Exo 30:11 And the LORD said to Moses, 12 “Whenever you take a census of the people of Israel, each man who is counted must pay a ransom for himself to the LORD. Then there will be no plagues among the people as you count them. 13 His payment to the LORD will be one-fifth of an ounce of silver. 14 All who have reached their twentieth birthday must give this offering to the LORD. 15 When this offering is given to the LORD to make atonement for yourselves, the rich must not give more, and the poor must not give less”.
I’ve often said before how amazing it is to spend a bit of time reading through God’s word. If we have a desire to find out more about God, there’s no better place to look. Often people will tell me how difficult it is to read and understand the Old Testament, and whilst I agree some parts can be hard, I still feel if we are keen to find out more about God, He will reveal Himself to us as we spend time reading.
Take for example the old testament scripture of Exodus 30 verses 11 through 15. In a simple way, this scripture talks about how the Israelites in the time of Moses had to pay an offering when they were included in the census that Moses conducted. As a topic of interest, I read this scripture a few times and then, compared it to our present day time. This is what I found:
Each person counted in the census of the Israelites had to give 2 Shekels to be considered part of God’s people. This was irrespective of whether they were poor or rich. 2 Shekels – not more for the rich or not less for the poor – the same price for everyone. Today, we are part of God’s Body when we receive Salvation. Jesus paid the price on our behalf – the same price for all. This entrance into God’s family comes at no cost to us – it is a free gift from God – we cannot do anything to earn it. All we have to do is receive it. Rich or poor – same price for all!
In this old testament scripture, it says this ‘ransom’ should be paid so that ‘there will be no plagues among the people’. For us today, as we accept the gift of Salvation from the Lord, we become part of His Kingdom and fall under His protection. The scripture in Isaiah says of the Lord’s people,” Violence will not be heard in your land …you will call your walls Salvation…” – and so it is for us today. We have our Father’s protection. It’s not to say we will not experience hardship, but now we will be able to see the reason for the hardship. It is for the purpose of refining us and making us more ‘mature in Christ’, even as our heavenly Father is perfect (Matt 5:48).
If the Israelites could not afford the 2 shekels, they had to visit the High Priest of the day, and the Priest had to decide a payment plan for them. Similarly, today as we struggle with our daily issues of Salvation, we need to seek our High Priest, Jesus, who will put us on our personal path of becoming more like Him. Not only will we be placed on our personal path of Salvation, but He will help us every step of the way.
The Apostle Paul tells us that ‘everything happens for the good of those who love the Lord’ and as I’ve said before, the scripture says ‘everything’, not just some things. God allows things to happen in our lives in order for us to become aware of the parts of our old natures that don’t please Him. It’s then that we are able to take these parts to Him and ask for change. That’s how we become more like Him day by day – with His help!
God does not consider one person better than another. He loves each precious soul equally. Because He loves equally, the price for salvation is one and the same for all – Jesus!
The greatest gift that any human being can receive is the gift of eternal life. Knowing that we will live forever in a new body – “…which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you…” (1Pet 1:4).
How could we ever put a price on such an amazing gift?
When the world next tries to tell us that we are useless – instantly be reminded of your value to God – priceless!
Blessings