I am somewhere between Numbers and Deuteronomy in my read through of the Bible. Over and over and over and over again the Israelites see the Hand and Glory of God and they still disobey. After 430 years of slavery and bondage in Egypt, they witnessed the plagues and saw the waters of the Red Sea close upon the Egyptians after they had safely crossed to the other side. They saw the presence and guidance of God by cloud during the day and a pillar of fire during the night. Even before they crossed the Red Sea when the Egyptians were coming for them, the cloud of smoke moved positions. Previously, the cloud and pillar of fire was between the Israelites and the Red Sea. When the Egyptians were coming for them, the presence of God represented by this cloud and pillar moved to a buffer position between them and the coming Egyptians. Amazing! He was positioning Himself to protect His people! God's presence and glory were witnessed by the people of Israel everyday!
BUT, history tells us that they decided to disobey, challenge, and grumble against God and Moses who was His servant. What were they thinking! God was seen everyday and He displayed His glory to them in very real and tangible ways yet they chose to disobey. They even considered a mutiny against Moses. They considered giving up the Promised Land and going back to bondage and slavery in Egypt!
Philip Yancey's book entitled Disappointment with God touches on this bit of Israelite history. Philip links this history to the New Testament where the people asked Jesus for a "sign." I know that I have asked God for a sign. I have caught myself saying that if God would only do something miraculous -- like parting a sea or supplying manna from heaven -- then the world would believe. Know this...A miraculous sign from God does not guarantee belief! Just look at the lives of the Israelites! They had a very real and tangible expression of God and they still chose to disobey God. They grumbled against Him and even wanted to go back to Egypt where they lived in bondage.
You see, signs and miraculous wonders of God do not necessarily constitute belief.
Jesus said to [Thomas], “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Showing posts with label Moses. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Moses. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Saturday, May 2, 2009
The Prophets and then there was Moses
I am currently reading through the Bible and I find myself this week in Numbers. Although there are a lot of laws and regulations in this book, there are also glimpses into Israel's history and their relationship with God.
It has been the desire of God that Israel be His people. From the covenant with Abraham through Isaac and Jacob to the release from Egypt and the years at Sinai, God had chosen Israel to be His people who were in affect a holy people that were chosen by God to be His people (Ex. 19:4-6). But despite this desire that God had to be Israel's God, the people of Israel found themselves grumbling and complaining over and over again. Most of the complaints were centered on them not trusting God. The ultimate display of not trusting God was the spies' report. Their lack of trust in God cost them 40 more years in the wilderness and their generation was not able to go into the Promised Land.
On one occasion we even find Aaron and Miriam grumbling against Moses. These two siblings of Moses seemed to have been jealous of the relationship that Moses had with God. In Numbers 12 we find the explicit difference between Moses and the prophets. What God tells Aaron and Miriam is that Moses has a special relationship with God. The Lord makes Himself known to them through visions and dreams (v.6). However, God speaks to Moses in a different way. God speaks to him "mouth to mouth" (v.8). There are no riddles and everything is clear for Moses.
Many books have been written (and I have read some of them) about hearing the voice of God. This post is not another tidbit of advice about how you can hear the voice of God. What I want to stress here is the willingness that God has to speak to us. He is interested in our daily affairs and he wants to be involved in our daily decisions.
Although we may not have the privilege that Moses had, we know that God is interested in what we do and what we have to say. Let's take a moment to invite Him to be a part of our day today.
Blessings-
John
It has been the desire of God that Israel be His people. From the covenant with Abraham through Isaac and Jacob to the release from Egypt and the years at Sinai, God had chosen Israel to be His people who were in affect a holy people that were chosen by God to be His people (Ex. 19:4-6). But despite this desire that God had to be Israel's God, the people of Israel found themselves grumbling and complaining over and over again. Most of the complaints were centered on them not trusting God. The ultimate display of not trusting God was the spies' report. Their lack of trust in God cost them 40 more years in the wilderness and their generation was not able to go into the Promised Land.
On one occasion we even find Aaron and Miriam grumbling against Moses. These two siblings of Moses seemed to have been jealous of the relationship that Moses had with God. In Numbers 12 we find the explicit difference between Moses and the prophets. What God tells Aaron and Miriam is that Moses has a special relationship with God. The Lord makes Himself known to them through visions and dreams (v.6). However, God speaks to Moses in a different way. God speaks to him "mouth to mouth" (v.8). There are no riddles and everything is clear for Moses.
Many books have been written (and I have read some of them) about hearing the voice of God. This post is not another tidbit of advice about how you can hear the voice of God. What I want to stress here is the willingness that God has to speak to us. He is interested in our daily affairs and he wants to be involved in our daily decisions.
Although we may not have the privilege that Moses had, we know that God is interested in what we do and what we have to say. Let's take a moment to invite Him to be a part of our day today.
Blessings-
John
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