Tues.’s Devo - Obedience

Read Leviticus 9:7-10:20; Mark 4:26-5:20; Psalm 37:30-4-; Proverbs 10:6-7
Once Aaron and his sons were consecrated they could offer sacrifices. They first offered the sin and the burnt offering to cleanse them and the people from their sins. That had to happen first. Everything was going well till Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu got off script and decided to put fire and incense on their censer. This strange fire in the Hebrew meant to commit adultery. It was a calculated rebellion from what God had told them to do. God knew their hearts and God’s fire came out and consumed them. Nadal means “liberal” and Abihu means “worshipper of God”. How did these men go so far off. We see it every day. Adultery among spiritual leaders is rampant in the church today. The reason we don’t see immediate judgement, like in this story, is that we are living in the dispensation of grace so God’s judgment is slow in coming, but that doesn’t mean it won’t come. One day we will all stand before God and account for our lives.
Aaron and his other relatives were not allowed to mourn for the deaths of Nadab and Abihu. They were to carry on as usual. They were not to drink any drink that would be intoxicating. Intoxicate in Webster’s means to excite to a point beyond self-control. God wanted his spiritual leaders to have self-control at all times. They were also to have their heads covered with hair as a sign of a covering. We are covered with the blood of Jesus as our sign.
Church can be messy at times because we all have our interpretations of what God is saying. Aaron and Moses had to work through some of theirs also but they learned to respect one another’s opinions. We need to do the same.
In Mark, Jesus talked more about the seed. Once it is scattered, it is not up to the one who scattered it to make sure it grows. It is the soil and the rain that determines whether it will produce a good crop. The soil is the person’s heart and God controls the rain.
Jesus got into a boat and went across to the other side. On one side is the mainly Jewish followers and the other side was the mainly Gentile followers. Jesus was going to the Gentile side when a storm arose to keep them from reaching their destination. Satan did not want Jesus to reach the man with the demons. Jesus calmed the sea with a command of peace and they reached the other side unharmed. On the other side was a man filled with demons. His demons were the principality of that whole region. Once Jesus cast them out, the whole area was afraid and begged Jesus to leave. The man who had been delivered begged to go with Jesus but Jesus refused to let him. Instead, he told the man to go home and tell everyone what God had done for him. He did, and the next time Jesus came the people were ready and hungry to see Jesus. Jesus bound the strong man and took his armor (Luke 11:21-22).
Lord, help us to obey your exact commands and trust You without wavering.