"Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went
into the Desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert
without finding water.When they came to Marah, they could not drink its
water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called Marah. )
So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What are we to
drink?”Then Moses cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a piece
of wood. He threw it into the water, and the water became sweet".
Exodus:15:22-24
After the Great God set the people of Israel free from the bondage of slavery in Egypt, they journeyed through the Wilderness on their Pilgrimage toward the Promised Land , at first, there is time of joyous celebration as tho the great victory which the Lord God has accomplished for them in freeing them and then destroying the pursuing army of Pharaoh at the Red Sea.
The people of Israel celebrate and worship at the salvation event which they are all apart of they sing and praise God for his deliverance.
The Song of Moses and Miriam
"Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord:“I will sing to the Lord, for he is highly exalted.Both horse and driver he has hurled into the sea.“The Lord is my strength and my defense ;he has become my salvation.He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.The Lord is a warrior; the Lord is his name. Pharaoh’s chariots and his army he has hurled into the sea. The best of Pharaoh’s officers are drowned in the Red Sea.The deep waters have covered them; they sank to the depths like a stone. Your right hand, Lord, was majestic in power. Your right hand, Lord, shattered the enemy."Exodus:15:1-6
But this euphoric joy of the people does is not sustained as Israel transverses the Wilderness , they soon encounter hardships and testing.The celebratory mood of the people is short lived as they begin to face hardships and the realities of the Wilderness
Bitter Waters
The people of Israel begin to cross the desert of Shur leaving the Rec Sea behind them, but only after three days journey they begin to complain to Moses that there is a shortage of water after they arrive at a place called Marah, where the water is "bitter" and they find it undrinkable, and immediately they begin to complain about Moses.
"Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went into the Desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water. When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called Marah. ) So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What are we to drink?” (22-24)
Moses, confronted with the people of Israel's complaint, calls out to God for his divine assistance in dealing with, not only the genuine need of the people , but , with the very rebellious attitude which is behind the complaint for it said that "So the people grumbled against Moses" this was the true problem the water issue was just the "phantom issue" to give voice to a deeper problem that the people had.
There was spirit of rebellion present within their hearts and the need for water merely exposed it.
"Then Moses cried out to the Lord",(25a)
The Lord God then responds to , and shows Moses "a piece of wood" , or as it would be better translated from the Hebrew language in which the narrative is written, a " Tree".
We are told in the narrative that when the Prophet Moses threw this "piece of wood" or "Tree", into the "bitter water" that the water then be came "sweet", the opposite of what the water had been.It was the same water now just made "sweet" by the "tree" which had been brought into the midst of the "bitterness" of the water.
"and the Lord showed him a piece of wood (or " Tree"). Moses threw it into the water, and the water became sweet."(25b-c)
It was when this "tree" was placed into the "bitter" water of Marah the water were made "sweet" The waters had been transformed by this "tree" which the Lord God had showed to Moses. The people of Israel were then sustained on their pilgrimage toward the Promised land.
Our Bitter Water
So often , for Christians, the experiences of the people of Israel mirror our own. God sets us free from the slavery and bondage of sin, and brings us out of all that might have held us captive.
We look ahead to the the Promised Land of the Kingdom of God and all that our Lord Jesus has ministered to us all by grace.
There is is time of great rejoicing and praising God from what he has done for us, all thru the his Holy Son Jesus Christ, just as the the people of Israel did there upon the shore of the Red Sea.
"Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord:“I will sing to the Lord, for he is highly exalted."(1)
We enter the Christian life and we rejoice, our enemies are drowned and left behind us, as Pharaoh and his armies sank to the depth of the Red Sea.
But, as we Christians journey thru the "desert of Shur" in the wilderness of this world, and as time wears on, we , in our Christian lives, will encounter situations in life that are "bitter".
These "bitter" waters , these places of Marah, can take many forms , we can encounter set backs, disappointments, loneliness, failure, lost relationship and we can even, as Israel did, turn one back to Egypt, thinking about the life we had before we came to believe in Jesus, and other problems which may cause us to express many of the attitudes which the people of Israel did.
We may find ourselves in our pilgrimage to the Kingdom of God, camped at "Marah", near "bitter" water in this life, when "bitter" situation arise.
Throw The Tree in
The Lord God provided a means to turn the "bitter" water of "Marah" "sweet " When Moses threw the "tree" in the midst of the "bitter" waters they were made "sweet". The "tree" which the Lord God showed Moses was the solution to the people of Israel problem and need and all of our as well.
St.Paul , as well intones the "tree" of Cross as the solution to all our "bitter" problems in our lives, as our Lord bore the curse of the Law and it's claim upon each and all of lives.
"Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us-- for it is written, "CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE "Gal:3:13
When we Christians face "bitter" water in life , what ever form this "bitter" water takes, the answer is to take hold of the work of our Lord upon the "tree" of his Cross.
The Cross of Jesus opened to us the sweet water of his grace, which pours forth unto each and all our turning even the "bitter" water of life's circumstances
So when the "tree" that Jesus was offered upon, that Cross , is brought into the midst of the "bitter" water of life, they can be made "sweet" . Jesus carried more then just a Cross to Calvary, he bore our sorrows, and all the "bitter" things which it produces in out lives.
What ever the sources of the "bitter" water is which we might be we drinking at this time in our lives, there is an answer for us in God's Holy Son Jesus Christ.
No matter how "bitter" the waters of life can be when we look to the work of Jesus on the "tree" of his Cross, these waters are turned "sweet", safely healing and restoration .
We are reminded by the "tree" of Jesus' Cross that our enemies have been drowned in the Red Sea and now no longer pursue us. The "tree" of the Cross has dealt with any and all things, which can keep us out of a relationship with our God.
There is hope and for today and on into eternity , the "tree" of the Cross of Jesus makes "sweet" life's "bitter" water .
Benediction: May we each and all , ever throw the "Tree" of our Lord Jesus' Cross into the "Bitter" waters of life truing the waters "Sweet", today, tomorrow and forevermore. Amen!
Rev.Todd Crouch, Pastor
The Fountain of life Church a Congregation of Grace Communion 2101 Old National Pike Washington, Pennsylvania, 15301 www.gcfountainoflife.org
The Fountain of Life is heard on the RKP Radio Network 1710 and 1670 AM in Washington and North Franklin ,and 1790 AM in the Arden Fair Grounds area of Washington Pennsylvania, and on 1710 AM in Bentleyville and Monongahela, Pennsylvania. And online around the world at www.rkpradio.com
You can follow the Fountain of Life on Face Book - Click on our Face Book link : https://www.facebook.com/Fountain-of-Life-Church-349595355088375/
After the Great God set the people of Israel free from the bondage of slavery in Egypt, they journeyed through the Wilderness on their Pilgrimage toward the Promised Land , at first, there is time of joyous celebration as tho the great victory which the Lord God has accomplished for them in freeing them and then destroying the pursuing army of Pharaoh at the Red Sea.
The people of Israel celebrate and worship at the salvation event which they are all apart of they sing and praise God for his deliverance.
The Song of Moses and Miriam
"Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord:“I will sing to the Lord, for he is highly exalted.Both horse and driver he has hurled into the sea.“The Lord is my strength and my defense ;he has become my salvation.He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.The Lord is a warrior; the Lord is his name. Pharaoh’s chariots and his army he has hurled into the sea. The best of Pharaoh’s officers are drowned in the Red Sea.The deep waters have covered them; they sank to the depths like a stone. Your right hand, Lord, was majestic in power. Your right hand, Lord, shattered the enemy."Exodus:15:1-6
But this euphoric joy of the people does is not sustained as Israel transverses the Wilderness , they soon encounter hardships and testing.The celebratory mood of the people is short lived as they begin to face hardships and the realities of the Wilderness
Bitter Waters
The people of Israel begin to cross the desert of Shur leaving the Rec Sea behind them, but only after three days journey they begin to complain to Moses that there is a shortage of water after they arrive at a place called Marah, where the water is "bitter" and they find it undrinkable, and immediately they begin to complain about Moses.
"Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went into the Desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water. When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called Marah. ) So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What are we to drink?” (22-24)
Moses, confronted with the people of Israel's complaint, calls out to God for his divine assistance in dealing with, not only the genuine need of the people , but , with the very rebellious attitude which is behind the complaint for it said that "So the people grumbled against Moses" this was the true problem the water issue was just the "phantom issue" to give voice to a deeper problem that the people had.
There was spirit of rebellion present within their hearts and the need for water merely exposed it.
"Then Moses cried out to the Lord",(25a)
The Lord God then responds to , and shows Moses "a piece of wood" , or as it would be better translated from the Hebrew language in which the narrative is written, a " Tree".
We are told in the narrative that when the Prophet Moses threw this "piece of wood" or "Tree", into the "bitter water" that the water then be came "sweet", the opposite of what the water had been.It was the same water now just made "sweet" by the "tree" which had been brought into the midst of the "bitterness" of the water.
"and the Lord showed him a piece of wood (or " Tree"). Moses threw it into the water, and the water became sweet."(25b-c)
It was when this "tree" was placed into the "bitter" water of Marah the water were made "sweet" The waters had been transformed by this "tree" which the Lord God had showed to Moses. The people of Israel were then sustained on their pilgrimage toward the Promised land.
Our Bitter Water
So often , for Christians, the experiences of the people of Israel mirror our own. God sets us free from the slavery and bondage of sin, and brings us out of all that might have held us captive.
We look ahead to the the Promised Land of the Kingdom of God and all that our Lord Jesus has ministered to us all by grace.
There is is time of great rejoicing and praising God from what he has done for us, all thru the his Holy Son Jesus Christ, just as the the people of Israel did there upon the shore of the Red Sea.
"Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord:“I will sing to the Lord, for he is highly exalted."(1)
We enter the Christian life and we rejoice, our enemies are drowned and left behind us, as Pharaoh and his armies sank to the depth of the Red Sea.
But, as we Christians journey thru the "desert of Shur" in the wilderness of this world, and as time wears on, we , in our Christian lives, will encounter situations in life that are "bitter".
These "bitter" waters , these places of Marah, can take many forms , we can encounter set backs, disappointments, loneliness, failure, lost relationship and we can even, as Israel did, turn one back to Egypt, thinking about the life we had before we came to believe in Jesus, and other problems which may cause us to express many of the attitudes which the people of Israel did.
We may find ourselves in our pilgrimage to the Kingdom of God, camped at "Marah", near "bitter" water in this life, when "bitter" situation arise.
Throw The Tree in
The Lord God provided a means to turn the "bitter" water of "Marah" "sweet " When Moses threw the "tree" in the midst of the "bitter" waters they were made "sweet". The "tree" which the Lord God showed Moses was the solution to the people of Israel problem and need and all of our as well.
St.Paul , as well intones the "tree" of Cross as the solution to all our "bitter" problems in our lives, as our Lord bore the curse of the Law and it's claim upon each and all of lives.
"Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us-- for it is written, "CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE "Gal:3:13
When we Christians face "bitter" water in life , what ever form this "bitter" water takes, the answer is to take hold of the work of our Lord upon the "tree" of his Cross.
The Cross of Jesus opened to us the sweet water of his grace, which pours forth unto each and all our turning even the "bitter" water of life's circumstances
So when the "tree" that Jesus was offered upon, that Cross , is brought into the midst of the "bitter" water of life, they can be made "sweet" . Jesus carried more then just a Cross to Calvary, he bore our sorrows, and all the "bitter" things which it produces in out lives.
What ever the sources of the "bitter" water is which we might be we drinking at this time in our lives, there is an answer for us in God's Holy Son Jesus Christ.
No matter how "bitter" the waters of life can be when we look to the work of Jesus on the "tree" of his Cross, these waters are turned "sweet", safely healing and restoration .
We are reminded by the "tree" of Jesus' Cross that our enemies have been drowned in the Red Sea and now no longer pursue us. The "tree" of the Cross has dealt with any and all things, which can keep us out of a relationship with our God.
There is hope and for today and on into eternity , the "tree" of the Cross of Jesus makes "sweet" life's "bitter" water .
Benediction: May we each and all , ever throw the "Tree" of our Lord Jesus' Cross into the "Bitter" waters of life truing the waters "Sweet", today, tomorrow and forevermore. Amen!
The Fountain of life Church a Congregation of Grace Communion 2101 Old National Pike Washington, Pennsylvania, 15301 www.gcfountainoflife.org
The Fountain of Life is heard on the RKP Radio Network 1710 and 1670 AM in Washington and North Franklin ,and 1790 AM in the Arden Fair Grounds area of Washington Pennsylvania, and on 1710 AM in Bentleyville and Monongahela, Pennsylvania. And online around the world at www.rkpradio.com
You can follow the Fountain of Life on Face Book - Click on our Face Book link : https://www.facebook.com/Fountain-of-Life-Church-349595355088375/
"If It Is Not About Jesus, It Is Not About Anything"
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