Numbers: Sin of Moses - sin of Ministers, Missionaries and most Christians wanting to do something good

In Numbers 20, Moses and Aaron are commanded to speak to the rock and water would flow. Instead, Moses struck the rock twice and water flowed. The people were happy but the Father was not.

All my life I was taught that his sin was simple disobedience - he struck the rock instead of speaking to it. Yet the sentence that precedes the blow (20:10) indicates more was transpiring. “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” Psalm 106:32 adds, "rash words came from Moses' lips." Why did Moses say "we"? Who was really doing this work? Perhaps the change from speaking to striking as no big deal for Moses if he was convinced in his heart that he was the one doing the action anyway. Thus it seems the real sin was not simple disobedience but rather a deep pride that claimed credit for God's work. 

Yet what fascinates me is not that Moses sinned nor the miracle per se but rather that God sent the miracle in spite of Moses' failure. God stayed faithful even though Moses stole the credit and failed to obey.

I ask myself just how many times has God done the same thing for me? How often do we believe the ends justifies the means and so we ignore deeper principles? How many times do we take credit for simply being the instrument through whom God worked? How many times has the Father been offended by my pride but at the same time not abandoned me in ministry? How many times have I committed the sin of Moses?

John 6:16-40; No More Signs

Jesus was reluctant to turn water to wine at Cana. Then he would not heal the official's son the way the crowd wanted. Now he does not want to give a new crowd a new sign. They crossed the sea (lake) for him and are seeking after him. Yet in response to "what sign will you give us", he basically talks about entering into a faith relationship with him.

I continue to be amazed at how much we probably look like the crowd. Just think of our prayers. "Jesus, I don't know which one of these options to choose; give me a sign." "Lord, show me what to do now." "I'll stay here and not move until you indicate the best choice." It sounds spiritual but I just don't see Jesus jumping onboard.

The story within the story makes me scratch my head also. Jesus disappeared into the mountains and the disciples headed to Capernaum without him. They had all types of problems until Jesus finally joined them; then everything worked out fine. One could conclude that their error was proceeding without Jesus. The problem is that in Matthew, Jesus told them to go ahead. So concluding that they should have waited for Jesus would be to conclude that they should have been disobedient. That doesn't make any sense at all.

So putting it all together it seems that Jesus wanted to communicate to seekers and followers alike that faith in him is key. When we are just starting a conscientous spiritual walk, the first step is identifying the focus of our faith -- signs or the man Jesus? When we have been following for some time, it is just as critical to remember that obedience must always be accompanied by faith in this man.

Honestly I hate how simple that all sounds. Since I fail so miserably at the task, I want the task to sound really complicated. And of course Jesus won't let me get away with that excuse either.

John 4:43-54; Mean Jesus

I've often read this passage and felt like Jesus was being mean, or at least really grumpy. I get the same feeling reading a few other miracles like the woman begging for her daughter and Jesus saying I was sent to the Jews or the time that the big crowd follows him around to the other side of the big lake. Even the first miracle in Cana gives that feeling but I think that much of that "grumpy look" in John 2 is due to awkward translation of "Woman, why do you involve me?" which apparently carries no negative conotation in its original language. This one, however, seems grumpy.

As I continue to look at it and study, I have come to this conclusion, I think Jesus comes across as negative because he was. This Jewish official is doing all he can to save his son's life; I think Jesus has only sympathy for him. But when he responds saying, "“Unless you people see signs and wonders you will never believe," he uses a plural "you". He is not talking to the man as the father of a sick child; he is talking to a group. Apparently a crowd has gathered (maybe helping the dad find Jesus) or Jesus is referring to part or all of the Jewish nation or both. So the response is meant to be negative but it is not a response against the father but against a group. Jesus wants nothing to do with those who follow him due to his giving of "signs". The father is not of this group; he distinguishes himself byt persisting in his faith that Jesus can heal his son. By healing him from a distance, Jesus honored the father's petition but totally put off the crowd that would have followed Jesus to the boy's side to watch a miracle.

And so I conclude that Jesus can be negative with people (not a popular concept among those of us who always want a touchy-feely Jesus on demand) and that he really doesn't want followers who want "on-demand" miracles and signs. It seems to be the rage these days to pray, "God if you want me to do X, then give me a sign." This story makes me wonder how God feels getting all those petitions.

Acts 9:31-43; More Greatness

Now that I have read through the rest of the chapter I lament that I did not include this section in yesterday's thoughts. As I thought more about greatness and the "little people of insignificance" that lie behind those we know well, I began to realize just how common it was. Recognition truly falls to only a few; this section is another great example.

Peter had traveled out of Jerusalem (but not out of Judah) to visit other Jewish Christians. When we read the story of his time in Joppa, we walk away remembering the name of Peter and the name of the lady Tabitha that he healed. But I think more lies behind the scenes.

In Venezuela we lived in a hot city; a cold winter night was 70 and a hot summer day was 115. In our city, embalming was very expensive. There were not many funeral homes and the process was so costly and inefficient that it was rare that a complete embalming would be performed. So when a person passed away, a "partial" embalming was performed that would at least slow down the decay process a little. Most bodies were then taken home to lie in state in people's living rooms. If the family was lower middle or poor class, there would be no AC in the house and ice would be placed under the table holding the body to again delay decay. Even with all that work, the body would start to deform, ooze or do other ugly things in 24 hours.

Now flashback to Tabitha who lived in a port city (modern day Tel Aviv) and who would not have had any embalming at all. Her body would have decayed very fast, producing an intolerable situation for those who loved her. Yet, they delayed. They heard Peter was in a nearby town and they sent for him. Would the messengers find him? Would he come? Would he delay? Would he be willing to do anything once he arrived? Yet, they sent for him and waited with the body.

We don't know the names of a single person involved in that decision. A decision that defied logic and culture. A decision that put the family name at risk. A decision of faith. Yet we know the name of Tabitha and the work of Peter. They achieved greatness in our memories. Without the acts of faith of the family, however, no healing would have occurred. But they did act. Tabitha would remember that all her life. The friends, family and neighbors would never forget. And God surely remembered each one by name . . . the names of people of great faith.

Acts 4; Dilemma

"They could not decide how to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had happened." That would be a comical line if it were not so true. . . and I don't mean for them. I can recall many times in life that I have sat in on meetings where church leaders were concerned about something good that was breaking out but that was not being done in a way that seemed orthodox. A new work in a part of the city that the church had not specifically planned, outreach that several youth started that had grown amazingly quickly or social justice work that the church never planned.

In this story, the Jewish leaders were trying to figure out how to stop a new act of God. In my story, church leaders have often been faced with the same dilemma. When we define church too narrowly, God seems to break out in other places. When we limit his activity to that which we have figured out and anticipate, he always comes up with surprises.

As I get older, I think I like surprises less and less. Yet, I really don't want to be that guy who is left behind when God does something new. I don't want to be part of the crowd that speaks out against something good. These poor Jewish leaders looked bad as they tried to figure out how to stop miracles occurring. I don't want to be that kind of leader. I think that means saying goodbye to the false security of having God figured out.

Mark 11:12-25; Mountain Moving

Jesus demonstrated his condemnation of the improper use of religion by the side story of the fig tree. I think those with him understood the point. What seems out of place at first glance is not the fig tree but the final statement about forgiveness.

It seems like the amazing actions are those of withering a tree or moving a mountain. Yet Jesus assures all of us that these can be done with faith. The hard part is forgiveness. Mountain moving is no big deal when compared to turning loose of pain. Perhaps it is easier to change the future of a tree than to let go of a desire for justice. Maybe the real mountains that we must grapple with moving are those in our souls. To let go of my right to demand justice against the person who mistreated me, the person who abused me, the one who lied to me, the one who betrayed my trust, the one who hurt my child . . . those are truly mountains. And those are hard to move. Indeed they cannot be moved without faith.

So in spite of the fact that it seems like the miracle of the fig tree was an impressive miracle to teach us about the condemnation of misguided religion, perhaps the weightier teaching is that the greatest miracle is the one that God works in the human heart when we forgive.