The Minority Report

In the book of Numbers, chapter 11, Moses cries out to God and asks for help. God answers the prayer pouring out his Spirit on 70 elders. The elders had all come together in the Tent of the Meeting – which was the Tabernacle, a place of worship.

However, there were two men who were not present in worship, Eldad and Medad. When they received the same gift of the Spirit and began to prophesy, Joshua says, “My lord Moses, stop them!”  But Moses replies, “Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit on them!”

Scholars tell us that this story about Eldad and Medad is a minority report to the previous story of the seventy elders. These two men were not at the tent of meeting when the Spirit came upon the others. In other words, they were not at church. But the Spirit of God spilled out upon them anyway… And there were people who didn’t like that. They didn’t like it because it is not how they thought God was supposed to work.

Sometimes we think we have God all figured out, nailed down. We think we know who’s in, who’s out… who’s loved, who’s not. Sometimes we think we have to have all the answers – not only when it comes to faith. Sometimes we think we have to have all the answers when it comes to politics, when it comes to science, or philosophy, or you name it… And that leaves us with all kinds of blind spots. Because then we fail to be curious. We fail to listen. We fail to be open to the Spirit who is ever wanting to do a new thing within us and around us.

The opposite of humility is pride. The truth is – we’re all affected by this on one level or another.

My prayer yesterday was for humility and strength. And it is again today: May you and I, may we be the kind of people who are humble and strong enough to admit we don’t have all the answers – all the time. May we be the kind of people who are humble and strong enough to recognize our own limitations and our own need. And, may we be the kind of people who are humble and strong enough to lead, even as Jesus led, with a servant’s heart.

Let us pray: Holy Spirit, open our hearts again to you this day. Grant us curiosity and an ability to listen, and to learn. Give us an openness to your leading, and to your hand at work beyond us. And help us recognize signs of your love and grace in the world around us. Through Christ, we pray. Amen.