Problems and Provision (Ex 15:22-16)

Recall where we’ve been

Bitter Water for a Thirsty Soul (Ex 15:22-27)

Exodus 15:22–27 ESV

Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water. When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah. And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” And he cried to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet. There the Lord made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them, saying, “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, your healer.” Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, and they encamped there by the water.

v22 - "moses made israel set out" - i think this phrasing is very interesting. Moses had to make Israel set out from the red sea. Isnt it ironoic that just a chapter or two before this was the very last place they wanted be. The place where they thought they were going to die has now become their site of victory - their mountain top experience.

And we seldom want to leave these types of places. It is so easy to sing to the Lord, to worship him, to praise him when we are on the mountain top, when we are so near to our place of victory. Yet, we often are not allowed to stay there. the people of God are rarely left to sit on the mountaintop. I think of Peter who like the israelites wanted to stay on the mountain yet as soon as he spoke, the experience before him vanished. So moses makes the people continue on in to their journey "into the wilderness"

The Wildnerness:

the wilderness seems to be the place where God molds, shapes and tests his people. Abraham is called out of his home land into an unknown land. Moses and David are both thrust from their palace life into the unknown of the wilderness. Jesus, following his baptism!! is lead into the wilderness.

It is a frequent theme in scripture; this frequent drawing out, away from the comfort of the known world, into the desolate and the unknown. Yet,this experience is often accompanied with hardship. Its not often easy, or does it rarely go as expected.

Why does God lead Israel in the Wilderness?

In Exodus 8-15 we’ve seen God getting Israel out of Egypt. What we will see in the rest of Exodus is God trying to get the Egypt out of Israel. And it begins here in these tests in the wilderness.

The Problems

First Problem

Exodus 15:22 ESV

Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water.

"three days into the wilderness" and they had "found no water". Any survival people in here? Whats significant about 3 days no water?

This is a very real and dangerous issue for a nation with so many people and livestock. And three days is the amount of time where one can go without water. Any longer and you die.

Whats the longest you’ve gone without water?

Second Problem

Exodus 16:2–3 ESV

And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, and the people of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

Third Problem

Exodus 17:1 ESV

All the congregation of the people of Israel moved on from the wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the commandment of the Lord, and camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink.

So a question i want us to think about tonight is:

Why does God do this?

Why does God lead his people 3 days without water? And in a grander sense, why does God so often lead his people to the very edge of their limits? He does this all the time. I find myself trying to walk with God, trying to follow him, worship him, glorify him - yet it is not easy. SO often I find myself depleted, i am hurt, i am wounded, i am wandering - I AM THIRSTY. Why does God not provide for Israel sooner? Why does he take them to the breaking point?

What is even more interesting about this passage is knowing Israels need for water, God leads them to a place that has water - but its not drinkable. Has anyone ever been there? you are asking something from God and he leads you into a situation thats almost right, but its just not. Like you're praying for a wife and he gives you a girlfriend but then she breaks up with you. You’re asking God for a job - he gives you a job, but your boss is horrible. Your asking for stronger community and God gives you roommate drama. Why would God lead his people into a situation that almost addresses their needs, but actually doesnt. What do we do when the water is bitter? The thing we need most (or think we need most) is right in front of us, but its not right. Isnt that cruel? to take Israel to water and it not be drinkable?

Well i think these questions are inportant for us to think about tonight, because i think if we can see why he might have put Israel in this situation, it might help us understand why he might put us in similar situations.

I think it is because it is at the breaking point in our lives where we can

1)truly see what is inside of our hearts

2) give the opportunity for the most trust

3) they often teach us the most about God

Trials reveal whats inside of our hearts

when we are taken to our limits, we see what is inside. We all know this. What happens when we are hungry or tired in our own lives - we often do or say things we wouldnt when we are otherwise rested or fed. It is when we lack the things that we need to survive that our true unfiltered selves often come out.

The same is true of Israel, and the same is true of the people of God. God will often take us to our breaking point to see what is inside of us, to see our hearts. It is in these moments of crisis, we can see where we are in our walk with faith. Often times, the hardest moments in our lives reveal where we are. It highlights weaknesses in our character, it show us places we arent being faithful in. It helps reveal cracks in our heart. A hairline fracture is fine on the surface, but when a submarine dives to the depths, the fracture will puncture and destroy the whole vessel. We need these moments of controlled pressure in our lives so that we can see where the fractures are. It is better to find them now then on the last day. Perhaps God has taken me to my breaking point to help me find this very thing. To highlight the fractures in my heart, to show me where i need to walk more faithfully with him.

What did theses trials reveal about people of Israel?

- at Marah?

- In Sin?

There were probably things about Egypt that they loved. One thing God does in the wilderness is often deprive us of the things we have grown accustomed to (like the abundance and provision of Egpyt) in order to refine and shape us. We see him do that here, and we see him do that in our owns lived.

Irony fullness/famine - they think they had fullness in slavery, and famine under Gods reign

- At Rephidim?

In 17:2 Israel asks Moses to give them a drink. Why? and whats ironic about this? Who was it that gave water to Israel at Marah? they wanted moses to work another magaic trick, and failed to learn the lesson that it was God who is their provider and healer.

Trails give us an oppurnity to trust God

in moments of crisis, we have the ability to show more faith and trust in God. It is easy to trust him when things are going well. However, it is much harder to trust him when things are hard. In this passage God takes them to the limit to see their trust in him? will they, like moses, "cry to the Lord" or willl they rather "grumble"against him?

In this life we will face hard circumstances. God will take us to the edge of our ropes, into the wilderness, on the edge of death even. What we do in these situations reveals our faith.

Test - think gerbil mazes quizes

What oppurtunities did Israel have to trust God in these sitauations?

What did Moses do in these situations?

- at Marah?

Ruth pararel - famine in the land, a women in a bitter circumstance (literally Naiomi said “call me bitter”), but through faith and humility finds herself blessed by God and listed in the geoneolgoy of Jesus

- In Sin?

mirror of the story of Abraham - what does Abraham do when theres a famine in the land? What does Jacob do when there’s a famine in the land? When faced with a famine, both literally or spirtually, where do the people of God go? Egypt in this time represented fullness - they were the richest counrty in the world - you went to them to get food. God in this moment has to teach Israel that they are NOT to go back to egypt to find their fullness, the days of storing up wealth and relying on the storehouses of man is over. The people of God are to be sustained by him and him alone DAILY.

- At Rephidim?

What do we do when the water is bitter? How should have Israel responded? I have found myself at Marah. I have tasted of a water that I want- but it has turned out to be bitter.It is heart breaking. Why must we be led to bitter water?

Trials teach us about the character of our God

Trails despite being incredbily hard, often is where we learn the most about God.

What do each of these stories teach us about God?

Marah

Tree - where have we seen trees before in our story?

We see a tree-like object in the staff of moses. This staff represents the judgment of God, its the tool that strikes the nile, its the tool that brings sthe waves over the Egyptians - it is a dangerous think.

Tree imagery is also found of course in the garden of eden. Perhaps what would have been strongly in the mind of the israelite is the choice between two trees - one tree that God offers leads to life, but the other tree - the tree where adam and eve failed - brought bitterness. Trees thus far in our story have not proven kind.

Yet, we see here a tree (perhaps dead ?) bring life. though bitterness exhisted, this tree turns bitterness into sweet water. It is almost harkening back to a tree that brought life - the tree of life. though one tree brought bitterness into the world, what we see in this story is God use another tree to turn the bitterness into something sweet.

However, this story serves to show that God makes the bitter sweet. That even though he led them to a bitter water, the grace and kindness of God didnt leave it that way. God cares for his people. And even though they cried out in the wrong way, God had compassion on them and made the water sweet.

Here god takes athe time to remind Israel that he is their healer. He is upholding them and walking with them. Yet, they must obey. ISrael must 1)dilligently listen to the voice of the Lord 2) do what is right in HIS eyes 3) give ear to hisncommandments 4) keep his statues

We do this because God is our healer and our deliverer. We must walk in accordance with him, because he wants good for us. His laws are good, his ways are good, his plans are good. So when we come to a place without water - or maybe worse - when our thirsty souls find water but it is bitter. Remember the grace of God. Our God is our healer, and he is the God that makes Marah into sweet water.

What is interesting about verse 26? What question arises?

Exodus 15:26 ESV

saying, “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, your healer.”

what statutes and commandments is he talking about? Is this statment encapsulating the future commands that God will give Israel? or is he simply advoacting Israel to simply just go where he tells them to go, and to trust that he will provide? The only commandment he had given them up to this point is the commandments about the feast of unleavened bread - which ultimatley is a command to remember and commemorate their deliverance.

I think the thing that is most interesting about this passage is that it ends with them going down the road a bit and finding Elim which has 12 springs and 72 palm tress. You would count palm tress in a story like this because it signifies that this was an oaisis. God right around the corner had for them a spot of blessing. He was about to provide for them in such a rich way, before they complained and grubmled agisnt God. So often right on the other side of our thirst, there is a blessing. Whats crazy is that God gives Israel the blessing despite their unfaithfulness. And this is so true of our lives. So often I have made the water bitter in my olife. I have tainited my circumstances with sin. The water godnwanted to givce me, i polluted. Yet - he still blesses me out of his grace and kindess. God is so good to his people.

Wilderness of Sin

Rain bread from heaven - good images or bad in our story so far from stuff falling from the sky? Role reversal of the flood narrative. In the flood narrative, God opens the sky with waters of judgement, but here God opens the sky with provision for his people - DESPITE their grumbling.

Rephidim

these stories are retold in the ministy of Jesus ( women at the well, feeding the five thousand, bread of life speech) and in the Lords supper

Wrapping it up in Christ

It is very easy to question the places God has us in. Its easy to not trust that He is leading us in a way that is for our good. We have to remember that, when we look at our circumstancesna and it looks like God doesnt know what he’s doing, we have to remember - He is good. Even when we find water and its bitter, he’s still good.

Whats important to remember is that it wasnt God that made the water bitter in the first place. The water God wanted to give us, to give all of creation - we polluted. We are the ones who tainted the water of all creation with our sin, we had mared our relationship with Him beyond repair - yet God shows us a tree (a cross) and throws at it all the bitterness in the world and makes it sweet. Though we all have grumbled and compalined against God, and though we have made the world around us bitter and broken with sin - Christ has made an end to that sin. He entered into our brokeness to redeem it and make all things new.

Instead of raining down the waters of judgement on us - the judgement that we rightly deserved, God opened heaven and rained down his very self. Like he gave manna to the Israelites, he gives us his very life and his very flesh so that we might find healing, life, and provision.

And like the rock that Moses struck in the wilderness, God stands, this time not on the rock - but AS the rock and Christ takes the full force of the judgement of God that we deserve on the cross and with his blood pours out the water of life that we might drink freely.

I dont know where you are right now in your walk. Maybe you’re hungering for something, maybe you’re spiritually thirsty, or maybe you are staring at bitter water wishing you could drink it. Remember that God doesnt stay far off from our bitterness, he enters in to it, and he does make it sweet. I dont know how far it is between Marah and Elim - I dont know how far it is from your bitterness to your oasis. But i do know that God has promised that to all of us who are in Christ. It might not even be on this side of eternity, but I know we’lll get there one day. So what do we do when we hit these circustances? We trust the God who has always been good, and will always provide. He is our ultimate healer.

Other random notes from commentaries/podcats:

Why does he mention the diseases here? - its obviously a call back to the plaggues, but i wonder if it isnt referencing back to the first plague. What happened in the first plague, and what was the outcome? sweet water made bitter/undrinkable - so they dug on the sides for water. I wonder if God isnt saying here. The God who turns water bitter, is the same God who makes water sweet.

grumbling - there is some sense of Israel being a new born baby - you dont get mad at a baby for asking for food and milk. Yet, eventually, when the child grows up, you should.

principle of Sabbath given before the command of Sabbath