The majority of this chapter covers defeat of a king and his people, as well as the division of lands between two and a half tribes that stayed East of the Jordan. We’ll focus on the final few verses as Moses retells his pleading with God.
” ‘O Lord God, you have only begun to show your servant your greatness and your mighty hand. For what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do such works and mighty acts as yours? Please let me go over and see the good land beyond the Jordan…’ But the Lord was angry with me because of you and would not listen to me. And the Lord said to me, ‘Enough from you; do not speak to me of this matter again. Go up to the top of [of a mountain]… and look at it with your eyes… But charge Joshua, and encourage and strengthen him, for he shall go over at the head of this people, and he shall put them in possession of the land that you shall see.’ ” (v24-28 abr)
Remember when God commanded Moses to speak to a rock and water would flow from it, but Moses who was frustrated with the whining/complaining Israelites struck the rock with his staff instead? That was when God said he would not enter the promised land. As Moses retells his side of the account, he blames Israel for God’s anger with him, and doesn’t admit that it was he who chose not to obey God.
This reminds me of the typical “but they started it” defense. How often do we, through our sinful flesh, deflect responsibility for our actions? It was someone else’s fault, I didn’t have a choice, someone made me do it, it was an accident, etc. Our sinful nature, by default, does not allow us to take responsibility for our own sin.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, David, when confronted by the prophet Nathan over his sin regarding Bathsheba and Uriah, is fully repentant (see 2 Sam 11-12). Of course there are still consequences (their firstborn son dies) but God forgives David’s sin and redeems him by including their second son, Solomon, in the lineage of Jesus.
My challenge for today is to take responsibility for our actions. This means when we sin, we own it. We confess to God “Yes, I sinned, please forgive me, and guide me away from future temptation.” If we ever want to break the cycle of sin in our flesh, we need to take ownership, and ask for God’s help. No, we’ll never be flawless as long as we’re on this earth, but that doesn’t mean we should use that as an excuse to continue sinning. If we repent, that doesn’t mean there won’t still be consequences (David’s son died, Moses was denied entry to Canaan), but the punishment will be less severe/non-existent (ie. eternal separation from God being the ultimate punishment). Let’s be bold, and set a good example for this broken world that has turned excuse making into an art form.
Father God, Lord of Moses and Israel, we confess that we have sinned. We have fallen short of Your glory and holiness, and we ask for the forgiveness made available through Jesus’ death and resurrection. We also ask that You please help us to fully rely on You for our daily guidance, so we may be less prone to embrace temptation. Father please be our light and sovereign God, keeping our feet from straying. In Jesus’ precious and redemptive name we ask this, amen.
~ Conqueror in Training