Thurs.’s Devo - God Protects His Anointed

Read: Numbers 15:17-16:40; Mark 15:1-47; Psalm 54:1-7; Proverbs 11:5-6 God continued to give instructions for the ones who would enter into the land. They were to set aside some of their crops for the Lord. They would be given from the first crop of wheat at the time of Passover. It would be for sins committed unintentionally. It was to cover sins that they didn’t even know they had done. This offering would purify the whole community. But those who brazenly violated the Lord’s were to be cut off from the community. They had a perfect example given. A man gathered sticks on the Sabbath and God who saw his heart, said that he needed to be stoned outside the camp as brazen disobedience. The people were to put blue tassels on their borders of their garments to remind them of the Lord and what he had done for them. It was to be a constant reminder to follow the law. A rebellion arose through Korah, a leader of one of the three families of the Levites. He gathered 250 others to rebel against Moses and Aaron. They questioned their authority to rule over them. Moses fell face down on the ground and said that tomorrow morning the Lord would show who belonged to Him. He summoned Dathan and Eliab who were leaders of the tribe of Rueben and they refused to come before Moses. They sided with Korah. Moses was very angry. He told Korah and his 250 followers to prepare an incense burner and present it before the Lord, since they thought they should be doing Moses’ job. They all met before the entrance of the Tabernacle. Korah had stirred up the whole community to be against Moses and Aaron. God wanted to destroy them all but Moses interceded for the people. Moses told the people to get away from the camps of Korah, Dathan and Abiram or they would be destroyed also. The people moved back and Moses declared that if they died a natural death, then the Lord had not sent him, but if God did something new and the ground opened up and swallowed them, then they will all know that these men were guilty. As soon as the words left Moses’ mouth, the ground split open and swallowed up the men also with their households and followers who were standing with them. They went alive into hell and the earth closed over them. Fire blazed forth from God and burned up the 250 men who had followed them. God told Moses to take incense burners the sinners and hammer them into thin sheets of metal to overlay the altar. Moses then made it clear that no one but Levites should ever offer incense to the Lord. We as born-again Christians are represented in the tribe of Levi. We are the only ones who can approach God’s presence and offer prayers for others and be heard. Rebellion is not welcome’s in God’s presence. In Mark, the religious leaders had pronounced their verdict of “guilty” and now it was the politicians of the Roman government who needed to try Jesus. Pilate, the Roman governor asked Jesus if he was king of the Jews. Jesus replied that he had said it. The priests told the governor of all their accusations against Jesus and Pilate asked Jesus for his response. Jesus refused to answer. Pilate’s tradition was to release a prisoner every year at Passover so he set up Jesus and Barabbas, his most vile prisoner. Barabbas was a rebel who had been thought of his followers as the Messiah. He was a murderer and an insurrectionist. The people chose him to be set free and Jesus to die. They took Jesus, dressed him in a purple robe, put a crown of thorns on his head and mocked him “King of the Jews.” Jesus hung between two sinners and one of them mocked while the other repented. Jesus was nailed to the cross at nine in the morning, the time that the Passover lamb was being tied to the altar in the Temple. There were multiple altars at the Temple so all day the priests sacrificed lambs brought by the people. At noon, darkness fell on the whole earth for three hours. God ministered to Jesus during that time. You can read about it in Psalm 22. When the light came back at three, Jesus quoted from this Psalm so they would know what was going on. Jesus died at three and at his last word, the veil was rent in the Temple from top to bottom - from God to man - from heaven to earth. At three the Temple lamb was sacrificed and the priest would always say, “It is finished.” When the Roman officer assigned to his crucifixion saw all that happened, he proclaimed that Jesus was truly the Son of God. After Jesus had died, Joseph of Arimathea went to Pilate to beg for his body. He wrapped him in linen cloth and laid him in his tomb. Marry Magdalene and Mary saw where Jesus was laid. Lord, may we see the miracle and beauty of your birth. You gave your son as a sacrifice for us. We are so grateful. May our lives be living sacrifices to you.