*Scripture: Numbers 20:1-21 (NKJV)* 1 Then the children of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the Wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Kadesh; and Miriam died there and was buried there. 2 Now there was no water for the congregation; so they gathered together against Moses and Aaron. 3 And the people contended with Moses and spoke, saying: “If only we had died when our brethren died before the LORD! 4 Why have you brought up the assembly of the LORD into this wilderness, that we and our animals should die here? 5 And why have you made us come up out of Egypt, to bring us to this evil place? It is not a place of grain or figs or vines or pomegranates; nor is there any water to drink.”
6 So Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and they fell on their faces. And the glory of the LORD appeared to them. 7 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 8 “Take the rod; you and your brother Aaron gather the congregation together. Speak to the rock before their eyes, and it will yield its water; thus you shall bring water for them out of the rock, and give drink to the congregation and their animals.” 9 So Moses took the rod from before the LORD as He commanded him. 10 And Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock; and he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels! Must we bring water for you out of this rock?” 11 Then Moses lifted his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their animals drank. 12 Then the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe Me, to hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.” 13 This was the water of Meribah, because the children of Israel contended with the LORD, and He was hallowed among them. 14 Now Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom. “Thus says your brother Israel: ‘You know all the hardship that has befallen us, 15 how our fathers went down to Egypt, and we dwelt in Egypt a long time, and the Egyptians afflicted us and our fathers. 16 When we cried out to the LORD, He heard our voice and sent the Angel and brought us up out of Egypt; now here we are in Kadesh, a city on the edge of your border. 17 Please let us pass through your country. We will not pass through fields or vineyards, nor will we drink water from wells; we will go along the King’s Highway; we will not turn aside to the right hand or to the left until we have passed through your territory.’” 18 Then Edom said to him, “You shall not pass through my land, lest I come out against you with the sword.” 19 So the children of Israel said to him, “We will go by the Highway, and if I or my livestock drink any of your water, then I will pay for it; let me only pass through on foot, nothing more.” 20 Then he said, “You shall not pass through.” So Edom came out against them with many men and with a strong hand. 21 Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through his territory; so Israel turned away from him. *Devotion* “Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful.” (1 Corinthians 4:2) This requires fidelity to God’s directives in all matters, great and small, at all times and in all places. God provides a clear, though painful lesson to Moses and to Aaron—and to us—about faithfulness in today’s reading. Although the Lord previously instructed Moses to strike a rock with his rod to produce water for His people in the desert, this time God instructed him to only speak the Word. Moses, however, took matters into his own hands and struck the rock. This small act of disobedience was no small thing in God’s sight (no sin ever is), and both Moses and Aaron received a harsh judgment: neither would enter the land to which God was bringing His people. Truly, being found faithful in all things matters to God. Indeed, God Himself is faithful in all matters, great and small, at all times and in all places. He is faithful to His promise of forgiveness and eternal life for the sake of His Christ to each one who believes. Our faithfulness is God’s own faithful work within us by His Holy Word and His Holy Spirit. Like Moses and Aaron, we abide in the faith through His enduring faithfulness to us, trusting in His forgiveness when we transgress our duties, and believing His promise that each of His faithful ones will be “gathered to his people” in the end and dwell with Him in the Promised Land of Heaven forever. Thanks be to God for His enduring faithfulness toward us! Rev. Dcn. Jerry Dulas, as eCourier of the Evangelical Lutheran Diocese of North America
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