This is the seventh in a series of blogs on The Righteousness of God as a part of the Armor of God.
When we embrace God’s wisdom, we can live with the same integrity and honor that models the righteousness of God. However, we must stay on guard against subtle deceptions that can pierce through our armor weakening our Christian witness and, in some cases, handicapping our relationship with Jesus Christ. There are many deceptions we need to guard against that will lead us to an incorrect understanding of the righteousness of God. We must be vigilant in applying God’s wisdom to find them. The one example I share here took me awhile to discover. I think it illustrates the subtleness of the worldly deceptions we face. Hopefully it will guide you in your journey as it did in mine.
Right and wrong often seem so clear to me. And when I have done something wrong, I try to confront it head on. I eventually confess my sin and seek restitution with the Lord, and with those that were affected by my sin. But over time the Holy Spirit began to convict me that there were some sins I was avoiding. The story in Numbers 16 helped me to think about this in a new way, and the Lord showed me that, in some cases, I was more focused on my punishment than on the sin I had committed that had caused the punishment.
The Lord established Aaron and his family as His priests for Israel. This priesthood served the Lord by performing the priestly duties commanded by the Lord. In Numbers 3:5-13 the Lord also called forward the tribe of Levi to assist the priests. They were given responsibilities to take care of the Tabernacle and its surrounding areas. In Numbers 16 we read about a rebellion against Moses and Aaron where some of the Levites became jealous of the priesthood. Korah, Dathan, and Abiram led 250 Levites to rise up and demand that they be given the same status as the priests. In Numbers 16:3 they confronted Moses and Aaron and said, “You have gone too far! The whole community of Israel has been set apart by the Lord, and he is with all of us. What right do you have to act as though you are greater than the rest of the Lord’s people?”
Well, to make a long story short, they were grumbling about being taken out of Egypt and living in the wilderness. They were unwilling to submit to the authority the Lord had given Moses and Aaron. And according to Moses, they despised the Lord (Numbers 16:30). Because they were unhappy, they convinced themselves that their job wasn’t very important, and they wanted the more glamorous job of being priest. Even though they focused their anger on Moses and Aaron, they were actually sinning against the Lord as they rebelled against His commands. The Lord did not tolerate their sin, and as punishment He opened the earth to swallow up Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, their tents and family members, and those who stood by them. He also killed the 250 Levites who rebelled as well.
So, you might say to yourself that these guys broke the law and got what was coming to them. After all, it doesn’t pay to fight the Lord, right? But the very next morning (Numbers 16:41-42) the whole community of Israel became angry with Moses and Aaron for killing Korah and his followers. They did not accept why the Lord had done this. Instead they blamed Moses and Aaron. Because they did not recognize the sin that the Levites had committed, they also sinned as they rebelled against the Lord. As a result, they too were judged by God with a plague, and 14,700 people died!
I do not claim to understand all the emotional issues involved in this rebellion; first by the Levites, and then by the whole community of Israel. But it’s obvious to me that if you stick your fist in God’s face there can be serious consequences. However, in reading this story the Lord revealed to me some wisdom that made me think very hard about how I responded to my own sins. The community of Israel focused on the Levite’s punishment and not on their sin.
When people believe that they have been wronged, or as in Numbers people believe that someone else has been wronged, they tend to focus on how badly they or others have been treated. It makes no difference whether or not they actually were wrong. The immediate focus is on the presumed injustice of the bad treatment. What is usually ignored is what they may have done that prompted the bad treatment in the first place.
As I considered this Bible passage, I tried to think of modern-day examples that I could relate to. I thought of numerous examples that I had seen or heard about. For example, how many people get pulled over for speeding and then get mad at the police officer for stopping them? Or what about spouses who get questioned by their spouse about a mistake they made and then get mad and try to justify what they did? Then, with my brain cells working at full speed, I began to remember times when I had done the same thing. I had not focused on what I had done wrong. Rather, I focused on trying to defend myself to others and to justify what I had done. In some cases, I had done this even when I knew that what I had done was wrong.
This was a particularly hard lesson for me to learn. Actually, it wasn’t so much my learning this lesson as much as it was my recognition that I was ignoring it! After all, at the root of this lesson was a special kind of pride; a stubborn unwillingness to admit to others that I was wrong.
Our relationship with the Lord can be affected by our unwillingness to forgive others who have offended us or annoyed us. This is affirmed in the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6:12 where Jesus taught us to forgive those who have sinned against us. But in this passage Jesus also said, “… forgive us our sins.” We must recognize our sin and confess it. We must also recognize that our sin may have impacted others around us, and we need to ask them for forgiveness as well.
I find it easy to confess my sin to the Lord in prayer. But I find it very hard to confess my sin to the people who have been affected by my sin. However, this is what the Lord commands us to do. We must comply if we want Jesus to be the Lord of all of our life. So, if you find yourself focused on some difficulty that you are experiencing, honestly look around and see if there is any sin that you may have committed. If there is, focus on your sin, confess it, and seek forgiveness from anyone affected by it.
Our obedience and submission in this area will greatly improve our relationship with the Lord. As God’s children we need to apply His wisdom in our life and own the consequences of our sins to live with the same integrity and honor that models the righteousness of God; shaken not stirred.
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All Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Copyright 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
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