The Sin in the Wilderness

 

Part One

One of the most grievous sins we commit before the Lord is the sin of murmuring and complaining. It was the sin in the wilderness of the nation of Israel just as they were supposed to enter into the Land promised by God to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Instead of receiving this Promised blessing by God, those who murmured and complained were cut off and destroyed. A new generation headed by Joshua and Caleb would inherit the promises given first to the generation out of Egypt. There is a spirit of murmuring and complaining that has grip America today as it did Israel do long ago. This spirit has infested our society, government, church, homes and sadly even the lives of many professing born-again Christians. Let the reader beware and be warned by this narrative of the consequences of departing from the Lord because of a dark heart of unbelief, which always manifests itself with a critical, judgmental, murmuring spirit. Moses response to Israel's sin must be ours today - intercession and prayer. If we have any vestiges of this sin in our own life, we need to repent and repent NOW and allow the Holy Ghost to take control of our tongues and remove this damning attitude from us.

 

By Chris McDonald


 

TEXT: Numbers 14:1-3
And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. [2] And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! [3] And wherefore hath the Lord brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?

        The Holy Spirit tells us through Paul the Apostle the things recorded concerning the nation of Israel's failures, especially in her wilderness wanderings, are recorded for our admonition, warning, exhortation and example. The books of Deuteronomy and Numbers record a great deal of these events, with Numbers showing the most graphic of details of the results of unbelief, a hardened heart and the topic of this message - the sin of murmuring and complaining.

 

        Numbers is a book laden with stories of some of Israel's worse backslidings and failures that led to the death of an entire generation of people, who, by God's mighty power, were brought out of Egypt. This generation was not just brought out with no where to go - they were to be brought INTO the Promised Land as promised by God to Abraham, Isaac and to Jacob. Israel was the "church" in the wilderness of the Old Covenant, thus, the things that happened to her during her sojourn with God are both warnings and examples to the CHURCH of the NEW COVENANT.  As stated, the Holy Spirit confirms this very thing to us through Paul's first letter to Corinth:

 

1 Cor. 10:1-12
Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; [2] And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; [3] And did all eat the same spiritual meat; [4] And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. [5] But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness. [6] Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted. [7] Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play. [8] Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand. [9] Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. [10] Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. [11] Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. [12] Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.

 

       The books of Exodus and Leviticus outline the foundation of the coming Priesthood, the celebration Feasts of worship and the requirements of the Law, given by God to Moses as to instruct Israel on Jehovah's holy, righteous standards. Israel chose the path of Law instead of Grace when at the foot of Mount Sinai, they cried for Moses to go into the terrible fire descending upon the mount and "tell us what He would have us do and 'we' will do it.'" The problem is that a sinful heart can NEVER do what God tells it to do no matter what that heart wants to do. The spirit is always willing but since the fall of mankind, the flesh will ALWAYS be weak. That is why Jesus came to die and open up the way for the HOLY GHOST to live inside of us on a continual basis so we CAN do what He asks us to do!

 

Exodus 19:7-9 - And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before their faces all these words which the Lord commanded him. [8] And all the people answered together, and said, All that the Lord hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the Lord. [9] And the Lord said unto Moses, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee for ever. And Moses told the words of the people unto thee

 

        I'll just touch on that at the moment but would add this note of caution to the reader. We would wise to heed what happened to Israel at the foot of that mount so long ago. Millions in the church world today seek to live under LAW, while never realizing they are only adding fuel to the very fires of every type of bondage to grip millions in their souls.

 

            The STRENGTH of sin is the LAW, says the Spirit. We can never find victory over our flesh, the world and the devil by trying to adhere to Law.

 

1 Cor. 15:56 - The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. [57] But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

        I heard one preacher a few years back get up and say "we need a renewal of people obeying the Law of God back into our churches." He was saying that in a self-righteous tone basically meaning that if we force people to obey the Law of God through man-made rules then we can better control sin. That's utter foolishness. The problem is not the Law of God, don't get me wrong. The Law of God is HOLY, JUST and RIGHTEOUS. Without the Law of God and its accompanying conviction and revelation of our fallen condition, none of us would have come to saving faith in Christ. When we see the Law of God as it needs to be seen, we see our utter helpless ness to keep it in our own strength or on our own merit.

 

         Hear this writer. If God could have given Israel a book of rules and said "here it is, follow it," then all of Israel should have passed the test with flying colors - SHE DIDN'T. Neighbor, if God could have given US the same book and say "here it is, follow it," then there would be need for Christ. Christ is the END of the LAW for ALL who believe.

 

        No believer, no matter how 'mature' that believer believes they are, will pass the test of temptation trying to keep rules written down in a book. Mankind needs more than a rule book to deliver him from the darkness of his heart caused by Adam's sin and failure in the garden of Eden. Since Adam, ALL who have followed come into this world a FALLEN state, unable to obey the Law of God. Man needed a perfect sacrifice to bring Him back into right relationship with an offended God.

 

    The commandments of God are not grievous to those who LOVE Him with ALL their hearts, souls and mind. Yet, the POWER by which we obey like that is not found in ourselves or even within the Law of God itself, which, again, is HOLY AND JUST. The power to obey is found in the HOLY GHOST who lives inside every born again believer, but the Spirit of God ONLY works when our faith rests in the source of all power - THE CROSS OF CHRIST.  The Law is not the problem, it's the sinful nature inside of us that resists obeying that Law that is. Only when we place our faith in Christ and what He did at the cross will this sinful nature be brought under the power of the Holy Spirit. SIN shall NOT have dominion over those who believe!

 

Romans 6:14
For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

 

        We are NOT under the LAW, but under GRACE! Grace is never just a blanket or license many make it out to be to sin without penalty. God forbid. What Grace IS however, is the POWER and ENABLING ability the Lord grants ALL who come to Him in Faith to obey the very Law that condemns those who don't believe!

 

        Man has ever proclaimed his ability to obey God, and has ever portrayed his constant failure. Had Israel known their own hearts, they would have replied that such a condition was impossible to them; and they would have cast themselves upon God that He would give them a heart capable of such an obedience. This would have been granted, and the Feast promised in Exodus Chapter 5 enjoyed. Instead of the Feast, there was fear and judgment. God, as "thrice-Holy," had to veil Himself to sinful Israel as He does to sinful man today.

 

Exodus 5:1
And afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness.

 

        God wanted Israel to come into the wilderness and "feast" with Him, instead, because of their darkened hearts, failure after failure occurred resulting in the destruction of the first generation that saw a tremendous deliverance from Egyptian bondage with the mightiest signs and wonders ever released for a people against an oppressor known to man up to that time. It is probably not a stretch to say that the signs and wonders God did in Egypt may never again be paralleled except those He will perform in the last days of the Tribulation when He brings Israel back to Himself through a supernatural deliverance at the Battle of Armageddon. At this moment in Israel's history, she had ALL reasons to believe God. With the Law given, the priests ordained, and the sacrificial system which provided for forgiveness of sin instituted, it was time for God's people to move on. Yet instead of choosing to allow God to "dwell" among His people, Israel chose Law instead and has paid a horrible price ever since.

 

        This first generation's rebellions in the wilderness were but prophetic foreshadows of coming generations rebelling against Christ, who was God in the flesh, come to Earth, to reveal the Father to Israel and stretch out His hand again and again to a "rebellious and disobedient" people. In 70 A.D., some 30 years after the Crucifixion of Christ, the Roman Emperor Titus conquered Jerusalem, scattering the Jewish people to the four corners of the earth. In 1948, the Lord began the process of regathering His chosen people and bringing them back to the Land setting the stage for end time events culminating in the rise of the Antichrist, the Great Tribulation period, the Battle of Armageddon, and the Second Coming of Christ.

 

        Numbers 10:11-25:18 summarizes the events which led to the destruction and failure of the old generation of Egypt to inherit the Promised Land:

       This writer has wondered many times how Israel's first generation out of Egypt could have missed God so badly despite all the power they witnessed? How could such a generation as this - one who saw Egypt laid waste with boils, hail, fire, pestilence, water turning to blood and the killing of all the firstborn - ever not believe God again? How could a generation which stood there and saw the awesome power of God at the parting of the Red Sea, which brought deliverance to them and destroyed Pharaoh's army, EVER not believe God again? It's staggering to think about it. It's hard to comprehend that the witness of all these signs and wonders did not change the hearts of those involved or granted access to the theater of this drama.

 

        When the time came to make life's most significant choice, these people chose NOT to believe, even after hearing God's voice and witnessing His mighty power. Let the writer interject this quick thought. Miracles in themselves will never bring one closer to God! Signs and wonders will little turn the head of doubt. Unbelief, or distrust of God, is a sin that is its own punishment. Those that do not trust God are continually vexing themselves. It is simple faith in God's Word and in Christ and Him Crucified which one must have to make it through this Christian sojourn on Earth and make heaven their home.

 

        Despite the miracles, Israel turned her heart away from God on numerous occasions with each event being accompanied by the sin of murmuring and complaining, which were always the common factors in every single failure in the wilderness wanderings! Let the reader beware and heed that last statement for it is the common factor in our failings today as well!  When we complain, murmur and backbite, we bring judgment on ourselves! The Psalmist said this was why God overthrew this generation in the wilderness:

 

Ps 106:25-26 - But murmured in their tents, and hearkened not unto the voice of the LORD. Therefore he lifted up his hand against them, to overthrow them in the wilderness:
 

        When Moses penned his final thoughts before he died, Israel's attitude of murmuring was fresh on his mind!

 

Deut 1:27-2:1 - And ye murmured in your tents, and said, Because the LORD hated us, he hath brought us forth out of the land of Egypt, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us. 28 Whither shall we go up? our brethren have discouraged our heart, saying, The people is greater and taller than we; the cities are great and walled up to heaven; and moreover we have seen the sons of the Anakims there. 29 Then I said unto you, Dread not, neither be afraid of them. 30 The LORD your God which goeth before you, he shall fight for you, according to all that he did for you in Egypt before your eyes; 31 And in the wilderness, where thou hast seen how that the LORD thy God bare thee, as a man doth bear his son, in all the way that ye went, until ye came into this place. 32 Yet in this thing ye did not believe the LORD your God, 33 Who went in the way before you, to search you out a place to pitch your tents in, in fire by night, to shew you by what way ye should go, and in a cloud by day. 34 And the LORD heard the voice of your words, and was wroth, and sware, saying, 35 Surely there shall not one of these men of this evil generation see that good land, which I sware to give unto your fathers, 36 Save Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him will I give the land that he hath trodden upon, and to his children, because he hath wholly followed the LORD.

 

        It was this same attitude and spirit in those he led that ultimately finally got to Moses in the incident at the Rock and by striking the rock twice, which was in type crucifying Christ a second time, God removed Moses' entrance to the land as well.


Deut. 1:37-46  - Also the Lord was angry with me for your sakes, saying, Thou also shalt not go in thither. [38] But Joshua the son of Nun, which standeth before thee, he shall go in thither: encourage him: for he shall cause Israel to inherit it. [39] Moreover your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, and your children, which in that day had no knowledge between good and evil, they shall go in thither, and unto them will I give it, and they shall possess it. [40] But as for you, turn you, and take your journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea. [41] Then ye answered and said unto me, We have sinned against the Lord, we will go up and fight, according to all that the Lord our God commanded us. And when ye had girded on every man his weapons of war, ye were ready to go up into the hill.

 

        The Holy Ghost refers to this attitude when He, through Paul, warned Corinth, that Israel of old was destroyed "of the destroyer," and was to serve as examples to us today and to those who arrogantly think they think they stand, lest they fall:

 

1 Cor. 10:10-13 - Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. [11] Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. [12] Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.

        The term "murmur," and it's participle, "murmuring," comes from the Greek word, "gonguzo," and means,"to mutter a grumble, or to have a spirit of indignant complaining." When used as a verb, it is used in scripture speaking of the laborers in the parable of the householder, Matt 20:11; of the scribes and Pharisees, against Christ, Luke 5:30; of the Jews, John 6:41,43; of the disciples, 6:61; of the people, 7:32 (of debating secretly); of the Israelites; and of the Corinthian church where this spirit had manifested itself and was being addressed by the Holy Spirit through Paul.

        Murmuring basically speaks of one's attitude in finding fault or complaining with the way God is doing things. This attitude always comes from a darkened heart of rebellion and pride, and in many cases the person doing the murmuring is not doing it out of ignorance, but unbelief!! Because of this sin, God was more than once on the point of not only forsaking Israel of old, but even destroying them. Israel's sin then is a warning to us today! Our judgment and consequences may not happen the exact same way God moved in the days of old, but friend, hear this writer - judgment will be released at some point if one continues in such insolence and rebellion. Israel was in rebellion against God when she murmured and complained and we are in rebellion against God today when we do the same!

 

The History of Israel's Murmuring and Complaining

 

      Israel's history after Egypt was laced with this spirit of complaining and murmuring. Here are just a few examples from scripture:

       
        To summarize, Israel murmured against the Manna (bread), the water from the rock, the good report from Caleb and Josua while listening and believing to the evil report from the other 10 spies, against the priesthood of Aaron and the authority of Moses. In doing so, Israel was prophetically murmuring and complaining against Christ and His offering up Himself on the Cross for the sins of all mankind.

 

The Manna And Murmuring

 

 Make no mistake, the wilderness was not some happen stance event that caught God off guard. Moses wrote in Deuteronomy that the wilderness held a higher purpose in the mind of God for Israel than to just make them wander for 40 years:

 

 

Deut. 1:8 -  Behold, I have set the land before you: go in and possess the land which the Lord sware unto your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give unto them and to their seed after them.

Deut 8:3-5- And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live. 4 Thy raiment waxed not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swell, these forty years. 5 Thou shall also consider in thine heart, that, as a man chasteneth his son, so the LORD thy God chastened thee.

 

         The manna was a type of Christ, the Bread of Life; the water from the smitten rock, a type of the Holy Spirit which flowed from Him after His death on Calvary; the good report of faith, a type of Christ, the LIVING WORD; the rebellion against Aaron, a type of murmuring against Christ, our Great High Priest; and the rebellion against Moses (of which Moses' own sister Miriam was part of), a type of murmuring against Christ's headship over the Church and universe! In hating and loathing the provision God provided them during this time of sojourn, which was suppose to end with a trip to the Promised Land, the generation out of Egypt became ever known as the generation that was chastened by God for its murmuring and DIED in the wilderness. Save Joshua and Caleb, this generation NEVER saw or fulfilled the destiny placed on it by God as it came out of Egypt to wind up in the Promised Land.

 

          The nation's groaning about the manna underscored their groaning about everything else during this season of testing in the wilderness. Israel ate the manna for 40 years, "until they came to the border of the land of Canaan" (Ex 16:35). According to Josh 5:12, the manna did not stop until the Israelites had crossed the Jordan River, had camped at Gilgal, had kept the Passover, and "had eaten the produce of the land." As long as the Hebrew people wandered in the Sinai Peninsula, they were able to gather manna from the ground each morning (Ex 16:35).  The term "manna," means "What is it?" (Ex 16:15). This question, asked by the astonished Israelites on many occasions, led to the name being applied to the "small round substance as fine as frost" (Ex 16:14). Manna looked "like white coriander seed" and tasted like "wafers made with honey" (Ex 16:31) or "pastry prepared with oil" (Num 11:8).

        Appearing with the morning dew, the Hebrews were instructed to gather only enough manna for what was needed for one day, because any surplus would breed tiny worms and be spoiled. That is typical of ALL of God's provision for our lives. God knows what we need better than we do. What He provides NEVER SPOILS. When we moan and groan about "more," and "more," it only serves to show our ignorance for His province and care. To be frank, God knows that if He gave some of us a million dollars this second, we'd be backslid tomorrow because we'd waste it on things that "breed tiny worms and SPOIL." ALL the things of this world are full of worms that will spoil one day. Why the modern church thus seeks to major in worldly things is beyond this writer! We are called to "LOVE NOT" the world or the things in it! God has not called us to isolation, but separation! THE WORLD IS PASSING AWAY

 

1 John 2:15-17
Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. [16] For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. [17] And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.
 

        On the sixth day of the week, the Israelites were permitted to gather enough for two day since they were forbidden to gather any manna on the Sabbath. Miraculously, the two days' supply of food gathered on the sixth day did not spoil. The Sabbath is a type of Christ, meaning that IN CHRIST we have REST from our labors and if we will but anchor our FAITH in HIM and what He has done for us at the CROSS - He will make sure our supply never runs out.

 

        Manna was such a key element in Israel's wilderness sojourn that Moses commanded Aaron to put a pot of it in the ARK OF THE COVENANT (Ex 16:32-34), so future generations might see the "bread of heaven" on which their ancestors had fed. The New Testament records that inside the holy of holies in the Temple, the ark of the covenant contained, among other things, "the golden pot that had the manna" (Heb 9:4).

 

Hebrews 9:4
Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron's rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant;

Exodus 16:32-34
And Moses said, This is the thing which the Lord commandeth, Fill an omer of it to be kept for your generations; that they may see the bread wherewith I have fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you forth from the land of Egypt. [33] And Moses said unto Aaron, Take a pot, and put an omer full of manna therein, and lay it up before the Lord, to be kept for your generations. [34] As the Lord commanded Moses, so Aaron laid it up before the Testimony, to be kept.
 

        Centuries later, the Living Bread from Heaven stood in Israel's midst and once again offered her the chance to partake of God's goodness through Him, which they ultimately and fatally rejected - once again through MURMURING and COMPLAINING.

 

John 6:47- 55  Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. [48] I am that bread of life. [49] Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. [50] This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. [51] I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. [52] The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat? [53] Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. [54] Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. [55] For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.

 

        When Christ proclaimed that eternal life could only be found by partaking of His life, which was pictured as the bread of Life, Israel murmured again generations later.

 

John 6:56-64
He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. [57] As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. [58] This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever. [59] These things said he in the synagogue, as he taught in Capernaum. [60] Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it? [61] When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this offend you?
 

        The spiritual lesson was that manna was the outward sign to the Jewish nation of God's providence and care for them in spite of their surroundings. Instead of Israel rejoicing and being grateful to God for both the physical bread of the manna and the spiritual bread through Christ, BOTH GENERATIONS  murmured and complained and in doing so perished because of unbelief and complaining!

 

        Wherever the believer finds himself, and no matter how difficult may seem the way at present, we MUST NOT COMPLAIN! WE MUST NOT MURMUR! We must not GRUMBLE and TEMPT the Lord! To do so presents a GROSS INSULT TO GOD, and for many and varied reasons. We should THANK THE LORD and do so DAILY, irrespective of the circumstances. If the "way," is hard, then we should try and learn the lesson which the Lord is trying to teach us and ask Him to deliver us! HE WILL! But if we from a heart of unbelief start to grumble and complain as Israel of old, our fate both as individuals, churches and even yes, America as a nation, will perish.

 

        Let's look at the source of murmuring, the results and the remedy for this sin that so many of us commit and need to deal with in our hearts and lives.

 

The Source: A Heart Of Unbelief

 

Hebrews 4:1-10  - Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. [2] For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. [3] For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. [4] For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works. [5] And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest. [6] Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief: [7] Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts. [8] For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. [9] There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. [10] For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. [11] Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.

 

Philip. 2:13-14 - For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. [14] Do all things without murmurings and disputings: [15] That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;
 

        The Holy Spirit said Israel failed because of unbelief, which in effect is the source of all murmuring and complaining even today.  When we murmur and dispute, complain and gripe, backbite and devour, we do so out of the same evil heart of unbelief Israel did with so long ago! We are basically indicating our faith does not rest in the Risen Christ, but in the superstitions and institutions of the world. Preachers, hear me. You who get behind pulpits and with squeaky, passive cowardly voices, and declare such foolishness that "miracles," are not for today or "tongues" don't belong in the church because "they passed away" or "of the devil," need to repent of your backslidden, dark, unbelieving HEART! Mark it down. A church with a murmuring pastor, will have a murmuring congregation! If the pastor's entire message collection is nothing more than book reports or "disputings," seeking to tear down someone else instead of lifting up Christ, then that congregation will also MURMUR and COMPLAIN!

 

Philip. 2:14
Do all things without murmurings and disputings:

 

        Our faith must REST in CHRIST. And the faith we place in Christ must not be just abstract faith in a theory, doctrine, or dead knowledge. It must be in the PERSON, CHRIST JESUS, and ultimately IN WHAT HE DID FOR US AT THE CROSS! Murmuring is an affront to God because it shows a lack of faith in that very thing. 

 

        Christ must be God or He is not the Christ! JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD. Hear that today. There is no other name under heaven whereby men must be saved and delivered except through CHRIST! Israel's discontent and her complaining were tempting of Christ i.e. the "Angel," of the covenant. Though they "drank of "that ROCK" and that Rock was CHRIST, they yet complained for want of water.

 

1 Cor. 10:1-4
Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; [2] And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; [3] And did all eat the same spiritual meat; [4] And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.

 

Exodus 17:2
Wherefore the people did chide with Moses, and said, Give us water that we may drink. And Moses said unto them, Why chide ye with me? wherefore do ye tempt the Lord?

Exodus 17:7
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord, saying, Is the Lord among us, or not?
 

        Though also eating the same spiritual meat (Christ, the TRUE MANNA, the BREAD OF LIFE), Israel yet MURMURED, declaring, "our soul loatheth this light bread."

As a result, God sent fiery serpents into the camp which bit the people and many "died." Neighbor, millions are dying today because of the same venom of sin.

 

Num 21:5-6 - And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread. And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.

 

         A bitter, complaining, murmuring, backbiting heart is a sign we have been bitten by the snakes! Mankind murmurs and complains today about his state when his state will never change by murmuring and complaining! Our state changes by LOOKING TO THE CROSS! When one complains, they are complaining out of a heart of unbelief!

 

Numbers 21:7-10
Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord, and against thee; pray unto the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people. [8] And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. [9] And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.  [10] And the children of Israel set forward, and pitched in Oboth.

 

        Murmuring and complaining is a SIN! Israel said, "we have sinned," and the remedy for this sin was looking upon the brazen serpent, a type of the cross of Christ.

 

John 3:14
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:

 

        Repentance and faith in the Cross of Christ will set you free today from the spirit of murmuring and complaining. When we look to the Cross, we have no reason to murmur! When we see what Jesus did for us there in securing eternal redemption, we only have reason to REJOICE and PRAISE God, not complain, grumble and backbite. Our happiness today is not found in the fact we have a high "self-esteem," or "positive," view of things. NO! Our rejoicing and glorying is IN CHRIST and what HE did for us. That alone should have us all shouting for joy at this moment.

 

John 8:56
Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad.

 

        Paul warned the Corinthians that they constant murmuring and complaining was provoking God's long-suffering by walking on the verge of idolatry and walking in a vain self-absorbed manner that placed greater confidence in their knowledge than it did in Christ! Self had become the new idol in Corinth and SELF is the new idol of the CHURCH world today! Self-righteousness goes deeper than just a smug attitude or a nose stuck high in the air. It is an utter affront to God and what He did at the Cross through Christ!

 

        We will pick this theme up in part two of this journal where we will look more deeply at the reasons and the results of a critical, murmuring spirit. Israel is our example as to what will happen if we don't repent of this grievous sin! We have no reason to be complaining today - we only have reason to praise! Look to Christ and see the blessing of the cross and what He did for you and I so long ago in which our faith rests, stands and REJOICES! We leave you the words of the Holy Spirit through Paul as we bring this first part to an end:

 

Philip. 4:4
Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.

 

Philip. 2:14
Do all things without murmurings and disputings:
 

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The Sin of Murmuring, (Sin in the Wilderness Part Two)

Can God Furnish A Table in the Wilderness?

The Table in the Wilderness Part Two

 

From the Archives:

Samuel's Voice To Israel

Israel and the Mountain of Darkness