* Instructions given by God to Moses, and disobedience to the instructions by the children of Israel

Joan Boney ... apostle/prophet 

As the children of Israel journeyed through the wilderness for 40-years, God gave them Manna daily for bread.

Moses told them to gather only that amount they could eat that day.

Some tried to store up manna, but worms came into that which they tried to store.

Exodus 16:20    Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses; but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and stank: and Moses was wroth with them.

Moses told them God had instituted a "sabbath" so on the seventh day they were to rest from their works. Consequently they were to gather a double portion on the sixth day so they would have food for the sabbath.

Moses said:  

Exodus 16:26   Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there shall be none.  27 And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none.  28 And the Lord said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep MY commandments and MY laws? 

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The instructions were very simple, but they perverted the words and did the opposite to that which was commanded to them.

I have found people in the New Testament church today who will do exactly the same thing.

A woman in our little church group said God told her to get a dog.  She bought a little dog and was having it delivered to her city.  A man was flying in at midnight to bring the dog to this woman.

I was very troubled over the thought of this woman, who got lost even trying to drive in daylight, going to an airport which was about 15-miles north of the city, on mostly country roads, to pick up this dog at midnight.

I prayed about this and had an instruction which I believed to be from God for her.  "Hire a chauffer driven car to pick you up and take you to the airport to pick up the dog."

I was delighted when this word came to me.  

It didn't cost much in this city to do this. (about $30)  The driver would know exactly how to get to the airport.  He would pick her up at her home, deliver her to the front, main entrance of the air port.  She would not have to park in a pay-lot and walk in the night to the airport.  And the driver would return her and new dog to her home.  It was easy, safe, and relatively inexpensive.

I delivered this information to this woman immediately.

She was delighted also.

But a day or so before she was to pickup  the dog, she reported to me:  "I don't need a driver.  I can drive myself.  I can take the man who is delivering the dog to his hotel that night when he arrives. But I have hired a chauffer to pick up the man, who is delivering the dog, the next morning at his hotel, and take him back to the airport."

I was livid with her report!

She completely changed the instruction God had given to me for her.

I rebuked her sharply.  

The grown, adult man, who delivered the dog, was accustomed to delivering these dogs, which were purchased by people all over the United States.  The hotel where he was staying likely had car service to take customers back to airport.  And even if they didn't, this was "a grown man" who could take care of himself and frequently travelled to cities delivering animals to people.

This woman finally did what I told her to do which I thought was from God.

This is just one of the many times I have seen people pervert messages which God sent to help them.

Notice at first she was delighted with that word I delivered to her.  Then that word got all twisted. (devils working to reason the word away and pervert the word and to make the word worthless by the changes)  

It is Mark 4:14-17  
The sower soweth the word.

And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts.  And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness;  And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they are offended.

This woman showed herself unstable in dealing with the Word from God.  The instruction I gave her was not of myself but from God.  Therefore that Word was as much a scripture as the scriptures for it was the Word of God on the issue at hand and was given to benefit this woman.

She had been in our church group for almost 40 years and this same type of problem came from her many times during those years.  She often chose ideas that were not wisdom from God.  During those years, I often prayed that if I ever became unable to deal with my life, I not be turned over to this woman for I knew her decisions were often not made by God's wisdom.

An opposite story:  Pam Padgett was planning to marry.  I was troubled over this marriage and another person in our church group was troubled.  We both told Pam we were troubled.  Pam postponed the wedding and prayed.  After postponing the wedding, her fiancé was telling her his son was going to marry a divorced woman.  Pam told him if he did this, it would be adultery according to the Bible.  Matthew 5:32  whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery.  After Pam told him this scripture, he no longer wanted to marry Pam.  God spared Pam by her respect for the office of a prophet for she wasn't going against two prophets who reported being troubled.  Instead she postponed the wedding and prayed and God caused the information to come forth about the divorced woman and this man showed he really wasn't of God though he identified himself as a Christian.

I've dealt with Pam many years and I witnessed her turning to God and following a wisdom from God many times.

So when I was 81-years-old and fell and needed surgery, I named Pam in charge of medical decisions if I was unable to make them over myself.

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These Old Testament examples show us to follow the instructions given by God.

Some of the instructions were given by God to Moses for him to give them to the individuals.

I have also encountered people who did not respect the ministries of God and unless they heard that instruction personally, they would not do the instruction.  

When you know the person carrying the message to be a minister of God who will not "lightly" carry an instruction to you, then you should be very careful with the way you deal with  such an instruction. 

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We have an example in the New Testament of God sending a prophet, Agabus, with a message to the church and also with a specific message to the apostle Paul.

God sends a New Testament prophet to a New Testament church to deliver a message:

Acts 11:27-30   And in these days came prophets from Jerusalem unto Antioch.  And there stood up one of them named Agabus, and signified by the Spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world: which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar.

Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judaea:  which they did by the hands of Paul and Barnabus. 

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God sends a message to the apostle Paul by a New Testament prophet:

Acts 21:10-11     And as we tarried there many days, there came down from Judaea a certain prophet, named Agabus.  And when he was come unto us, he took Paul's girdle, and bound his own hands and feet, and said, Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles. 

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Paul often traveled with a prophet named Silas.  Acts 15:22; Acts 15:27; Acts 15:32; Acts 15:34;  Acts 15:40; Acts 16:19; Acts 16:25; Acts 16:29; Acts 17:4; Acts 17:10; Acts 17:14; Acts 17:15; Acts 18:5

We don't know though whom God will choose to give needed information.

After Jesus arose, after the crucifixion and the resurrection of Jesus, Jesus gave to the New Testament church:  some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;  For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;  (Ephesians 4:11-14) 

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Exodus 16:35   And the children of Israel did eat manna forty years, until they came to a land inhabited; they did eat manna, until they came unto the borders of the land of Canaan.

As long as there was a need for manna, God provided manna.  Fresh manna was in the fields in the mornings, except for the seventh day of the week.  Manna was provided by God for 40-years.

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