And the glory of the LORD appeared to them, and the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water. So you shall bring water out of the rock for them and give drink to the congregation and their cattle.” Numbers 20.6-8

Here is the incident which cost Moses entry to the promised land. We can understand why Moses was upset, and how, after forty frustrating years, he might take personally the grumbling of the people. But Moses’ sin is not so much that he put himself in the place of God (“Hear now, you rebels: shall we bring water for you out of this rock?”, v. 10). Rather, Moses’ great sin – and it was a great sin – was that He obscured from the people’s eyes the power of God’s Word.

The Law of God is the Word of God, and it has power to bring blessing and life to those who embrace and obey it through Jesus Christ (Lev. 18.1-5; Jn. 6.63; Jn. 14.6). By His Word, God created the world and set everything in its place. By His Word He brought His people out of Egypt. By His Word He would bless them in the land of promise. For the Word of God is living and powerful, sustaining all that is and blessing those who submit to it.

For Moses to strike the rock was to prevent the people from being reassured of the power of God’s Word at this crucial moment when they were about to embark upon the campaign to subdue the land and gain the promises of God. What they saw, at this moment of great need, was not the power of God’s Word, but the power (magic?) of a charismatic leader who humbled them even as he served them. For this transgression, Moses forfeited the land.

The great unseen power which operates throughout the Law of God, and all the worldview of the Bible, is the Word of God. What God has made by His Word, He sustains by His Word. What He has promised in His Word He will fulfill by His Word. The power of the Biblical worldview is the Word of God. When we lose sight of this, and put our faith in men rather than in God’s Word, we forfeit the blessings He has promised. Know God; hear, trust, and obey His Word. This is the essence of faith, which is the operative power of the Biblical worldview.

For a more complete exposition of the promises of God, order a copy of T. M.’s book, I Will Be Your God, from our online store.