The old man must die

David Porter over at boomerinthepew.com discusses the seeming harshness of God in preventing Moses from entering the Promised Land because he struck a rock to bring water from it rather than speaking to it as God had instructed him.

David writes: "I found my fingers unwilling to type as I was trying to understand this scene. The Israelites have driving this man crazy for decades, and now, because he responded out of clear disrespect to Yahweh, he is banned from the Promised Land."

In a way, Moses is like John the Baptist, playing a key role in bringing in the new order but not able to partake of it himself. Of John Jesus said,

among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

By Jesus' own account John was greater than Moses, yet even he was not fit for the kingdom as he was. What I understand Jesus saying from this is that the very best of natural men can't enter the kingdom: you must be born again.

This is a message that all of us need to take seriously. None of us can be greater than John or Moses, no matter what we do. If they couldn't make it to heaven on their own, neither can I. It is what I allow God to do in me through faith in Jesus that saves me and makes me fit for heaven.

So back to Moses - if we look at Israel's journey to the Promised Land as containing a figure of our journey to salvation, then the message of his death is clear: the old man must die.

That is the picture-lesson of Moses' death, but we don't need to spare any tears for him. The next time we see him, he is speaking with Jesus on the mount of transfiguration. God gave him a far greater privilege in that than in what He withheld from him.

And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised, because God had provided something better for us, so that apart from us they would not be made perfect. Heb. 11:39,40