to “Come with us.” In fact, we increase the value of what we already have in Christ, because bringing others to him is the only treasure that counts in heaven.

But inviting people to come with us is more than a privilege; it’s also an obligation. The Great Commission commands us to share what we have with those who don’t have it, to invite people to come with us.

Since Hobab wasn’t a part of Israel, he was outside a covenant relationship with God. He was a lost man with no hope of salvation apart from accepting Moses’ invitation and becoming a part of the nation of Israel. And, today, there’s no salvation for those outside a covenant relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, no hope of heaven without a personal relationship with him.

People don’t become Christians by happenstance. They become Christians by believing on Jesus, by becoming a member of his body, which is the church. In other words, they become the church. A building isn’t a church. It’s simply a gathering place for the church. That’s something that needs to be stressed, that the church is mobile. It’s wherever a believer finds himself or herself.

And when the Bible says, “You must be born again,” it means what it says. There must be a moment in time when a person looks to Jesus by faith and trusts him as their Savior by faith. When that happens, he or she immediately becomes a part of his family. As a family member, they’re entitled to all the rights and privileges of family. They become a child of God, adopted into his family, and are assured a place in heaven. This is an always thing. God doesn’t lose a person he saves.

To paraphrase, Moses told Hobab, “You need us, and we need you. Join our fellowship, and we’ll do right by you. God is blessing us, and we’ll share those blessings with you.”

We should be able to say to every person who unites with us, “We’ll do right by you. We’ll do you good.”

You might ask, “Why do we need these sinners?” Well, it’s simple, really. When God saves a sinner, he gives that saved person his Spirit. And along with the Spirit of God come the gifts of the Spirit.

God uniquely gifts each person he saves for a specific task within his body. When God saves someone and sends them to our fellowship, it isn’t an accident. He sends them so they can fulfill a special place in the ministry no one else can fill. We need what they bring with them if we are going to be all God would have us to be.

Therefore, we must learn to create an environment where people can exercise their spiritual gifts. We never should stand in their way, but should encourage them to grow in the Lord and become all they can be. We must give people the freedom to be who God saved them to be.

This obviously threatens some church members. They feel they’re losing their “power” when new people begin to grow and do things in the church. They forget it’s not their church; it’s the Lord’s church.

Believers incapable of helping other believers grow in their walk with the Lord, who are jealous of their gifts and abilities, have deep-seated spiritual problems.

So beware the person who always criticizes others when they strive to grow in the Lord by exercising their gifts and talents in the church. A person manifesting that kind of spirit is someone who feels as if their perceived power and position is being threatened.

When Moses invited Hobab to “Come with us,” he was inviting him to share in all the great blessings God had promised to give Israel. And, when we invite a person to “Come with us,” we should be inviting them to partake of the great promises God has given to us.