Interlude.

You must not put the LORD your God to the test as you did at Massah. (Deuteronomy 6:16)

(Moses) called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the contending of the Israelites, and because of their testing the LORD, saying, "Is the LORD among us or not?" (Exodus 17:7)

What would cause a person to challenge God's authority?

a. Fatigue
b. Thirst
c. Hunger
d. Anger
e. Sheer stupidity

As tempting as it might be to say that a person must be stupid if they're accusing God of not being present, choice "e" is not the answer to the question. It's "b".

In Exodus 17, we see that the Israelites contended against Moses (and by extension, according to Scripture, against God). Now, it was not unusual for the people to be cantankerous. They had been complaining for a long time. But the incidents of Massah and Meribah stood out, so much so that they're mentioned several times in Scripture (Numbers chapters 20 and 27; Deuteronomy chapters 6, 9, 32, and 33; Psalms 81, 95, and 106; Hebrews 3).

These were two major occasions involving a need for water (I will not count the third, Marah, in which water was present but undrinkable due to its bitterness). On the first occasion (Exodus 17:1-7), Moses struck the rock as he was instructed and water flowed. On the second occasion (Numbers 20), Moses was instructed to speak to the rock but instead disobeyed in two ways:

*He did not speak to the rock, but struck it instead.
*He attributed the miracle of water not to God, but to himself. (I must credit Pastor Sam here, as it was he who turned my attention to Moses's statement "Must we bring water out of this rock for you?")

That was then, and that is now. Times are hard. And we are thirsty. There is a strong temptation to question whether God is aware of our plight. In light of God's goodness, greatness, and His track record of provision, what shall we do? What do we say as He takes us on this walk through the wilderness?

He knows you don't have any water. Praise Him anyway.