Bmidbar Ministries presents the following teaching by Will Spires 6/18/12

ThetitleofthisweeksportionisKorach.Wehave studied several parashas that instruct us of Godscommandments. Be Holy, When You Go Out, Command, When you Kindlebut this weeks portion is titled after a personsname.Recalling the significance of a namesuch as Shem, speaks ofapersonscharacter,theirhonor, authority, and reputation, or the lack. They still carry an incredible amount of meaning for us today, yes? What stirs in the bowels of your heart when you hear names likeRonald ReaganMother TeresaAmelia EarhartWinston Churchill, or Henry Ford, Betsy Ross or Rosa Parks? How about Hitler, Stalin, Timothy McVeigh, Sadam Hussein, Osama bin Laden. Albeit not always traceable back toHebrew,apersonsreputation is still ingrained in their name. Interestingly, most of us have never had the opportunity to become personally acquainted with these people, so what is it about them that lives on, resonating and reminding us, so strongly to awaken withintheveryfiberofourbeingschemistry, that which could be influenced from beyondthegravebyName? These are merely reminders, types and shadows of The One who continues to accomplish His transformative work in the hearts of all those who choose not to harden the ir he ar ts likeinthedaysinthewildernessHisName, is Yeshua.

Shave&aHaircut
SotechnicallyTheLORDisntabarber,butbeing that hair is a covering, and as we learned Moses patterned the earthly Tabernacle after the Heavenly one which was covered with tanned ram skins and spun goat hair (Exo.26:7), weallwanttomakecertaintostayunderYHVHscovering for sure yes? Korach we read was a person of renown. He was born under the tribe of Levi. Levi had three sonsGershon,Kohath,&Merari.Kohathhadfoursons.BorntoKohathssonAmramwas AaronandMoshe.BornunderKohathssecondsonIzhar, was Korach, Nepheg and Zichri (Exo.6:15-21). InBmidbarchapter4 verses 14 & 15 we read that it was the Kohathites burdenor responsibility to carry all the holy objects and furnishings within the Tent of Meeting whenever the

nationofIsraelmovedfromonecamptothenext.Interestinglyweread,And when Aaron and his sons have finished cove ring the holy obj ec ts and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when the camp is to set out, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them, so that they may not touch the holy obj ec ts and die. Then the LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, "Do not let the tribe of the families of the Kohathites be cut off from among the Levites."But do this to them that they may live and not die when they approach the most holy obj ec ts: but they shall not go in to see the holy obj ec ts even for a moment, lest they die." (Num 4:15, 17-20 NAS) Not only did Korach share in the holy and prestigious responsibility of carrying the holy vessels of the Mishkan, but God actually gave Aaron spec i f i c inst ruc t ionto ensure that the vessels had been covered so that Korach and the families of Kohath would NOT BE CUT OFF from the Levites. The Kohathites carried the holy vessels upon their shoulders, because it was to be their burden. In similar fashion Aaron was reminded of them when he donned the two Sho-ham or Onyx stones upon his shoulders that bore the names of the children of Israel. When he stood before The Creator on The Day of Atonement with the Ephod and the 12 precious stones of the chshen each with its tribal name engraved upon it, it was Aaron who was responsible for them! The significance of the cove ring lies in the nameofthisweeksparasha.Korachmeansbald.Korach however had a covering by way of Aaron. His careful consideration of remembering to always place a k aw-sah or cove ring to protect Korach and the other Kohathites is what made it possible for Korach to serve, to be connected to the other Levites and to God. Isntthisexa c t ly wha t our Savior & High Pri est M essiah Yeshua did for us? As our High Priest He gave His blood, His life to cover and cleanse us, and to restore right relationship between God & man. The word for covering in Paleo-Hebrew is a Kaf, Samech and a Heh, k aw-sah. Pictographically translated, it instructs us that GodsCove ring Reve al s Hi s Bl essing and Prot ec t ion of the Kohathites! And not just for life, but so that they may be connected and not cut off! Is this not a glorious type and shadow ofGodsprovisionforHiscalledoutones? What Korach failed to appreciate was the fact that God had singled him out with special instruction, not to keep Korach from His glory, but to protect him from getting to close lest he die, so that he could remain connected and be part of the whole!

FOLLOWME!
The furnishings in the Tent of Meeting had to be covered before Korach could enter and be connected to his assigned work. But thus do unto them, that they may live, and not die, when they approach unto the most holy things(Num.4:19)GodhasestablishedHisorder.We read in the previous section that rather than reflect with a heart of gratitude upon the fact that The Almighty had made a special way for Korach to serve Him, Korach chose to become more preoccupied with his way. Abba says, this is your area to operate in, from here to here. But how many of us struggle with findingpeacewithGodscommandmentinourpersonallivesbecauseweretoopreoccupiedwith the lifestyle outlined for our neighbor? Peter turned and saw following them the disciple whom Jesus loved, who had lain close to his breast at the supper and had said, "Lord, who is it that is going to betray you?" When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, "Lord, what about this man?" Jesus said to him, "If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? Follow me!" (Joh 21:20-22 RSV). Godistellingus,Ihaveaspecialplanjustforyou.Now follow it. ButwewouldratherusurpGodsauthoritysothat we c an t a ke a highe r posi t ion in our se rvi ce to God. Did you carefully read that last statement? Do this for me, go back and re-readitbacktoyourself,again,andslowly,Illwait. Is not the insanity of that statement as obvious as the nose on the end of our face? And yet, what is the root much of the time when division takes place? Is it not because we want to serve God our way? What happens when we elect to pursue that sort of path? If we choose to pursue a path seeking to satisfyourdesireweinessencebecomebald.Weremove ourselves from underneath the protective covenant covering ordained by YHVH to keep us strong and safe. Where we find therootofKorachsproblemstretchesbacktotwobrothers ever of old.

WandringinNoddingham
In the Brit Chadasha reading in the book of Yehudah, or Jude, in verse elevenweread,What sorrow awaits them! For they follow in the footsteps of Cain, who killed his brother. Like Balaam, they deceive people for money. And like Korah, they perish in their rebellion. (Jud 1:11 NLT) In this translation we see the word is footsteps, in others itsrenderedasWayorRebellion.Buttheword

hod-os' in the Greek text taken from Strongs# 3598 resembles numerous words and shares several Hebrew cognates such as ora ch(a well-trodden road), e r e ts(field, or land), de r ekh(a road), hali kh(a walk), chuts(to sever, to separate by way of a wall), morad(a descent, a steep going down). Butits stillthesamereferencethatYeshuaechoedinTheGospelofMatthew,Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide, and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter by it. (Mat 7:13 NAS). Where did Cain end up after being escorted out of Eden? Then Cain went out from the presence of the LORD, and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden. (Gen 4:16 NAS) Nod in Hebrew means wandering, butthefocushereisthebeginningoftheverseout f rom the pr esence of the LORD . TheroadofCainleadsusonthepathoutfromGodspresence,outfromunderHis protection, into a mindset void of Godliness and Godly wisdom and into a hardened heart and a reprobate mind.

GoldSilver&Bronze
Do this: take censers, Korach and all your group; put fire in them; and put incense in them before AD ONAI tomorrow. The one whom AD ONAI chooses will be the one who is holy! It is you, you sons of Levi, who are taking too much on yourselves!" (Num 16:6-7 CJB) Censors had to withstand the heat from the fire in the live coals from the bronze altar. So, to make the metal harder they would alloy Copper with about 10% Tin. This made the metal much more durable and stronger, strong enough to be used as hooks to hold heavy curtains of the Mishkan, and hard enough to be beaten, shaped and used as weapons. We read in 2Timothy two that if a man desires to be a vessel of honor he must purge from himself iniquity. We look at the metal, we look at what it was fashioned fora holy vessel, a censer, to carry the eternal flame in coals from the bronze altar and holy incense which is symbolic of the prayers of the saints. The issue we observe is man taking something holy, and using it for something to elevate mannot God. Just like the difference between man and God we see Bronze used in service to God. But it also means dubious. Do we stand with God in the hard times assuming and expecting Him to wisk us away our of the valley of trial and then get angry at HimwhenHedoesntrightaway?IsntthiswhatKorachdid?Heevenwentsofarastodeclarea bald-faced lie and declare that the land Moses took them out of, Egypt, was a land of milk and honey! (Numbers 16:13). Do we see thistoday?ProverbssaysAn arrogant man stirs up strife, But he who trusts in the LORD will prosper. (Pro 28:25 NAS) Was Korach operating out of a spirit of humility and obedience unto YHVH? Or of arrogance, of self-promotion? This occurred with King Uzziah in 2 Chroniclesweread,But Uzziah, with a censer in his hand for burning incense, was enraged; and while he was enraged with the priests, the leprosy broke out on his forehead before the priests in the house of the LORD, beside the altar of incense. (2Ch 26:19 NAS) When we step out from under Godscoveringweinvitesickness,uncleanness,cursesanddeath.

 FraminginVesselsofHonor
Frames are important. The right frame can really make a photograph or painting. They organize, focus our attention and set boundaries to fix our eyes on the picture inside. I cannot tell you how many times I told my sons when they werechildrentositstill,stopmoving,quitmakingrabbit earsbehindyourbrothersheadbutanother type of frame, or fitting reveals the purpose of the lives captured on the paper. Let me backtrack with a word taken from the Renewed Covenant reading of thisweeksparasha.Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also vessels of wood and of earthenware, and some to honor and some to dishonor. Therefore, if a man cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work. (2Ti 2:20-21 NAS) Were discussing the vessels used in the Tabernacle. They had to be covered before Korach could approach and carry them. They had to be covered to remain honorable. Scripturesays,ifamancleanses himself from these things, he will be a vesse l forhonor. For years when I read that I interpreted it to suggest that The Father purposely creates some beings for dishonorthis always perplexed me because I thought, why would an omnipotent, just and loving GOD sendHisSontoearthtodieforsome,andnotall?DoesntHisWordsayThe Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all tocometorepentance?(2Pe 3:9 NAS) But when we read Romans 9, verses 19-23 we wonder why would Adonai, LORD of Hosts, choose to make a vessel unto dishonor? WhatifGod,willingtoshewhiswrath,andtomake hispowerknown,enduredwithmuchlongsufferingthevesselsofwrathfittedto destruction:Andthathemightmakeknowntherichesofhisgloryonthevesselsofmercy, whichhehadaforeprepareduntoglory,(Rom.9:2223).FittedintheGreekistakenfrom StrongsG2675,katartid'zo,meaning tocompletethoroughly,thatis,repair(literallyor figuratively)oradjust:fit,frame,mend,(make)perfect(lyjointogether),prepare, restore.SoifGodhastoldustoprepare,thenwecanmeetHim.RememberMt.Sinai?And bereadyagainstthethirdday:forthethirddaytheLORDwillcomedowninthesightofall thepeopleuponmountSinai.(Exo.19:11)ThewordforbereadyinHebrewisStrongs#

H3559kun,koonAprimitiveroot,meaningtostandperpendicular).hence(causatively)to setup,establish,fix,prepare,apply,appoint,rendersure,properorprosperous:certain (ty),confirm,direct,faithfulness,fashion,fasten,firm,befitted,befixed,frame,be meet,ordain,order,perfect,(make)preparation,prepare(self),provide,make provision,(be,make)ready,right.See,GoddoesprovideTheWay,butwechoose whethertowalkinitandasignthatwearenotonthecorrectroadcanbeeasilyidentified byourspeech.Jude,orYehudahintheBritChadashasays,These are grumblers, finding fault, following after their own lusts; they spe a k arrogant ly, flattering people for the sake of gaining an advantage. (Jud 1:16 NAS) It is clear to see that Korach was following his own lusts. He had removed himself out from underneath YHVHs protective coveringbut the even worse tragedy was what followed. Yehudah exhorts us to contend earnestly for the faith, this has to do with trusting Gods word. How is it that Korach was able to persuade 250 righteous men to join in his rebellion? Because when we grumble and complain it catches like fire, and as Paul told Timothy in 2Timothy chapter two, godless babbling will eat away like gangrene. Further into the parasha after Korach and the 250 men of renown are destroyed, the very next day the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron! Not including the 250 men, the murmuring of the sons of Israel brought upon them a plague of Biblical proportion. It destroyed 14,700 people before Aaron brought his censer with fire and incense and stood in between the dead and the living.

WhatGreatThingsHeHasDone
Beloved, murmuring catches because often times it begins quite deceptivelybut oftentimes I find in personal experience its permitted because we have insecurities within ourselves. By degrees its welcomed into the camp and before long we can find ourselves unclean as well. Our choices determines the condition of our heart. Luke says out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. Korach brought destruction upon himself by taking the way of Kayin, but we dont have to beloved. God told Kayin sin crouches at the door, but we must master it. The question is are we willing to apply His Word to our heart so that we can truly be over-comers or Hebrews (Ivrim), or are we going to follow Korach and so many others selfdestructive path and be lead out from the presence of God. HaShem desires to make you into a vessel of honor. Let us do as Samuel the prophet concluded in todays haftarah after Israel had committed the sin of demanding a king over them when YHVH had already told them that He was their king.

When they recognized their sin and were humbled Samuel told them the right way. He told them to reverence YHVH and to Be Honest with yourself, with God, and with others; Only fear the LORD and se rve Hi m in t ruth wi th all your he ar t ; for consider what great things He has done for you. (1Sa 12:24 NAS). Ahmein, Ahmein.