Resisting God and His Will
Scripture Passage: Deuteronomy 9:6-12 (NASB)
6 “Know, then, it is not because of your righteousness that the Lord your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stubborn people. 7 Remember, do not forget how you provoked the Lord your God to wrath in the wilderness; from the day that you left the land of Egypt until you arrived at this place, you have been rebellious against the Lord. 8 Even at Horeb you provoked the Lord to wrath, and the Lord was so angry with you that He would have destroyed you. 9 When I went up to the mountain to receive the tablets of stone, the tablets of the covenant which the Lord had made with you, then I remained on the mountain forty days and nights; I neither ate bread nor drank water. 10 The Lord gave me the two tablets of stone written by the finger of God; and on them were all the words which the Lord had spoken with you at the mountain from the midst of the fire on the day of the assembly. 11 It came about at the end of forty days and nights that the Lord gave me the two tablets of stone, the tablets of the covenant. 12 Then the Lord said to me, ‘Arise, go down from here quickly, for your people whom you brought out of Egypt have acted corruptly. They have quickly turned aside from the way which I commanded them; they have made a molten image for themselves.’
SUMMARY
Moses tells the Israelites God is giving them the promised land not because they have been righteous, and in despite of the fact that they have been stubborn (stiff-necked) and rebellious against God. Moses tells them not to forget the time they had provoked the Lord in the wilderness at Horeb. At this time, Moses went up the mountain of Horeb for 40 days and nights, fasting to receive the tablets of the first covenant. Meanwhile, the Israelites had acted corruptly by making a molten image for themselves and God was so angry that He wanted to destroy them.
MEDITATION & REFLECTION
What does it mean to be stiff-necked and why does it bother God so much? The term was originally used to describe an ox that refused to be directed by the farmer’s ox goad. This is a picture of Israel refusing to obey God and making it difficult for God to accomplish His will. How frustrating it must be for God when His people resist HIs guidance! How patient and loving is God for waiting 40 years for them to be ready to go into the promised land!
Being stiff-necked must be a heart issue because Deuteronomy 10:16 says, “So circumcise your heart, and stiffen your neck no longer.” Stephen told the Jews, “You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did” (Acts 7:51). It is when our hearts are hardened that we refuse to see things the way God sees them.
During the COVID-19 crisis, I have become very sensitive to when my heart gets hardened and when my heart softens. When there was no bread, meat, or toilet paper at the grocery stores, boy, was I humbled to my knees in tears! Then, when we were able to buy flour and make bread, I became a bit too focused on food and looking for the perfect recipe, and my heart was hardened toward God. I noticed that when my belly was full and I had plenty of necessities my heart was not as sensitive to the Lord. In order to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit and to soften my heart to God’s will, I want to follow Moses’ example of fasting from food and drink for 40 days and nights.
APPLICATION
I have often accused my family of being food-obsessed, but I realize that I am the food-obsessed one. One can see from all the cook books I have collected that food is my idol at times. At the grocery stores, I spend a little too much money on a lot of fruits and vegetables that I end up throwing away because we don’t get a chance to eat them all. I want to limit my trip to the grocery store to just once a week so I can have more time to focus on God. I also want to have a day of fasting from food and water once a week so I have a day to pray about all that is going on in this nation right now.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, forgive me for worshiping the idols of my heart. I have been stiff-necked and You have been so patient with me. I want to limit how much money and time I spend on food. I want to spend more time with You in prayer and to hear You through Your Word. Help me, Lord, to do Your will. You alone are our comfort, shield, and our life! In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen!
Please share your personal meditations on this Scripture passage with the HolyWave community in the comments section below. (We reserve the right to moderate comments.)