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Speak to the Rock!
“And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Take the rod, and gather the assembly and speak unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water… and Moses took the rod from before the LORD… and said unto them, Hear now, ye rebels; must we fetch you water out of this rock? And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice: and water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank.”
Numbers 20:7-11
In our passage, Moses was instructed to “speak” to the rock. Instead Moses in anger spoke to the people, and smote the rock disobeying the LORD God.
Now think with me! Is not Moses at fault? So why would God command Moses to take the rod if he was commanded only to “speak” to the rock? Understand that the rod of God was identified with judgment. It was the same rod used in judgment against the Egyptians. Also the rod was used to strike the rock some thirty-eight years earlier (Exodus 17), which pictured the judgment that was to come upon Christ “our Rock” (1 Corinthians 10:4).
Moses was commanded to “speak” to the rock in order to show grace, but instead he struck the rock with the rod of judgment and that was emblematic of re-crucifying Christ. God is not pleased with man-made religious rituals that re-sacrifice His Son. God’s children are “sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Hebrews 10:10). Only one sacrifice for sin and therefore the rock was to be smitten only once.
Clearly, this is teaching that judgment is in the background when grace is given. If judgment did not lurk in the background then how would we understand God’s amazing and sovereign grace? Israel seeing the rod may fear, yet if Moses spoke to the rock it would produce a river of grace. Moses in anger struck the rock – but God graciously did not withhold water from the people. Nevertheless, the reaction of Moses was not without consequences. Moses did not sanctify God’s holiness before the people and therefore he was not allowed to enter the Promised Land (Numbers 20:12).
We all need to be reminded that God’s holiness will never be compromised. Wonder of wonders it is that God in His sovereign purpose gives grace to the lost in a way that does not violate His holiness and His purpose, through His Son Jesus Christ. That is why Christ “our Rock” was smitten on the cross, which both satisfies God’s holy justice and reconciles lost sinners. What a plan! The Holy God remains holy, and sinners receive abundant grace. I hope you can see that it is a joy for God to pour out abundant grace for those who “speak” to the Rock. (Printed in the Marshall County Tribune)
David C. Hale, pastor
New Life Community Church
Lewisburg, TN 37091
Why is the world full of immorality, violence, hatred, war, terrorism, pain, suffering, disease, and death?
This question in the eyes of many people is an enormous question to ask. The answers given can be anywhere from, “it could be the environment that a person was raised in” or “it was the parents fault due to the lack of attention given the child.” These answers still does not give us the reason “WHY?” These answers and many others are just symptoms of a much larger problem. Yet, the Bible calls such acts as the sinful “works of the flesh” which proceed out of the “heart of men” (Galatians 5:19-21; Romans 3:10-19; Mark 7:21-23). Evolution, and New Age philosophy explain such things, including death, as the “natural process” of life. In Genesis chapter 3, Satan, or the Devil, comes as a serpent to tempt man to sin against God. As a result of Satan’s work, sin was introduced to mankind. This power of sin brought with it d
isobedience, which in turn effected broken fellowship with God. Thus, through the power of sin, the human race and God’s perfect creation were corrupted (Genesis 2:15-17; 3:17-19,24). The world one sees today with all the violence, hatred, wars, and immorality is a result of SIN in the heart of man. Yes, the world in all its grandure and beauty still reflects, to a small extent, God’s original creation, but it has been corrupted by SIN. This power of SIN is so dominate that it is passed down from generation to generation. Simply put, due to Adam’s sin, all of his descendants, including you and me, “were made sinners” (Romans 5:19).
For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. (Romans 5:19) KJV
Genesis 6:11 states that, “the earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.” The reason immorality, violence, hatred, war, terrorism, pain, suffering, disease, and death comes upon us is because of SIN! This is not a popular answer nor is it a pretty picture, but there is no other reasonable explanation. All other explanations are just symptoms of a much deeper issue. The root cause is SIN in the deep dark corners of the heart of all mankind, and if man is left to himself all these sinful evils will come out and express itself in one corrupt sin or another.
The truth is that we live in a sinful world, and the power of sin has “reigned unto death” (Romans 5:21). Common sense tells us that life and death are exact opposites, not the “natural processes” of life. In fact, the Bible specifically calls death the “last enemy” (1 Corinthians 15:26). Death is a constant reminder that “all have sinned” and are in need of God’s grace in Christ Jesus (Romans 3:23-26). As long as one is in this world, there will be sin related miseries. The only way one can escape these miseries is to run to the One who is life eternal, Jesus Christ (John 1:4; 3:36; 6:35; 11:25; 14:6).
He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him. (John 3:36) KJV
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6) KJV
REASONS 4 BELIEVING 