Sermon Tone Analysis

GO TO THE ROCK

 

(Exo 17:6 KJV)  Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink.

And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.

(Num 20:8 KJV)  Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink.

(Num 20:10 KJV)  And Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock, and he said unto them, Hear now, ye rebels; must we fetch you water out of this rock?

(Num 20:11 KJV)  And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice: and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also.

(Deu 32:4 KJV)  He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.

(Deu 32:18 KJV)  Of the Rock that begat thee thou art unmindful, and hast forgotten God that formed thee.

(1 Sam 2:2 KJV)  There is none holy as the LORD: for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our God.

(2 Sam 22:2 KJV)  And he said, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer;

 

(2 Sam 22:3 KJV)  The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence.

(2 Sam 22:32 KJV)  For who is God, save the LORD? and who is a rock, save our God?

 

(2 Sam 22:47 KJV)  The LORD liveth; and blessed be my rock; and exalted be the God of the rock of my salvation.

(2 Sam 23:3 KJV)  The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me, He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God.

 

(Job 29:6 KJV)  When I washed my steps with butter, and the rock poured me out rivers of oil;

 

(Psa 18:2 KJV)  The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.

(Psa 18:31 KJV)  For who is God save the LORD? or who is a rock save our God?

 

(Psa 18:46 KJV)  The LORD liveth; and blessed be my rock; and let the God of my salvation be exalted.

(Psa 27:5 KJV)  For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock.

(Psa 28:1 KJV)  A Psalm of David.

Unto thee will I cry, O LORD my rock; be not silent to me: lest, if thou be silent to me, I become like them that go down into the pit.

(Psa 31:2 KJV)  Bow down thine ear to me; deliver me speedily: be thou my strong rock, for an house of defence to save me.

(Psa 31:3 KJV)  For thou art my rock and my fortress; therefore for thy name's sake lead me, and guide me.

(Psa 40:2 KJV)  He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.

(Psa 61:2 KJV)  From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

 

(Psa 62:2 KJV)  He only is my rock and my salvation; he is my defence; I shall not be greatly moved.

(Psa 62:7 KJV)  In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.

 

(Psa 71:3 KJV)  Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort: thou hast given commandment to save me; for thou art my rock and my fortress.

(Psa 92:15 KJV)  To show that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.

(Psa 95:1 KJV)  O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.

(Isa 8:14 KJV)  And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

(Mat 7:24 KJV)  Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:

 

(Mat 7:25 KJV)  And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.

(Rom 9:33 KJV)  As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

(1 Cor 10:4 KJV)  And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.

(1 Pet 2:8 KJV)  And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.

(Matt 17:3) – Moses visits the promised land 14 centuries later

 

 

 

 

Jesus is the rock

God said speak to the rock and it will bring forth water

You don’t need to get the water by your works

It is God who brings the water not man

 

Point 1

When people come to you with negative energy and complaints, you can react to that situation and either make it a stepping stone or a stumbling block [illustration of the mule]

-worry, stress, high blood pressure over what that person said

-depression

-defeat

-how to overcome and make that situation a stepping stone?

Go to point 2

 

Point 2

When troubles come speak to the Rock

-problems in the world (job, finances, people getting on your last nerve)

-problems in your home (wife, husband, children)

-problems in your life (addictions, anger, lust, temptations)

-don’t have God in your life

 

Point 3

Once you’ve spoken to the rock (come before Christ) stop and wait for God to handle the situation

-believe that God is w~/ you always

-believe that He’ll pull you out of the miry clay

-stay in communion w~/ Him

 

 

Summary

Exodus 17:1-7

On the 15th day of the second month, or about 45 days after leaving Egypt, the Israelites are running out of water and begin to complain to Moses.

This is not the 1st time they’ve started complaining; they complained earlier in the wilderness of Sin that they had no food and so God provided manna and quals for them to eat.

Now, however, they’ve traveled to Rephidim (????how many miles from Sin???) and there was no water to drink.

Its recorded that the number of men that left Egypt was 600,000 and if you add women and children, the entire Jewish population numbered well over 2 million people wandering in the desert.

So, here they are, in the middle of the desert, no water and complaining to Moses that he should have never taken them up out of  the land of Egypt.

They would rather be in bondage than to put their total faith in God to deliver them up and out.

So when all this complaining and murmuring begins, Moses takes it God; and He tells Moses to take the Elders of the people, cross over and away from the flock and bring the Rod that he used to divide the Red Sea.

When he comes to the place where God has told him to go, God says to go to the rock and strike it once and water shall come forth.

He promised Moses that He would dwell or abide there before the rock while it was being struck.

So, Moses did as instructed in the sight of the Elders and water came forth enough to fill all the men women children and livestock of Israel.

Numbers 20:

[Numbers is named such because this book represents a tally or census taken by Aaron and later by Aaron’s son to count up the total number of men available for battle (minus the priestly tribe of Levite) ]

Now, here it is some 38 years later.

They are in the desert  of Zin and they stopped at Kadesh to rest.

The people are finally nearing the end of their destination and are about to enter into the land promised them by God.  Almost all of the old generation that originally came up out of Egypt is dead except for Moses, Aaaron, Joshua and Caleb.

Miriam had just passed.

Therefore, every single one of the rest of people had grown up and been sustained by the grace of God their entire lives.

God had given them quals on numerous occasions, and they were still being supplied w~/ Manna daily.

Their clothes had been sustained for all that time.

Their mothers and fathers had told them about God and the miracles He performed both while in Egypt as well as during the Exodus from bondage.

We are all living and continuing only by the grace of God but these people would literally be dead if not for God providing for them each and everyday.

Yet, here they are; once again complaining to Moses and wondering why they were ever brought out of Egypt.

In fact, they go so far as to say they wished they had died when their 3000 brethern had died in idolatry when Moses came down off the mountain.

So once again, Moses takes the problem before God.

When troubles arise and everyone around you seems to be against you, seems to be looking at you funny, seems to be talking about you behind your back, wishing nothing but harm on your life, don’t fall down defeated, fall down at the foot of the King and believe that the Rock will see you out of every situation.

Just as before, God instructed Moses in what to do to provide for the needs of the people.

However, this time He didn’t tell Moses to take just the Elders before the rock, He didn’t tell Moses to tap the rock; rather He said to go before the congregation and speak to the rock and it shall bring forth water to fill and sustain everyone who has need.

Moses goes before the people just as God had instructed but here’s where he goes wrong.

Rather than following out the instructions of God, Moses shouts out to the people in anger and says, “here now, ye rebels; must we fetch water for you out of this rock?”

Moses had messed up.

How many know that God is outside of time and space and what He does to instruct in one situation He can use to teach in another situation?

In the situation of His chosen people being out in the dessert, God provided for the people by making water come out of the rock but at the same time, God was giving His New Testament children and later His church children an image of His son Jesus Christ.

God had Moses to strike the rock the first time to signify the death of Christ on the cross.

The work is finished.

When the exact same situation came up some 38 years later, rather than Moses following God’s command, he did what worked the first time.

God was so angry w~/ him that he told both he and Aaron that they would not see the promised land that they’d been working so long to get to.

It wasn’t until some 14 centuries later that Moses finally stood in the promised land w~/ Christ.

God’s anger came from the fact that he struck the rock.

Christ is our rock and since He’s been crucified before, we don’t have to crucify Him again.