"Korah son if Izhar,the son of Kohath, the son of Levi,
and certain Reubenites-- Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab,
and On son of Peleth--
became insolent and rose up against Moses.
With them were 250 Israelite men,
well-known community leaders who had been appointed members of the council.
They came as a group to oppose Moses and Aaron
and said to them,
'You have gone too far!
The whole community is holy, every one of them,
and the LORD is with them.
Why then do you set yourselves
above the LORD's assembly?'"
Who do they think they are, anyway? Moses and Aaron are getting a bit too big for their britches as far as I can see. Every one of us is chosen by God to belong to Him as His treasured possession, so why do they think they're special? (Exodus 19:4-6) I mean, they haven't even done what they've promised. . . we have not entered the land promised to us by God. They just seem to be jerking us around.
These could have been the thoughts of the man who led the lethal rebellion that resulted in the death of him and two of his buddies, their families, 250 of their followers as well as an additional 14,700 who continued to rebel even after a frightening display of God's sovereign power and who ultimately met their own brutal demise. (Numbers 16)
Korah made the foolish mistake of wanting more than what the LORD had provided. He was given the important job of caring for the holy things of the Tabernacle, along with the rest of the Kohathites, but he grew jealous of the position in which God had placed Moses. He mistakenly believed Moses had elevated himself to his position of leadership.
While this seems like quite a bold and treacherous claim to make, I can often make the same kind of mistake.
Perspective
"Women will not achieve full equality until every woman can pursue her dreams free from discrimination. NOW declared full support for same-sex marriage in 1995, claiming that the choice of marriage is a fundamental constitutional right under the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment that should not be denied because of a person's sexual orientation. Feminism is rooted in freedom, independence and love. Lesbian women should be able to marry their partner and be entitled to the same rights as their heterosexual sisters." (Equal Marriage NOW: Talking Points)
Almost any behavior can be justified along the lines of rights or a sense of fairness. The above statement is taken directly from the National Organization for Women's website and reflects their deceptive practice of using our desire to extend the same civil liberties and privileges equally to all people as a weapon that is destroying marriage as God defined it. Unfortunately, these zealous rebels miss the point as far as I'm concerned. Instead of arguing about who has the right to get married, the question that should be asked is, who has the right to define marriage?
Modern society is extremely concerned with rights. Rights to bear arms. Rights to speak freely. Rights to live as I see fit. If I take this worldly perspective and try to apply it to God's kingdom, I will run into trouble. There are many things God teaches that seem unfair to me. There is much in His Word that flies in the face of my selfish sin nature. There is a lot that I have a hard time reconciling to my own way of thinking.
And herein lies the rub. Either I accept God's ways and fall into line with what He expects from me, or I rebel against Him and go my own way. I can't get my way and follow God at the same time. I can't look out for my rights and follow God at the same time. I can't focus on my desires and follow God at the same time.
By the way, understanding is not a pre-requisite for obedience. (Proverbs 3:5-6) I have always had a hard time obeying an order or request if I don't understand the purpose for that command. This gets me in trouble when dealing with governmental requirements because they often don't make sense to me. It also, however, gets me in trouble with God because His ways and thoughts are so much higher than mine; I can't possibly expect to comprehend His line of thinking or His reasons for doing things! (Isaiah 55:8-9)
My walk with Christ, then, is deeply rooted in a need to submit. I must surrender my rights to myself over to God, allow the people He has placed in authority over me to lead me, and bow to His will in my life. This continual act of submission flies in the face of my sin nature as well as to what the culture around me asserts.
I am in danger of rebelling against God and His chosen leaders when I insist on preserving my own fleshly, worldly perspective.
Jealousy
"Keeping up with the Joneses." This well-known idiom describes a mindset where I work to match the lifestyle of my friends and neighbors. It is easy, when living in such a materialistic society, to get caught up in this way of life. I visit a friend's home, admiring her sense of style and decor, and suddenly find myself discontent with my own perfectly comfortable and adequate home. All at once, what I have doesn't seem like enough.
I often find this same principle at work in my spiritual life as well. God has given me gifts meant to build up the body of Christ. Instead of being content with the jobs He has granted me to do, my eye wanders to what my sister or brother in Christ are accomplishing. I then find myself desiring their gifts, trying to mimic their ministries, or nosing in on their area of responsibility.
While God has supernaturally gifted me with the ability to serve His people in specific ways, I may feel inadequate, uninterested, or displeased with His choice for me. Other times I may want more than what He has given me, feeling slighted or unfulfilled in my role. Then there are times when I simply feel insecure with the position in which He has placed me. Whatever the reason, any time I don't serve where God has placed me, the Body of Christ suffers. (1 Corinthians 12:11, 14, 18)
I am in danger of rebelling against God and His Church when I am not satisfied with what God has given to me.
Justification
She walked the neighborhood, going door-to-door to try to drum up support for her cause. When she came to my home, I quickly dismissed her quest for a following. I refused to jump on her bandwagon, choosing instead to defend the woman this neighbor so stubbornly insisted on slandering.
We all can recall a time when we've been hurt by another. Sometimes it's a close friend whose words or actions cut deeply, other times it's an acquaintance, co-worker or relative who wounds. Whatever the source, we've all suffered at the hand of another.
When I take this hurt and do as my neighbor did, seeking to garner support for my desire to pay back, I can be assured that I am in the wrong. If I need to gather a following in order to give me a sense of justification, then I had better examine my motivation. Am I seeking revenge? Am I trying to defend my own position? Am I concerned only with my reputation?
When living life together with other believers, there will be times when my toes are stepped on, my rights are violated, and my feelings are hurt. The question to always ask is, does this bring dishonor to God? If it's only me that is offended and I feel the need to build a following before trying to work it out with my brother or sister, I most likely have the wrong motivation. In other words, if I need to rally support in order to rationalize my defense, it's probably me whose been wronged, not God.
I am in danger of rebelling against God and His family when I sense a need to justify my own position.
God took drastic measures to end the revolt led by Korah. His greed and jealousy cost the lives of many, but my own desire for more than what God has given me has a similar price. Therefore, I would be wise to keep a godly perspective, guard against discontent, and examine my heart when feeling slighted by a brother or sister. In these ways, I'll avoid building a rebellion of my own.
As I begin this day, it is my prayer that I can keep my eyes on Jesus to avoid lusting after more than what God has graciously given to me.
How am I concerned with my own rights more than I focus on obedience to God and His ways?
When do I feel jealous of what others have?
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