Have you ever looked at your kids and wondered how they can keep making the same mistakes, after you’ve told them time and time again about it? We can be tempted to think much the same when we look at Scripture and the Israelite people.
Recently my readings have been in Numbers. I read how the Israelites refused to listen to Caleb and Joshua and ended up wandering in the wilderness for 40 years instead of entering the Promised Land. They also refused to listen to Moses and Aaron and grumbled against them, Numbers 16 and again in Numbers 20 when they had no water. God provided water.
Then they’re grumbling again in Numbers 21. This was just after God gave them victory over the Canaanite kings. They complained about ‘this miserable food’ and God was justifiably angry with His people. He sent fiery serpents among them. At this point Israel realized and confessed their sin Numbers 21:7 and God made provision for them.
We might wonder how the Israelites could keep making the same mistake time and time again. That’s what I thought as I read it. It was quickly followed by the next thought. But am I any different? Don’t I keep making the same mistakes time and time again?
What about you? Do you find yourself making the same mistakes over and over again? Complaining and grumbling and not trusting God as the Israelites did so often are ones I suspect many of us are guilty of at times too.
Thank fully we have a God who understands how weak we are and how the human nature at times seems to get the upper hand. The important thing is that we don’t just give up because we keep falling back into the same sins but bring them to the Lord, repent and ask his forgiveness and His help in trying to combat whatever the problem is.
The other thing we might need to do is remove ourselves from certain company or certain situations if they are continually leading us into sin.
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