Grumbling Continues
Today we see first-hand that God does not play favorites. Pride and disobedience are sinful ways and sinful ways will be punished by God. While this particular incident may seem like a judgment call to us, God had repeatedly explained His expectations and Moses and Aaron were the leaders. Scripture tells us leaders are held to a higher standard and are responsible for setting the example for those they lead.
Numbers 20:12 (NIV)
“But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them."
It is difficult to grasp just how long and drawn out this journey had been. Thirty-seven years have passed since the first scouting party entered the Promised Land and 40 years since the Exodus from Egypt. We don’t know anything much about those 37 years of wandering, but it is a fairly safe bet it was filled with grumbling, complaining and dissatisfaction. For, here we are once again, listening to the people moaning their famous ‘poor me’, chant.
Numbers 20:2-3 (NIV)
”Now there was no water for the community, and the people gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron. They quarreled with Moses and said, "If only we had died when our brothers fell dead before the LORD!”
Does any of this sound familiar? Do we find that we are constantly standing before God and bemoaning the same issues, day after day? Can’t we learn from our past and get beyond our petty grievances and embrace all the good which is around us? We need to daily open our eyes and close our mouths; we need to confess those times of doubt and dissatisfaction and embrace the gifts of life which God has given.
An entire generation of Israelites had passed and the next generation was preparing to accept their inheritance of the Promised Land, had they not learned from their parents’ mistakes? Have we learned from ours? Sin is all around us, there is no escaping that fact. What we can escape is the inevitability of our actions, our next moves. The act of repentance is to turn our life around, to make an about face and go in the opposite direction from the sin which imprisons.
Today let us examine our ways. Are we still wandering the dry desert sands or are we opting for the soul-quenching oasis of God’s grace and forgiveness?
Read Numbers 20-21 here
Listen to Numbers 20-21 here
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