Rebellion is used in many different ways in the Old Testament. In the Hebrew text, there are variations of meaning when the term rebellion is used. In the book of Jeremiah, there was a punishment from God on those in the nation that would rebel, that is, to lead a revolt against the Lord. We see our Nation leading a revolt against God when they make laws that are the opposite of the laws of God in His word. We see universities and schools lead a revolt against God when they teach other means for our existence than that of God. We see religious organizations lead a revolt against God when they teach that there are other ways to the Father than Jesus Christ.
Individually we all face times of disobedience, weakness, and even times of rebellion. 1 Samuel 15:23 says, Rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft. Rebellion of this kind means, to actually be bitter against God. Bitterness is a demonic work of rebellion against God. The question is, how could someone grow bitter against God? Martha and her sister Mary responded to a visit from the Lord after the death of their brother Lazarus in the same way. They both acknowledged that they had expectations of the Lord Jesus that was not realized. They said, Lord if you had been here he wouldn’t have died. We know that they had the wrong expectations. They wanted the Lord to heal their sick brother, but Jesus wanted to raise the dead. Our level of faith is the basis for our expectations. We receive little because we expect little. Martha and Mary had faith that Jesus could heal but they did not conceive of the thought that He might raise Lazarus from the dead.
When our expectations are not met we have a tendency to grow bitter against God. God is preparing something much bigger than what we can expect or even believe. If we can’t see that God is working beyond our expectations, we will grow bitter. This kind of bitterness is demonic and can lead to a path of rebellion. Many believers who once were passionate and full of excitement are now away from God and the fellowship of His people because at some point in their life they had certain expectations of the Lord that were unmet. Like Mary, they have stayed in their house and blame the Lord for whatever they think went wrong. Jesus called for Mary to come out of the house and meet Him. What if she would not have come? What if she had decided to stay in the house? She would not have seen the resurrection of her brother. I believe wrong expectations can drive us away from the presence of the Lord and we will grow bitter.
Take inventory of your life and find those times when you felt as though the Lord did not do what you expected. See if there be any root of bitterness that is there covered up by religious activity. Someone reading this right now is still hiding in the house of bitterness over expectations that weren’t met. Jesus is calling you out to show you bigger things than what you expected.
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