20th April 2026
God’s Goodness
At the Lord’s command, the whole community of Israel left the wilderness of Sin and moved from place to place. Eventually they camped at Rephidim, but there was no water there for the people to drink. So once more the people complained against Moses. “Give us water to drink!” They demanded. “Quiet!” Moses replied. “Why are you complaining against me? And why are you testing the Lord?”
Exodus 17:1-2 (NLT)
The geographical name Sin is related to the name Sinai and should not be confused with the English word ‘sin’, and yet it is still interesting. Was it really a coincidence? The similarity makes you wonder. We all have wandered through sin, and it was God who called us out of it. Just as the wilderness is not a place of comfort or hospitable for life, so sin is a place leading us toward death and away from God and his life-giving ways. So, we may dismiss the name of the wilderness, but at the same time we must look at the condition of the whole human race. On our own we will find ourselves in difficult situations, but God is calling us all out of our condition and into his glorious salvation and redemption.
Sure, we are not perfect, but God loves us still. Sure, we anger him at times, but that is because we insist on hurting ourselves and others. God is still calling us out of our condition and into his healing arms and embrace. God is more patient than we deserve, but God is a God of love, and he has not given up on us yet, he has not left us, it is only we who leave him, who test him, who deny his love. Though the Israelites complained and demanded satisfaction from God, God did not walk away, he provided their needs, for he never intended to leave them in the condition they were in. This journey they were on was more than a lesson on how to provide water, or even the right way to make a complaint, it was a lesson in faith, obedience and the presence of God that will never leave us, no matter how much we run from him, no matter how much we fall on our face in our sin.
The Israelites had just failed miserably in the directions given to them about the manna from heaven. It was simple instructions, but they wanted to do it their way and greed overcame the sensibility of mind. There were a lot of people in this group God had rescued from slavery. The wilderness could not sustain them all, especially for long, but God could, and he had every intention to do so. God had just shown them his power, his salvation, his provision, but they still did not trust him, have faith in him, or even wanted to obey him. The world today still preaches the same thoughts, such as ‘have it your way’, and ‘You deserve it’. Our ways lead to sin and death, and we deserve nothing, but God is such a God of love and grace that he gives us what we do not deserve; his patience, his love, his salvation, and his mercy and grace are beyond measure.
God did provide for a generation who did nothing but complain, but let us face it, how much do we complain in one form or another? We may not say it, but we think it. We have our basic needs, but we always want more. Are we thankful for what we do have? Just saying thank you makes a significant difference on how we view things in our life. God is a good God, a good father, a good provider, and a generous God. Let us thank him today for his generous love.
Prayer
Merciful God, we thank you for loving us even when we were not lovable, for providing for us all that we need, both physical and spiritual. We thank you for pulling us out of the fire, but not until all our sin had been washed away. We are ever grateful for your love God! In Jesus we come humbly before you and pray, Amen.
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Study by: Anne Gillam About the author: |
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