The Rock of Life

 

~~~ Numbers 20:1-13 ~~~ Psalm 95 ~~~ Matthew 16:13-23 ~~~

 

Rocks and obstacles connect the readings together today.

Moses is now facing the issue of no water.

Water is vital for all life.

The people were justified in complaining for lack of water.

Moses is in mourning over the death of his sister Miriam.

It was Miriam who saved his life.

Over the years she must have brought him great joy.

 

Moses and Aaron once again come before the Lord; asking for his help.

God never fails us; he instructs Moses to strike the rock

with his staff ordering it to produce water.

 

Moses is used to following the instructions of God,

but this time he misses the mark.

This time he fails to give God proper credit.

Water does gush forth from the rock as God promised,

in spite of his not saying it had come from God.

 

These are the waters of Meribah,

where the children of Israel contended against the LORD,
and where the LORD revealed his sanctity among them.

 

 

Psalm 95 makes reference to this day

when the people failed to praise God for his gift of water.

Oh, that today you would hear his voice:
“Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,
as in the day of Massah in the desert...

 

The hearts of the people had taken on the characteristics of the rock. 

Later Jesus uses the analogy of the rock to establish

the foundation of his church.

 

Jesus confirms that his disciples are secure

within their own hearts as to his identity.

We too must have that same interior security.

We cannot shy away from answering the very same question

 posed to the disciples that day.

"...who do you say that I am?"

 

You are the only one who can answer that question.

 

Peter answers this same question with such conviction

 that Jesus considers him to be a rock.

This was a complement, Jesus was confident in Peter's belief.

 

Soon after this Peter, witnessing all that Jesus was doing,

 cannot imagine him suffering. 

 “God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you.”

 

 At that moment Peter becomes an obstacle for Jesus.

Jesus needs Peter to understand that his dying on the cross is required.

 

“Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me.
You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”

 Moses had many obstacles to overcome as he

led the people across the desert.

Today we see one closest to Jesus, Peter, becoming an obstacle.

Peter had good intentions. He loved Jesus and did not want to see him suffer.

 

Sometimes things that appear to be good

may actually be obstacles in our life.

How can we think as God wants us to think

when we are so accustomed to thinking as humans do? 

 

 We can only come before the Lord praising him

for all that he has done for us,

asking him for constant guidance.

 

 Blessings in facing your obstacles with conviction.

Lord, prevent me from ever being an obstacle for someone else.

Overcoming Obstacles

~~Numbers 13:1-2, 25–14:1, 26a-29a,34-35~~Psalm 106~~Matthew 15:21-28~~

 

 

No obstacle was too great for this Canaanite woman.

She did not sit at home day dreaming about how her could be different.

She did not let the anguish over her daughter's illness paralyze her.

 

Every obstacle that was placed in her path she deflected.

She was not part of the group of people Jesus came to convert.

She was on the outside, yet Jesus was in her neighborhood.

He ventured away, he had withdrawn from the crowds.

Maybe Jesus was thinking he could have some peace and quiet in this remote region.

His disciples guarded his alone time.

We all need some alone time to recharge physically and emotionally.

 

This woman cries out to Jesus breaking into his time of solitude...

his time away.

 

“Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David!
My daughter is tormented by a demon.”

 

This was his time; maybe he thought no one would recognize him in the region.

 

His initial reaction was to ignore this woman's interruption.

 

The disciples knew he was on sabbatical from the crowds...

 

“Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us.”

 

She encounters one more obstacle...the disciples.

They did not know who she was nor did they care to know her.

She was just a bother...they did not know her intentions.

 

This woman appeals to the emotional Jesus by paying him homage.

“Lord, help me.” She addresses him as Lord; a title of respect and honor.

She draws his attention to herself.

He is not expecting anyone in this region to recognize who him.

The unexpected often gets our attention...it makes us take notice.

 

Here comes another obstacle...

Jesus himself tells her he did not come for her people.

He uses the common derogatory term of dog.

He has come for the house of Israel...not the dogs.

He basically calls this poor woman a dog...not worthy of his attention.

This obstacle from Jesus himself does not stop her...

it just makes all the more determined to make him listen to her.

She is not begging for herself;

she is interceding on behalf of her daughter...her child.

 

She said, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps
that fall from the table of their masters.”

 

She is not asking for Jesus to come to her house.

She is not asking him to accept her.

She does, however, want him

 to know that she realizes he deserves respect.

 

Listening to this persistent woman; Jesus grants her request.

He heals her daughter;

not because of the daughter but because of the faith of the mother.

 

This Canaanite woman sought out Jesus.

She did not allow discouragement to grab hold of her spirit.

Something pushed her forward in spite of the many obstacles.

 

 

She could have given up at any point in this exchange with Jesus.

She could have said to herself, 'I tried, but he would not listen'.

She endured the insult of being referred to as a dog.

 

This woman did have great faith.

This woman had greater faith than I have.

I am so blessed because I am living now; we know

who Jesus is without a doubt.

 

The obstacles we face pale in comparison to what this woman faced.

God will not hurl insults at you as you kneel before him.

 

Sometimes we create our own obstacles...we create excuses for why God

appears not to listen to us.

We let these obstacles block us, preventing us from exercising

great faith. Sometimes causing us to doubt our convictions to prayer.

 

The Canaanite woman knew the right formula for her prayer.

Never give up...

seek God's presence...

let you needs be known to him...

believe he listens...

know he will answer.

 

Blessings reside in relentlessly

confronting the obstacles in our life.

 

The land of 'milk and honey'

 presented larger than life obstacles for the people of God.

The people fierce, the towns fortified,strong

 a country that consumes its inhabitants.

Everyone is a giant...how intimidating is this concept?

 

Life always has and always will be filled with huge, veritable giants.

It is how we deal with these obstacles that speaks to our character.

We must be vigilant people of great faith if we are to prevail.