ALPHA MAAMA (A.M.)

 Sapate Fepueli 22, 2026

NOMIPA 26-27; SENESI 12:1-3

God not only blesses us with his great and precious promises, but he also works by grace to prepare us to hear them.

‘Oku ‘ikai ngata ‘i he tapuaki’i kitautolu ‘e he ‘Otua ‘aki ha ngaahi palomesi lahi mo lelei, ka ‘oku ne ngaue fou ‘i he ‘Ene kelesi ke teu’i kitautolu ke tau lava ‘o ongona ‘ene ngaahi talaa.

Imagine that an attorney informs you that a distant relative has left you an inheritance of property and money larger than you ever dreamed you would have. It's wonderful that you have been granted what you couldn't have achieved or earned on your own. But now you have a problem. How in the world do you manage your newfound wealth? It's one thing to be given an inheritance; it's another thing to be prepared to receive it. You now need property management and investment skills. You need qualified advisers to help handle your inheritance wisely. Imagine that you're in a state of panic, only to discover that your distant relative anticipated your need to receive and use your inheritance wisely, and he made provision for all of the necessary training and counsel.

This is what the final chapters of Numbers are about. God is about to fulfill his commitment to deliver the promised land to Israel, but they need to be prepared. Like a loving father who is about to send his children off on the adventure of a lifetime, God wants to make sure that they are prepared to receive what he promised so long ago. We see in these chapters that God is not distant, uninvolved, or uncaring. This transcendent one is intimately involved with his children. He is actively concerned for their welfare. He will not make promises and walk away. He not only promises; he also prepares. The numbering of the tribes and clans and the appointing of the next generation of leadership are God's preparing his children to receive all that he has promised them (Num. 26-27).

And this is what is happening right here, right now for all of God's children. Because of Christ's work on our behalf, we have been given a future and an inheritance beyond our wildest dreams. The Bible makes it clear that this broken world is our present address - not our final destination. What is going on right now is preparation. God is actively working to mold us into the image of his Son so that we will be ready for the destiny that is ours by grace - a new heaven and perfect new earth. This is how much God loves us. He not only blesses us with things we could have never created on our own, but he also works to prepare us to receive his gifts of grace. So when God takes you where you never intended to go, be thankful; you are being prepared for the awesome destiny that is yours because of the righteous life, the substitutionary death, and the victorious resurrection of Jesus. Your Lord not only promises, but he prepares. And it is a good   thing that he does.