Have you considered the consequences of disobedience?
20 Feb 26
Today's devotional: taken from YouVersion, Devotions on F.I.R.E. Year One
Readings:
Numbers 3
Numbers 4
Mark 3:22-35
But they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die (Numbers 4:15).
Have you considered the consequences of disobedience?
God delineates right from wrong. Moses records, “And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, ‘Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die'” (Genesis 2:16-17). Adam’s disobedience brings sin, suffering, and death to mankind.
Uzzah is a Kohathite. We are informed from Numbers 4 that he was strictly trained never to touch the ark of God, lest he die. Moreover, we learn from 2 Samuel 6:7, “Then the anger of the LORD was aroused against Uzzah, and God struck him there for his error, and he died there by the ark of God” (2 Samuel 6:7). Uzzah’s disobedience by touching the ark brought his swift demise.
Employment Point: Avoid the path of death by honoring God’s Word.
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Reflections
Numbers 3- in this chapter, we saw how the Lord has given assignments to the ones He chose. The people were appointed to take care of different parts of the tabernacle. Just like how different parts of the body were to come together as one body, with Jesus as the head of the body.
““After Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy furnishings and all the holy articles, and when the camp is ready to move, only then are the Kohathites to come and do the carrying. But they must not touch the holy things or they will die. The Kohathites are to carry those things that are in the tent of meeting.”Numbers 4:15 NIV
- I see from the Kohathites especially it seems they are a tribe whom have been kept away from the holy tent. They cannot even look or touch the holy things else they will die. However, God never excluded them from His plans. They were also assigned to carry the things in the tent of meeting. He specifically asked Moses and Aaron to make sure that the Levites do not destroy the Kohathites, so that they may live and not die when they are near the most holy things.
- God cares for all his people and each of us has a different role to play in our lives, be it big or small but it is still important. He asked us to love our neighbours as ourselves, regardless of who they are.. at the same time, we are guarded by God’s law so that no harm can come to us.
- Thank you Father Lord for your everlasting love for us. Thank you for always extending Your hand to us to make sure we don’t fall. Thank you for the roles You have given to us during the different seasons of our life so that we all learn about the different things You want us to learn. Father grant me the spirit of wisdom to understand Your Good will and may I continue to have favour in You and be chosen by You for Your good works. In Jesus most precious name I pray. Amen 🙏🏻
“Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.””Mark 3:34-35 NIV
- the verses here did not specify that all children of God will be called His brother or sister. Jesus said those who does God’s will can be called by such. In other words, if we hear Him speak and yet not do His will, we cannot be called his brother, sister or mother.
Disobedience is something that is somewhat built-in when we were born. Due to Adam and Eve’s sins of disobedience, we begin our lives as sinners. There’s always a part in us that is somewhat rebellious in nature, maybe also mischievous and that I believe also opens up a door for the enemy to come and mess up our lives.
Just imagine this. The Lord already said no but we kept pushing or negotiating. For example, He may tell us to go into a certain ministry. But in our understanding, we start to question or tell the Lord this is not what we want or simply, we do not know how. But does the Lord require us to know? No, He doesn’t. If He needs us to have certain skills before He calls us, He would have equipped us.
Obedience is not just saying yes to the Lord. It is asking the Lord to humble us as we learn from Him. It is learning how to have a heart like Jesus, one of a servant’s heart.
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The Initiative Against Daydreaming
BY OSWALD CHAMBERS
February 20
Come now; let us leave. — John 14:31
Dreaming and planning in order to do a task well is a good thing; daydreaming when we should already be doing is wrong. In John 14, Jesus gives a wonderful message to his disciples: “Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these” (v. 12). We might expect that, after delivering this message, Jesus would tell the disciples to go off and meditate on what he’d said. Instead, he tells them to spring into action: “Come now; let us leave.”
There are moments when dreaming is appropriate. If we are patiently waiting before God and he says, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place,” this is an invitation to sit with him in contemplation (Mark 6:31). It’s God’s way of getting us alone so he can tell us what he wants us to do. But after he’s told us, we have to watch out if, instead of taking action, we’re inclined to keep dreaming about what he’s said. God’s blessing is never on idleness. When we get his wake-up call, we must go out and obey, leaving our dreams safely where we found them—with God, the source of all our dreams and joys and delights.
Taking action is the way we show Jesus we love him. When you’re in love, do you spend all your time sitting around, daydreaming about your beloved? No! You get up and do something about it. That is what Jesus Christ expects.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD
The Bible does not thrill; the Bible nourishes. Give time to the reading of the Bible and the recreating effect is as real as that of fresh air physically.
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Reflections
There is a time for everything. Sometimes it’s for us to be still, sometimes it’s for us to rest, at times it is for us to do something or not do something. However it is, the Lord’s instructions are never vague. It is always clear, not confusing and have a sense of shalom peace that comes with it that helps with the knowing that it is God’s work.
It is better for us to rely on Him and wait upon His instructions. When He calls us to move, we should because He would have gone before us and made preparations of what is to come. His planning and timing is always perfect. We just need to trust and have faith in Him. He will lead us to the place He wants us to be.
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Lent devotion Day 3/53
taken from YouVersion, Lent for Everyone
Lent for Everyone is a devotional created and written by N.T. (Tom) Wright. For each day of Lent, there is a reading chosen from the Gospel of Matthew, plus a reflection by Wright. These readings have grown out of a project encouraging Lent reading in Northern England. This is the second in a three-volume series based on the Revised Common Lectionary of the Church of England.
Today’s reading:
Matthew 4
FRIDAY AFTER ASH WEDNESDAY
There's a sense of excitement at the start of the season. The ground is prepared and marked out. The fixture list is printed. Everything is ready. So along you go for the first match.
But imagine what it would be like if, just before the game was due to start, the coach came onto the pitch and began to point to people in the stands — people who had come as spectators! 'All right: you over there, come on; and you in the blue jacket, you too; and you there hiding near the back, I want you in the team . . .' You begin to be afraid you might be next. Suddenly the people who've been called are hurrying down to the field of play, and the game begins.
Of course no serious sports team today would do it like that — or, if they did, they wouldn't win many matches. But this is the strange thing. When God came back at last, coming to establish the rule of heaven here on earth, that seems to be exactly how he went about it. Lots of people who thought they were just spectators suddenly found themselves summoned onto the field of play. As the story goes on, we find out that they, like modern spectators dragged from the stands and made to play the game, were not as ready, or as fit, as they might have been. But it seems that that's how God wanted to work.
There's something going on there which gets near the heart of the challenge of the gospel for us today. It's very easy for people to imagine that they can be 'religious' — they can say their prayers, they can go to church, they can read the Bible — but basically they are looking on, spectating, while God does what- ever God is going to do. And of course there's a sense in which that's true. God is not weak, helpless, waiting for humans to get their act together before he can do anything.
But in another sense part of the point is that God always wanted humans to be part of the action, not just spectators. God made humans to reflect his image — his presence, his love, his plans — into the world. That's why he himself came into the world as a human being. And that's why Jesus called Peter, Andrew, James and John, and the others. They weren't ready. They weren't expecting it. But that's how Jesus worked then, and that's how he works to this day. Perhaps that's why you're reading Matthew's gospel right now. Perhaps Jesus is going to point to you and ask you to help him with some of the work.
Of course, there were still quite a lot of people who remained spectators. As Jesus went about healing people — which was the most dramatic way of showing them that 'heaven' really was taking charge on earth — it was natural that great crowds followed him from all over. But here's another challenge. What should the church be doing today that would make people realize that 'heaven' is actually in charge here and now? When we find the answer to that question, there will be lots more spectators — and, we may hope, lots more players too.
TODAY
Gracious Lord, help us to be ready when you call us to work with you.
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As I read what NT Wright wrote, and the other readings, one thing stands out. That is we are to be ever ready for His calling. We are not meant to be spectators but players in the field. Even as He called us and we are in the season of waiting, may it also be the season of equipping and staying still.
Let’s pray:
Father Lord, as we hear from You and read Your word, help us to be sensitive to Your calling and be obedient to Your words. May You grant us the courage as well as the peace to do the things that You have prompted us to do. May our every thought, word and deeds be pleasing to Your eyes. In the precious name of Jesus we pray. Amen 🙏🏻
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