Beyond the Wilderness: Finding Christ in the Trials of Exodus

[00:05:13] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:05:13] The Shack of Bethany, Moses, See that promised land no longer sleeps.
[00:05:24] No, the fear is talking, No, I can't take out my faith.

[00:05:28] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:05:28] I'm gonna pray, I'm gonna pray, I praise the mount.
[00:05:36] I wanna break my faith.

[00:06:01] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:06:01] Sleep like Daniel in the lions, Just like Jericho.

[00:06:10] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:06:10] I'm gonna live like I've got no more precious time to waste.

[00:08:14] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:08:14] Gonna give Him glory, with all my thanks.
[00:08:19] No greater, stronger, higher name, and that's who I praise.

[00:08:24] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:08:24] Good morning, Watermark! It is so great to see you on this kind of cold, drippy morning.
[00:08:36] My name is Krista, and I'm so glad you came to worship with us today.
[00:08:41] Let's talk about a few things coming up around here at Watermark.
[00:08:45] First up, we are launching another baby bottle campaign.
[00:08:49] So as you head out today, if you would like to grab one of those cute little empty baby bottles from the cart in the lobby, you're welcome to do so.
[00:08:56] They can be filled with coins, cash, checks, and all of those proceeds will support our local pregnancy centers. Next up, we are looking forward to another worship and baptism night on Friday, January 23rd, 530 to 7. We always start off the night with a light meal, then we'll celebrate
[00:09:18] together in Believer's Baptism and end the evening worshiping together as a church family.
[00:09:24] For any of you who have not yet been baptized, this is a crucial, huge step in your faith journey.
[00:09:31] I know Pastor Joel would love to chat with you, so please don't hesitate to reach out.
[00:09:36] Next up, any of you who are newer to Watermark, please check out Testing the Water on Sunday, January 25th.
[00:09:44] This is a great opportunity to learn more about our church, our ministries, meet our staff.
[00:09:49] Lunch and childcare are provided, so scan that QR code.
[00:09:54] in your bulletin to sign up. Last but not least, I'm going to turn it over to Cori Van Dyke.
[00:10:00] She is our Children's Ministry Director and my sister. She has a little message for us.

[00:10:09] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:10:09] Cori Van Dyke here. Just wanted to let you know about some ways that you can make an impression and leave a mark for Jesus Christ's sake right here at church with Watermarks Youngest. Kidsport is an amazing ministry and we have plenty of ways that you can serve and jump on in in the new year.
[00:10:26] so please check out your bulletin insert for more information. Thanks everyone!

[00:10:31] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:10:31] Don't forget the wonder of how you brought deliverance, the exodus of my heart. Cause you found me, you freed me, held back the waters from my release.
[00:10:59] Oh Yahweh Let's sing this promise together You're the God who fights for me Lord of every victory Hallelujah I've torn up the sea Today a sign that you are with me A guiding light to my feet
[00:11:49] Egypt, Utah, Vietnam Into the forever

[00:14:12] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:14:12] Praise of all of our gratitude

[00:22:20] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:22:20] thank you for the way that you love us, for the way that you watch over us and take care of us, even when we can never earn it or deserve it. Lord, thank you for sending your son to die for
[00:22:33] us when we could never deserve it, so that we could spend eternity with you, face to face, worshiping you. That is such a blessing, and I pray that we never take it for granted.
[00:22:46] Lord, we love you. You are so, so good. In every season, in every circumstance, we love you and you are good lord thank you for this chance to come together and to worship you this morning to glorify you to fellowship with one another and learn more about you through your word
[00:23:06] god i just pray that your presence would be in this room during our service that you would be touching the hearts and the lives in this place today and it's in your name we pray amen well good

[00:23:42] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[00:23:42] morning wow it's great to see y'all we'll see you in just a minute there y'all are everybody doing good today. Hey, do y'all think it's going to snow later? Oh, I hear some hope out there. Maybe it
[00:23:55] will. You know, some people were telling me earlier today, hey, have you seen the app? There might be snow this afternoon. We'll see. You know, it's tough to come by around here, right? And we just
[00:24:04] don't get much of it. But hey, so we're continuing this series today that we started a long time ago.
[00:24:11] In fact, we're in part 13 now in this series. We're calling Moses. We're navigating life's challenges, we're following God's will, and maybe you've heard it said that those who forget the past are destined to repeat it. Have you ever heard that? Anybody in here heard that? Yeah,
[00:24:29] it's kind of a common phrase. I think it's very important, in other words, to remember that, you know, what we did wrong in the past, we don't want to repeat again, right? We don't want to make
[00:24:38] any mistakes like that in the past because we'll experience the same sad and devastating consequences. So that's true for all of us. It's kind of a life principle. It's actually a biblical principle, believe it or not. And the Lord was really trying to teach the Israelites the same
[00:24:54] thing. We see that that's absolutely true for them in the same way it's true for us.
[00:24:59] It's why the Apostle Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 10.1, for I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud that they passed through the sea. In other words, in the New Testament,
[00:25:15] the apostle Paul is reminding the followers of Jesus what God had done in the past. And it was important to remember that for lots of reasons. Paul wanted us to remember that these folks had
[00:25:25] seen God's miraculous work, that they had experienced it firsthand, that they had been led by that pillar of cloud by day, by that pillar of fire at night. They had been led out of Egyptian captivity where they had been for 430 years, right? A long time. They had walked
[00:25:45] directly through the Red Sea on dry ground as the Lord held back the waters in those two magnificent walls. We have it featured in our bumper every single week as a reminder for us throughout this
[00:25:58] series. Yet despite the fact that they had seen God work in such a miraculous way, Paul went on to write this. Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them. Their bodies were scattered in the wilderness. Did you catch that? That even though these people had seen the incredible Red
[00:26:21] Sea miracle, God was not happy with most of them. And as a result, many of them would never get out of that desert alive. In fact, Paul goes on to write in verses 6 and following,
[00:26:34] Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did.
[00:26:42] And do not grumble, he says, as some of them did and were killed by the destroying angel.
[00:26:48] These things happened to them as examples.
[00:26:51] They were written down as warnings for us on whom the culmination of the ages has come.
[00:26:59] So I emphasized a word that we see a couple of times in that passage.
[00:27:04] and that's the word example so what happened to the israelites in the wilderness is to serve as an example for us to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as some of them did and
[00:27:14] to serve as a warning for us so when i read that kind of language in the new testament it causes me to want to look back and understand exactly what these people went through so what in the
[00:27:26] world did the israelites do that we don't want to do we're going to learn a lot more about that in this series by the way and today as well so what we'll learn today as we continue to unpack
[00:27:38] moses remarkable story leading the hebrew people navigating life's challenges following god's will is some of the mistakes that they made in the past that we don't want to repeat going forward so we remember that right but we want to make sure that we don't forget the past lest we're
[00:27:55] destined to repeat it you know some of you you're in danger today because you're setting your hearts on evil things, just like the Israelites did. Others of you are at risk today because you haven't heeded the warnings that God offers us throughout the Israelites' journey in
[00:28:13] the wilderness. Some of you, you're wandering through your own wilderness these days, and you know that God has something to teach you, but you haven't yet figured out what that is. I think others of you are struggling. You're desperately in need of His provision, of His guidance. Like
[00:28:29] the Israelites, you found yourself grumbling or complaining or quarreling. Some of you are in a position of leading folks who do a lot of that, right? Who complain and grumble and maybe quarrel.
[00:28:43] And you'd love to have some insight, some biblical insight for how to lead folks like that.
[00:28:47] So you're going to get some of that today. Here's the truth. No matter where you are in life's journey, no matter where you are in your fate journey, you are not here by accident today.
[00:28:57] I think the Lord has brought you here. He's led you here on purpose and for a purpose.
[00:29:03] He wants to help you to make your way through the wilderness that you'll walk through in your life.
[00:29:09] Some of you are there today. He wants you to learn from the past and he wants you to move forward in faith.
[00:29:17] But before we dig into his word today, let's pray.
[00:29:22] Father, we're always grateful to be in your house with fellow believers.
[00:29:27] to have an opportunity to worship you, to sing these songs of praises to you, God.
[00:29:32] You are worthy of our worship, and for that we are so grateful.
[00:29:37] God, we're also grateful for the opportunity to open your word and to hear what you have for us today, to know what it is you want us to learn from the Israelites' journey out of the Red Sea and into and through the wilderness.
[00:29:51] God, we pray that you open our ears, our hearts, our minds today to hear something fresh and new from his story maybe we've heard many times but God we know that you have something for us today so God teach us teach us what
[00:30:05] it is you want us to know we pray it in Jesus holy and precious name amen so what do you do when you're in a really good mood when you're in a great place in life you're in a great space in life you're feeling really good about you
[00:30:21] know the trajectory of your life things are going well you know if your life like me, and you find yourself in the car alone, driving along, maybe you flip on Caleb, right?
[00:30:32] You get a worship song blaring, and then you just start singing along, right? As loud as you can.
[00:30:38] And you come to a stoplight, and there's a car beside you, and you look over there, and the person's looking back at you with a kind of a funny grin on their face. You give them an old
[00:30:48] nod, and then you sing all the louder, right? You know, don't you love to be at that place in your life? You know, that's where the Israelites were when they came through the Red Sea. They were
[00:30:59] in this season of really exhilaration and exuberance and enthusiasm. And so they're singing these worship songs. In fact, this is exactly what happens in chapter 15 of the first 21 verses of Exodus 15. They're offering these worship songs to God, thanking Him for what He's
[00:31:17] done in their lives. Take a look at verses 1 and 2. Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord. I won't sing it for you, but you can put it to music later. I will sing to the Lord
[00:31:28] for he is highly exalted, both horse and driver. He is hurled into the sea. The Lord is my strength.
[00:31:36] He is my defense. He has become my salvation. He is my God and I will praise him. So that's where the Israelites were. Maybe you've been there as a believer. In fact, I think we all have.
[00:31:49] You know, riding that spiritual high, that euphoria, that exuberance when life is good.
[00:31:55] When God's at work in your life and it is so evident.
[00:31:59] And even if you aren't much of a singer, in those moments you may feel compelled to sing, right?
[00:32:05] Especially, again, if you're alone in your car, right?
[00:32:08] You can do that.
[00:32:09] And by the way, if you haven't broken out in a worship song like that or tuned into a worship station like Caleb, maybe you should.
[00:32:16] The Lord deserves your praise.
[00:32:18] He is worthy of your worship, and not just in this place and space.
[00:32:22] The Israelites wanted to worship Him.
[00:32:26] So again, in the first 21 verses of Exodus chapter 15, and you can read the rest of those on your own this week, and I hope you will, you'll see really the lyrics to their worship song,
[00:32:36] recounting what God had done in their lives.
[00:32:40] There's a spiritual truth for us, a life lesson I want you to write down here.
[00:32:44] and that is singing worship songs is really a natural expression of our heart's desire to praise God for what he's done in our lives you know it's why singing praise songs is such a vital part of
[00:32:57] the corporate worship experience every single week it's why we come into this place you know it's not just a setup for me that's not what it's designed for I'm not the special attraction here the first part of this service is just as important as this part because it gives us
[00:33:12] an opportunity to offer corporate praise to God. And Harriet, her team, Samantha today, and Katie, and Michael do an amazing job of leading us in worship. We are so blessed to be led by a team
[00:33:27] like that. And we want to offer our Lord the praise that He richly deserves. Following the example of the Israelites, they got this right, but they would start to stumble, and soon enough. You know,
[00:33:41] here's the truth it's easy to praise God when life is going really good right but it's not as easy when life's not going so good and some of you come in a place like this and you may not be feeling it but you know what you know for those who
[00:33:58] are mature believers you sing it anyway and you sing it because you know God is present in the good times and the not so good times so after their worship and celebration, here's what happens in verse 22. Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went
[00:34:14] into the desert of Shur. You know, as we talked about at the end of the message last week, we've all been there as believers, haven't we? Having come through the Red Sea of redemption in our own lives, being delivered from the sin that plagues all of us through faith in Jesus
[00:34:33] Christ as Savior and Lord of our lives. And there is great joy in that moment when you receive Jesus as Savior and Lord of your life. It's often outwardly expressed in baptism. Believers, baptism. So those who experience that know what I'm talking about. You see people who are baptized
[00:34:52] as a believer and come up out of that water, and they're feeling it in that moment. That's the time when they want to break out in song of worship. And in fact, that's why we come in here and worship
[00:35:01] for a little while after that and by the way we're going to be celebrating believers baptism here this Friday so if you have not yet been baptized as a believer why not take that step and this
[00:35:15] week you can see me afterwards or email me I'd love to talk with you more about what that means it's a very important expression of our faith so we'll do that again on Friday but after that
[00:35:27] joyous, you know, new life begins. It's marking a new life in Jesus Christ. We quickly figure out that we're going to endure some wilderness experiences. We're going to walk through the desert in life. And given time, we'll discover that it's the Lord who led us to that desert.
[00:35:46] And on purpose and for a purpose, as we'll see today. Because here's the truth. That journey can be jarring it can be challenging again as we'll see in the Israelites experience yet God continues to guide us and to provide for us to protect us just as he did for them so the Lord
[00:36:08] led the Hebrew people to the desert of Shur and later they'll make their way to the desert of Zin and then along the way they'll land in an oasis called Elam and we know where the Lord is
[00:36:21] taking them but the question is why because they seem to be as you'll see today on this scenic route to the promised land to canaan so why didn't he just lead them directly to canaan after all
[00:36:36] couldn't the god who brought them through the red sea in the way he did not take them on the short road to the promised land and the answer is sure he could do that and it would be awesome right
[00:36:48] And it would also be awesome for you and me if once we trusted Christ as Savior and Lord of our life, that we faced no battles, that we faced no challenges, and no conflict, and no suffering,
[00:37:00] that we know nothing of what it means to grow in maturity in our faith.
[00:37:04] Wouldn't that be wonderful?
[00:37:06] Instead, we just miraculously land in God's heaven at the moment of our decision to accept Jesus as Savior and Lord of our lives.
[00:37:13] Of course, though it's possible, that's unrealistic.
[00:37:17] And it's not the way the Lord has crafted our journey.
[00:37:22] You know, the truth is, we're all going to walk through the wilderness in life and throughout life.
[00:37:28] Those trials, those challenges that we face help us to develop a taste for our eternal home in God's heaven.
[00:37:36] But why else would the Lord have us walk through the wilderness?
[00:37:40] Why would He have us take this scenic, though often treacherous, route through life?
[00:37:46] You might write this down because some of you are looking for an answer here.
[00:37:50] And here's what I think the Bible teaches us.
[00:37:53] That God takes us through the wilderness in life to test us, to strengthen us.
[00:37:58] And you might also add to humble us.
[00:38:02] Here's what his word says in Deuteronomy 8.2.
[00:38:05] Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these 40 years.
[00:38:10] To humble, to test you in order to know what was in your heart.
[00:38:16] whether or not you would keep his commands you know you think about that you know some of what you go through in life it is a test a lot of it is a test it's clear that the wilderness experiences
[00:38:27] we endure in light for a test of faith to see where we're going to stay faithful or not whether we really believe what we say we believe or not in our heart of hearts and by the way your heart is
[00:38:37] is where your deepest desires dwell and those experiences they also develop our faith muscles and without the heavy lifting wilderness trials that we go through our faith wouldn't be strong it would be puny you take away the challenges and the desert experiences and we're just a bunch of
[00:38:56] spiritual wimps we're a bunch of weaklings and God wants more for you than that he wants more for me than that and as hard as those experiences are they grow us and they develop us into the men
[00:39:09] and women of faith that God longs for us to be you know I picked up some really good insight this week in my study on this passage from Chuck Swindoll's commentary. I've referenced it a lot
[00:39:18] in this series. And Swindoll talks about this cycle of spiritual growth that the Lord takes us through in life and that we see from the Israelites and their personal journey. And Swindoll knows that there are five parts to this spiritual growth cycle that he takes the Israelites through
[00:39:37] and that he takes you and me through in life now as we walk through these cycles very quickly and then we'll look at some examples i want you to think about your life and the wilderness
[00:39:49] experiences you've walked through and see if you haven't been through this cycle the first i think the first part of this cycle is abundance it's abundance it's where the israelites were in their journey coming out of the red sea into the wilderness in exodus 15 1 through 21 they're
[00:40:06] on that spiritual high, right? They've got their radio tuned to K-Love and their chariots. Do they have chariots? You know, whatever. But they're singing these praises because they're feeling great about where they are in life. They were, as we said last week, looking up. It's a great place
[00:40:24] to be in your journey. But there's more to the journey than just abundance. You see, the second part of this cycle of spiritual growth is expectation. So when the Israelites experienced abundance, you know what? They expected more abundance. They, you know, their expectations
[00:40:43] became elevated. They had experienced God's blessing. Now they expected more blessing and only blessing. And if we aren't careful, we'll hem God in just like that. You know, we can get to place in our faith journey where he's shown us such blessing that we began to believe that it
[00:41:02] is our right to receive more and more from him that we're entitled to those blessings and we expect them that's a dangerous place to be because it's unrealistic and it wouldn't benefit us you know the israelites had experienced god's abundance now they expected nothing but abundance and
[00:41:21] blessing which leads us to the third part of this cycle and spiritual growth you know what it is yep disappointment I see at this point the Israelites are no longer looking up there they're looking down in despair and you can see this
[00:41:37] cycle kind of play itself out in verse 22 take a look then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea that's abundance and they went into the desert of shore that's expectation and then for three days they traveled in the desert without
[00:41:53] finding water that's disappointment so they start looking around at their circumstances they quickly become disappointed you ever been there you know hey some of you are there right now and you're hoping for a way out the
[00:42:08] Israelites needed water and the desert is a bad place to be without water so they're getting now disappointed and probably a little dehydrated, right? So they finally find some water. That's the good news. The bad news is they can't drink it. Look at verse 23. When they
[00:42:27] came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. That's why the place is called Marah. It's brackish water. There's no way to drink it. So what do you think happens next in
[00:42:39] this cycle you move from disappointment to complaining right to grumbling and verse 24 so the people grumbled against Moses and they said what are we to drink you ever been there complaining so the Israelites found themselves complaining we'll talk about why in just a minute
[00:43:01] you know a number of years ago probably 20 years ago we used to go to the beach a lot when my kids were younger and we were on our way for one of those trips one summer and we got
[00:43:12] out in the middle of nowhere you know that space where is it probably between Bennettsville and somewhere and it's just no man's land so you're out there and there's not a store anywhere in either direction for a few miles and
[00:43:25] that's where we were when my little minivan broke down and so here we are sitting out there thank goodness I got a enough signal on my cell phone to call triple a so we're waiting for them to show up and tow this thing and then we got to figure out now
[00:43:40] what are we going to do right so we're out there it's a hundred degrees in the shade and there was no shade where we were and the kids were getting thirsty and my youngest was probably seven or
[00:43:51] eight at the time and i just remember him whining and complaining incessantly i said laurie do we have any water she said we got a half a bottle half a bottle of water i said okay that'll work
[00:44:03] let's give him some of that. So I handed it to him. I said, here you go, fella. He takes it and he turns it up and he pours it all over the top of his head. Like, what are you doing? You know,
[00:44:15] it's one of those moments, no, in slow motion. You've been there, right? With your kids.
[00:44:22] What are we going to do? I hope this AAA guy finds us and quickly, because we're going to die out here and of course the kids are pointing at me and blaming me because the car is broken down
[00:44:35] so who am I feeling like in that moment I like old Moses right but thank God I only had four of them pointing their fingers at me he had two million and he was struggling and he felt terrible
[00:44:48] and I was feeling his pain but you know what God does you know by the way eventually that triple things showed up we got the car fixed and we we made our way on down to the
[00:44:58] beach was a good week and that's the fifth part of this cycle of spiritual growth is provision this is simply God's grace it's God given us what we don't deserve you see God steps in when we're whining when we're complaining and it
[00:45:14] gives us what we desperately need in that moment that's what God did for the Israelites look at verse 25 then Moses cried out to the Lord and the Lord showed him a piece of wood then he threw it into the water and the water became fit to drink and there the Lord issued a
[00:45:30] ruling and instruction for them and he note this put them to the test those five words matter they answer a very important question for us you know what the question is what did the Lord did
[00:45:44] do to the Israelites in the wilderness? The answer is, He put them to the test.
[00:45:51] That's why He had them in the desert to begin with, to test them. You see, God doesn't walk any of us through the wilderness for no reason. He always takes us through the wilderness on purpose and for a purpose. So if you're in the wilderness today and you're thinking,
[00:46:10] why am I here? I know the answer to test you. So then the Lord makes a wonderful promise to the Israelites. And notice that when God makes promises in his word, they're often associated with some
[00:46:24] premises or conditions. And here it's very clear. Here are the conditions, the premise to receive God's promise. He said, if you listen carefully to the Lord, your God, if you do what is right in his eyes if you pay attention to his commands if you keep
[00:46:40] all of his decrees I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians for I am the Lord who heals you I love that you know the Lord tells him look if you honor me
[00:46:53] if you obey me I'll take care of you I'll protect you and I'll provide for you and I want you to Watch what he does next in verse 27.
[00:47:03] Then they came to Elam, where there were 12 springs and 70 palm trees, and they camped there near the water.
[00:47:13] Isn't that amazing?
[00:47:15] The Lord led them to this oasis He provided for them.
[00:47:21] So this first test, this first cycle of spiritual growth is complete for the Israelites.
[00:47:28] but to be clear their journeys far from over this won't be the first test for them right by the way this is the way the Lord works in your life too in my life he continues to test us again and again and every time we find ourselves
[00:47:45] in the wilderness we're gonna find ourselves working through this spiritual growth cycle this is how the Lord grows us is how he matures us and it never stops in life. It's critical. It's an essential part of your faith journey. And this growth cycle
[00:48:03] would continue for the Israelites. So in the balance of our time this morning, we're going to look very quickly at three illustrations or examples of this growth cycle. It's captured in Exodus 16 through verse 7 of 17. And by the way, if you've ever found yourself grumbling in life,
[00:48:20] this these tests are going to speak to you and who among us hasn't grumbled in life right so the first test is this is the test of time take a look at verses 1 through 3 of exodus 16 the whole
[00:48:36] israelite community set out from elam and they came to the desert of zen which is between elam and sinai on the 15th day of the second month after they had come out of egypt in the desert
[00:48:49] the whole community grumbled against moses and aaron the israelites said to them if only we had died by the lord's hand in egypt there we sat around pots of meat and we ate all the food we
[00:49:03] wanted but you brought us out into the desert to starve this entire assembly to death sounded like my family that day in that minivan right if you do the math if you do the math it's pretty simple
[00:49:16] math here they've been out there um from the red sea into the desert now first of sure and then uh to elam and now into the desert of zen it's pronounced z-e-n though it's spelled s-i-n they've
[00:49:29] been out there for 45 days so it took them just three days initially to find water so the lord took them through that cycle pretty quickly now their expectations are really high and it's been
[00:49:42] six weeks since they've had a good meal and they're starting to get hangry, right? But that's not the only reason they're complaining. Do you know why they started grumbling here? The answer is in verse three. Go back and look at that. We had plenty of food in Egypt. We should have just
[00:50:01] stayed there. They're complaining because they're looking back. See, here's the truth. When we focus on the past then complaints aren't far behind memories can get rosy with the passage of time we forget the struggles and instead we focus on the comforts of
[00:50:21] the past and before you know it we start grumbling about today comparing always leads to despairing by the way have you ever noticed that life was always better back then and even if that's true and it probably is in a lot of cases focusing
[00:50:37] on that doesn't help us today it only leads to grumbling and more grumbling and that's what happened with the Israelites and it's making everyone miserable including Moses truth is we do the same thing don't we forgetting you
[00:50:54] know the past we find ourselves grumbling because we're fixated on the past and the truth is you know a few years from now you'll be looking back on this time and remembering, ah, you know, those were the days, right? But isn't God still working
[00:51:10] today in the same way that he worked yesterday? In the same way that he worked last month or last year? Of course he is. So just because you went through a test 45 days ago, or because you went
[00:51:22] through a test 45 months ago, or because you're going through a test 45, you know, went through 145 years ago right it doesn't exempt you from a test today and God continues to test you and he'll continue to test me over time to grow us to mature us to
[00:51:38] strengthen us to humble us that was his plan for the Israelites then and it's his plan for you and me now so these tests of time they're never easy but God never said that they would be in fact Jesus made clear in this world we will
[00:51:55] have trouble, right? But he goes on to say, take heart, I've overcome the world. And the tests that we face in life are always challenging, even grueling. But without them, we would miss God's grace, his provision, and the growth that comes through them. There's a second test that God
[00:52:13] shows us here, and that's his test of hunger. Even in their whining, their complaining, they're grumbling the Lord graciously met their need as only he could take a look at verse 4 then the Lord said to Moses I'll rain down bread from heaven for you the people are to go out each
[00:52:32] day and gather enough for that day and this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions you notice what God did here he graciously he miraculously answered the Israelites need for food, but at the same time, he created a whole new test for them. Did you catch it? That's
[00:52:53] the way the Lord works in our lives. It's the way he'll work in yours. He may show you a way out of a predicament, as we talked about last week. Then after we take that path, he creates a completely
[00:53:03] new set of tests for us. He just does that. New trials. We move from one wilderness dilemma to another. That's what the Israelites did. So take a look at verses six and following. So Moses and
[00:53:15] Aaron said to the Israelites, in the evening, you will know that it was the Lord who brought you out of Egypt. And in the morning, you'll see the glory of the Lord because he has heard your grumbling
[00:53:25] against him. Who are we that you should grumble against us? Moses also said, you will know that it was the Lord when he gives you meat to eat in the evening and all the bread you want in the
[00:53:36] morning because he has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we? You're not grumbling against us, but against the Lord. You know, so Moses didn't pull any punches here, did he?
[00:53:49] And he made really clear to the Israelites that though they were directing their grumbling toward him, toward Aaron, that it was not them who led them to where they are. It was the Lord. He led
[00:54:01] them by the pillar of cloud, by the pillar of fire. They were where they were because he led them there. None of this is a surprise to him. None of this is an accident. There's an important
[00:54:15] truth here for you and me. And I want you to note this. This is very, some of you, you need to hear this. Wherever you find yourself in life, the circumstances you're in, you remember the Lord
[00:54:26] led you there. Whether you believe he caused it, whether you believe he allowed it, you are where you are on purpose and for a purpose so when you start complaining about your circumstances those complaints will land directly at his feet some of you you made complaining you made
[00:54:49] grumbling an art form you know we're masters of whining or masters of complaining and even when the Lord graciously meets our needs we find something wrong with that so that we can keep the grumbling going, right? Have you ever noticed that? And maybe you've been like that. Maybe you've
[00:55:06] been around someone like that and no elbowing the person beside you, right? You know, the Lord provides manna. The Lord provides a quail for us, but instead we wanted fresh sourdough bread. We wanted ribeyes. And God's just left shaking his head. You know, do you think God ever shakes his
[00:55:23] head at you? You know, I'm sure he has at me, but I don't want to cause him to do that. And I don't think you do either. So I want you to look at verses 13 and following. That evening quail came
[00:55:35] and covered the camp and in the morning there was there was a layer of dew around the camp and when the dew was gone thin flakes like frost on the ground appeared on the desert floor
[00:55:46] and when the Israelites saw it they said to each other what is it for they didn't know what it was and what was it? Sounds like frosted flakes doesn't it? That's what it sounds like a little bit and
[00:55:58] read some of the description of what it was and it also described it in the past when I've spoken on this text I describe it as a like a vanilla wafer right I think they call them Nilla's now for truth and advertising right and by the
[00:56:11] way my daughter-in-law Brandi says that's a very underrated cookie right Brandi you know we talked about that the other night after suppers great dinner conversation what's an underrated cookie what's an overrated cookie we decided a
[00:56:25] vanilla wafers really underrated but the the Israelites didn't love it right they didn't love this but they had it for 40 years in verse 35 the Israelites ate manna 40 years until they came to the land that was settled they ate manna
[00:56:39] until they reached the border of Canaan you talk about God's gracious abundance but again guess why the Israelites didn't love it in fact would you believe they eventually started complaining about that manna and about that quail any idea why you guessed
[00:56:59] it they compared it what they had had in the past they they weren't looking up they were looking back and so they started grumbling take a look at verses five and six of numbers 11 you may or may
[00:57:12] not have ever read this we remember the fish we ate in egypt at no cost by the way also the cucumbers the melons the leeks the onions the garlic but now we've lost our appetite
[00:57:24] we never see anything but this manna right that's what grumblers do you know they they gripe till they get what they want and then when they get it they want something else you ever notice that it's an ungrateful it's an ungodly response
[00:57:42] kind of a fleshly response to to be honest God graciously he abundantly provides, but it's not exactly what we want. So we grumble about it. We may fail that hunger test more times than we want to admit. Some of you may be failing it right now, but you can turn that
[00:58:00] around today. So the last test we'll look at is this test of thirst. The whole Israelite community says in verses 1 and 2 of Exodus 17, they had set out from the desert of sin. They were traveling
[00:58:13] from place to place as the Lord commanded.
[00:58:16] They camped at Rephidim.
[00:58:18] But there was no water for the people to drink.
[00:58:20] They'd been there before, right?
[00:58:21] This time they quarreled with Moses.
[00:58:24] They said, give us water to drink.
[00:58:28] Now this is a really strong ask.
[00:58:31] Their grumbling has escalated here to quarreling.
[00:58:36] And in the original language, quarreling is a much stronger word than grumbling.
[00:58:42] So they've advanced beyond questioning now to threatening.
[00:58:46] They're angrily demanding that Moses give them water.
[00:58:49] But Moses points them right back to the Lord.
[00:58:52] He replies, why do you quarrel with me?
[00:58:54] Why do you put the Lord to the test?
[00:58:57] So Moses did what any strong spiritual leader would do at this point.
[00:59:03] He begins to turn the people's eyes toward the Lord.
[00:59:06] That's what we try to do every week at Watermark, by the way.
[00:59:09] we want to focus our eyes our thoughts our hearts on the Lord and Moses wanted the Israelites to focus not on him not on their circumstances but on the Lord that's what we're about but they won't
[00:59:22] listen it's a tough crowd look at verses 3 and following but the people were thirsty for water there and they grumbled against Moses they said why did why did you bring us up out of Egypt to
[00:59:34] make us and our children and our livestock die of thirst. Moses knows how these people are.
[00:59:42] So he turns to the Lord for help and for guidance. By the way, this is a good, you know, leadership tool. And when it's over your head, above your pay grade, you got to take it to the Lord, right?
[00:59:53] So Moses cries out to the Lord, what am I going to do with these people? You know, they're almost ready to stone me. And let's be clear, Moses isn't exaggerating here. This is not hyperbole.
[01:00:04] these people are literally ready to stone him so what does the Lord do in the midst of their disappointment and they're complaining he graciously provides and in abundance take a look the Lord answered Moses you go out in
[01:00:20] front of the people you take with you some of the elders of Israel you take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile and you go I will stand there before you by the rock adored you strike the rock and water will come out
[01:00:33] of it for the people to drink so Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel and he called the place Massa and Meribah because the Israelites quarreled and because they tested the Lord saying is the Lord among us or not you know
[01:00:50] why they were grumbling here and quarreling because they began to doubt whether God was really with them in that moment you see note this grumbling and and quarreling often stemmed from doubt that god is really with you isn't that what was going on
[01:01:09] here with the israelites they questioned whether the lord was really there and of course he graciously revealed that he was and and moses didn't want them to forget that either which is why massa means testing meribah means quarreling he named that exactly what it was
[01:01:25] you see this is an important truth that the lord wants you to know today that he is with you there's no need to grumble and even when you're in the midst of that wilderness and especially when you find yourself in that place and some of you are there today
[01:01:42] you've been grumbling you've been complaining you've been whining about it and maybe you're you know pointing the finger at other people in the same way the israelites were but understand you're there because the lord wants you there and he has you there for a reason you're there
[01:02:00] on purpose and for a purpose and he never wants you to forget that he is with you there's one last truth i want you to write down that god doesn't want us to just endure test he wants us
[01:02:12] to learn from them and god has a way of using those tests to teach us that christ-like characteristic of humility and humility is learned best when we are tried and when we are tested amen
[01:02:29] so maybe that's what the Lord's doing with you right now maybe you've been asking that question again and again in your life why am I here why I'm in in this place in this wilderness I don't want to be here what are you up to Lord
[01:02:43] and God will show you and he will teach you but at the end of the day you are there to be tested to see whether you're gonna trust him or not so what's the answer you know some of you are in that place and space in your life where you
[01:03:01] recognize you need deliverance. You need deliverance from sin that has plagued you for far too long, and you're ready to surrender your life to Jesus Christ, that God has made a way for you. And maybe today is that day for you when you'll be honest with God and say, God, I've
[01:03:16] been far from you. I've never trusted in you. I've never trusted in Christ to save me, and I want to do that. I want to do that today. I want to start my faith journey. I want to be in that place of
[01:03:28] exhilaration and enthusiasm, excitement. I want a new life, Christ. I want to invite you to stand on your feet. I'm going to pray for you and with you, and then we're going to sing and close in a
[01:03:40] song of worship. God, we love you so much. We're so grateful for your word and for what it teaches us. God, we thank you for being with us every step of the way. The journey that we go through in life
[01:03:54] and God even in the wilderness and especially in the wilderness God help all of us to know today that you are with us that we can look up to you to not be overwhelmed by our
[01:04:06] circumstances, to not look around at that or anyone else but God to look to you, to trust you, to prove to you that our heart is with you we're going to obey you we're going to be led by you
[01:04:19] and God we want to be protected by you we know that you'll provide for us.
[01:04:24] So do what only you can do, God, in the lives of every person in this room and watching today.
[01:04:31] And God, for the one in this room or watching who says, I'm a sinner in need of a Savior, I know it's Jesus Christ.
[01:04:38] And today I want to place my faith and trust in Him.
[01:04:40] I want a new life in Christ.
[01:04:44] And God, I just thank you for saving me.
[01:04:47] I thank you for the blood that was shed for me by Jesus on Calvary's cross.
[01:04:50] I know that he died there to pay my sins penalty of death and so I place my faith and trust in him as Savior I want him to lead me as Lord teach me what that means every day
[01:05:03] God you are worthy you are wonderful and we worship you in Jesus name Amen

[01:05:11] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[01:05:11] thinking about those words

[01:11:33] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[01:11:33] as we were singing them you know worthy you were worthy you are forever you will be you know one thing about remembering the past is yes we want we want to make sure we remember it so we don't repeat the mistakes of the past but we also want
[01:11:49] to remember who God was so that we know who God is today and who God will be in the future and always and forever he is worthy of our praise he's worthy of our adoration for those of you
[01:12:04] are walking today through a very dark place, a wilderness place, a desert experience, you know, believe, trust that God is with you, that He has not forsaken you, nor will He ever. Amen?
[01:12:21] Amen. If you're here today and a while ago you prayed that prayer to receive Jesus as your Savior and Lord, then I want you to come and tell me about that. I want to celebrate that with you.
[01:12:33] I want to talk with you about next steps in your faith journey.
[01:12:36] If you're here today and you say, as a believer, I've never been baptized, but I want to be.
[01:12:41] I want to experience that.
[01:12:42] If that's you, come see me.
[01:12:44] We'll talk about that.
[01:12:45] We'll try to get you in on Friday.
[01:12:47] I think we can.
[01:12:48] Guys, thank you so much for being here today.
[01:12:51] I hope you'll be with us on Friday evening at 530.
[01:12:53] We'll have a meal, and then we'll celebrate baptism at 6, and we'll be in here to celebrate and worship following that.
[01:13:00] So I hope you'll come join us.
[01:13:02] Let me say a word of prayer and we'll be on our way.
[01:13:06] Our Father, we thank you again so much for the opportunity that we've had to be together today to be able to worship you, to sing these praises to you in the same way the Israelites did
[01:13:17] when they came through that Red Sea.
[01:13:20] God, you are so wonderful.
[01:13:22] You are so worthy and we worship you.
[01:13:26] God, we thank you for your word, the promises that are there for us.
[01:13:30] And we pray, God, that as we leave this place today, will be encouraged we will know believe trust that you are with us always and forever and you are with us in jesus christ who saved us who is lord of our lives as we leave here today let us
[01:13:46] make an impression and leave a mark for him we pray it in his glorious his redemptive his holy name and all god's children said amen blessings