In this
journey we call life, it’s good to often ask ourselves “How well do we follow
instructions?” If we’re trying to
assemble a bicycle, a toy, some Ikea furniture, or even bake a cake, do we use
the instructions or do we go by our own intuition? I suspect the truth is we're just like the
children of Israel who didn’t always follow instructions, which usually produced
bad results.
The children
of Israel were allowed to wander in the wilderness for 40 years because of
their disobedience and unwillingness to follow God’s instructions. After God had selected Moses and Aaron to lead
the children of Israel out of Egypt, they found themselves in the wilderness,
with no water, and no vegetation. The
Israelites were complaining against Moses and Aaron for their present
condition, so much like people do today. We attempt to blame everyone else but
ourselves. We never seem to be
satisfied.
God gave
clear instructions to Moses: “Take your staff and
assemble the community, you and your brother Aaron, and in their presence order
the rock to yield its waters. From the
rock you shall bring forth water for the congregation and their livestock to
drink.” But Moses instead hit the rock twice which
caused God to not allow Moses or Aaron to lead the Israelites into the Promise
land (Numbers 20:1-13).
This is why it’s
so important for each one of us to know Jesus for ourselves. Each one of us is accountable to God for our
own deeds. Jesus asked his disciples, “Who
do people say that the Son of Man is?” After much
deliberation on the part of the Apostles, Jesus re-phrased the question by
asking, “But who do you say that I am?” (Matthew 16:13-23). The whole idea of knowing Jesus becomes
personal. No matter how tough life
becomes, Jesus is the answer.
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