Great question! No, it is not because they are my favorite nut (though one of my favorite flavors is almond extract) or because almond trees have beautiful flowers. In fact, until my teenage years I was allergic to them among other nuts and legumes. You could say my opinion of them was not very high, because with just one little nut, I would blow up like a helium balloon for homecoming. And that wasn't the worst part of it - that came afterwards. Oatmeal baths, needle injections, massive hives, and the constant itching for weeks were enough for one like me to be reminded of the horrors of curious indulgence. But hey... can you blame me? When all the other kids were feasting on Reese Peanut Butter Cups or downing a pistachio ice cream sundae you could say it would eventually get to you too. At least enough for you to finally mount up the courage to give it a another try, only to hear those famous words from your parents, 'I told you so." Not to mention the oatmeal baths, needle injections, massive hives - well I won't beleaguer the point. Did I also mention I was allergic to all milk products? and soy products? Yeah, it was rough.
So why in the world almonds? Because there is a great spiritual truth in the Bible about them and every time I meditate on that principle, it brings renewed joy into my life. The word almond, whether possessive or singular appears ten times in the Bible. The most familiar passage of Scripture on almonds is from Numbers Ch. 17. Previously in Numbers Ch. 16, Korah, a man from the tribe of Levi (the tribe where priests were from), led a rebellion comprised of 250 leaders from the tribes of Israel against God's authority for his life, Aaron (the High Priest) and Moses (God's Leader). He says in Num. 16:3, "Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the LORD?" In other words, you are a hypocrite Moses; you are a hypocrite, Aaron. You are going around making sure we are who we should be but at the same time your not holy because you are lifting yourself above us, and that is pride. Wow! What a statement!
For the sake of time, I do not want to go into great detail here (I encourage you to read these chapters for yourself) but I do want to point out that Korah and the others were actually the ones with pride which manifested its ugly head through their envy and jealously of Moses and Aaron, who, by the way, were from the same tribe that Korah was from, Levi.
God used three signs to prove his men were righteous. One, an incense pot, two, a swallowing pit, three, a dozen staffs. The one that I want to focus in on was the staffs. God, once again wanting to prove his ministers faithful, asked for each leader of each tribe to bring their staff with their name etched in it and lay them together in the Tabernacle. He also told Moses in Num. 17:5, "And it shall come to pass, that the man's rod, whom I shall choose, shall blossom: and I will make to cease from me the murmurings of the children of Israel, whereby they murmur against you." The next day Moses went back into the Tabernacle and Aaron's rod had not only produced flowers, but also almonds. The other eleven staffs from the other eleven men remained the same. It was only Aaron's that was different. Naturally. it takes 7-8 months for almonds to be produced after the almond flower has bloomed; but this was just overnight and was from a dead piece of wood! It truly was a miracle from God. This sign signified to all the people once again, that Aaron was God's man and that his blessing and power were upon him. And furthermore, rebellion against God's appointed and anointed is a dangerous thing. It did not go well with Korah and others. All in all through several events around 15,000 people perished.
In closing, there are many principles we can learn from this passage of Scripture. A few are:
1) Rebellion against godly authority unjustly is an abomination to God
2) God will protect His anointed
3) Intercession (Prayer for others) can hold back God's judgment
But the principle I am reminded of almost every time I see an almond is that the staff is a picture of the Resurrection; that is, the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Here is an object that was dead (the staff), but was brought back to life through God's power. Can it be any clearer? Christ died for your sins and was resurrected by the wonderful, powerful, mighty glory of God. Truly, the staff is a picture of the future Resurrection of our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ.
Now you know why I smile every time I see or eat an almond; and yes believe it or not, I can eat them now and I enjoy them very much!
In Christ,
Pastor Jon
Phil. 2:15
For additional reading on almonds, read Jeremiah Chapter 1. In relation to this story, what is God trying to Jeremiah about his calling?
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