Falling Down at the First Sign of Trial. Exodus 15:20-27.
The Children of Israel were so elated to have the Egyptian army defeated it provoked a joyous celebration. Instruments sounded and song broke out as merriment was in the hearts of the people.
There is no better time to celebrate than when a person has overcome a great trial in their life; the only problem is life is filled with trials.
Then Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took the timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances. And Miriam answered them: “Sing to the LORD, For He has triumphed gloriously! The horse and its rider He has thrown into the sea!” Exodus 15:20-21(NKJV)
Miriam is the sister of Moses. Miriam watched over Moses as he floated down river in the ark made for him as a baby. Miriam approached the Pharaoh’s daughter and talked her into hiring her mother to care for the baby.
Being of the family of Moses held great responsibility, for if Moses were to be wrong about God and God’s will for the children of Israel, the immediate family would too be shunned.
As Moses and Aaron were leaders among the elders, Miriam was also stepping up to take her role leading the women in celebration of their delivery from the enemy. Is it not interesting to see that women’s ministry is mentioned so early in our scriptures?
Miriam was more than a leader; she was gifted with ability to prophesy and though her prophesies are not recorded, their fulfillment coincided with the delivery from the enemy by God. With joy Miriam celebrated and led others to celebrate the same.
Celebration is not to be confused with worship. Celebration comes from great emotion following a victory, an achievement, or a completed task; worship is to be a continual action through good times and bad. God’s people must learn they worship God regardless of the situation faced.
Celebration takes a person to a mountain top of adulation and goes as quickly as it comes; for we must walk through valleys so low.
In those valleys we face trial, difficulty, and fear; however, the worship of God should not stop.
Through worship, God’s people become strong; as God helps them to make it through their situation. Through worship, fears are silenced and darkness is turned to light.
The Children of Israel were going to face many low times and even in the lowest of time God expects faith from His people. This is what a leader must remember; victories are great, but too much celebration is not good for people.
So Moses brought Israel from the Red Sea; then they went out into the Wilderness of Shur. And they went three days in the wilderness and found no water. Exodus 15:22(NKJV)
These people had been on the move and their water supply was dwindling, if not completely gone. Running out of water became a great fear and the dessert ahead was a barren waste land. This is only the first obstacle the children of Israel would face.
Now when they came to Marah, they could not drink the waters of Marah, for they were bitter. Therefore the name of it was called Marah. And the people complained against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” Exodus 15:23-24(NKJV)
The same people who danced at the victory, given to them at the hand of God, now complained to Moses. They had never been out of Egypt and they had no idea of what to expect.
They saw water in the distance and the two to three million people caravanned over to a great water source. It was a great find; however, they also found the place was called Mara or bitter. This water could not be drunk.
At this point to be a leader of the people was not a joyous position. The leaders Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, were approached by all side with people wanting to know, “What are we going to drink?”
Many of the questions came as accusations and sounded like the accusations expressed when cornered by the Egyptian army at the Red Sea. There they asked, “Did you bring us out here to die?”
We can plainly see it is hard to face trials after experiencing such great joy. It can be measured by the fall for the higher the mountain top, the greater the fall.
To the leadership this must have seemed a terrible contrast of attitudes and loyalty. What about God’s ability to deliver? Where is faith and when will these people trust in God? Being new to leadership, Moses became upset at his people’s response.
So he cried out to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a tree. When he cast it into the waters, the waters were made sweet. There He made a statute and an ordinance for them, and there He tested them, and said, “If you diligently heed the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the LORD who heals you.” Exodus 15:25-26(NKJV)
Through this trial, it became clear it would take time for these people to spiritually mature. They went from great faith to no faith; from joy to miserable and for a leader this becomes a measure of his or her effectiveness in their congregations.
Moses too cried out in distress to the Lord. The people did not trust him as a leader. He too went from victory to defeat with a problem that seemed impossible.
Though he had faith in God, the situation caught Moses off guard and he grieved. Yet Moses received a quick word of wisdom from the Lord and in obedience they cast the tree into the water and it not only became drinkable, it became tasty and sweet.
It did not take Moses long to reflect on the power of God over circumstances and Moses knew that God would tolerate no compromise in faith; for without faith it is impossible to please God. Therefore, Moses gave the people a sermon, a warning to trust in God.
You must be diligent to heed the voice of the Lord and do what is right in His sight. You must keep God’s rules intact, for your life to continue to be healed. This means following where He leads, trusting in Him to provide, and allowing Him to heal our broken lives.
There is something broken in our lives if we fear. To complain and murmur is the sign of a greater problem, a spiritual problem and our distance from God. Therefore, let us praise and worship God without peaking so that we will have faith in the valleys.
Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve wells of water and seventy palm trees; so they camped there by the waters. Exodus 15:27(NKJV)
God leads us to rest in Him. He is an abundance supplier and when we trust in Him we find our way.
These people following Moses into the dessert had great trust issues with God and their leadership. If they did not receive the healing their trials would bring, they would not enter into their rest.
