Rebellion Against God's Authority - Numbers 15-17 and Mark 6:1-29
There are many people who have a problem with accepting God's authority. Their pride and independent spirit leads them to rebel against God's laws. They convince themselves that they know better than God. This always leads to defeat and sorrow in the long run. I pray that each of us will look at our own lives as we read God's Word today.
In Numbers 15-17 we read about the rebellion of Korah and the other leaders of Israel, but there are other principles about rebellion, too. The passage begins with some instructions about sacrifices. I wonder how many people failed to follow God's instructions completely, because they thought they were unnecessary? That is rebellion against authority. Then, there is the discussion of unintentional sin and presumptuous sin. It is amazing to read that one who sinned intentionally was cut off from the people. God must hate the spirit of rebellion a lot. Then, we have the example of the man who was stoned for breaking the Sabbath. What if we were still under the Old Testament law today? How many of us would be stoned for rebelling against the law of the Sabbath, because we thought we knew better than God? All of this leads up to the story of Korah and his family being killed by God for rebellion. They did not want God's order, They wanted to be in charge. God ended up having to show them who was in charge. I pray that we don't make God do that in our lives. Finally, God caused Aaron's rod to bud as a sign that he was chosen by God to be the leader of the priests. God was going to great lengths to make sure that the people saw His authority, wasn't He? He did this because even after Korah' s group was killed the people complained, and He had to kill 14,700 more people to squash their rebellion.
Then, look at Mark 6. Not even Jesus was accepted as a prophet in His hometown. The people would not accept Him, because they knew His family, and they saw Him grow up. They did not want to listen to His authority, and that was just their excuse. When Jesus sent out His disciples to preach, He knew that some people would reject them, so He gave them instruction about what to do. Then, we read about the death of John, the Baptist. It is a classic case of rebellion against God's authority. Herodias did not like John telling her God's Word about marriage, so she had him killed. That will do it, won't it? Kill the messenger to make the rule go away. That is how people think, but it never works. It is so much better for us to accept God's authority and repent of any rebellion in our hearts. God's way is always the best way.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Numbers 18-20 and Mark 6:30-56.
In Numbers 15-17 we read about the rebellion of Korah and the other leaders of Israel, but there are other principles about rebellion, too. The passage begins with some instructions about sacrifices. I wonder how many people failed to follow God's instructions completely, because they thought they were unnecessary? That is rebellion against authority. Then, there is the discussion of unintentional sin and presumptuous sin. It is amazing to read that one who sinned intentionally was cut off from the people. God must hate the spirit of rebellion a lot. Then, we have the example of the man who was stoned for breaking the Sabbath. What if we were still under the Old Testament law today? How many of us would be stoned for rebelling against the law of the Sabbath, because we thought we knew better than God? All of this leads up to the story of Korah and his family being killed by God for rebellion. They did not want God's order, They wanted to be in charge. God ended up having to show them who was in charge. I pray that we don't make God do that in our lives. Finally, God caused Aaron's rod to bud as a sign that he was chosen by God to be the leader of the priests. God was going to great lengths to make sure that the people saw His authority, wasn't He? He did this because even after Korah' s group was killed the people complained, and He had to kill 14,700 more people to squash their rebellion.
Then, look at Mark 6. Not even Jesus was accepted as a prophet in His hometown. The people would not accept Him, because they knew His family, and they saw Him grow up. They did not want to listen to His authority, and that was just their excuse. When Jesus sent out His disciples to preach, He knew that some people would reject them, so He gave them instruction about what to do. Then, we read about the death of John, the Baptist. It is a classic case of rebellion against God's authority. Herodias did not like John telling her God's Word about marriage, so she had him killed. That will do it, won't it? Kill the messenger to make the rule go away. That is how people think, but it never works. It is so much better for us to accept God's authority and repent of any rebellion in our hearts. God's way is always the best way.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Numbers 18-20 and Mark 6:30-56.