TAKING CREDIT WHERE CREDIT’S NOT DUE

Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to faithhopegodlove@aol.com In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

In the first month the whole Israelite community arrived at the Desert of Zin, and they stayed at Kadesh. There Miriam died and was buried.

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! Why did you bring the Lord's community into this desert, that we and our livestock should die here? Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to this terrible place? It has no grain or figs, grapevines or pomegranates. And there is no water to drink!"

Moses and Aaron went from the assembly to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting and fell facedown, and the glory of the Lord appeared to them. The Lord said to Moses, "Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can drink."

So Moses took the staff from the Lord's presence, just as he commanded him. He and Aaron gathered the assembly together in front of the rock and Moses said to them, "Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?" Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank.

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."
These were the waters of Meribah, where the Israelites quarreled with the Lord and where he showed himself holy among them. Numbers 20:1-13

This ends this reading from God’s holy word. Thanks be to God.

The 40 years of desert wandering had begun and things weren’t easy. Israel had been on the brink of experiencing God’s full measure of goodness…the goodness found in the land flowing with milk and honey…the land He had promised solely for His beloved people.

But Israel blew it. They didn’t trust God would provide and protect them. They failed to appreciate all that God had done for them in delivering them from the hands of Pharoah and the land of Egypt. Their incessant complaining and unfaithfulness incensed God and He turned away the current generation of Israelites, exiling them to 40 years of desert wandering after which time He would allow their descendants to inherit the land they could have had.

Now as they began their journey, it didn’t take long for Israel to fail once again. Bad habits are hard to break. But Israel aren’t the only ones who fail in our passage. For we see that God’s two most trusted leaders also commit a terrible sin before the very God who had placed them in their positions of authority in the Israelite community. Their failure should serve to teach us an important lesson about the importance of humility when it comes to serving and leading in God’s name.

First, let’s look at Israel. Recall that early on in their exodus from Egypt, they had complained about not having any water. You’ll remember that God had Moses use his staff to strike a rock which then produced water, one of the early miracles that God worked in clear sight of His people. It was obvious that God could bring water from any place and at any time if it was His will to do so. He also showed He would not let His people die of dehydration. All they needed to do was trust in Him.
Well, fast forward to the desert region of Zin…the place where Israel had traveled after God forbade them to enter Canaan. Here, after Moses’ sister Miriam passed away, we find Israel once again in need of water. And once again, we see Israel complain to Moses about their circumstances instead of trust God to help them. Scripture tells us they said, ""If only we had died when our brothers fell dead before the Lord! Why did you bring the Lord's community into this desert, that we and our livestock should die here? Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to this terrible place? It has no grain or figs, grapevines or pomegranates. And there is no water to drink!" God had delivered them from Egypt and provided for them every step of the way during their exodus. Yet, every single time things got rough for Israel, they yearned for their days in Egypt…as if slavery and abuse were better than walking with their God day-by-day.

Well, Moses and Aaron went before God on behalf of their people and we read where God answers their request directing Moses to "Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can drink." So Moses and Aaron did as God commanded, gathering "the assembly together in front of the rock". It was then that Moses made a serious error…one that would cost him and Aaron their own opportunity to enter Canaan. For Moses said to the assembly, "Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?" and then "raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff". Scripture tells us that "water gushed out and the community and their livestock drank".

On the surface, it appears that nothing had been done wrong. God told Moses to strike the rock with the staff to produce water for the assembly and their livestock. Moses had done what God commanded and water did indeed gush forward from the rock providing for the Israelite community. But listen once again to the words of Moses:

"Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?"

Note that Moses was alluding in his words that it was him and Aaron who were bringing the water from the rock. Moses didn’t say, "Listen, you rebels, must God…your God…bring you water from the rock?" Moses was simply carrying out God’s command and had no right to not acknowledge that what He was doing was by God’s power. Aaron’s failure to correct Moses made him a guilty party to the display of pride…a display that would cost them both.

For God was not happy with them as He spoke saying, "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." In the blink of an eye, Moses and Aaron also lost their chance to enter Canaan. At the end of 40 years, Israel would go into the Promised Land under new leadership.

So what can we learn from this passage? A serious lesson in the criticality of humility, especially as it applies to our service to God.

We see over and over again in the bible that God is willing to do awesome, powerful work through ordinary people. As I often tell others about my own walk and service to Him, "I’m just an ordinary guy that God uses in extraordinary ways." It’s this attitude that keeps me grounded and away from the kind of sin that cost Moses and Aaron their privilege to lead Israel into Canaan.

Friends, God is to always receive all the glory, honor and praise…in every circumstance. Anything we do that is good is because He willed for that good work to be done and played a key role in it happening. Nothing good happens by accident. It is always by way of the will and power of the Father…not our own.

The more we commit ourselves to serve the Lord in our lives, the more He is going to use us to do His work here on earth. You can trust in that. I always tell others that when you make the commitment to allow God to dominate your life, you will always be full time employed with LOTS of overtime. The work of the Lord is always plentiful and He is always in search of faithful, obedient workers.

As we look at this scripture and see what happens to Moses and Aaron, we need to understand that if we’re not careful, the same thing can happen to us. We can start to take credit for things that God is doing and seek to receive the praise that should belong to Him and Him alone. In other words, we take credit where credit’s not due. Let us all stay grounded, give God all the glory, honor and praise…and just simply give thanks to Him for any good work He does in and through us. For what a privilege it is to be partnered with the Almighty God…a God who can do anything without us and yet chooses to partner with us to accomplish His purpose here on earth.

Thanks be to God…now and forever. Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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