Scripture reading: Psalm 95.

Sermon text: Exodus 17:1-7.

Nothing proves God’s goodness and grace like the memories of His work in our lives.

Unfortunately, nothing proves our own faults and faithlessness like our tendency to forget His work.

To better understand the incident in today’s sermon passage, let’s briefly revisit God’s mighty acts in the previous chapters of Exodus:

1. •Chapter 12: God freed the nation of Israel from slavery and sent them out from Egypt.
   

2. •Chapter 13: God sent a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night as a physical representation of His presence with Israel during their journey from Egypt.
   

3. •Chapter 14: God parted the Red Sea and allowed the Hebrews to cross a seabed on dry ground. God then drowned the Egyptian army that pursued the Hebrews in the crossing.
   

4. •Chapter 15: God purified a bitter spring of water so the people could drink the water.
   

5. •Chapter 16: God provided quail enough to feed the entire nation of Israel and then provided a daily supply of “manna” to feed the nation until they entered the Promised Land (Joshua 5:11).
   

6. •Chapter 17: Crisis.
   

In today’s sermon passage, the people of Israel had arrived at a point in the wilderness where they found no water. Scientists tell us that although a human can exist without food as long as 8 weeks, as long as the person remains sufficiently hydrated. Did you catch the caveat? Scientists also say that a person can live only 3 to 5 days without water. A community without food may survive the experience, but a community without water will disappear within a week.

We also need to recall that the Hebrews, recently freed from slavery in Egypt, left a land where a lack of water rarely became a problem. Egypt may exist in a dry climate — the area where the Hebrews lived received less than 10 inches of rain a year — but the Nile River provided enough water during its annual flooding to supply the nation for an entire year. Only rarely in Egypt’s history did the Nile fail to flood the land, replenishing the soil and filling the extensive water retention systems the Egyptians (and Hebrews) had built over the centuries. The Hebrews may have lacked freedom in Egypt, but they almost never worried about water.

The opening words of Exodus 17 tell us that the nation moved “according to the commandment of the LORD.” Remember the pillars of cloud and fire from the list above? Israel never lacked for guidance in their journey. God always took them exactly where they needed to go.

This physical manifestation of God’s presence should have comforted the Hebrews and assured them of God’s protection and provision. Remember that God had already demonstrated His power for them on numerous occasions. Remember that God had already proved His love for Israel through His preservation of the nation during 430 years of life in Egypt.

Yet, it seems that all the mighty works of God evaporated from the Hebrews’ minds when faced with the lack of water. The people God had delivered from one of ancient history’s greatest superpowers, a nation that could look in the sky and see His sign of guidance, now doubted He could provide water to preserve them in the desert.

The wording of verse 2 makes clear that the “quarreling” with Moses had surpassed the normal grumbling that may people may have muttered in the situation. The Hebrew word for “quarreled” refers to a legal dispute as much as to contention. It would seem that the Hebrews intended to put Moses on trial, with his life in the balance, for leading them to this place!

Moses then provided the people with an example of the true way to handle the lack of water. Instead of grumbling about the issue or seeking someone to blame, Moses called on God. “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.” This may not seem like the most “holy” prayer you’ve ever read, but I suspect many of us have prayed something similar at times in our lives. Although I can appreciate a solemn, stately, eloquent prayer, I’ve experienced enough crises in my life to know that solemnity, stateliness, and eloquence will quickly fly out the window when life crashes around us.

Moses cried to the LORD, and the LORD responded. “Pass on before the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel, and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb, and you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, and the people will drink.” God had already worked in Moses’ life and the life of Israel, and He would now do so again.

First, God told Moses to “pass on” in front of the nation. This act would prove to Israel that Moses would not crumple in the crisis. He had called on God, and now God would honor Moses in front of the people.

God also told Moses to take the “elders of Israel” with him. The presence of their leaders with Moses would remind the people that Moses served as their nation’s head and that God had ordained him for this position. The elders would also receive a reminder that they owed their loyalty to Moses and to God Himself.

God then promised Moses that He would “stand before” him at the rock Moses would strike with the rod to provide water. The people, by arguing with Moses, also argued with God, practically accusing Him of abandoning them in the wilderness. Now, God would remind the people of His presence. Scripture doesn’t indicate whether God appeared in a theophany or whether the pillar of cloud hovered over the rock. Regardless, the people would clearly recognize God’s presence with Moses when the water appeared.

The result? “Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel.” The people saw Moses strike the rock with his rod, and they saw water gush from the rock, enough to supply the entire nation. Moses then named the place “Massah” (“to prove” or “to test”) and “Maribah” (“to strive” or “to contend”) to remind the people that God had proved His power to overcome any test they threw at Him.

This passage speaks to us today in many ways that should encourage us spiritually.

Like the Hebrews, we have received deliverance from slavery ourselves. Jesus, the Son of God, came to earth to live among humanity and experience our desires, temptations, and joys. Jesus came to earth and witnessed the results of our slavery to sin. He then experienced the ultimate result of our fall into sin: Death itself, on the cross at Calvary. Then, 3 days later, Jesus rose again, paving the way for our own victory over sin and death. Like Moses leading the people of Israel from Egypt, Jesus has led us through sin and death. Unlike Moses, Jesus doesn’t lead us to a “promised land;” He begins leading us into an eternity that dwarfs anything we’ll leave behind.

The testing at Massah and Maribah proved a key point in Israel’s history. Later Jewish rabbis would teach that the rock of Massah followed the Hebrews through the wilderness, providing water whenever the people needed it. St. Paul referred to this teaching in 1 Corinthians 10:4, where he wrote of the Hebrews, “they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ.” On one occasion in His lifetime, Jesus referred to Himself as “living water” (John 4:10).

When we confess Jesus as Lord of our lives, believing in His resurrection, He sends the Holy Spirit to live within us.  The Holy Spirit gives us an advantage over the Hebrews, who experienced a physical manifestation of God’s presence. You may think you’d like to see something physical to guide you, but the Hebrews can give us all the proof we need that the physical presence of God doesn’t guarantee our obedience to His commands or that we’ll constantly live in His will. If you think so, read what the Hebrews did while Moses received the Law on top of Mt. Sinai. While the mountaintop remained shrouded in cloud and fire, the Hebrews committed idolatry at its base.

Since we have God’s presence within us, we know that God leads us in life. The eternal life doesn’t begin with at death; it begins with our spiritual birth. Believers in Christ should live in a way that leads other people to the Rock — Jesus Himself — where we received our own redemption. We don’t have to test God to see if He’s there when we need Him because we know God lives within us. As we grow in our Christian faith, we come to realize we can trust God to provide for us and protect us. We come to realize we can pray to God instead of accusing someone else as the Hebrews accused Moses of leading them to distress.

I know that people face the temptation of wondering whether God cares for us. At times in my life, I’ve faced that temptation myself. When you face times like this, I encourage you to believe all the strongly in God; trust Him even more.

Like Moses, I’ve often tossed the “Sunday morning worship” prayers out the door and cried out to God for help. I’ll confess that I’ve felt at times as if God has abandoned me. In those times, I realize my feelings do not determine my salvation. Scripture assures me that God does not forget us. In those times, I realize God has begun the process of strengthening my faith and preparing to take me to a new level in my relationship with Him.

Do you wonder whether God has left you? Do you wonder if God still cares for you? Look to the Rock of your salvation; look to the cross of Jesus to see the depths of God’s love for you, and look to the empty tomb to see the strength of God’s power. Then, rest in His love, knowing that Jesus, our Rock, has assured us of an eternity beyond our greatest hopes.