Numbers 20:2-13
Unfaithful Leadership

Now there was no water for the congregation; so they gathered together against Moses and against Aaron. The people quarreled with Moses and said, "Would that we had died when our kindred died before the LORD! Why have you brought the assembly of the LORD into this wilderness for us and our livestock to die here? Why have you brought us up out of Egypt, to bring us to this wretched place? It is no place for grain, or figs, or vines, or pomegranates; and there is no water to drink."

Then Moses and Aaron went away from the assembly to the entrance of the tent of meeting; they fell on their faces, and the glory of the LORD appeared to them. The LORD spoke to Moses, saying: Take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and your brother Aaron, and command the rock before their eyes to yield its water. Thus you shall bring water out of the rock for them; thus you shall provide drink for the congregation and their livestock.

So Moses took the staff from before the LORD, as he had commanded him. Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he said to them, "Listen, you rebels, shall we bring water for you out of this rock?" Then Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock twice with his staff; water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their livestock drank.

But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Because you did not trust in me, to show my holiness before the eyes of the Israelites, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them." These are the waters of Meribah, where the people of Israel quarreled with the LORD, and by which he showed his holiness.

New Revised Standard Version

This passage of scripture is a scary story for those of us who lead others, because it reveals several dangers we frequently face in trying to follow God while showing others the way.

Moses once again finds himself with a very unhappy people. As had been the case years before, the people find themselves without water in the desert, and in their fear, demonstrate doubt for God's power and distrust of Moses' leadership. Once again they are complaining that Moses should never have rescued them from slavery in Egypt. However, this time, the event takes place forty years after the people left Egypt, so the people complaining had never experienced slavery. See how well these children of the generation freed from slavery learned how to whine and complain!

Moses and Aaron started well. They took the problem to God, and God's "glory" even appeared to them to instruct them -- there was no doubt what to do! The last time God provided water, God had Moses strike the rock with his staff; this time, God only wanted words, so that the miracle would sway the Hebrew people to believe and trust more in God.

But Moses and Aaron didn't carry through. They brought all the people out to the rock face as directed, but then Moses fussed at them for their rebelliousness and struck the rock twice with his staff. God was true to the promise and provided water, but God later reprimanded Moses for his failure to do as God had commanded. It seems to me there were five parts to Moses' sin:

• Moses let his anger with the people get in the way, interfering with his resolve to follow God's lead.
• Moses did not deliver the message God provided accurately and faithfully. God, appearing to Moses and Aaron, did not talk about being angry, but Moses chose to express those feelings rather than be a faithful messenger.
• Moses took the situation into his own hands and changed what God had instructed into what Moses felt was appropriate.
• God, who knew what Moses was thinking, said Moses chose to strike the rock because Moses had doubts that God would provide as promised.
• In their frustration, Moses and Aaron inadvertantly took credit for providing water instead of seizing the opportunity to give God credit for the miracle.

God's purpose was as much to build up the people's faith as much as it was to sustain them with water. Moses lost that opportunity.

Notice how subtly this slide starts. Irritations and frustrations take our focus away from God's plan and to our discomfort. We start doing things to address our perceptions of the current situation. Eager to provide relief, we add our details to what God has revealed to us. Eager to sway disgruntled followers, we try to appear in charge and in control. In doing so, we loosen our grip on our faith, we erode the faith our followers have in God, and we interfere with the work of God. In the end, God continues to be faithful, but we prevent God from doing all the miraculous work, both outside us and inside us, that God would have done had we been obedient.

Pray for your spiritual leaders, and pray for yourself when you lead, that faithfulness in God is the single focus in leading the people of God, so that it is God, and not us, that truly leads.