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Don’t gloss over this chapter too quickly or you will miss a moment that is very rare in our current society today. As we know, Moses was not going to be allowed to enter the Promised Land. This alone is a hard pill to swallow. Think about all Moses has been through with the people. He has led them despite their selfish and stubborn ways. He even went to God in prayer and asked to spare their lives on several occasions. All that said, he will never get to see the fullness of the promise which became the destination of his journey.
On many levels, it just doesn’t seem right. It’s not the fairytale ending we would expect. I’m not one to question God, but I seriously found myself pondering; how could God keep Moses out of the Promised Land over one sinful act? Though he couldn’t enter the land, God would allow Moses to at least look at it.
The LORD said to Moses, “Go up the Abarim Mountains and look out over the land that I am giving to the Israelites. 13 After you have seen it, you will die, as your brother Aaron did, 14 because both of you rebelled against my command in the wilderness of Zin. When the whole community complained against me at Meribah, you refused to acknowledge my holy power before them.” (Meribah is the spring at Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.)
Numbers 27:12-14 GNB
“After you have seen it, you will die.” Uh… hmmm… OK? Again, I don’t believe we should question God’s decisions. After all, He made up His mind. It was a done deal. And He is God. But in our flesh, we wonder, is this really the best decision? I mean, from Moses’ perspective, he could have pleaded with God to reconsider. He could have repented once more over the debacle which caused this entire issue. If he were living in our culture today, he would simply get offended and protest, right? He does none of those things.
In fact, he doesn’t even question anything about what God has said. His response has nothing to do with himself. Let’s read that again! His response has NOTHING TO DO WITH HIMSELF! Look at what he prays…
Moses prayed, 16 ” LORD God, source of all life, appoint, I pray, a man who can lead the people 17 and can command them in battle, so that your community will not be like sheep without a shepherd.”
Numbers 27:15-17 GNB
So basically, it goes down like this.
God – “Moses, here is the Promised Land. You can only look at it and then you will die. This is because you failed to acknowledge my power before the people.”
Moses – “Lord, please appoint a man to lead the people and command them in battle!”
It is a refreshing, unselfish, and God-honoring response. It’s full of humility. Let’s be honest, how many people do you know who would respond this way today? Just as Jesus exemplified, a great leader does not come to be served, but to serve. Moses understood this. His life was a worship offering poured out for his people, and he served them to the very end even in the midst of his own failure.
So, how many of us are currently responding this way to the discipline of God? How many of us are driving our focus toward others despite what’s happened to you? These are tough but true thoughts.