Numbers 20, "Pitfalls to the Promised Land: Losses"

Losses on the Way to the Promised Land

Numbers chapter 20 be reading the entire chapter from verse 1 to the end. Hear the word of the Lord and The people of Israel the whole congregation came into the wilderness of Zen in the first month and the people stayed at in Kadesh and Miriam died there and was buried there.

Now there was no water for the congregation and they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron and People quarreled with Moses and said would that we had perished when our brothers perished before the Lord.

Why have you brought the assembly of the Lord into this wilderness that we should die here both? We and our cattle. And why have you made us come up out of the Egypt to bring us to this evil place? It is no place for grain or figs or vines or pomegranates and there is no water to drink.

Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance of the tent meeting and fell on their faces and the Glory of the Lord appeared to them and the Lord spoke to Moses saying Take the staff and assemble the congregation you and Aaron and your brother and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water.

So you shall bring water out of the rock for them and give water to the congregation and their cattle. Give drink to the congregation their cattle. Excuse me verse 9. And Moses took the staff from before the Lord as he commanded him.

Then Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock and he said to them here now you rebels shall we bring water for you out of this rock. And Moses lifted up his hand and Struck the rock with his staff twice and water came out abundantly and the congregation drank and their livestock.

And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron because you did not believe in me To uphold me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel. Therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.

These are the waters of Meribah where the people of Israel quarreled with the Lord and through them he showed himself holy. Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom. Thus says your brother Israel You know all the hardship that we have met how our fathers went down to Egypt and we lived in Egypt a long time and the Egyptians dealt harshly with us and our fathers and when we cried to the Lord He heard our voice and sent an angel and brought us out of Egypt and here we are in Kadesh a city on the edge Of your territory, please.

Let us pass through your land. We will not pass through field or vineyard or drink water from a well. We will go along the Kings Highway. We will not turn aside to the right hand or to the left until we have passed through your territory.

But Edom said to him you shall not pass through lest I come out with a sword against you and The people of Israel said to him we will go up by the highway and if we drink of your water I and my livestock then I will pay for it.

Let me only pass through one foot nothing more. And He said you shall not pass through and Edom came out against them with a large army and with a strong force. Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through his territory.

So Israel turned away from him and They journeyed from Kadesh and the people of Israel the whole congregation came to Mount Hor and the Lord said to Moses and Aaron at Mount Hor on the border of the land of Edom.

Let Aaron be gathered to his people. For he shall not enter the land that I have given to the people of Israel because you rebelled against my command at the waters of Meribah. Take Aaron and Eliezer his son and bring them up to Mount Hor and strip Aaron of his garments and put them on Eliezer his son and Aaron shall be gathered to his people and shall die there.

Moses did as the Lord commanded and they went up Mount Hor in the sight of all the congregation and Moses stripped Aaron of his Garments and put them on an Eliezer his son and Aaron died there on the top of the mountain.

Then Moses and Eliezer came down from the mountain and when all the congregation saw there and had perished all the house of Israel.

Wept for Aaron 30 days.

How to Respond to Loss

May the Lord had his blessings for the reading of his Holy Word. Well, how do you respond to losses? If you lose something. Suffer a setback maybe an injury a failure. Just give up and say forget about it.

Drop it too hard. Of course the easy answer the kind of motivational speech kind of answer, you know, the coaches pep talk. Answer is to say it's gut check time. Now. You got a dig deep try harder never quit.

What have what Taekwondo quite Taekwondo calls an indomitable spirit? Being capable of being driven to surrender. Never give up. Despite being down maybe down by 25 points in the Super Bowl. Far in last place in a half-mile race.

Your business is still struggling after years of trying to make it. Church is still small. After all after almost 10 years, but you keep trying and sometimes that's true. As some of you know for my freshman year of running cross-country I was injured but and so couldn't run but I wanted to be a college athlete.

So I worked out a lot. Otherwise with the lifting weights and swimming. So I'd be in shape so I could run again. And so I could be, you know still in shape by the time track season comes along. So I. So I would be decent at least so no injury.

I was resolved. No injury was gonna stop me. That was my freshman year at the end of my senior year I was injured again. But it was as if to tell me that that chapter in my life is over. It's time to move on.

So I moved on to seminary sometimes losses are a way a painful way of Telling us that something that that we've lost that it's over. Maybe when it's maybe it's time to grow up and think less of winning games or races and more of Getting an education a career.

Maybe a family sometimes losses are the end of Something now, we don't like to hear that. We like the motivational speech idea. Yeah, we're always going to win. It's always going to be successful. We want to be associated with winning with success.

You know football season has now started. Oh so good. Again, and now in college football Alabama is number one again. Still winning still successful and and there are of course, I've noticed over the past several years.

There seems like there's just more and more Alabama fans Around. Mary even found I think it was in Singapore an Alabama shirt. I mean there in East Asia. There's a Alabama crimson tide shirt for sale and they're everywhere now.

Mary, you know, she found that there of course. Well, most of these new fans are Fair weather fans when Alabama starts to lose. They'll probably disappear that's because they like Alabama now because Alabama has been successful and they want to be on the winning side people want to be on the side of Success of winners and the same is often true with churches, too.

You know if if such-and-such a church has grown so large to have so many hundreds or even thousands. It's a success and you want to be associated with success. You want to have a church that's looked up to as Successful it has its campus is so big.

It has maybe even several satellite campuses where you can join the service by watching this successful pastor by video. You might be you might be anonymous to everyone there so large you get lost in the crowd.

No one who knows who you are, but you know, you comfort yourself with a thought That you're among success. This is it. You're a you're in a successful church and that then that means by extension You're successful.

That way you can go home satisfied. And despite all the other losses in your life. You're a success. Of course, we can play that game too. It's easy to be smug ourselves. Okay, we're small. We're not like that when are we but we can redefine true success as a smallness.

That must be what it means to really be spiritually successful. You're small as as if being willing to sit on a thinly padded chairs in a gym. With just a few dozen others and sing psalms. Sometimes are messed up because the slides got wrong and to listen to long sermons.

That's the sign of true success if you could do that. Ah, you're you're a winner. We might praise ourself then. We're we're the chosen few. We're the successful ones and so because of that You'd be kind of nonchalant.

About including new people. Maybe we don't want to really grow, you know. You don't care about growing because that could endanger we grew that would endanger our status of a successful small church. We can satisfy ourselves with the same.

Comforting ideas. That the other people have is a way of avoiding dealing with losses but maybe. Maybe God doesn't want us to avoid dealing with losses. Maybe the losses are God speaking to us. Sure, maybe sometimes it's to try again.

Maybe to start over maybe to end something close a chapter in your life and go into something else. Maybe sometimes it's to give up on something or maybe it's just to persevere With losses. Maybe on the way to the promised land.

The Lord wants us to taste some losses so that in the end We won't be losers. Well here in numbers 20 we see losses we see what happens when you lose a supporter. When you lose your temper when you lose the easy way and When you lose a brother.

How are you going to respond when you lose? Well first in just one verse we see Moses. Lose a supporter see the loss of a supporter of Miriam. They've been wondering now for years. We're told in numbers chapter 33 verse 38 that Aaron died.

It was just at the very end of the chapter. He died in the fifth month of the 40th year.

On the other words.

Remember they were sent us to wander for 40 years at Aaron died at the very end of all their wandering. So this end of this chapter is at the end of their wandering here. We're told that they come into the wilderness of Zen which is further north and Sinai coming just just south of the promised land.

They come into that wilderness it says in the first month and I think we can assume then that that that's the first month also of the 40th year. So that is for 40 years now. They passed have passed from where we began this series just about a month ago in numbers 15 40 years.

They've been pulling up stakes folding your tent and you know their tents following the cloud Into the desert setting up tents again every day picking up manna.

Waiting.

Funeral after funeral for an entire generation to drop in the desert in the 40th year. They're now back where they started in a little place called Kadesh. This is the same place. Well where they were where they were camping when they remember when they sent out the spies into the promised land.

When they were should have just gone straight in after coming out of Egypt, this is where 40 years earlier Spies came back. They decided we can't take the land the Lord's setting us up for a failure. We're not going to do it.

This is the same place from where they had to turn back. Into the desert after all this don't you know, Lord said all the adults over 20 are gonna die. So now they're back there in that same place, but if we expect then well, this is gonna be a new beginning.

This is a second chance. Well instead of that we get another loss. And this time Miriam herself after Moses. You know sure you had some problems with your sister Miriam over that Ethiopian wife. But she saved your life.

The Miriam did she saved your life when you're a baby drifting down the Nile in a basket. She arranged for you to be raised by your own mother. She led Israel and that great celebration. Remember, they just come through this Red Sea and God destroys the Egyptian army with it when it collapses on top of them.

She's the one who led Israel in this great celebration of that victory of that salvation. The Bible calls her a prophetess. And so as a prophetess inspired by the Holy Spirit. She supported her brother a prophet now it it was almost certainly much easier for Moses to put up with all the Frustrations of Israel that they gave him with our whining and their sins and all their problems.

So it's only much easier for him to put up with that. I would assume with his sister the prophetess. Supporting him. She's been a supporter. Now she passes away like the rest of her generation. It doesn't say how Moses responded to that.

But it was a loss.

People probably told him at the funeral, you know, I'm sorry for your loss. How would you respond to that kind of loss. Well, he's lost a sister and next and maybe a connection. He loses his temper. We were told before with the rebellion rebellion of Korah.

If you remember it said clearly that he was angry with the people. But even then he didn't lose his temper. I Being angry and losing your temper two different things. He was angry, but he was in control with that when that rebellion happened here after 40 years the people of Israel.

They're still complaining. It sounds as though they've learned nothing. During all that time at the beginning of their wandering. They just came out of Egypt in Exodus chapter 17. They complained about there being no water.

They're back here in Kadesh. When they're first there and Moses was told there to strike the rock with his staff and then water came out here 40 years later the same complaints the same unbelief the same kind of pathetic whining.

I wish we had died. This is so horrible. The same blaming of Moses himself in verse 4 they asked him. Why have you brought us into the assembly? Why have you brought the assembly of the Lord as our us this congregation into the wilderness that we should die here.

You're bringing us to die. Okay, they're still thinking they're being set up to be killed both We and our cattle and no one and no one like that. Now. Can you imagine if you're Moses? Living with people like this for 40 years 40 years.

They've seen the Lord lead them by a pillar of cloud provide manna every morning and yet They get a little thirsty and instead of believing that the Lord will provide is he always has. They immediately resort to blaming and unbelief again.

I think the frustration would drive almost anyone Just over the edge. So Moses and Aaron go to the Lord. To intercede for the people as they have many times before. Falling on their faces praying interceding the end of verse 6 says the glory of the Lord appeared to them.

Then I don't know exactly what that means how what it looked like but God manifest himself to them. God had not left him. He speaks to them telling them in verse 8 take the staff. Interesting, isn't it take the staff and assemble the congregation you and Aaron your brother and Tell the rock before their eyes.

Make sure they all hear you to yield its water. Now this sounds a lot like they. They did what they did 40 years earlier next to the 17 when they were first out of Egypt except for one crucial difference.

You notice it. The Lord specifically tells Moses and Aaron to tell the rock. Speak to the rock. Now, of course normally talking to a rock won't produce anything. Our words will have no effect on a rock.

The only way water will come from a rock at one's word if it is if it is the Word of God. God is the one who spoke into the darkness. Let there be light and there is light. God is the one whose word produces what he says.

Before in Exodus 17 God had Moses strike the rock. But they'll hear the Lord wants Moses to particularly show that God is providing the water. So only Speak to the rock. That's all you have to do. Yeah.

Oddly enough God has Moses take his staff.

Why?

He's not supposed to use his staff. So why bring it? Why not in fact, you know, why not even warn Moses? Hey Moses, just so you won't be tempted to use that staff. Make sure you leave it at home. Whatever you do leave that staff in your staff closet.

Not only did the Lord specifically tell him to take the staff. Verse 9 emphasizes notice that. Emphasizes the fact that Moses took the staff just as the Lord commanded him. Now, why did the Lord command him to take a staff that the Lord knew?

Would cause Moses so much trouble. It doesn't say why so we only speculate but it's as though Moses. It's as though he hadn't prayed. Not to be led into temptation. So the Lord allowed him to be tempted.

Not that the Lord made Moses or Aaron do something that they wouldn't do by themselves. They acted freely. They acted according to their own nature. If he has a staff in his hand Moses left to himself will verbally attack the people and hit the rock.

Even after the Lord specifically tells him just to speak to the rock. That's what Moses one of the best men to ever live. That's what Moses will do with his free will. A lot of people want free will. This is what free will will get you right here the Lord could have intervened to keep him from sinning to protect him from himself and That's what we're told to pray for ourselves and the Lord's prayer, you know lead us not into temptation.

In other words, don't let me fall into situations where I'll be left up to myself and all my weaknesses and all my sins. Don't lead me to that because I'll fall into it. I know I will but here the Lord.

Didn't.

Protect him from himself. He showed him the Lord showed Moses and us what we're like. Without his grace. Well, the result was loss. It's a total loss for Moses and Aaron. He gathered the people before the rock all gathered together like he said and then he did what came naturally to him.

He harangued the people. He vented his pent-up frustrations that he's had for about 40 years now. His grudges. Here now you rebels we bring water. Shall we bring water? For you out of this rock. The Lord didn't tell him to rebuke the people that was never there any instructions.

That's just Moses being himself. Finally, I know more the meekest man on the earth, you know when Miriam criticized him. He was called the meekest man on the earth now. He wants he wants to let him have it.

I've been storing this up for years now. They need to hear this. He let him have it. He and Aaron and the Lord like the three musketeers. The first of me, you know. What should say? Who is this weed bit about you notice that too?

Here now you rebel. Shall we bring water for this rock for you? Who is it? Who's the weed? You know Moses and Aaron and the Lord all together. Well, I think they quieted my microphone. Yeah, the like the three musketeers the three amigos all for one and one for all.

You.

Know like they're all equal partners. That's the way Moses talked in it. Shall we bring the water the way the Lord told him to do it? There would be no doubt that it was an act of God. He could simply say let there be water and The rock would start to gush out and everyone would know that only the Word of God could create such a flow.

Only God can make you word into a waterfall. But the way Moses and all his wisdom and greatness Decided was better to do it. Made him look like an equal partner with the Lord. That it takes it takes Moses special touch.

The technique with which he wields his staff it even takes. It even takes two whacks of the staff to get the water to flow. Do you notice that got hit? He hits it twice if it was from God. Why would it take two strikes, you know as though God couldn't do it on the first.

First strike.

Moses hit it twice. Because he didn't quite believe it was all from God. He believed it depended on him for something these people needed to hear from him for something to break through to him. A loss of temper is a victory for ego.

These people Moses things are maybe this rock this child this car. This printer this husband this wife. It should be doing what I want them to do now. So I will make them do it with my Indomitable spirit which I'll make them do it with the power of my words or maybe my volume.

Well, I'll make them do what I determine they should do. We're sometimes tempted to do this with spiritual things. Maybe a child. Someone is unbelieving. We're maybe they're continuing in sin and rejecting the Lord and we're called to speak the word to them.

Faith comes by hearing. Hearing particularly the Word of Christ the good news about Jesus, but maybe we're impatient with that. Maybe we don't believe that that alone will work. We don't see it working right now.

We don't see the water flowing yet. So we're tempted to hit. Maybe not physically but with a stick but verbally. Hear this. You rebel you are. Whatever whatever it takes to break through their rock hard Heart with the blows of our words.

We'll get the water flowing. We'll do it. With the repeated strikes of our words. I'm tempted with that a lot. Amazingly though the water does flow. That's the miracle here, isn't it? Moses didn't do what he said and yet God still gives the water.

Lord provides the water despite the loss of Moses temper. We might think you know. We might think the Lord should refuse to do the miracle because the because Moses did his part all wrong. Right, you got to follow the instructions to get the result you want right?

That's the way we think isn't it? He spoiled what was supposed to be a visual display of God's mercy by his angry rebuke by his striking it by Thinking it comes from his work by rebelling himself while calling the people rebels.

But the Lord did display his grace by providing the water anyway.

You notice.

They didn't have to do everything right to be provided for to be sustained. God was going to give them what they needed even though the people were complaining. Rebels and Moses lost his temper. They got the water by grace.

That's why grace is amazing. A Grace that saves wretches like us. It's grace. It's grace that despite their losses. That will get them to the promised land. Through many dangers toils and snares I have already come.

Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far and grace will lead me home. But that doesn't mean the sin will have no cost. Here the water gushes out the people drink their animals are satisfied, but for Moses and Aaron.

Something's wrong. The Lord says to them. You did not believe in me. To uphold me as holy. Their roots sin. It's in all roots and it's all sin is unbelief. Whatever is not a faith is sin. Paul says in Romans chapter 14 verse 23.

Moses struck the rock twice because he didn't believe that the Lord would do what he said. God needed some help from him in the form of the right technique a form of a second whack or the form of some force.

It's like some Christians today Believe that God's kingdom will only grow through their right strategies. It takes an altar call, you know with the organ playing softly as we all bow our heads and close our eyes.

Some counselors coming forward as we give the invitation. Of course, that's the prime. The pump make it easier for the sinners to come forward and say the right prayer. You got to have all that set up our manipulation.

For.

People to for people to believe for the gospel to succeed, you know doesn't work right? That's what people think. It takes our manipulation. Like the missionary who excused the high-pressure tactics to get money out of people whipping the people to get more and more to making a show out of givings because other people then would want to also show off their giving and.

And you got to do that. She said because if you don't. The church won't get built without it. Or maybe like some people's idea of you know. Old-fashioned preaching to harangue the people with angry shouts of repent turn or burn while prancing back and forth.

I'm never good at that because I can't think and walk at the same time heavily inhaling. Between every sentence of pronouncing God with an extra syllable at the end. Sure, it's it's right to talk about repentance and hell even when the Bible does but it's not your volume.

And or your willingness to be offensive. That will make the water flow or the extra syllable after God. It's not that that makes the water flow only the Word of God. That's easy to make fun of that old generation.

Well now we have a newer generation of manipulation. Don't you know now many think you need those special lights and the worship leader with an electric guitar who takes us from a crescendo of Loud rock music with pretty shallow empty lyrics to Down to a soft musical lead-in to a video or maybe a skit and a short talk from a sensitive guy.

Who just wants to give you some practical advice? Never works for me. I just don't come across as a sensitive guy. The problem isn't really with any of those things. By themselves probably any of them can be used in the right context except don't say God that just sounds weird.

But any of them can be used in the proper in some this is some degree. The problem is that people trust them. They trust the technique. Their particular way of striking the rock to get the water to flow.

Instead of trusting the Word of God. Here God says Moses you did not believe in me. Moses didn't have faith in God. Lacking faith, he doesn't uphold the Lord as holy. Holy holy means distinct separate higher greater.

He doesn't hold the Lord is holy before the people He doesn't hold him as someone is different from the gods of this world. You know the gods of Egypt they've required the proper technique of the magicians the incantation the rituals.

To do their tricks. That's how you got tricks out of them. You said the right words in the right order or did whatever today maybe the gods of psychology or emotional manipulation of entertainment the lights and the fog machine and the Music to get people to believe you got to get it in right order to get the result you want, right?

No.

Whole God is holy his. Martin Luther said, you know, if someone asked him how he started the Reformation He said I Did nothing. The Word did everything? Moses for all his faith and meekness and greatness before Lost faith here and so suffered great loss.

He and his brother Aaron will not be allowed to enter the Promised Land. Moses Wouldn't be wouldn't show God as holy and someone higher and is greater than himself. Then all the other gods at the waters of Meribah the waters are quarreling.

The word Meribah means quarreling they quarrel with God. They wish they were dead. They were claiming that the Lord had brought them. Hatton brought them into a good land even though the good land is promised to them and is in God's sight as Good as there is already but they wouldn't believe and even Moses and Aaron at the end wouldn't believe and So by their actions that they quarrel with God instead of striking instead of speaking they struck.

But still in verse 13 God shows himself to be holy. You notice that verse 13 God did show himself to be holy despite what Moses did unlike the other gods. You know, there's then or our gods of technique now.

You know our gods won't give give the water. Unless you follow the right technique, you don't follow the right technique. You don't have the right Conditions the right electrical jar and then light lights you don't get the right result.

But here the true God Moses didn't follow the right technique, but God still gave them. The result the water. God gave it anyway demonstrating that he is indeed different. He's gracious when we're legalistic and Then he barred Moses and Aaron from entering the promised land.

Showing that he is just and holy. When we're indulgent and weak. Well, they got the water but they suffered loss and yet still God is seen as holy. Well next they suffered the loss of the easy way. Aaron Hernandez had the easy way.

He was a star receiver for the University of Florida and when they won the national championship and then got a 40 million dollar contract. To play for the New England Patriots all he had to do as a young man in his early 20s was play football for a few seasons and he would have enough money to live in Outrageous luxury for the rest of his life.

Just play football. That's all you have to do. How could he lose? Well, he lost. Because he chose to play the gangster to be the thug. He murdered someone who was convicted and sentenced to life in prison.

Instead of the easy life that he could have had in his 1 .3 million dollar four-story mansion. Last April he hung himself in his jail cell. People often maybe not to the degree that Aaron Hernandez often have an easy way in life.

You just you follow the Lord's principles you you work you study. You don't have sex out of marriage be faithful in marriage be a person of your word a person of integrity.

But then they get drawn away. They're gonna party.

So they fail out of school then they have a much harder time finding a decent job. They have a child out of wedlock and so are burdened with having to care for a child without a spouse or having to pay Child support.

The the Lord's ways may seem hard sometimes. But they are certainly easier than the alternative. Here Israel has already squandered the the easy way of going straight into the promised land which would be just go straight north.

Forty years earlier they they lost that Coming right out of the south now. The Lord is leading them around the east but Edom is in the way now. Edom Should be hospitable. Since their descendants of Esau Which was Jacob's brother Jacob was Israel.

So they're sort of related nations. Moses sends them a message calling themselves Call him Israel themselves Edom's brother. We're your brother Edom and Moses is expecting he's hoping.

For an ally.

For them to be for a friend in Edom a friendly neighbor. And he tells them of all the hardships they've had the Egyptians dealt harshly with them. They cried to the Lord and he brought them out of Egypt.

But now they've suffered to have. You know, they've been wandering for 40 years. And they don't want to have to go any further. And so he asked their permission to pass through Edom. They're on the edge of Edom's territory.

The easy way would be to take what's called the King's Highway road right through the middle of Edom right where they want to go. If they can't. If they can't do that. They'd have to go far south away from the promised land then loop around the east in the desert.

I've been much further.

They promised they won't trample on their vineyards. They won't even drink their well water. They'll stay strictly on their highway and the Edomites respond in verse 18 With rudely no. Even threatening them if they try.

Moses politely appeals again in verse 19. We will go up by the highway and if we drink any of your water I am I livestock that I will pay you for it. Let me only pass through one foot nothing more. They respond bluntly You shall not pass through.

And then they came out with her army to ward them off to. Israel has lost a brother and Gained an enemy and this sets the relations between Edom and Israel for the rest of their history. They would be hostile to Israel even joining later much centuries later with the Babylonians to destroy Israel they never got.

Edom never got over their hatred of Israel and Malachi tells us why the very end of the Old Testament the Lord had determined Jacob. I loved Jacob. Israel, I love but Esau Edom I hated. Paul quotes that in Romans chapter 9.

And. So Edom Esau is a picture of those who are not the people of God. Who don't have God's mercy even if they're brothers of those who do God has not had mercy on them. And so they hate the people that God has had mercy on.

Here their hostility means that Israel that has suffered so much loss Will lose the easy way that they could have had and we'll have to go all the way around. Sometimes we lose the easy way because of our sins like Aaron Hernandez sometimes our inattention our laziness but sometimes we lose the easy way simply because God has had mercy on us and those he hasn't had mercy on us.

They hate us for that.

Sometimes just being one of God's people will cost you an easy life at least some ease in this life. We saw in John chapter 15. Remember just a couple of months ago. Jesus warned us that The world that hated him It's gonna hate us to Gave him a hard time.

It's gonna give us a hard time. And the very next chapter John 16, he told us that in this world you will have Tribulation so don't be surprised and you have it precisely because you do belong to him because God has had mercy on you.

James tells us that friendship with the world is is enmity that is making an enemy of God and the reverse is true, too. Being a friend of God choosing to believe him follow him go. His ways will mean that the world Will make you its enemy.