Walk in the Spirit

After finishing university, with a masters degree in Teaching English as a Foreign Language, I was preparing to teach English in a foreign land. Through a process of research and talking with various friends and contacts I decided to move to the country of Turkey. I had a few different contacts in Turkey and was being encouraged by several different people to move to the capital city of Ankara. English teaching jobs were readily available all over Turkey in those days and I planned to get settled in the land before choosing a job.

In preparation for finding a place to live in Turkey I sent an email to a friend of a friend in Ankara an inquired about housing. This particular person wrote me back with an option of staying in one particular apartment and I replied by email inquiring about some of the details and costs. I never heard back from that person again. I then received another name and an email of someone living in Ankara through a friend and had the same exact experience. I received one email with some sketchy details, replied back, and then never heard from that person again. What was going on?

This situation take place some years ago when email was still somewhat new and online real estate was almost non-existent, especially in Turkey. After the second contact didn’t respond for a couple of weeks I was beginning to wonder about how best to proceed. I was in America at that time and I felt a bit helpless arriving in a new country without a place to stay. I was sharing my situation with some friends one day and one of them made the statement: “Maybe God doesn’t want you to go to Ankara. Maybe God is sending you to a different city in Turkey.”

I hadn’t really thought about it from this perspective, however after this friend mentioned the “God option,” I thought it was wise to consider it. I prayed about the city and place God wanted me to go to and considered Istanbul. I contacted a few different friends again regarding Istanbul and sent a couple of emails to people there. I had an immediate open door with two families in Istanbul. I moved to Istanbul.

Understanding situations from God’s perspective is not always easy. We strive to know God, to understand His Word, to hear His voice, and to discern His will in various situations in life. Sometimes God’s direction is made clear to us and sometimes it is not clear at all. We must always strive to walk with God by His Spirit and not limit ourselves to what we know and see in the natural. There is a good example of this in this week’s Torah Portion.

Chukat

This week’s Torah Portion is called “חוקת” – “Chukat” which means “ordinance, law, or statute.” The LORD gave the ordinance of the red heifer to the children of Israel in this week’s Torah Portion. The ashes of the red heifer were to be used as a means of cleansing from the defilement of death.

Immediately after this section on the red heifer we read about the death of Miriam, Moses’ sister, followed by the death of Aaron, Moses’ brother. In between the deaths of Miriam and Aaron we read about a situation where Moses and Aaron struggled to discern the will of the LORD. The unfolding of this story is epic as it relates to the history of the Jewish people, especially in regard to Moses and Aaron.

Complaining in the Camp

The scenario which Moses and Aaron find themselves in the context of this week’s Torah Portion seems like an everyday occurrence in their wilderness travels:

There was no water for the congregation, and they assembled themselves against Moses and Aaron. The people thus contended with Moses and spoke, saying, “If only we had perished when our brothers perished before the LORD! Why then have you brought the LORD’s assembly into this wilderness, for us and our beasts to die here? Why have you made us come up from Egypt, to bring us in to this wretched place? It is not a place of grain or figs or vines or pomegranates, nor is there water to drink.” – Num. 20:2-5

The reality was that there was no water and the people needed water, however, the people also found it convenient to complain about everything else that they were longing for as well. There was discontentment in the camp and the people directed their contention toward Moses.

Moses and Aaron’s first response was wise, they didn’t immediately respond to the people but rather went before the LORD:

Then Moses and Aaron came in from the presence of the assembly to the doorway of the tent of meeting and fell on their faces. – Num. 20:6

When the text says that Moses and Aaron “came in from the presence of the assembly,” it literally states in the Hebrew “ויבוא משה ואהרון מפני הקהל” – “vayavo Moshe ve’Aharon mipneh ha’kahal,” which is literally translated “and Moses and Aaron came from the face of the assembly.”

Facedown Before the LORD

The text literally states that Moses and Aaron came out from “the face of the assembly.” It is a challenge to continue to look into someone’s face and remain calm when they are making accusations against you. Moses and Aaron made a wise and spiritually mature decision to go out from the face of the assembly and turn their faces to the ground at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. Moses and Aaron chose not to react in their flesh against the assembly but rather, sought the face of God in the midst of a potential mutiny.

Walking by the Spirit

There is a valuable lesson here for us to learn from Moses and Aaron’s reaction to the complaining of the assembly of Israel. Each of us has the opportunity to walk by the flesh or by the Holy Spirit every day and throughout the affairs of each day. In agreement with this, we have this exhortation in the New Testament:

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. – Galatians 5:16-17

The Holy Spirit is a gift of the indwelling presence of Yeshua to everyone who believes in Him (John 14:16-26). Believing in Yeshua and receiving His Holy Spirit does not guarantee that one will walk in complete holiness. We must choose to walk by the Holy Spirit. We must choose to resist the desires of the flesh, discern the desire of His Holy Spirit, and walk in the path of the Spirit.

The Path of the LORD

While Moses and Aaron were facedown at the opening of the Tent of Meeting, the LORD appeared to them and spoke directly into this situation with the sons of Israel:

Then the glory of the LORD appeared to them; and the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “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.” – Num. 20:6-8

The instructions of the LORD were clear. Moses was to take the rod which was before the Ark of the Covenant along with his brother Aaron, gather the assembly together, and they were to speak to the rock before the eyes of the people. Water would then gush forth from the rock for the people and the animals to drink.

Deviation from the Path

Although God’s path was clearly laid out before Moses and Aaron, they decided on a different course of action:

So Moses took the rod from before the LORD, just as He had commanded him; And he said to them, “Listen now, you rebels; shall we bring forth water for you out of this rock?” 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. – Num. 20:9-11

Moses took the rod but then called the people “rebels” and struck the rock instead of speaking to it. Why did Moses strike the rock? Why did Moses deviate from the path of the LORD?

Walking in the Power of God

When God first called Moses to lead His people out of Egypt, Moses struggled to trust and believe in God. It was at that time that God told Moses to take his rod, throw it on the ground, and it became a snake. God then told Moses to pick it up by its tail and it became a rod again. This was the first of three signs that God gave to Moses to show the people that God Himself was with Moses and that God had indeed sent him to set the people free.

The rod was more than likely something that Moses used everyday in shepherding the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law. God had Moses take something ordinary and perform a wonder by it. God had Moses perform three separate miracles: one with his rod, one with his hand (which turned leprous), and one with water (which turned into blood) so that the people would believe that God was with Moses (Ex. 4:1-9).

Soon after the children of Israel had come out of Egypt and began their journey in the desert they came to a place where there was no water and quarreled against Moses. The LORD commanded Moses at that time to take his rod and strike the rock and water would come forth. And it happened just like God commanded Moses (Ex. 17:1-7).

Walking by the Flesh

In understanding the history of Moses with using the rod we can understand from a natural perspective that Moses was used to using his rod for his everyday work. Water often flows underground in the desert and can be brought out of the ground and out of the rock by striking it at a place where there is a dripping of water or the growing of a plant. It is possible that Moses made an instinctual act by striking it.

It is also probable that Moses acted according to the past command of the LORD when he struck the rock in Numbers 20 instead of speaking to it. Although striking the rock was fitting the first time (Ex. 17), it was disobedient on this second occasion when God commanded Moses and Aaron to speak to the rock. Moses did not listen to the voice of the LORD but rather relied on his flesh or his natural instinct when he struck the rock in Numbers 20.

A Continual Walk with the LORD

There is another valuable lesson here for us to learn from the life of Moses. The walk with God by His Spirit is not simply obedience to a list of commands, it is a relationship. God does give us His commands that we are to work out in life but we also need to walk with Him and talk with Him. We need to listen to what He is speaking to us today and obey His voice. We need to walk by the Spirit and not the flesh.

This subject of walking with the LORD and listening to His voice is often misunderstood and is sometimes abused by some believers in Yeshua but this does not invalidate its reality. There are going to be situations in life when we need to hear a fresh word from the LORD. It may be due to a certain relationship issue, a career change, buying or selling a home or a business, giving something away, requesting healing for an unknown illness, or whatever else it may be. There are simply times when we face circumstances that demand a response from above. We need to seek Him in prayer, listen to His Spirit, and walk in faith.

We must be careful not to put God in a box when it comes to circumstances that are out of our control. Just like Moses, we must learn to not rely on simply doing what we did last time. God told Moses to strike the rock the first time in order to get water but then to speak to the rock the second time. Whether it is a relationship issue, wisdom for a business decision, or needing a miracle we must learn to listen to God’s voice through His Word and by His Spirit.

Discipline for Disobedience

Although water did come forth from the rock after Moses struck it and the people quenched their thirst, Moses and Aaron had disobeyed the instructions that God gave to them and there was a price to be paid:

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.” Those were the waters of Meribah, because the sons of Israel contended with the LORD, and He proved Himself holy among them. – Num. 20:12-13

The LORD punished Moses and Aaron for not fulfilling His word to them by prohibiting them from entering the Promised Land.

The LORD made two direct accusations against Moses and Aaron in how they disobeyed Him:

You have not believed Me
You did not treat Me as holy in the sight of the sons of Israel

The LORD told Moses and Aaron to speak to the rock before the eyes of the Israelites. The LORD wanted Moses and Aaron to believe Him, to trust in Him, and to speak to the rock before the eyes of the people (Num. 20:8) so that God would be revealed as holy before the people. Moses and Aaron failed to obey the command of the LORD and thereby failed to sanctify the LORD as holy before the people.

Establishing God’s Holiness

Often in life there are several different ways of accomplishing the same thing. If we truly desire to walk by the Spirit of God we must remember that God desires to show Himself holy through our lives and His means of accomplishing something may be completely opposite to natural logic.

God could have told Moses to strike the rock to provide water in Numbers 20. If Moses had struck the rock and water came forth, the people could have potentially praised Moses instead of God and assumed that there was magic in striking the rock. This wasn’t God’s intended purpose. God wanted Moses and Aaron to speak to the rock so that the people would see that the LORD is sanctified in their midst. Moses and Aaron disobeyed God’s command and failed to sanctify the LORD as holy. I believe this is why the LORD had to punish Moses and Aaron, to prove that He is holy in their midst (Num. 20:13). What Moses and Aaron failed to do in their disobedience, God did Himself through judgement.

The Spirit vs The Flesh

When Moses accused the people of being rebels (Num. 20:10) and struck the rock he acted in the flesh and failed to realize that the real contention of the people was against the LORD and not against himself. Moses felt like he was the direct target and personalized the accusation of the people against himself, however, the LORD made it clear who the people were really contending against: “Those were the waters of Meribah, because the sons of Israel contended with the LORD…” (Num. 20:13).

As we walk in the calling that God has for us on this earth, there will be those who contend with us. In these times we must remember to walk in the Spirit and not in the flesh:

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. – Eph. 6:12

It is challenge at times to distinguish the battles in the spirit realm from the battles in the flesh. We must walk a careful balance of living in this world but walking by the Spirit and fighting in the spiritual realm. We need discernment, a listening ear to the Spirit of God, and courage to obey all that we know to be true.

Shabbat Shalom!

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Torah Portion: Num. 19:1 – Num. 22:1

Hafatara: Judges 11:1-33

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