Before continuing on with our examination of the human and overt activity that took place in the Old Testament phase of the Angelic Conflict, it seems wise to be reminded that all human activity, then and now, is under the observation and interaction of angels, fallen (Ephesians 6: 12) and elect (Hebrews 13:2). Man was created to glorify God in the midst of this ongoing conflict that began long before the human race came into existences. Miss this concept, and one misses the very purpose for which God created him/her.
It is hard for Fallen Man, being a self-centered being, to consider that in eternity past that Man did not exist. It is hard for Fallen Man NOT to see himself as the center of the universe with all events taking place for his own benefit. It is hard for Man to even consider the concept of eternity, having had NO beginning and no end. Human viewpoint is that everything had a beginning, and everything has or will have an end. While this IS true of many things, it is not true of eternity.
Man, on his own, would have never came up with or accepted the concept of eternity (having no beginning or end) on his own. To his own hurt, Man has come up with many alternative theories as to how, when, and for what purpose Man was created.
Because Man would never come up with or accept the concept of eternity (and its significance), God gives this concept to every soul that He creates (Eccl. 3: 11) this concept. Those who choose to reject this (no beginning/no end) concept of eternity opens the door to all the other alternative explanations concerning the purpose, the timing, and means through which the human race was established.
Eternity is significant in that once created, the human soul never dies and will be spending eternity future (that never ends) in one environment or another. Living for, and being focused on, the here and now is the "natural" thing for Fallen Man to do. Living IN the here and now, but with the concept of eternity is the supernatural thing to do. Nothing positive in the supernatural realm can take place apart from God (John 15: 5). Providing the ability for a spiritually dead soul to understand the Gospel Message is part of the pre-salvation ministry of God the Holy Spirit. The enabling power and willingness for a born again believer to learn and to apply the Word of God to his/her daily thoughts and actions comes through the "filling" of God the Holy Spirit Who indwells the bodies (1Cor. 3: 16) of born again believers of the Church Age during their post salvation spiritual life here on Earth.
Man, in his independent (of God) attempt to address the concept of eternity, has engineered his own means to secure a relationship with one (or more) of the many gods that are the products of the many world's religions (Psalms 96: 5). Fallen Man pursues such a relationship in order to avoid the perceived wrath of these gods and to be the recipient of the earthly and/or heavenly benefits that each one (or more) of these Psalms 96: 5 "gods" have to offer to those that please them.
While being open and receptive to the teachings and practices that on based on the Psalms 96: 6 "religions," Fallen Man is inherently hostile (Romans 8: 7) toward the God of the Bible and the things of the God the Bible as a result of the sin nature that is passed down to each generation of Man at conception (Psalms 51: 1). Satan, and his Eph. 6: 12 forces of evil, take full advantage of both this receptiveness on one hand, and this inherent hostility on the other, in order to promote his agenda. The "bottom line" of Satan's agenda is to deny God the glory that He would otherwise receive.
Every day, people make corporate and individual choices that either brings glory to God or denies Him the glory that He could have otherwise received. NEVER lose sight in the fact that every time a decision is made concerning a moral issue that as victory for God or a victory for Satan has taken place in this ongoing conflict.
Leading a soul to believe that what he/she does or doesn't do on a daily basis doesn't really matter is a key element in the strategy of the devil. The devil hates to hear of the "roar of the crowd" that takes place in Heaven (Luke 15: 10) when ONE sinner on Earth repents. At the same time, just imagine the grief (Eph. 4: 30) that the omniscient God experiences when one of His children makes a choice that gives the devil a reason to rejoice.
Biblical repentance involves the confession (1John 1: 9) and the forsaking (John 8: 11) of what the Bible calls sin.
Disputing (Gen. 3: 4) what God has said was a part of the devil's strategy in Garden of Eden. It scored a great victory then, and continues to score victories now, putting numbers up the scoreboard of the Angelic Conflict. We will get back to the now part in a later presentation when we examine the Angelic Conflict taking place in the Angelic Conflict.
The inevitable course that the majority (Matt. 7: 13, 14) of Man will choose to take is outlined in Romans 1: 8-32, and never changes.
Only a minority of each generation of Man will choose for God and be saved, and only a minority of those
save will enter into or remain in the post salvation plan that God has each one of us.
Upon departing Egypt, the people of God entered the wilderness of Shur.
After traveling a few days, they found no drinkable water. Water, in the naturally hostile environment of the Middle East, was second only to air to breathe.
A regular supply of water was needed to insure survival for humans, flocks of animals as they traveled, and for vegetation when they settled.
In response to the grumbling of the people, God, through Moses, changed the bitter water at Marah into drinkable water.
In addition to providing for the water, God made a conditional covenant with the people of Israel, declaring that IF they obeyed the Word of the Lord, they would not experience any of the plagues that they saw being inflicted on the Egyptians when they were there.
The Jews then traveled on and set up camp in Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy date palms. From there, the people of God journeyed to the wilderness of Sin, located between Elim and Sinai.
Human nature is amicable as long as SELF is being satisfied. As soon as SELF becomes dissatisfied, it acts up like an infant that needs to be fed, changed, comforted, or reassured, with little regard or recollection of the faithfulness of ones who already provided for them.
Those who God places in positions of leadership will always be the one who will receive the heat when the masses are dissatisfied.
It was in the wilderness of Sin that the people began to grumble over the lack of food. They were going as far as to say they were better off when they were in Egypt! How often do born again believers bemoan their own hardships and "feel" that were a lot better off when they were "salves" to the devil's world and were
"blessed" for it!
It was then that God, on a daily basis, provided the manna from Heaven six out of seven days. The seventh day was a Sabbath, a day of rest, and there was no manna found on the ground to be collected, but there was a double portion given on the sixth day of each week that provided enough for them for two days
(Exodus 16: 29:30).
This manna was provided to the people of God throughout the forty years that they would spend out in the wilderness before entering the Promised Land.
The people of God continued on through the wilderness of Sin, and upon arriving at Rephidim, once again found no water for Man or beast. They grumbled to Moses about this, o the point that Moses was concerned about a revolt, but God, through Moses, provided water out of the rock at Horeb.
Note that during these times of deprivation and provision, both Moses and the people were put in situations where they had to rely on God to come through for them. This, too, would become a common characteristic in the lives of all who choose to serve God in the dispensations to come.
At Rephidim, Moses was about to learn of another means of deliverance, and a key point for all warriors in the realm of spiritual combat need to learn as well.
While at Rephidim, the people of God were approached by Amalek with intentions of war.
Moses instructed Joshua to lead the people of God into battle, while he (Moses), Aaron, and Hur would establish an observation post on the top of a nearby hill.
As long as Moses held his staff upright, the battle would go in favor of the Jews, but when he tired and lowered the staff, the battle would go in favor of Amalek. It was with the human help of Aaron and Hur that the staff was upheld by Moses, resulting in Joshua and the Jews defeating Amalek in battle.
Ultimately it was the Lord’s battle, and His power that brought about the victory, but Moses learned that other people, in addition to him (Moses), were to take part in the execution of God’s plan. This experience set the stage for the establishment of the internal administration of justice within the camp of God.
Moses’ father-in-law, suggested a judicial system to manage the daily cases that were being presented to Moses for judgment (Exodus 18: 25: 26). The Lord acknowledges our individual passion and devotion, but there is more strength in a multi-strand chord than in a single rope. There are times when we will be called to stand alone, and there will be other times when more can be accomplished with mutual support of divers individuals.
On the first day of the third month after leaving Egypt (Exodus 19: 1), the people of God arrived in the wilderness and set up camp in front of Mount Sanai. But it would be decades (40 years) before the people of Israel would enter the Promised Land! The promise of a homeland here on Earth for the ancient people of God would be fulfilled, but not before most of a whole generation of those who experienced the miraculous deliverance from Egypt would die in the wilderness. Scripture (Numbers 14: 29) records that those who grumbled against the Lord in the wilderness (who were 25 years old or older) would not enter the Promised Land. Of the twelve men who were sent out to spy out the land and return with a report, only two of them (Joshua and Caleb) would live long enough to enter the land with the people.
Moses would continue to be greatly used of God during the 40 years that the people spent out in the wilderness, but was denied the honor of leading the people into the Promised Land for not following the precise instructions given to him by the Lord concerning the providing of water at . Moses was allowed to see the land from a distance, but then died and was buried by God in a valley in the land of Moab. Moses was 120 years old with good eye-sight and a physically strong body when he died (Deut. 34: 7). His time had come. The next time that we would hear of Moses was thousands of years later when he appeared and spoke with the Lord Jesus Christ while on the mount of transfiguration (Matt. 17: 3).
The (John 14: 2, 3) promise of a home is Heaven for all born again believers of the Church Age does NOT mean that all born again believers are going to receive and enjoy the 1Cor. 3: 12-15 rewards and/or the Revelation 2 and Revelation 3 privileges. These rewards and privileges will be received by born again believers who chose to identify and to execute the post salvation spiritual life of discipleship.
We will be examining some of the contributions that Moses made to the plan of God during the 40 years in the wilderness in the next chapter.