Moses & Aaron: The Leaders Punished

​We are currently, on Tuesday mornings, looking at seven different characters from God's Word. We've looked at ​Abraham: God’s Powerful Promise to a Patriarch, ​​Joseph: He Obeyed Quickly & Completely and Moses: Lifting the Hands of God’s Man. Today, we're looking at ​Moses again but also Aaron​.

These characters are also featured in (Part Three: Days 21-27 Men of God Character Study) our Come and Gather: Family Time With God 27-day devotional. Or, what we lovingly refer to as Gather.

Today's theme is responsibility and our text is from ​Numbers 20:1-13 and 1 Timothy 2:1-2.

​"And the people of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Kadesh. And Miriam died there and was buried there.

"Now there was no water for the congregation. And they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron. And the people quarreled with Moses and said, "Would that we had perished when our brothers perished before the Lord! Why have you brought the assembly of the Lord into this wilderness, that we should die here, both we and our cattle? And why have you made us come up out of Egypt to bring us to this evil place? It is no place for grain or figs or vines or pomegranates, and there is no water to drink.'

Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance of the tent of meeting and fell on their faces. And the glory of the Lord appeared to them, and the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 'Take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water. So you shall bring water out of the rock for them and give drink to the congregation and their cattle.' And Moses took the staff from before the Lord, as He commanded him.

Then Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he said to them, 'Hear now, you rebels: shall we bring water for you out of this rock?' And Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his staff twice, and water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their livestock. And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 'Because you did not believe in Me, to uphold Me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.' These are the waters of Meribah, where the people of Israel quarreled with the Lord, and through them He showed Himself holy." Numbers 20:1-13

"First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way." 1 Timothy 2:1-2

Webster defines responsibility as “condition, quality, fact, or instance of being responsible; obligation, accountability, dependability, etc.” One of the primary character traits the Lord is looking for in Christians, along with faithfulness, is responsibility. In fact, it is difficult, if not impossible to be faithful apart from being responsible. Unfortunately, society has downplayed the importance of personal responsibility and parents have ascribed to the notion that their children are victims of other’s acts instead of perpetrators of their own sins. Scripture is full of accounts of people who chose to disobey and were punished accordingly. We can learn valuable lessons from these examples.

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No one would contest the fact that the children of Israel were an unruly, ungrateful, grumbling group of people. One can only imagine what it would have been like to be their leader. ​

Moses was saddled with the responsibility of leading the Israelites through the wilderness to the Promised Land and having to listen to their complaints all the way. Numbers 20:1-13 records another in a long list of episodes where the people of God were complaining to Moses. Moses had a heart for the people as is evidenced by the fact that in verse six he is found on his face before the Lord seeking provision and leadership from God.

God did indeed give direction and Moses was told to take the rod (the rod of the Lord) and lead the people to the rock and SPEAK to the rock and it would bring forth water. One does not have to possess a vivid imagination to understand what was probably happening as Moses and Aaron led the people to the rock. There was probably a fair amount of grumbling being heard all the way. In his frustration, Moses lifts the rod of God and STRIKES the rock, twice. What follows is a demonstration of God’s mercy as well as His judgment.

Cool, sweet, refreshing water did indeed flow from the rock and the need was met, however Moses and Aaron were given the ultimate punishment as a result of their disobedience. For forty years they led the people through the wilderness and up to the edge of the Promised Land, but Moses and Aaron were prohibited from entering the land.

Pastors, teachers, parents, husbands, fathers are all examples of people God has placed in authority. Let us never forget that with privilege comes responsibility, and should there be a failure, there should also be a punishment.

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"...with privilege comes responsibility..." That is so true! Responsibility is a character trait we need to build into the lives of our children and also exhibit in our own lives. What methods have you found to build and exhibit the character trait of responsibility?

Come and Gather: Family Time With God published with permission
​Pastor Jeremy Sweatt, Farmington Avenue Baptist Church, West Hartford, Connecticut