Bible Lesson: Answered Prayer: Moses
Prays To See The Promised Land.
Subject Of Prayer: Moses Wished To
Enter The Holy Land.
Bible Text:
Deuteronomy 3:25 KJV
I pray thee, let me go over, and see
the good land that is beyond Jordan, that goodly mountain, and
Lebanon.
Deuteronomy 34:1-4 KJV
1 And Moses went up from the plains
of Moab unto the mountain of Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, that is over
against Jericho. And The Lord shewed him all the land of Gilead, unto
Dan,
2 And all Naphtali, and the land of
Ephraim, and Manasseh, and all the land of Judah, unto the utmost
sea,
3 And the south, and the plain of
the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees, unto Zoar.
4 And The Lord said unto him, This
is the land which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob,
saying, I will give it unto thy seed: I have caused thee to see it
with thine eyes, but thou shalt not go over thither. (Judgment.)
Did God answer
Moses' prayer? Yes.
God may answer our
prayers in one of three ways, yes, no, not at this time.
God's answer to
Moses' prayer was...No.
Why was that, what
had Moses done?
Numbers 20:1-13
NLT
1 In the first month of the year,
the whole community of Israel arrived in the wilderness of Zin and
camped at Kadesh. While they were there, Miriam died and was buried.
2 There was no water for the people
to drink at that place, so they rebelled against Moses and Aaron.
3 The people blamed Moses and said,
“If only we had died in The Lord’s presence with our brothers!
4 Why have you brought the
congregation of The Lord’s people into this wilderness to die,
along with all our livestock?
5 Why did you make us leave Egypt
and bring us here to this terrible place? This land has no grain, no
figs, no grapes, no pomegranates, and no water to drink!”
6 Moses and Aaron turned away from
the people and went to the entrance of the Tabernacle, where they
fell face down on the ground. Then the glorious presence of The Lord
appeared to them,
7 and The Lord said to Moses,
8 “You and Aaron must take the
staff and assemble the entire community. As the people watch, speak
to The Rock over there, and it will pour out its
water. You will provide enough water from The Rock to
satisfy the whole community and their livestock.”
9 So Moses did as he was told. He
took the staff from the place where it was kept before The Lord.
10 Then he and Aaron summoned the
people to come and gather at The Rock. “Listen, you rebels!” he
shouted. “Must we (Moses and Aaron) bring
you water from this Rock?”
11 Then Moses raised his hand and
struck The Rock twice with the staff, and water
gushed out. So the entire community and their livestock drank
their fill.
12 But The Lord said to Moses and
Aaron, “Because you did not trust Me enough to demonstrate My
holiness to the people of Israel, you will not lead them into
the land I am giving them!”
13 This place was known as the
waters of Meribah (which means “arguing”) because there the
people of Israel argued with The Lord, and there He demonstrated His
holiness among them.
1) Moses and Aaron,
did not properly give The Lord, credit for the miracle.
2) The Rock, was a
Biblical type of The Lord Jesus, and He would “not,” be struck
twice!
The Lord, The
Rock:
Psalm 61:2 KJV
From the end of
the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me
to The Rock that is higher than I.
Psalm 62:7 KJV
In God is my
salvation and my glory: The Rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in
God.
Psalm 78:16 KJV
He brought
streams also out of The Rock, and caused waters to run down like
rivers.
Psalm 78:20 KJV
Behold,
He smote The Rock, that the waters gushed out, and the streams
overflowed; can He give bread also? can He provide flesh for His
people?
Psalm 81:16 KJV
He should have
fed them also with the finest of the wheat: and with honey out of The
Rock should I have satisfied thee.
Psalm 89:26 KJV
He shall cry
unto Me, Thou art my Father, my God, and The Rock of my Salvation.
Psalm 94:22 KJV
But The Lord is
my Defense; and my God is The Rock of my Refuge.
Psalm 95:1 KJV
O come, let us
sing unto The Lord: let us make a joyful noise to The Rock of our
Salvation.
Psalm 105:41 KJV
He opened The
Rock, and the waters gushed out; they ran in the dry places like a
river.
Psalm 114:8 KJV
Which turned
The Rock into a standing water, the flint into a fountain of waters.
Moses and Aaron had not brought glory to The Lord, but to themselves,
and they would face the judgment.
Isaiah 3:10,11
KJV
10 Say ye to the righteous, that it
shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.
11 Woe unto the wicked! it shall be
ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him.
Galatians 6:7
KJV
Be not deceived; God is not mocked:
for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
Homily:
A man may very well hammer a nail int a wall to hang a painting, ah,
but then think to himself, no that is not where I want it at all. So
out comes the nail, only to be hammered into the wall at a right
location for the painting.
The man pulled the nail out to use it again, but there was something
he did not do! He did not pull out the hole from the wall, for that
remained.
Yes, how wonderful, our Lord forgives sins!
I John 1:9 KJV
If we confess
our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to
cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
But there is one thing not said here, obvious by its absence.
Absent, is the result of evil seed planted.
If a man murders someone, yes God can forgive a truly repentant
individual, but he will still face the court with its sentence!
Did God love Moses, absolutely, but that did not mean he was above
correction? No.
And our God shows correction and judgment, to help us, so that we do
not go on and on making bad choices.
Hebrews 12:5-14
KJV
5 And ye have
forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children,
My son, despise not thou the chastening of The Lord, nor faint when
thou art rebuked of Him:
6 For whom The
Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth.
7 If ye endure
chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he
whom the father chasteneth not?
8 But if ye be
without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye
bastards, and not sons.
9 Furthermore
we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them
reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto The Father
Of Spirits, and live?
10 For they
verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but He
for our profit, that we might be partakers of His holiness.
11 Now no
chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous:
nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of
righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.
12 Wherefore
lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees;
13 And make
straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out
of the way; but let it rather be healed.
14 Follow
peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see The
Lord:
Our God, hears the prayers of all His people, but how wonderful, if
the one praying is living a life of holiness that brings praise and
honor to The Living God.
