When God Says, ’No’ | Sunday, June 14, 2020

One of the things you do when you are a leader is look for good examples of leaders to emulate. You also seek lessons on leadership wherever you can find them. You probably already know that the Bible is filled with examples of good leaders and a number of really bad ones to learn from as well. It is also filled with lessons on leadership.

Occasionally, you come across some lessons on leadership that you have a hard time with. The passage before us today in Deuteronomy 3 is one such passage. I have wrestled with this passage over the years, and I don't think I'm the only one who has. If you are familiar with the story of Moses, you might remember this part of his story. However, to fully understand this somewhat odd story, you have to back up a little to understand the context.

Moses was used by God to deliver Israel from their bondage in Egypt by the mighty power of God through a series of plagues. The people of Israel were brought out of Egypt and ventured toward Mount Sinai. As they made their way toward Sinai, Israel experienced a number of challenges—tests, even—by which God revealed to them His power and glory.

At one point early in their journey, the children of Israel were critically in need of water. We find the story in Exodus chapter 17, verses 1 through 6. There we read, "Then all of the congregation of the children of Israel set out on their journey from the wilderness of Sin according to the commandment of the Lord, and they camped in Rephidim. But there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore, the people contended with Moses and said, 'Give us water that we may drink.' So Moses said to them, 'Why do you contend with me? Why do you tempt the Lord?' The people thirsted there for water, and the people complained against Moses and said, 'Why is it that you have brought us up out of Egypt to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?' So Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, 'What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.'

And the Lord said to Moses, 'Go on before the people and take with you some of the elders of Israel. Also take in your hand the rod with which you struck the river, and go. Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock in Horeb, and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it that the people may drink.' This is somewhat of a strange story, but it is a definite revelation of the power and glory of God as He revealed Himself to be the...

Provider of Israel's need, sometime later, after Israel had begun to wander through the wilderness, they experienced thirst again. This time, the story is found in Numbers chapter 20, verses 1 through 12.

There we read, "Then the children of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Kadesh. Miriam died there and was buried there. Now there was no water for the congregation, so they gathered together against Moses and Aaron. The people contended with Moses and spoke, saying, 'If only we had died when our brethren died before the Lord! Why have you brought up the assembly of the Lord into this wilderness, that we and our animals should die here? Why have you made us come up out of Egypt to bring us to this evil place? It is not a place of grain or figs or vines or pomegranates; no, nor is there any water to drink?'

So Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and there they fell on their faces. The glory of the Lord appeared to them, and then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, '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.'

So Moses took the rod from before the Lord as He commanded him. Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he said to them, 'Hear now, you rebels! Must we bring water for you out of this rock?' Then Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod, and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their animals drank.

Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, '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 to them.'

This is one of those head-scratchers in Scripture. It is one of those leadership passages that kind of frustrates you as a leader. Moses is one of those people who seemingly does everything right. Early on, he was a reluctant leader, but a lot of leaders are reluctant at first.

The start of Moses' journey was iffy, but throughout his life, he was marvelously used by God to deliver hundreds of thousands, potentially millions, of people from bondage in Egypt. He brought Israel to Mount Sinai, delivered the law to them, helped establish the people as a nation, and set up the tabernacle of God in their midst. Moses was humble, wise, persistent, and consistent. He was a man of God and a friend of God. He is and was the great lawgiver of Israel. Among the list of names you think of when considering Old Testament characters, Moses is probably in the top three.

Seemingly, Moses did everything right. He was a leader and effectively a priest for the people. He represented God before the people and the people before God for forty years. However, one time, on one day, in a moment of weakness, he made one small misstep. God instructed him to speak to the rock. What does that even mean? Frustrated with the constant murmuring and complaining of the people of Israel, Moses did not speak to the rock; instead, he spoke to the people, perhaps in anger, and struck the rock twice. In Numbers chapter 20, verses 10 and 11, we read, "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.

Because of this seemingly small misstep, the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, "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." I don't know about you, but that has always kind of bothered me, and I think it bothered Moses too.

Years later, as the children of Israel were preparing to finally enter the promised land, Moses shared his final words with them just before he would die. He reminded them of the events I just described. We find this in Deuteronomy chapter 3, verses 23 through 25.

Then I pleaded with the Lord at that time, saying, "Oh Lord God, you have begun to show your servant your greatness and your mighty hand. For what God is there in heaven or on earth who can do anything like your works and your mighty deeds? I pray, let me cross over and see the good land beyond the Jordan, those pleasant mountains and Lebanon."

That seems like a simple request; it seems like a worthy request. This is the same Moses who one time prayed to the same God on behalf of the people of Israel when God determined that He was going to wipe out the same people because He was seemingly frustrated with them too. At that time, Moses prayed; he intervened and interceded on their behalf, and the Lord heeded Moses's prayer.

So, Moses pleaded with the Lord. Have you ever pleaded with the Lord in prayer? I'm sure some of you have. I certainly have. Moses's prayer is a good prayer; it's a good prototype for prayer, a good model for prayer. His prayer is worshipful and reverent. It is grounded in good theology, and his request in prayer is clear. He simply says, "I pray, let me cross over and see the good land." He doesn't say, "Let me cross over and live in the land." He simply says, "Let me just cross over and see the good land." He just wants to see the land with his own eyes, up close and personal, not at a distance.

This was the same Moses who once prayed to God and spoke to Him as it were face to face, like a friend speaks to another friend, as stated in Exodus chapter 33, verse 11. He prayed to God and said, "Please show me your glory," in Exodus 33, verse 18. The Hebrew word for "show me your glory" is the same Hebrew word that Moses uses here when he pleads with God, "God, show me the land with my own eyes."

When Moses said to God, "Show me your glory," nearly 40 years prior to this, God, in a sense, accepted Moses's request. So, what did God do in response to this request? Deuteronomy chapter 3, verse 26 gives us the answer: "But the Lord was angry with me on your account and would not listen to me. So the Lord said to me, 'Enough of that; speak no more to me of this matter.'" Sometimes God says no.

Even after we plead with Him in prayer, I don't like the word "no." My kids wouldn't believe that because they're pretty convinced that "no" is my favorite word. I know one thing for sure: they don't like the word "no" either. In fact, maybe you parents have had the same experience I've had. My kids can't stand the word "no," so they will do almost anything they can to try to move my "no" to a "maybe" or hopefully to a "yes." With my kids, they seem to think that "no" is flexible. I feel like I have to say "no" twenty times before they realize that "no" means "no." Sometimes, I have to speak the same words as God here in Deuteronomy 3:26: "Enough! Speak no more to me of this matter."

You've never done that, have you? Clearly, this request of Moses wasn't a one-time request. You get the sense in reading this in Deuteronomy 3 that Moses talked to God about this quite a bit, which teaches us another very important lesson about prayer: the best prayers are persistent prayers. Moses didn't give up in prayer until God gave a definitive answer, and neither should you. This is exactly what Jesus taught in the New Testament when He spoke about prayer in Luke 11:5-10.

He said to them, "Which of you shall have a friend and go to him at midnight and say to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him'? And he will answer from within and say, 'Do not trouble me. The door is now shut; my children are with me in bed. I cannot rise and give to you.' I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is a friend, yet because of his persistence, he will rise and give him as many as he needs.

So I say to you: ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks, it will be opened. But listen, sometimes even when we have asked, sought, and knocked again and again, sometimes God says, "Enough. The answer is no." As much as we don't like the word "no," when God says "no," we would do well to accept His answer. One commentator writing on this passage...

In Deuteronomy 3, we see that God remains sovereign and retains the right to say yes or no to human supplicants' requests. Rather than being a means by which we get God to do what we desire, sometimes prayer becomes the process whereby God brings our will into conformity with His own. Our faith may not necessarily be measured by the extent to which we can move God. Strong faith also may demand that we accept God's "no" and get on with the tasks to which He has called us. Sometimes His "no" is final.

In Deuteronomy 3:26-27, we read, "Speak no more to me of this matter. Go up to the top of Pisgah and lift your eyes toward the west, the north, the south, and the east. Behold it with your eyes, for you shall not cross over this Jordan." Great faith remains faithful even when God's ways are different from ours. The story in Deuteronomy 3 doesn't end there; we have one more little bit of sand in the eye in this hard passage. God answered Moses, "Enough! You're not going into the land. You can see it at a distance."

Then, in Deuteronomy 3:28, we read, "But command Joshua and encourage him and strengthen him, for he shall go over before this people and shall cause them to inherit the land which you will see." Great faith remains faithful even when God grants to others what we desire for ourselves. This is a difficult lesson to learn. In the New Testament, we are exhorted to weep with those who weep, but the exhortation also says to rejoice with those who rejoice, as stated in Romans 12:15. Sometimes we want to weep when others are rejoicing because we're jealous. It can be easier to weep with those who weep than to rejoice with those who rejoice.

However, great faith remains faithful even when God grants to others what we desire for ourselves. Before we close this passage, it's important to understand one final point about this story. It's easy to get frustrated with God, and I'm sure that many of us have been frustrated in the past and may be again in the future. But sometimes God has...

In mind is something that we cannot grasp or understand. This is because, as the prophet Isaiah observed, God's thoughts and ways are higher than ours. Isaiah 55:8 states this clearly. It might seem to us that Moses striking the rock when God told him to speak to the rock was a very trivial thing. It just doesn't seem like the crime of striking the rock is worthy of the punishment, or maybe we should say the outcome, of not entering the Promised Land.

However, there's something bigger here that is of real importance in the Scriptures. Moses is the representative of the law; he is the great lawgiver of Israel and stands as a type and symbol of the law in the Bible. Joshua, on the other hand, is symbolically connected to Jesus. In fact, the name Jesus in Hebrew is essentially Joshua.

So here's the bigger issue: Moses, the law, cannot bring you all the way into the Promised Land. Only Joshua, only Jesus, can do that. In the New Testament book of Romans, chapter 3, verse 19, we read, "Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped and that all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore, by the deeds of the law, no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God apart from the law has been revealed, being witnessed by the law and the prophets."

So, Jesus is the only one who can ultimately bring us into the Promised Land and into salvation. The law, represented by Moses, can't do that. But just so you don't think that Moses missed out, we get a little bit more of the story—maybe you could say the rest of the story—in Matthew chapter 17, in what's called the Mount of Transfiguration passage.

There we read in verses 1 through 5, "Now after six days, Jesus took Peter, James, and John, his brother, and led them up on a high mountain by themselves. And Jesus was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him." Then Peter answered and said, "Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, let us make three tabernacles: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and suddenly a voice...

Came out of the cloud saying, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him." We may not realize it, but God is always doing something far bigger than we could think or imagine. Moses not coming into the Promised Land was God using that as a teaching lesson for us. The law cannot get us into salvation; it won't bring us into the Promised Land. Only Joshua, only Jesus, could do that.

But many years later, Moses was able to stand on the mountain there in the Promised Land next to Jesus and see Him in His full glory. So, in one sense, it's the rest of the story.

Father, we thank You so much for Your Word, and we thank You that Your Word does reveal to us that You hear and You answer our prayers. But sometimes, Lord, You answer our prayers with the word "no," and we have such a hard time with that. I pray, God, that You would help us to learn through the example of Moses in this passage that we can be persistent; we can continue in prayer.

But when Your "no" is "no," and it is final, I pray, God, that You would give us the grace to be able to receive it and to continue to trust in You. Help us to understand that You are doing something bigger than we can fully understand in that moment because Your thoughts and Your ways are higher than ours. God, help us to hold on to this lesson. We ask in Jesus' name, Amen.

For we trust in our God, and through His unfailing love, we will not be shaken. We will not be shaken. We will not be shaken. For we trust in our God, and through His unfailing love, we will not be shaken. We will not be shaken.

We will not be shaken. Though the battle rages, we will stand and fight. Though the armies rise up against the sun outside, we will not be shaken. We will not be shaken.

For in the hour of our darkest day, we will not tremble; we won't be afraid. Hope is rising like the light in the dark. Our God is for us; He has overcome. We trust in our God, and through His unfailing love, we will not be shaken.

All those against Him will fall, for our God is stronger.

He can do all things. The name we can call for is Jesus, who is greater. We can do all things. All those against us are for Jesus, who is greater. We will not be shaken.

Thank you for tuning in and joining us today for Cross Connection Church at home. Next week, the 21st of June, is Father's Day, and we want to invite all of you dads. If you're looking for an opportunity to get out of the house at the end of the day, come down to our parking lot between two o'clock and four o'clock. We will have a gift for all of you dads, and we hope to see you next week on Father's Day.

Why don't we close our time together in prayer today? Father, we thank you so much for your grace that you pour out upon us. We pray, God, that you would help us to be examples of grace and, Lord, conduits that are extending your grace to other people this week. God, do a work in us by your grace.

Mercy and peace. We praise You in Jesus' name. Now may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the fellowship of His Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.

All right, let's see here. Here we go. Almost there. Nope, nope, nope. It's pointless. Yes, you guys are all tracking; you're doing good. What's going on here?