READING: Numbers 17-20
“You will not bring this assembly into the land I have given them.”
Numbers 20:12
All they did was strike the rock twice rather than speak to it as God had commanded. Their people were thirsty for water, and Moses assumed that striking the rock would bring water. God graciously sent the water anyway, but He judged Moses and Aaron by refusing to allow them to enter the Promised Land: “Because you did not trust me to demonstrate my holiness in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this assembly into the land I have given them” (Num. 20:12). By disobeying God’s command, Moses treated Him as less than holy—and the Hebrew leader paid a great price. Aaron was apparently part of the sin as well, and he suffered the same consequence.
Just one act. One act of hitting a rock rather than speaking to it. Doesn’t seem that significant, does it? It certainly doesn’t seem to warrant exclusion from the land to which Moses had been leading.
But, God demanded obedience, and He expected those who led the people to be especially mindful of setting the example. Moses and Aaron disobeyed, and they thus suffered the same penalty the Hebrews had paid a generation earlier. Moses would only see the land from a distance, and Aaron would die before then.
Just one act of disobedience. Only one.
I suspect this story will make me think twice today when temptation comes.
ACTION STEPS:
- Don’t rush into sin today. Think.
- Thank God for His mercy, for He offers grace to us that we do not deserve.
PRAYER: “Lord, I commit myself to obeying You completely. Don’t let me forget this story today.”
TOMORROW’S READING: Numbers 21-24