Obedience: Aaron's Staff That Budded
Obedience: Aaron's Staff That Budded
We must be obedient to the point of death if we are to overcome the Accuser of the brothers; if resurrection life is to come forth in us.
. . . They did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. (Revelation 12:11)
Christ is our example of obedience unto death.
And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross! (Philippians 2:8)
I have used Aaron's rod that budded as a symbol of obedience. Why is this? It is because resurrection life comes forth only when we are willing to die to our own desires and wait for Christ to bring forth the fruit He wants us to bear.
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:1,2)
When we are pursuing the rest of God, mentioned in the fourth chapter of the Book of Hebrews, God's will becomes the most important feature of our consciousness. We desire above all else to do God's will.
If this is to be possible, we must keep in mind that Christ told us we are not of this world just as He is not of this world. While we are to behave prudently and responsibly in the things of the world that have been entrusted to us, our heart and mind are in another world. Our affections are on things above, not on the things of the present world.
It may be true that many believers are so earthly minded they are not as valuable to Heaven as they would be if they obeyed the Apostle Paul and offered their body as a living sacrifice to God.
God's will must be tested and approved. It is not always easy to discover God's will. We have to spend some time each day in prayer and meditating in the Bible. We must meet consistently with fervent saints, if we can find any.
We must, as the twelfth chapter of the Book of Romans proceeds to tell us, employ diligently the talents that the Spirit of God has given to us. There can be severe consequences for not doing so.
Death, and life. Death, and life. Death, and life. That is the true Christian sojourn in this present world. Perhaps in the next also. We have to let our desires pass away for now and look to God for the desires He wants us to have. God will fulfill our God-given desires when we delight ourselves in Him.
Aaron's rod was laid up in the before the Ark of the Covenant. It was a fire-hardened staff. Overnight it came to life and bore almonds.
Perhaps you have been waiting a long time for God to bring forth fruit in your life. Do not kindle a fire and walk in the light of your own sparks. Wait for God. If you go forth in your own religious fervor you will bring forth a "wild man."
The next day Moses entered the tent and saw that Aaron's staff, which represented the tribe of Levi, had not only sprouted but had budded, blossomed and produced almonds. (Numbers 17:8)
We all know the story, how Korah, Dathan, and Abiram had challenged Moses and Aaron concerning the leadership of the Israelites.
God instructed that a staff from the leader of each of the twelve tribes should be placed in the Tabernacle before the Lord. Remember, these were sticks long dead.
The next day, the twelve staffs were brought forth so everyone could observe them. By a Divine miracle, Aaron's staff was filled with life.
What does this teach us about those who will become the house, resting place, and throne of God? It informs us that they must set aside their own desires, as the Lord leads; they must wait before the Lord until His will is done perfectly. Their lives then shall become the resurrection life of the Lord Jesus.
Their soul must die so God's Life can come forth in them. Remember how Jesus said, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful to the point of death"?
The required death is nothing more nor less than that of the self-denial that results as we are carrying our cross behind the Lord.
God points out things that are very dear to us, just as God pointed to Isaac. God tells us we must give that treasure over to Him. To do this results in the death that God desires we endure.
You would never imagine from today's preaching that God would ever demand something that is so very, very difficult to give to God. But He does.
Those who are sternly obedient to God, as was Abraham, will give God all He asks for. It is certain that if we give God all that we are, God will give us all that He is as we have need.
If God is to make His home, resting place, and throne in us, we must be thoroughly righteous in our behavior. We must learn to trust God for all of our needs and desires. We must follow Christ to the death of our soul so that out from these ashes springs the Life of Christ.
Nothing less than this. Nothing more than this.
Pilgrim, do not miss this one chance to become the dwelling place of God Just keep in mind that all of this change in us is to meet the needs and desires God has for a house, rest, and throne. It is not for the purpose of bringing us to Paradise.
Although we will profit immeasurably if we follow through with these three requirements, the important result is that our God, who gave His Son for us, receives what He needs and desires.
What if We become the House, Resting Place, and Throne of God?
The emphasis of the present essay is that we have been created to fulfill God's needs and desires. But it doesn't stop there.
"Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them." By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified. (John 7:38,39)
The Spirit of God flows from but one Source—the Throne of God.
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb. (Revelation 22:1)
As soon as the Throne of God has been established in us we become a fountain of eternal life from which other people can drink. This is why it is written that both the Spirit and the Bride say, "Come."
Those people who receive eternal life from us become our inheritance. They live within the "room" in Christ which we have become.
Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation. With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. (Isaiah 12:2,3)
It will be our great pleasure to bring forth the Life of God to other people.
But first we have to pass through the waters of the Spirit and be judged.
He asked me, "Son of man, do you see this?" Then he led me back to the bank of the river. (Ezekiel 47:6)
After we pass through the Divine measurings we are brought back to the "bank of the river" to join the other trees of life. There we will grow and wait for the time to bring eternal life to the dead sea of mankind.
The following are some of the roles and tasks of the members of the Kingdom of God that are possible as we choose to put aside our own life and live by the Life of the Lord Jesus. God will be pleased and helped if we are willing to participate in one or more of these roles and tasks.
To be a member of the Bride of the Lamb (Revelation 21:9)
To be part of the Temple of God (Ephesians 2:22)
To be a member of the Body of Christ (I Corinthians 12:12)
To be a son of God (Revelation 21:7)
To be the light of the world (Matthew 5:14)
To be a part of the vehicle for the end-time revival (Isaiah 60:1,2)
To be a source of eternal life and healing for the nations (I Corinthians 15:45)
To be a member of the royal priesthood (I Peter 2:9)
To be a witness of God (Isaiah 43:10)
To be salt (Matthew 5:13)
To be an overcomer of the Accuser (Revelation 12:11)
To be a governor of the nations (Revelation 2:26,27)
To be a soldier in the army of the Lord (Joel 2:11)
To be a wall of defense around the Glory of God (Revelation 21:14)
To be the revelation of God in Christ (Revelation 3:12)
So we understand that the goal of our salvation is not eternal residence in Heaven. There is a Heaven, where God, Christ, the saints, and holy angels are. But to live there for eternity is not our goal.
God is building a Kingdom that will prevent there ever being another rebellion against His authority, as took place before the earth and mankind were created. God desires a house in which He can find rest, and from which He can govern and bless His creatures. These are God's needs and desires, along with the fifteen roles and tasks we have just listed.
Forgiving our sin does not fulfill God's needs and desires.
Bringing us to Heaven to be with Him would not fulfill God's needs and desires. Going to Heaven to be with God, Christ, the saints, and the holy angels might, or might not, fulfill our needs and desires. We never have lived in Heaven and we do not know what it would be like.
But one thing is certain: bringing church people to Heaven before they are transformed most certainly would not fulfill God's needs and desires!
Only a person, male or female, who comes to maturity in righteous behavior, in depending on God to meet all his or her needs and desires, and who obeys the Lord Jesus Christ completely and promptly, fulfills God's need and desires.
Is it your desire to be such a person?
It is mine.
I will allow no sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids, till I find a place for the Lord, a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob. (Psalms 132:4,5)
"My Father's house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am." (John 14:2,3)
The Father's eternal house is the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus today is ready to bring us to maturity in righteousness, faith, and obedience so we may become a room in that house, and always be with the Lord Jesus where He is.