The February 2023 Mission Briefing

3, 12, 70 Get these numbers etched into your mind. They are going to be guides for our Christian gatherings. The second “G” of our core values stands for “Gathering.” It’s important to understand that gathering is not just on Sunday morning. That is crucial, but we also need to gather in smaller, more intimate groups. Come with me on a journey through the scriptures to consider these numbers and their importance to our spiritual lives in Christ.

The most prevalent of these numbers in scripture is the three. Some of the references we find are more significant than others. Here are only a few of the mentions of three. Abraham traveled three days to offer Isaac. Moses was hidden for three months. Balaam beat his donkey three times. Israel had three annual festivals all adult men were required to participate in. Isaiah prophesied naked for three years. Jonah was in the belly of a fish for three days. Jesus was in the tomb, by Jewish reckoning, for three days. Jesus died at three in the afternoon after three hours of darkness. Paul was blind for three days. Peter saw three visions to allow gentiles to become Christians. These are interesting “threes” but for our purposes, we want to focus on threes as they teach us about our gathering together. So, let’s look at scriptures where three people are involved. Noah had three sons that repopulated the earth after the flood. Abraham had three visitors to reaffirm the coming of Isaac. Moses chose three representatives from each tribe to survey the promised land. David had three mighty warriors. Job and Daniel both had three friends. So…?

A group of two or three in agreement have significant power. In the Mosaic Law, the Jews could carry out capital punishment on the testimony of two or three witnesses. The New Testament maintains this principle. Paul writes to the church in Corinth, “Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses” (2 Corinthians 13:1) Also, “Do not entertain an accusation against an elder unless it is brought by two or three witnesses” (1 Timothy 5:19). These verses teach that truth could be established in a binding fashion when two or three people agree. Jesus summed this up nicely. “Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” Now, isn’t Jesus always with a believer? If we understand the “with” to be Jesus’ omnipresence through the Holy Spirit, then “Yes.” Jesus is with us even when we are alone. This is not what Jesus was referring to here. What He is saying is if we gather with another disciple for Jesus then Jesus will also be there for them. So go ahead, ask for what you need. This is a significant truth about the spiritual life many of us overlook or take for granted. It takes two or three coming together to make a “binding” petition. The Christian life is personal but not private. Your prayer life, your service, your studies, your witnessing is all better with one another. Jesus sent out his apostles all two by two for a reason. Solitude has its purposes but don’t neglect the spiritual benefits for everyone when you gather with one or two others. This could be a buddy, a spouse, a child, another couple in the church. Get one or two people you can pray with, share with, and do ministry with. “This is the way.”

The second most prevalent number in the scriptures is twelve. Ishmael was the father of twelve rulers. Jacob also had twelve sons,

who four hundred years later became the enormous twelve tribes of Israel. Because of the twelve tribes, we see the number throughout the rest of the scriptures. Some believe it was because of the twelve tribes that Jesus chose twelve apostles. This idea has a lot to it because Jesus was establishing a new covenant people to receive all the promises made to Abraham and Israel. Jesus did not just leave them be a symbolic representation of the new covenant people, however. He takes these twelve, choosing them out of the larger group, and then pulls them aside, instructs them, spends time with Him, before sending them out with power and authority. Sociologists will tell you that groups of eight to twelve are ideal learning communities and working groups. Think about it, most sports have fewer than twelve people on the field for each team at a time. Basketball has five, volleyball has six, baseball has nine, football has eleven, and hockey has eleven. Jesus chose twelve because that is the maximum number for effective life-on-life discipleship gatherings. Any bigger and individuals become labels and categories and there is a loss of connection and influence. What does this mean for our gatherings? We don’t just need a gathering of three, we also need to gather in a group of eight to twelve. We need to be a part of something that requires more than one and more than three. We need small groups that work together to solve problems, grow in a certain area, or get something done. Do you have a twelve? You need a twelve in your life, a small group, extended family gathering for Christ, some group you do life with. You need it. Then, there is the seventy. This is a good-sized crowd. Jacob had seventy members of his family flee to Egypt during the famine. When Israel came out there were seventy elders representing the twelve tribes. Israel was taken into captivity for seventy years. Daniel had a vision from God regarding seventy “sevens.”

Between the old and new testaments, seventy Jewish scholars translated the Jewish scriptures into the Septuagint, the Bible the early Christians used. These are interesting but the example we are most interested in is how Jesus used the seventy. Luke chapter ten tells us the story of when Jesus sends sev- enty-two apostles out two by two ahead of Him to heal the sick, proclaim the coming of the King, encourage repentance, and to cast evil spirits out of people. The number seventy is a large group that shares a common calling. It is a representative group of a greater crowd. The seventy stands for the church. We are the seventy, all chosen by Christ and called out to proclaim His Kingdom with power. During the week, we serve in smaller partnerships but then we come together “with joy and [say], “Lord, even the de- mons submit to us in your Name” (Luke 10:17). We need a time and a place to rejoice together as a larger group. We need a time and place to celebrate Jesus and learn. We cannot connect with everyone in this environment closely but that’s not really the point of Sunday morning worship. It’s to celebrate Christ’s power and victories. You need your seventy.

Let me sum up: We need to gather in twos or threes for intimacy and service. We need to gather in twelves for learning and larger work projects. We gather in seventies or more to rejoice in Jesus and celebrate this new life in Him. Do you have your 3, 12, and 70? It’s God’s design for how we glorify Him, how we gather together, how we grow in Christlikeness, and how go into the world. Wait no longer get your 3, 12, and 70.

With you in Christ, Pastor Kyle