Pride Comes with Complaining || The Complaint Department #3

Introducing “The Complaint Department”

We are all professional complainers, right? We all know how to complain. We all know how complaining makes us feel. Most of us know that complaining doesn’t solve anything. Back in the Old Testament, it was Moses’s job to listen to the complaints of God’s chosen people as they journeyed on their Exodus. However, their complaints didn’t result in feeling like we do. In our series, “The Complaint Department,” we are going through six different situations where God’s chosen people complained, leading to sinful behavior, and resulting in unfavorable action from them.

My goal for this series is to help us understand the impact of our own complaining, understanding how our complaints can lead to hardships that result in actions that don’t often benefit us. Using the stories found with God’s chosen people, I want us to look at the opposite of their complaints to see how things may have gone differently.

REFLECTION CHECKPOINT: What does it mean to you to “complain”?

Review of Part 2

In Part 2, we looked at Numbers 11:4 and investigated the complaint about their lack of meat. As a result, their sinful behavior (how they missed the mark of God’s ideal in how they should live) was to lust after the meals they used to have while in slavery in Egypt. As a result, God sent much quail to them, but then sent a plague for those weren’t grateful. Now there were more people joining the Exodus journey to the Promised Land as time went, and more people were not solidifying a relationship with God. The discontent grew louder and louder and then food was their focal complaint. This complaint wasn’t about just getting some meat to eat, but questioning how God will provide. Now they had manna – these small, round substances that resembled thin wafers. God provided them with enough to eat, but that didn’t feel like enough. They were greedy. Well, let me change that. They had a strong craving regarding their unchecked appetite. Later on in Numbers 11, God sent them meat in the form of quail. He sent A LOT of quail per person – approximately 485 pounds of quail. That’s a lot, and you’d think they’d be grateful. However, they enjoyed their quail out of greed, not gratitude. God’s judgment came down to them in the form of a plague and killed many people as they were enjoying it. Why? God did not want His people to enjoy pursuing evil things. God wants His people to stay focused on Him and His provisions. It may not be things that the world flaunts, but what God provides is enough and sustainable for the life He’s called us to live. Through God, we have someone that will keep focused and centered on the path towards the Promised Land. We may never face a plague as they did, but we do see how things of our world show their true colors. We need to stay focused on God, His desires, and His will for us.

The Third Complaint

The next complaint we’re diving into is found in Numbers 16:3, which says:

NASB – They assembled together against Moses and Aaron, and said to them, “You have gone far enough, for all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the Lord?”

NRSVUE – They assembled against Moses and against Aaron and said to them, “You have gone too far! All the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them. So why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the Lord?”

VOICE – KORAH AND HIS MEN (to Moses and Aaron): You’ve taken this leadership way too far. We are all holy; incdeed each individual is holy to our God. The Eternal One is present among the entire congregation. How can you presume to be better than any of us, the Eternal’s chosen community?

The people were frustrated with Moses’s and Aaron’s leadership. They question the authority they had with God. They were ready to take power into their own hands. That greed and pursuit of power didn’t go well though. Let’s talk about that.

REFLECTION CHECKPOINT: How do you expect God to handle this complaint in comparison to what we learned in Parts 1 and 2?

The Call from Korah

The people starting to revolt against Moses and Aaron were led by Korah and his crew. Korah (a Levite) joined Dathan and Abiram of the tribe of Reuben and gathered 250 leaders to initiate this revolt. This alliance brought men from all tribes against the leaders that God appointed to challenge the priestly order and the authority of God governed them.

These men believed that Moses and Aaron had authority that didn’t belong to them. However, Moses did not appointed himself (see Exodus 3) and Aaron’s priesthood was created by God. This accusation showed that they resented God’s order and charged this legitimate leadership structure into a personal goal of power. Israel was called to be set apart from the other nations, through the relationship set by God. God’s call for them didn’t erase the specific responsibilities that were assigned within it. The Levites had roles for the Tabernacle, and Aaron and his descendants alone had been appointed for the priesthood. Korah tried to argue against the covenant to deny the responsibilities that God placed within it.

Moses and Aaron served under God’s authority rather than outside of it. Moses would go back to God in grief to find His judgment instead of defending why Moses was put there. He wanted to respond with God’s position to expose Korah’s and his crew’s own desire for power.

REFLECTION CHECKPOINT: What do you think about Korah’s shot at a rebellion? How does the call for power distort a person’s mind?

Finding Our Roles

While all believers are called to be holy, God assigns people certain roles and responsibilities. We are called to respect these roles to maintain unity and order. Now, there’s been a struggle that we see today with that I want to touch on before we dig into the story here. A lot of the roles and responsibilities came under a patriarchal society. The males in the community held the power, and certain males in those communities were held in different places of the hierarchy. Today, we are see a more equitable structures. Systems that are less-so based on gender roles and historical stereotypes. We are looking at systems that are diverse, inclusive, cross many different demographical spectrum, and more. Systems that are working tighter on ensuring gifts and talents are made on skills and resources and less so on gender, education, and wealth.

Moses was called to lead the people out of Egypt and into a community that was set apart from the pagan nations that surrounded them. Moses interceded for them to Pharaoh. Moses went up to Mt. Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments to help guide the people. Moses provided the path to the Promised Land that God set before them. Aaron was put in charge of the Tabernacle, and his family lineage managed the sacrificial systems that provided reconciliation between God and His people. These roles were essential to set up to the new community that would lead us to Jesus, and where we are today as Christians.

People have tried to circumvent some of this, through the different belief structures that cropped up and different interpretations of what it means to follow God and how to instill these commands into our world today. With the rise of Christian nationalism and the conservative Christian values being pushed on a governmental level, we’re met with tough conversations and rebellion. The core facet of all this being: “Our way is right, and anything else is wrong.” When you try to instill these commands as legislative rules to follow, we find ourselves right back into the Old covenant.

However, we today are not in the Old covenant, but we are in the New covenant. Our relationship with God is built on grace, mercy, and faith. God chose us for a specific time and place to be in this world and has a specific plan for how our skills and talents will be used for the betterment in community. When we mess up, God doesn’t judge us or hold it against God. He knows that we will have consequences, either earthly or divinely, that we may have to suffer through. God will guide us through those tough moments to victory. God forgive us for how we missed the mark. God walks with us, through open arms, to forgive how we missed the mark and get us back on the track that He said for us. We trust, through our faith in God that has done that rescued us from the consequences of sin and how we can grow into a stronger reflection of who God is to the world. By faith, we learn who God is, embracing his characteristics and commands in our lives, and do our absolute best to live them out to the world. We may not get it right, but its not about perfection. It’s about progression.

REFLECTION CHECKPOINT: Korah wanted to take God’s authority into his own hands. How do you see that happening in our world today and how we can work to avoid letting the power go to our heads?

The Test of Korah

What happened as a response to Korah’s revolt? Well, it’s a long story. Read Numbers 16:5-35 for the entirety of the story, but I will do my best to summarize the story and then we will dig into verse 32 (the one that result from their sin).

There will be a test that Korah and his crew will go through to verify if God chose them. Verses 6-7 says: “Do this: take censers, Korah and all your congregation, and tomorrow put them in them, and lay incense on them before the Lord, and the man whom the Lord choose shall be the holy one” Moses then reamed Korah for this rebellion in verses 9-11. Moses sent for Daithan and Abiram but they refused in Verses 12-14.

Then the day came. Each person took a censer as well as Moses and Aaron. The glory of God appeared. God called for Moses and Aaron to leave them so that, “..I may consume them in a moment.” (vs. 21) Moses warned those that were following the congregations of Korah and his leaders to leave these environments for God’s judgment is coming. Moses said this to the congregants, “And Moses said, “This is how you shall know that the Lord has sent me to do all these works; it has not been of my own accord: If these people die a natural death or if a natural fate comes on them, then the Lord has not sent me. But if the Lord creates something new and the ground opens its mouth and swallows them up, with all that belongs to them, and they go down alive into Sheol, then you shall know that these men have despised the Lord.” (verses 28-30)

The Results of Korah’s Test

So what happened? Did Korah and his followers die from natural causes or divine causes? Let’s read Numbers 16:31-35

31 As soon as he finished speaking all these words, the ground under them was split apart.

32 The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, along with their households – everyone who belong to Korah and all their goods.

33 So they with all that belong to them went down alive into Sheol; the earth closed over them, and they perished from the midst of the assembly.

34 All Israel around them fled at their outcry, for they said, “The earth will swallow us, too!”

35 And fire came out from the Lord and consumed the two hundred fifty men offering the incense.

Well. A lot of death occurred. Verse 49 says a total of fourteen thousand seven hundred died, outside of who died after the Korah situation. The additional deaths came from a rebellion after acknowledging what happened with the death of Korah. What do we learn from this? How do we stay in a relationship with God after this? Let’s talk about it.

The earth opening its mouth brings back imagery of the how the Red Sea parted before Israel. It’s a sign of God’s creation responding to the command of the Creator. The rebels sunk into the pit, facing an intense, immediate judgment. Defying God’s order and having contempt for His holiness cannot be treated lightly. Those connected to the rebellion suffered the consequences, showing how sin can spread. God acknowledges knows those that didn’t fall for their desires. Numbers 26:11 shows that Korah’s sons didn’t get killed. Korah’s surviving descendants served in Israel’s worship and are the reason we have several of our Psalms. Nothing connected with our rebels could hide them from God’s judgment.

They went to the realm of the dead (Sheol). The ground closed up and the judgment was final. Those who rebelled were cut off from God’s chosen people, physically and eternally. The judgment we talked about is a warning against pride, self-appointed spiritual authority, and resistance to God’s revealed plan.

REFLECTION CHECKPOINT: The best question I think I can ask right now is: How do you feel about what happened to Daithan, Korah, and all the followers?

Removing Our Pride

Now, do I expect that we will find the earth opening up below us and swallowing us whole for rebelling against His power and decrees? No. Do I expect us to face consequences for thinking that our ways are higher than God’s and that God’s ways are not worthy to attempt? Yes.

Defying God’s way of creation to exist creates difficult moments for sustainability to continue with creation. We’ve seen when we interfere with the environmental impacts of the world, that the world tends to suffer. We’re seeing the impact that the environment tends to have done naturally be rushed because of human interaction. These impacts that we’re seeing currently and that are forecasted for the future are not positive. Christians are called to be set apart from the rest of the world, but when we don’t take care of the world, we’re no better than than the world. God doesn’t want us to see us take advantage of His creation. God wants us to trust how created the world and trust in His power of how to manage it.

This is where the Korah’s rebellion fell apart. They thought that they knew better. They thought that Moses and Aaron were leading them out of their own agenda. Pride always comes before the fall. Our pride gets us in the way about trying to follow God, so that the focus is on us when it comes to our pride. We don’t serve ourselves. We don’t follow our own spiritual advice, because that has a self-appointed agenda. God has our path laid out for us. God wants us to follow the ways and commands that He before us. We must trust His ways, for we learned that His ways are greater than ours. Who are we to question the one who made us.

REFLECTION CHECKPOINT: How has your pride been a factor in your life? How have you overcome it?