The Lord who is Patient

I wonder can you think of a time when you have had to learn a painful lesson. I observed a painful lesson this week – ignore the new sign saying that you're car will be clamped if you park here and surprise, surprise your car will be clamped and you'll be out of pocket.

Painful though a fine may be, it's perhaps not the most painful type of lesson. Often the most painful lessons to learn are the ones which expose what we're really like.Israelis learning a lesson here in the dessert that appears to be painful but behind it is the loving discipline and grace of God who is determined to teach the Israelites to rely on his grace.

Big Idea: God tests the Israelites to teach them to rely on his grace.

1. Do not put the LORD your God to the test, v1-3

2. Instead trust in God's abundant grace, v4-7

1. Do not put the LORD your God to the test, v1-3

The Israelites suffering is real but their demands on God are unjustified.

a) The Israelites suffering is real...

1 The whole Israelite community set out from the Desert of Sin, travelling from place to place as the LORD commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink.

This is real and significant suffering; 'but there was no water for the people to drink' we shouldn't make light of this fact, we do Israel an injustice when we do - having no water in a desert is serious, their whole lives depended upon it.

Making light of Israel's suffering also gives us the opportunity to distance ourselves from their experience, to write the Israelites off as foolish and disobedient. Our reading from 1 Corinthians 10 teaches happened to them as examples and warnings to us, we can't just write them off as foolish and disobedient, we're foolish and disobedient, that's the point.

This is for us, particularly when we tempted to say withIsraelin v7; 'Is the LORD among us or not?' is God really with me any more?

The second thing to notice is that this wasn't an accident, it happened for our benefit and also to teach Israel something of God's grace. Notice even in v1 it says that they were; travelling from place to place as the LORD commanded. Israel's suffering is real but it isn't pointless. The greater purpose here is to teach Israel. To as Deuteronomy 8.2 talks about these various testing in the desert;

'...humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.'

This the last stop for Israel before they reach Mount Sinai and are given the Ten Commandments, God is now getting them ready to receive it, to take hold of this next stage of becoming God's people, a people who would worship him in all of their lives.

b)...but their demands on God are unjustified

Israel hasn't yet understood the lesson that God is teaching them and so their response to suffering is inappropriate. Their misunderstanding is reflected in the way that they respond to this testing. Look at verses 2-3:

2 So they quarrelled with Moses and said, Give us water to drink. Moses replied, Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you put the LORD to the test? 3 But the people were thirsty for water there, and they grumbled against Moses. They said, Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?

Israel's response to testing is to quarrel with Moses, to demand that he provide them with water. Moses warns them, they are not just quarrelling with Moses, they are doubting God's provision for them, putting him to the test. Israel's worship of God is conditional: as long as God gives us x, y and z when we expect it then we will follow him.

Application - Is our worship of God conditional? What happens when we are tested? When we don't have the job/relationship/family that we wanted, or a job/relationship/family at all. Do we assume that God is not in control, or that he is not truly good?

Or do we look at verses like James 1.2:

2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.

God disciplines as a father disciplines a child but perfectly. Does that make suffering less painful, times of testing less difficult? Yes, knowing that there is good purpose even in painful circumstances helps, it doesn't remove difficulties but it does help us cope.

Israel isn't there yet and so in verse 3 they 'grumble' ref v4 Moses isn't exaggerating they are ready to stone him, accusing him ridiculously of bringing them into the desert to die. What will Moses do know he is being tested?

2. Instead trust in God's abundant grace, v4-7

Moses responds to testing by crying out to God. God responds with a public demonstration of grace.

a) Moses responds to testing by crying out to God

4 Then Moses cried out to the LORD, What am I to do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me.

Israel has yet again forgotten God's faithful provision for them. They take it out on Moses, even threatening to stone him to death. How does Moses respond? Does he remind Israel of their past mistakes or moan in private to Aaron? No Moses cries out to God, it's a desperate cry the same word used to describe Israel's suffering under the Egyptians in fact.

Moses responds to suffering appropriately, not with false optimism or denial. No, he says in his prayer in black and white; 'They are almost ready to stone me' Moses responds in prayer, in desperate trust in the God he knows to be faithful.

App - When was the last time you prayed like Moses? When the first thing that crossed your mind was to go to God to cry to him?

Moses brings his petitions before God and God hears him and responds with a very public demonstration of his grace.

b) God responds with a public demonstration of grace

5 The LORD answered Moses, Walk on ahead of the people. Take with you some of the elders of Israel and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. 6 I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink. So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel.

God offers relief to the Israelites immediately, he's going to miraculously provide water from a rock. This is very different from the way God relates to the Israelites later in Exodus and throughout the Old Testament; the later pattern goes something like this:

Testing - grumbling - judgement/repentance - intercession/relief.

Here there is no judgement/repentance stage, Moses goes to God and he responds immediately by providing spectacularly for the Israelites needs. Why is God acting like, if you'll excuse the pun, a tap which can be turned on off? Isn't this far too easy?

Notice the way in which God sets things up before he provides this water from the rock. God tells Moses in v5:

(i)         To take the elders with him - this is to be a public lesson. (ii)        To take the staff which Moses struck the Nile with - this is part of God's plan since Egypt.

God is teaching Israel about his grace, he is the same God now as the one who rescued them from Egypt; he wants all of Israel to remember this, now at this last stop before Israel reaches Mt Sinai where they will be given the Ten Commandments. In fact the commandments begin with this same lesson again, Exodus 20.2:

2I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

God wants the Israelites to understand and trust in his grace towards them. Before the law is given, God reminds them that it is not what saves them. God has already saved them; he has already brought them out of Egypt, crossed the Red Sea, defeated the Egyptian army and provided for them miraculously in the desert. God's salvation is one of grace; it is not based on the Israelites obedience and a good job too! God provides water abundantly not because of Israel's worthiness, God's loves them despite their unfaithfulness because of his abundant grace.

He is our God too, look what Paul says about this event in 1 Corinthians 10.1-4:

1 For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. 2 They were all baptised into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. 3 They all ate the same spiritual food 4 and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.

Paul says that this rock which Moses strikes to provide water for Israel is Jesus. Jesus our Saviour who was struck and from whom flowed the blood which provides salvation for us. This gigantic life lesson which God is teaching Israel: rely on my grace; trust in it even when things look bad is the lesson for us. The Israelites are told again and again; 'I am the LORD your God who brought you up out of Egypt' and we are reminded this evening as we celebrate communion together; I am the LORD your God who sent my Son to be struck, to die for you so that my grace would pour out on you abundantly.

c) Moses' Assessment of Israel

Our passage finishes with Moses a spiritual assessment of Israel in v7:

7 And he (Moses) called the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites quarrelled and because they tested the LORD saying, Is the LORD among us or not?

Moses renames Rephidim, the place where Israel had camped; Massah and Meribah, which literally mean 'testing' and 'quarrelling'.  This place would stand as a monument, as a reminder of the time when the Israelites questioned; "Is the Lord among us or not"

Remembering is an important biblical paradigm. Israel is reminded in Deuteronomy 6 not to test the Lord as they did at Massah and Jesus himself quotes this incident as he rebuts Satan's testing in Matthew 4.

Tonight we remember, we remember God's grace to us in Christ, we remember him the rock who was struck to provide life for us. We have another opportunity to trust in God's grace, to lay down our lives before him and say that our worship is not conditional - he has already given us everything. We say you are the Lord who rescued us, not from Egypt but from hell and so we trust you with our lives even when they are difficult, even when filled with testing we choose to rely upon his grace.

Let's pray.