Deuteronomy 32:51 (HCSB)
For ‹both of› you broke faith with Me among the Israelites at the waters of Meribath-kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin by failing to treat Me as holy in their presence.
Moses did not enter the land of promise because of one mistake. One stinking mistake! How many mistakes did the children of Israel make? And they got to enter the land? Moses put up with so much; he remained faithful, but he did not enter the land because of one mistake. Do you think that God holds His leaders to a higher standard?
The incident is recorded in Exodus 17 and Numbers 20. The children of Israel had no water to drink. They began to complain to the LORD—that must have been a policy procedure. God told Moses to take the rod of Aaron, strike the rock, and water would come out.
It appears to me that Moses made a theatrical display. He should have simply hit the rock, but instead he made it look like a magic trick. The record in Numbers 20 says he told the people: “Listen, you rebels! Should we bring water out of this rock for you?” Then he struck the rock twice. Maybe he was angry. Honestly, I don’t know. What he did was certainly close to what God commanded, because water did come out of the rock. But God says Moses failed to “treat Me as holy in their presence.”
This makes me stand back. Am I guilty of doing anything that diminishes the holiness of God before His people? I live before God’s people. He obviously holds me to a higher standard. Will I uphold His holiness? Will I do anything that causes people to doubt the holiness of God? Have I done anything to take people’s eyes off of God’s holiness and put their eyes on me? Makes me wonder…. I know I’ll make it to heaven, but will I be living under a bush? God is serious about His holiness!! Do you agree? Then this should cause us to evaluate our lives.
Hmmm. I thought Exodus 17 and Number 20 were two separate incidents, 40 years apart? In Numbers 20 God tells Moses to -speak- to the rock, so his sin in striking it is somewhat more apparent.
ReplyDeleteEither way, your point is right on. Most all of us are called to be leaders to someone. Do I treat God as holy before my children? Important reminder to continually evaluate our lives and our attitude toward God. Thank you.