They made his spirit bitter
They angered him at the waters of Meribah, and it went ill with Moses on their account, for they made his spirit bitter, and he spoke rashly with his lips.
Psa 106:32-33
Today while I was reading, I got the answer which I was seeking for a long time. We all know about how Moses disobeyed God and about the penalty he had to pay was losing entry into the land of Canaan. I used to wonder why such a great man with whom the Lord was conversing like a friend, could disobey God. Today I came to know the reason.
“It went ill with Moses on their account, for they made his spirit bitter.
It is because the people made his spirit bitter.
He expressed it in his dealings with God. And got the punishment.
There was no enquiry, trial regarding why Moses acted like it etc. The verdict came immediately.
If there were a trial, Moses would have been spared of the punishment because his lawyer would have brought all the good things he did for God, all the sacrifices he underwent to liberate the people of Israel from the captivity of Egypt etc. And certainly he would have been acquitted. But things did not turn in his favour.
He provoked the Lord and got a permanent punishment. We see Moses repenting and pleading with the Lord many times after this. But the verdict of the Lord was unchangeable. Rather the Lord asked him to stop talking about it.
“But the LORD was angry with me ……And the LORD said to me, ‘Enough from you; do not speak to me of this matter again”.
Deu 3:26
Dear readers, Christianity is nothing but a relationship with God and people.. From the beginning of the world, people had various ideas about God and that is why God sent His Son Jesus Christ among us to show us the Father and His love towards us.
We all know about our worldly fathers, his temperament, his likes and dislikes, when he will get provoked, how he can be provoked etc. And you would be careful not to provoke him so that you will be in his good books. It is our duty to know more and more about our Heavenly Father. How He can be provoked, once provoked how long He remains angry etc.
You may be a righteous servant of God doing good ministry, never provoking Him. But our enemy will become jealous of you and this and in order to disturb your good relationship with God, he will bring temptations through people who are around you, rather those who are very close to you. It can happen with your own family members, own kith and kin, own husband, wife or own children. If and when such things happen we should have the wisdom to discern
- Where this has come from – Either from our corrupt nature or from the enemy
- For what purpose – to disturb our relationship with God
- What I should do – Never give in for negative feelings like bitterness, disappointment, quitting, mistrust, disbelief, coming to wrong conclusions etc.
- How to keep yourself unaffected – By surrendering this situation to God and remaining serene. He will deal with it. (Ps 55:22, Phil 4:6-7)
- Result if you fail to do so – Losing peace, balance of mind, allowing your disturbed mind react with everybody whom you deal with and bring discomfort and confusion everywhere..
We see No. 5 happened in Moses in his dealing with God.
Christian life makes a person mature enough to have a balanced relationship with both God and the people whom you deal with in your daily life. But disaster may come to you if you do not have a balanced relationship with people around you. Never allow anyone to disturb your mental peace. They may provoke you to any extent, but your closeness with God will make you mature enough to deal with everyone peacefully.
Testimony
I am learning this slowly and steadily every day. In the past 70 years of my life, I have 1000s of incidents where I have provoked my Father. But He has been patient with me. Thank you Lord for teaching me this lesson everyday little by little. Make me still more patient, amicable, adjustable, never getting provoked by others and enemies so that I can approach you always with an obedient listening heart..
Sr. Angelica AOJ.