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Issue link: http://magazine.kcm.org/i/1534102
(Numbers 20:4-5, New King James Version). The last time, when Moses had struck a rock at God's command, enough water had gushed out of it to meet the need of the entire nation. This time, however, when Moses cried out for instructions, God said something a little di erent: "'Take the rod; you and your brother Aaron gather the congregation together. Speak to the rock before their eyes, and it will yield its water; thus you shall bring water for them out of the rock, and give drink to the congregation and their animals'" (verse 8, NKJV). Although God altered the strategy slightly in this case, His directions were still clear and simple. Moses should have had no trouble following them. But there was one problem. Moses was angry. He probably wasn't paying close attention. He had run out of patience with this unruly bunch of people. He was tired of being blamed for everything that went wrong and tired of all their bellyaching and unbelief. So he gathered the assembly together and said, "'Hear now, you rebels! Must we bring water for you out of this rock?' Then Moses lifted his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their animals drank" (verses 10-11, NKJV). Stopping Short of the Promised Land If the story stopped there, it would appear that everything turned out all right. Even though Moses disobeyed God's instructions and struck the rock twice instead of speaking to it, water still came forth and the Israelites were satisfi ed. But the account doesn't end there. The next verse tells us the Lord spoke to Moses and said, "'Because you did not believe Me, to hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them'" (verse 12, NKJV). It's important for us to notice that God didn't say anything to Moses about that when He fi rst told him what to do. He didn't say, "Now Moses, I want you to speak to the rock, and you'd better do it because if you don't, you'll miss your fi nal destination. You'll never get to go into the Promised Land." I don't think Moses had any idea how much of his future rested on that one simple step of obedience. He probably wasn't even thinking about what might happen if he ignored the leading of the Lord in that situation. Most likely, he was just thinking about how fed up he was with that rebellious group of people he'd been stuck with for so many years. Maybe he had the same attitude Christians sometimes have today: "I'll just yield to my fl esh now and repent later. This one little sin won't make much di erence in the long run." But it did make a di erence—not only to Moses but to his brother, Aaron, as well. It disconnected both of them from a part of God's Master Plan. Aaron was the fi rst to experience the consequences. Shortly after the incident at Meribah: And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron in Mount Hor by the border of the land of Edom, saying: "Aaron shall be gathered to his people, for he shall not enter the land which I have given to the children of Israel, because you rebelled against My word at the water of Meribah. Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up to Mount Hor; and strip Aaron of his garments and put them on Eleazar his son; for Aaron shall be gathered to his people and die there" (Numbers 20:23-26, NKJV). Moses lived on a while longer, but eventually, he too experienced the cost of his own disobedience. When the Israelites' 40-year wilderness trek was over and they were about to enter the Promised Land, Moses died. Instead of letting him go into that land, the Lord said to him: Get up into this mountain of the Abarim, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, opposite Jericho, and look at the land of Canaan which I give to the Israelites for a possession. And die on the mountain which you ascend and be gathered to your people, as Aaron your brother 2 0 : B V O V Kenneth Copeland Greg Stephens Watch the Spanish broadcast on Enlace or es.kcm.org WATCH ON Broadcasts subject to change without notice Daily broadcast: Mon. - Fri. 3 a.m. | 7 a.m. 11 a.m. | 7:30 p.m. | 10:30 p.m. Weekly broadcast: Sun. 6 a.m. | 1 p.m. | 8 p.m. also Mon. 4:30 p.m. | Sat. 7:30 a.m. | 8:30 p.m. ET C H A N N E L WATCH ON WATCH ON Daily broadcast: Mon. - Fri. 3 a.m. | 7 a.m. C H A N N E L MAY BVOV BROADCAST CALENDAR Sun., March 2 Resist Fear by Developing Faith In God's Love Kenneth Copeland March 3-7 God's Blood Covenant With You Kenneth Copeland Sun., March 9 Build Your Faith In God's WORD To Stop Fear Kenneth Copeland March 10-14 Walking by Faith and Not Sight Kenneth Copeland Sun., March 16 Live Fear Free by Staying Connected to God's Love Kenneth Copeland March 17-21 Let God's Love Take Over Kenneth Copeland Sun., March 23 The Revelation of God's Love Creates a Fearless Life Kenneth Copeland March 24-28 Fully Persuaded Faith Kenneth Copeland Sun., March 30 Live Fear Free by Casting Your Cares on God Kenneth Copeland