Missing the Goal
Have you ever been close to your goal or something you wanted to do, but were not able to achieve it? Perhaps you had worked for it for a long time and just when it was within reach, you failed to achieve it. Life is sometimes disappointing, and we are saddened that we were not able to accomplish the end result for which we had hoped.
When we read about the life of Moses, that is what we see. Moses had led the Israelites out of Egyptian captivity, put up with their complaining, lack of faith, critical remarks and all other things that hinder instead of building up. And when they were ready to entered the land promised to the fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, he was not allowed to enter.
Moses had been disobedient to God. When the people were at Meribah and complaining because of a lack of water, God told Moses to speak to the rock and water would be provided. In his frustration and anger Moses struck the rock instead of speaking and was thus not to enter the promised land. Numbers 20:8-12, "Take the rod; and you and your brother Aaron assemble the congregation and speak to the rock before their eyes, that it may yield its water. You shall thus bring forth water for them out of the rock and let the congregation and their beasts drink." 9 So Moses took the rod from before the LORD, just as He had commanded him; 10 and Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly before the rock. And he said to them, "Listen now, you rebels; shall we bring forth water for you out of this rock?" 11 Then Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came forth abundantly, and the congregation and their beasts drank. 12 But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Because you have not believed Me, to treat Me as holy in the sight of the sons of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them. (NASB)
At the end of his life, Moses was taken up on Mount Nebo, and the Lord let him look and see the promised land. Then we read in Deuteronomy 34:5-6, “So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD. 6 And He buried him in the valley in the land of Moab, opposite Beth-peor; but no man knows his burial place to this day.” What a sad ending for this great man. Deuteronomy 34:10 tells us, “Since that time no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face.”
The lesson in this to me is that the God we serve demands obedience. If that obedience is not followed, then there will be consequences that will be met. Today, we must all obey the teaching of our God and follow only His word. We must not miss that promised land—heaven—that has been promised to the obedient.