INTRODUCTION

Rebellion thrives upon the self-will of any individual or group of individuals. It parallels stubbornness, hard-heartedness, and a stiff neck. The first use of rebellion in the Bible indicates that it is a refusal to submit to the will or authority of another (Genesis 14:4Twelve years they served Chedorlaomer, and in the thirteenth year they rebelled.
See All...; see also 2 Kings 18:7And the LORD was with him; and he prospered whithersoever he went forth: and he rebelled against the king of Assyria, and served him not.
See All...). Sometimes, rebellion may be the refusal to go at the command of another (Deuteronomy 1:26Notwithstanding ye would not go up, but rebelled against the commandment of the LORD your God:
See All...), while at other times, it is the refusal to stay (Deuteronomy 1:43So I spake unto you; and ye would not hear, but rebelled against the commandment of the LORD, and went presumptuously up into the hill.
See All...). The point is that rebellion is a refusal on the part of a person or group to submit and yield to the rule of another. It involves a conscious decision to cease from following, and though there may be times when resistance needs to be made against the world, “God forbid that we should rebel against the LORD” (Joshua 22:29God forbid that we should rebel against the LORD, and turn this day from following the LORD, to build an altar for burnt offerings, for meat offerings, or for sacrifices, beside the altar of the LORD our God that is before his tabernacle.
See All...).

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHTS

• (For children): Moses and Aaron did not submit to God’s authority when He told them to speak to the rock in order to bring forth water. God called this rebellion (Numbers 20:2-12 [2] And there was no water for the congregation: and they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron. [3] And the people chode with Moses, and spake, saying, Would God that we had died when our brethren died before the LORD! [4] And why have ye brought up the congregation of the LORD into this wilderness, that we and our cattle should die there? [5] And wherefore have ye made us to come up out of Egypt, to bring us in unto this evil place? it is no place of seed, or of figs, or of vines, or of pomegranates; neither is there any water to drink. [6] And Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and they fell upon their faces: and the glory of the LORD appeared unto them. [7] And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, [8] Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink. [9] And Moses took the rod from before the LORD, as he commanded him. [10] And Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock, and he said unto them, Hear now, ye rebels; must we fetch you water out of this rock? [11] And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice: and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also. [12] And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them.
  See All..., 23-24; Deuteronomy 32:48-52 [48] And the LORD spake unto Moses that selfsame day, saying, [49] Get thee up into this mountain Abarim, unto mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, that is over against Jericho; and behold the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel for a possession: [50] And die in the mount whither thou goest up, and be gathered unto thy people; as Aaron thy brother died in mount Hor, and was gathered unto his people: [51] Because ye trespassed against me among the children of Israel at the waters of MeribahKadesh, in the wilderness of Zin; because ye sanctified me not in the midst of the children of Israel. [52] Yet thou shalt see the land before thee; but thou shalt not go thither unto the land which I give the children of Israel.
  See All...).
• (For everyone): How do you see rebellion? Is it an honourable attribute? Is it a trait with which you should be pleased? Is it an attribute that you recognize in your own heart?
• What is the first act of rebellion in the Bible that comes to mind? Who was the first one to demonstrate rebellion? What does this teach you about the nature and source of rebellion?

PRAYER NEEDS

• Ask God to soften your hard heart.
• Ask the Lord to guard you from the sin of rebellion.

HYMN

OFT HAVE I TURNED MY EYES WITHIN

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