Stating the Obvious

Ok, I have lost count of how many times the people grumbled, contended or otherwise whined about the conditions in the wilderness, while reminiscing about the good ol' days in Egypt. Not that I'm going to start the stone throwing. Are we not all men off like flesh? I know that I have, on occasion, looked back fondly on my good ol' days, forgetting what a wicked task-master sin was. Forgetting for a moment how gracious and kind my new task-master is to me.

I notice that their complaint comes from being in the wilderness. A situation brought on by their own unbelief, namely the fear of men and their own perceptions of their chances of success. How many times have I found myself in the midst of the consequence of my own actions?

This time after their offering of whine, God sends "fiery serpents" among the people, and some died. It seems that tragedy sometimes helps us see the sin in our lives and motivates us to repentance. As always, God is faithful and provides a way of salvation.

tags Journal Devotional Bible Theology Doctrine Christian

Second Question, Second Answer?

Continuing with the second question of my Hero To Zero post. I wondered, Why does Moses state "shall we bring forth water for you out of this rock?" Does the "we" include God? Or just Aaron and himself? The short answer is, the "we" does not include God. I say this because of God's response to the situation. God states to Moses and Aaron, "Because you have not believed Me, to treat Me as holy in the sight of the sons of Israel" As we see in Numbers 20:24, that Aaron was being gathered to his people" because he "rebelled" against the command of God. In, Numbers 27:14, we read of Moses being Gathered to his people for the same reason. I think this makes a strong case that when we deviate from the revealed will of God, we are acting in "unbelief" and there by not treating God as holy in the sight of His people. So, how did these two great leaders stray from the course, disqualifying themselves from entering the promised land? It seems to me that they neglected to credit the power of God to this miracle. How often are we, leaders included, tempted to recognize our part in the working out of God's plan as the indispensable part? Thereby creating dependence on ourselves and our God given talents, rather then God and His sovereign hand. Think about your preaching, your evangelism, your apologetics, are you also tempted, I surely am.

tags Journal Devotional Bible Theology Doctrine Christian

First Question, First Answer?

Why did Moses disobey? It seems to me, that every time the Israelites set up camp, they figure they should be in the promised land. This has been going on for a number of years, and quite frankly, I think Moses is fed up with it. I find it notable that God wasn't burning with wrath, ready to smite the people before Moses intercedes. God is silent until Moses and Aaron fall before Him. Then, before these men of God can speak, God gives them instructions on how He will use them to bless the people. I can't count the times I've wanted to have explicit instructions from God. I realize, even with clear guidance, how easy it is to trip over my own sin nature. I believe the words spoken by Moses, "Listen now, you rebels" shows his heart, that he thought the sons of Israel needed a verbal b-slap. I think this shows how easily we can insert our own will in to God's plan, which in turn leads us into further sin. Thankfully, even as we might fail, God is good, and He continues to provide.

tags Journal Devotional Bible Theology Doctrine Christian

Hero to Zero in Eight Chapters

A couple of weeks ago I was reading in Numbers. Chapter 20 to be specific, the Water of Meribah. This is the episode in which the people are once again whining about not having anything to drink, and reminiscing about how good they had it in Egypt. As you may recall, Moses was told to speak to the rock. Instead, he struck it twice. I find it interesting that Moses’ disobedience did not thwart the will of God, the water flowed and the people drank from the abundant blessing of God. Things went differently for Moses the humble and his bro Aaron. "Because you have not believed Me, to treat Me as holy in the sight of the sons of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them." Why did Moses disobey? Why does he state “shall we bring forth water for you out of this rock?" Does the “we” include God? Or just Aaron and himself? I’m still thinking on these, so I will take this up again soon.


tags Journal Devotional Bible Theology Doctrine Christian