Read today’s texts first: Numbers 12-13; Psalm 90; Mark 2
When you put God in front, He’s also got your back!!
Moses had mellowed over 80 years. Had Miriam challenged him when he was younger, things might have been different. At 40, Moses killed an Egyptian for mistreating a Hebrew “brother.” He was a gangster then, backing his boys in the hood. But 40 years of herding mangy sheep around the backside of the desert taught him about humility. What looked like misspent years uniquely prepared him for the demanding job of herding 2 million bleating Jews through another 40 years in the desert.
When Miriam questioned his authority, Moses apparently said nothing in his own defense. But God had his back: he is faithful in all My household; with him I speak mouth to mouth… why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant Moses? (12:7-8). If that wasn’t enough to make Miriam’s face turn white, the leprosy that followed sure did! Fortunately, Moses, with a compassion that only comes from working through his own rebellion, looks past Miriam’s insubordination and asks God for mercy. No doubt he remembered how his older sister had his back when he was just a baby in the bulrushes.
Joshua and Caleb had the same confidence God would have their back when the Israelites moved into the Promised Land (13:30). Even the giants that the other ten spies saw everywhere (it was really only the sons of Anak) were dwarfed in comparison to the God who covered their backside against Pharaoh. We see the same power in Jesus, who when questioned about His authority to forgive sins, healed the paralytic as proof (Mark 2:9-12).
“Lord, that is my desire: to know Your will and to do it, in my personal life and ministry. Thank You that no matter what giants lay in wait ahead of me, You are bigger, and You’ve got my back.”
No comments:
Post a Comment