School of Faith 101

School of Faith 101
Words of Faith 11-30-2022
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2022
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
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Exodus 17
The whole Israelite community set out from the Desert of Sin, traveling from place to place as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. [2] So they quarreled with Moses and said, "Give us water to drink."
Moses replied, "Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you put the Lord to the test?"
[3] But the people were thirsty for water there, and they grumbled against Moses. They said, "Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?"
[4] Then Moses cried out to the Lord, "What am I to do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me."
[5] The Lord answered Moses, "Walk on ahead of the people. Take with you some of the elders of Israel and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. [6] I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink." So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel. [7] And he called the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites quarreled and because they tested the Lord saying, "Is the Lord among us or not?"

The journey through the desert was a School of Faith for the people of Israel. The Israelites were learning to trust in the Lord, who had delivered them out of captivity. This was no quick process.
The people had grumbled or murmured about the lack of water only a few days into the journey. The word used there was "luwn" which means to stop or "camp out" on an issue obstinately.
The people murmured again regarding diminishing food supplies. In each case, the Lord responded. Moses sweetened the water at Marah and then led the group to an oasis at Elim. Then the Lord provided manna daily for the crowd.
But now, there was trouble again. A different Hebrew word is used here. Rather than the more passive "murmuring" behind his back, the people began to quarrel with Moses. The Hebrew word is "ruwb" meaning to toss or grapple. They rebuked him and "held a controversy" against Moses. They wrangled with Moses, questioning whether the Lord was still among them or not.
It is interesting that rather than learning to trust the Lord more, the people so far were learning only to contend with Moses more actively! Moses feared for his life as the people were apparently ready to stone him. He was growing increasingly frustrated as well.
So the Lord gave some very specific instructions. Moses was to walk out ahead of the people and strike a rock at Horeb. Then the water would come forth for the people to drink. The point in these lessons is never independence but obedience. The instructions given here were precise. The directive was for this one occasion. The remedy was not designed to be portable. The lessons of faith were not over.
In applying this Scripture to our lives, we might think about how we grow in our faith relationship with the Lord. Many suggest that the Lord wants us to "grow up" to be independent of Him, make good decisions, and think ethically. This is not so. Growing up in the Lord is not a process of increasing independence but increasing dependence.
Others suggest that growing up in the Lord means becoming better "wranglers," people who are more committed and forceful in demanding our way. This does not seem to be the point, either.
The truth is that growing in our relationship with the Lord means we grow in our ability to trust Him wholly, even when the desert is dry and dusty. We grow in our surrender to Him, not our ability to make decisions on our own or be demanding. The key issue is whether we can listen to the Lord and obediently follow instructions. Can we trust in the dry times or only in the times of abundance?

Father, thank You for Your faith lessons. Thank You for Your patience. Help me to hear clearly Your instruction. Teach me to serve without grumbling and to obey without contending. In Jesus' name.

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2022
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2022 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.