Feb. 23, 2021
After Israel’s rebellion in Numbers 14, the Lord gives Moses laws for sins and sacrifices to make atonement for them. The Lord instructed the people of Israel to make blue tassels to wear on their clothing as a reminder of His commandments and His holiness. These tassels reminded the people that they were a "kingdom of priests and a holy nation" (Exodus 19:6). These priestly, holy fringes were likely the fringes Jesus wore that healed the sick in Matthew 9:20 and Matthew 14:36.
In Korah’s rebellion, a Levite conspires against Moses and Aaron by challenging their authority. Instead of taking matters into his own hands, Moses takes the issue to the Lord. The Lord sends judgment on all those who rebel until Aaron, the High Priest, makes atonement to stop the plague of death.
"And he stood between the dead and the living, and the plague was stopped.” - Numbers 16:48
Mark continues to show Jesus’ authority over the demonic world.
Jesus and his disciples come across a man possessed by demons; ostracized by society and incurable. The man sees Jesus and falls before him in submission to His power. Jesus casts the demons from the man and sends them into a herd of two thousand pigs. The possessed herd of pigs rush off a cliff and drown in the ocean, astonishing all the people nearby.
Jesus tells the man to go back home and tell everyone what the Lord did for him, indicating that this healing was the work of God.
Make It Personal
- Both passages today discuss the importance God places on having faith. How does your faith measure up to who God says he is?
- Have you encountered any supernatural or miraculous events in your life that can only be attributed to Jesus?