Study 67

Text: Numbers 21:4-9

THE COMPLAINING SPIRIT OF UNBELIEF

The 40 year sojourn in the wilderness was a trying time for everyone. From time to time, the children of Israel would lapse into feeling sorry for themselves. Whenever that happened they would forget themselves and they would complain bitterly. One such incident was recorded in the following text.

"Then they journeyed from Mount Hor
by the Way of the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom;
And the soul of the people became very discouraged on the way.
And the people spoke against God and against Moses:
'Why have you brought us up out of Egypt
to die in the wilderness?
For there is no food and no water,
And our soul loathes this worthless bread.'"
Numbers 21:4-5

The children of Israel should have known better than to gripe and complain in this manner. They had been disciplined by the Lord for displaying this wicked tendency to murmur (Cf. Exodus 15, 16). The nature of their complaint this time round was even worse than before.

1. Complaining in the Usual manner.

a) Complaining against the Lord

b) Complaining against Moses

Nothing new here. This was something that the children of Israel had been doing all along! They had never repented of this evil!

2. Complaining about why they were in the wilderness.

They had conveniently forgotten that it was their fault that they were wandering in the wilderness. Had they exercised faith in the first place, they would have been in the Promised Land already.

3. Complaining about why they had left Egypt in the first place.

Nobody was forced to leave Egypt. All who left Egypt exercised their free will. They could have chosen to stay in Egypt or strike out for the Promised Land. Thus this complaint was totally invalid.

4. Complaining about the problem of "food and water."

There was high exaggeration here. They complained as if they were starving. God provided both food and water for everyone. No one could lodge a valid complaint concerning God's provisions.

5. Complaining about the Manna that God had given them every day! It was dismissed as "worthless food."

The children of Israel had taken for granted the Manna which God had provided. To partake of Manna every day was to see a new miracle every morning! Yet, before too long the complaining spirit prevailed.

THE CHASTENING 0F THE LORD

As a Father who tirelessly chastens his errant children, so God had to mete out discipline to the children of Israel. How the heart of God must have longed for Israel to trust Him, but that was not forthcoming!

"So the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people,
and they bit the people; and many of the people died."
Numbers 21:6

The wilderness was the natural habitat of many snakes. Some of the snake bites caused fiery inflammation. Thus they were called "fiery serpents." Little did the children of Israel appreciate that the pillar of fire that surrounded their encampment protected them from snakes that could have come into their campsite! All God needed to do was to allow the snakes to come into their encampment and many would die painful deaths from poisonous snakes.

CONFESSION OF WRONG

Only when pain was so severe, and only when death struck did the children of Israel confess their wrongdoing.

"Therefore the people came to Moses and said,
'We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord,
and against you;
Pray to the Lord that He may take away the serpents from us.'"
Numbers 21:7

How sad Moses must have felt as he looked at the faces of these foolish people! Why did they take so long to come to their senses?

INTERCESSION NEEDED

Moses was all alone now. Once before, he could have asked Aaron to intercede on behalf of the people (Cf. Numbers 16:46-50). This time round Moses found himself taking on the vital role of intercession all by himself.

"So Moses prayed for the people."
Numbers 21:7f

A SWIFT ANSWER FROM GOD

God swiftly replied to the prayers of Moses. Instruction was given to make a bronze serpent. The aim was clear. God wanted the erring children of Israel to exercise their faith! They must look up at the bronze serpent and believe that God would forgive and would also heal them! If they refused to do their part, then they would perish from the snakebites!

CONCLUDING THE STUDY OF THE INTERCESSORY MINISTRY OF MOSES

The rest of the book of Numbers recorded in brief the forty years sojourn of the children of Israel in the wilderness. The incident of the intercessory ministry of prayer for the children of Israel was the last formal record of Moses' work of praying for them.

Many are the lessons that we can and must learn about what it means to develop a significant intercessory-prayer ministry. The following things may be highlighted as we attempt a quick summary of the successful prayer ministry of Moses.

These are the things, among others, that are needed if we were to succeed in developing a significant intercessory-prayer ministry.

1. A deep knowledge of God

2. An intimate relationship with God

3. A truly compassionate heart for people

4. A dynamic faith

5. A consistent life of prayer must be established first

6. A strong stamina to seek God in persevering prayer

7. A sensitive spirit that is alert to both the needs of people, and the prompting of God

May God raise up great intercessors! How few there are! How badly we need them!

~ Pastor Charlie Tan ~

Released 23rd March 2003, © Bethany Independent-Presbyterian Church, Singapore