DEVOTIONAL 07/19/2020
Numbers 20
1 Then came the children of Israel, even the whole congregation, into the desert of Zin in the first month: and the people abode in Kadesh; and Miriam died there, and was buried there.
2 And there was no water for the congregation: and they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
7 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
8 Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring fourth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink.
11 And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice: and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also.
12 And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them.
During their journey in the wilderness, children of Israel in several occasions murmured against the leaders and even God because of the matter of food and drink. It showed in their hearts not only anxiety for trivial things but also unbelief in God's ability. They went on comparing with few goods they had had in Egypt when God was the One giving them true freedom and was about to bring them to the land of milk and honey.
Numbers 11: 5 We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick:
They even loathed the thing God provided as in
Numbers 21: 5 And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread.
This attitude kindled the wrath of God against their lives and destinies. Many died and were definitely sent to hell due to these complaints. Are food and drink worth going to hell for? Of course not. As we read through these passages, we see that God was just to do so. How could you murmur against your Provider?
It is easy for us to read and criticize Israel's action. If we carefully reexamine, our generation is similarly a generation of complainers. We are spoiled with the abundance of the earth from God's blessing and we cannot have enough of our fine things. We are often anxious about daily food and drink, careers, achievement and so on. The walk with Jesus brings setbacks, hardship, trials and tribulation. Will we have the strength to endure the heaviness of our cross? One thing we can do is to get rid of spirit of negativity and complaining.
Sam Christian
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Vocabulary and grammar checks were done by the help of Collinsdictionary.com
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