Overview of: NumbersToday's Reading:
Numbers 20:1 - 21:9
"A Hard Road to Travel"
Focus Verses: Numbers 20:12
12 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."
Insight:
The Israelites faced many trials and dangers as they traveled through the wilderness. There were water and food shortages. There had difficulty with regional powers and peoples as they tried to pass through their lands. Then there was pestilence and an infestation of poisonous snakes. And beyond all these troubles, the elderly people among them were dying. I'm sure many were grieving the deaths of their parents and older loved ones, which included Moses' sister, Miriam, and his brother Aaron (who was serving as the high priest).
Not surprisingly, these trials exposed the weaknesses in the general population and in their leaders. When the people cried out in complaint because they needed water, God told Moses and Aaron to take a staff, gather the people, and speak to the rock so that water would pour out of it. Instead, Moses, tired and frustrated by his people, struck the rock twice and spoke harshly to the people, calling them rebels.
Later, God rebuked Moses and Aaron for "not honoring him as holy" in the sight of the people. This misrepresentation of God was so serious that God told them they would not lead the people into the land of promise.
Response and Action:
As a Christian, the things I say and do reflect upon God. It is important keep this in mind as a parent, friend, neighbor, and church leader. It is dishonoring to God to present one's own frustration, anger, or annoyance as though it were God's. I want to be a humble witness of God's holiness and a faithful representative of his grace. I need to be especially careful about this at times when I am tired, irritable, hurt, or easily provoked.
O God, help me to be mindful of how my actions reflect upon you. Give me the wisdom I need to treat others in a righteous way and to keep a tight reign on my attitude and my mouth. Forgive me for the times something I have said or done has given someone else a wrong impression of you. By your grace and mercy, shape me and transform me into a faithful ambassador of your truth and your goodness. Through Christ, I pray. Amen.
New Testament for Today: 2 Corinthians 5:20
20 We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God.
In Context: 2 Corinthians 5:11-21
Proverb for Today: Prov.20:27
"The lamp of the LORD searches the spirit of a man; it searches out his inmost being."
Resources:
Character Witness: How Our Lives Can Make a Difference in Evangelism
by Christine Wood
