God's people need to do things God's way for his glory.
Every since God redeemed his people from the kingdom of darkness they have refused to react to difficult situations with any degree of faith in him. You can't help seeing the evidence of God's love and his power long before their dramatic exit from Egypt and then again when God showed up for his people again right after that with the miraculous Red Sea crossing. (Exodus 14:31)Numbers 20:1-5 In the first month of the year, the whole community of Israel arrived in the wilderness of Zin and camped at Kadesh. While they were there, Miriam died and was buried.2 There was no water for the people to drink at that place, so they rebelled against Moses and Aaron. 3 The people blamed Moses and said, "If only we had died in the LORD's presence with our brothers!4 Why have you brought the congregation of the LORD's people into this wilderness to die, along with all our livestock? 5 Why did you make us leave Egypt and bring us here to this terrible place? This land has no grain, no figs, no grapes, no pomegranates, and no water to drink!"
Seems like God's people would respond better after all of that but the display of God's love and his power to save didn't keep his people from doubting him. You can see how fickle they are by noticing the scripture address for each of these events, it is one verse or one chapter right after the other., God's people quickly went from
singing his praises (Exodus 15:1-21) to grumbling about Moses leadership and
the lack of food and water. (Exodus 15:24, 16:1-3)
God was testing their faithfulness to him, all they had to do is:
- "Listen to the voice of the Lord and do what is right" (Exodus 15:25-26)
- "Follow my instructions." about the food that God rained down. (Exodus 16:4)
God told them that he was testing them and he told them what they needed to do to pass the test. Sounds very fair, shouldn't be too difficult to pass. But while they were being tested by God, as Moses put it, they were also testing God. (Exodus
17:2) After all of the works of God that his people have seen on their behalf
they still didn't get it.
Fifteen months later when they safely reached the edge of the Promised Land,
they still didn't trust and obey, that's why they are on a 40 year trip
extension. If they had moved into their new land they wouldn't be here
complaining about the lack of water.
God's people failed the test
- They are still blaming Moses for doing all of this to them.
- They wish that they had died along with their rebellious relatives that God already killed.
- They wish they had stayed in Egypt.
Instead of remembering how bad it was at the end of their stay, they seem to
be recalling the good old days when they first got to Egypt. These people are
probably not old enough to remember the day when the Egyptians treated them
good.
Moses and Aaron responded well to the complaints of the people, they
went to the Tabernacle and God showed up and tells them how to provide
water. Moses and Aaron didn’t try to solve the problem on their own or
argue with the complainers. Instead, they went to the Tabernacle, sought God’s
presence, and received divine guidance. So far, so good, but wait.
Numbers 20:10-11 Then he and Aaron summoned the people to come and gather at the rock. "Listen, you rebels!" he shouted. "Must we bring you water from this rock?" 11 Then Moses raised his hand and struck the rock twice with the staff, and water gushed out. So the entire community and their livestock drank their fill.
Moses didn't respond well to God's instructions, the great way that Moses reacted to the people didn't last for long. Moses didn't follow the details of God's instructions, he has made water before, it involved a rock but the details were more important than he thought. In order to get God's blessing you need to do things they way he tells you.
Moses seems to be
frustrated with the people he was called to lead, he seems to lose his
composure and lashes out at the rock instead of simply speaking to it. To make
it worse it seems like Moses is taking credit for providing the water instead
of giving God the glory.
You see, it isn't just the nation that struggled, the leaders of God's
people have their own fears, doubts and frustrations with God and with his
people. God has dealt with Moses as he has with the rest of the nation, with
patience and grace, but this time Moses will have to face serious
consequences.
God's leaders fail the test
After everything that Moses has been through with these people it seems
harsh to us that God tells Moses that he will not lead Israel into the
Promised Land. The next time they reach the border Moses
would get a preview but he will not get to enter.
We want to defend Moses and tell God that it isn't fair to treat him so
severe, that's a natural reaction that comes from our own experience with
God, we all know that we have been worse than Moses and we got away with
it. We know that there are plenty of times when God didn't give us what we
deserved.
When Moses failed earlier in life God gave him grace but as Moses grew in his faith God's expectation that he would grow in faith and obedience.
Numbers 20:12 But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Because you did not trust me enough to demonstrate my holiness to the people of Israel, you will not lead them into the land I am giving them!"
God requires the leaders of his people to be held to a higher standard and they often experience greater consequences that are a lot more severe. (1 Timothy 3:1-7, Titus 1:6-9, James 3:1)
A leaders faith and failures affects other people, when their faith is strong it is a blessing to those under them but the opposite is also true. When they fail they can ruin their own lives and the lives of the people they are supposed to influence for good.
If you think about it, the severity of God's punishment
to Moses and Aaron in this situation is similar to the punishment when God's people refused to trust and obey and enter the Promised Land.
The death penalty is the result in both the failure of God's people and the failure of their leaders. The people that voted to not go into the promised land died as a
result of wandering in the wilderness and the leaders that failed also died in the wilderness because they didn't trust God.
Just before God allows the next generation to enter the Promised, Moses warns them that they must choose for themselves, he reminds them that trusting and obeying are often linked to God's blessings. (Deuteronomy 28:1-68)
I need to see the ugliness of my sin in light of God's holiness, I need to remember that living in grace is not a license to sin, I will not have prosperity, peace, and divine favor if I live like the world. (Psalm 1:1-3, John 15:10-11)
I need to be careful to trust and obey in times of prosperity and also when I am walking through the wilderness, especially as a leader in the church. As a child of God, my story should bring glory to him, without shame.
I need to give God the glory for the great things he has done. (Deuteronomy 8:17)
RELATED ARTICLES
Broken Leadership
(diggingtheword.blogspot.com)
Timeline - Israel In The Wilderness
(diggingtheword.blogspot.com)
