Idolatory among Christians

Avoid this trap which comes in the form of a solution to your problem.

There are two places in the Bible where water came from a rock to quench the thirst of the Israelites under the leadership of Moses.

The Bible says in Exodus 17:5-7 'And the Lord said to Moses, “Go on before the people, and take with you some of the elders of Israel. Also take in your hand your rod with which you struck the river, and go. Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock in Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.” And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. So he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the contention of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord , saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”'

That’s  the first instance.

And again in Numbers 20:7-11 'Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Take the rod; you and your brother Aaron gather the congregation together. Speak to the rock before their eyes, and it will yield its water; thus you shall bring water for them out of the rock, and give drink to the congregation and their animals.” So Moses took the rod from before the Lord as He commanded him. And Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock; and he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels! Must we bring water for you out of this rock?” Then Moses lifted his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their animals drank.'

That’s the second.

If we look carefully, the situation or the problem was the same in both cases – Lack of water & Thirst. We see moses go to the Lord on both occasions. But, God asked Moses to perform two different deeds for the same problem.

As I was praying a few days ago, God through His Spirit, revealed the secret that every God-Fearing child of God should know. The solution or the method through which your problem is solved or done away with is not what matters. But the God who is behind the solution only matters.

What does this mean?

I have heard people in the service of God, asking believers to do certain things to get relief from their problems. This is wrong according to the Bible. Sometimes people are asked to praise the Lord 100 or 1000 times at a certain appointed time of the day, every day. There are many such advice which are non-biblical. But since it came from someone who is in the service of the Lord, we tend to believe and religiously follow the same.

This practice being propagated among churches is akin to how the Brass Serpent, which God provisioned to heal those who were bitten by the fiery serpents becoming a thing of worship later.

Numbers 21:8–9

And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.

2 Kings 18:4

He [Hezekiah] removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake in pieces the brasen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan.

Clearly, the provision that God provided for healing at one instance was carried forth by the Children of Israel as a thing of worship, which is a form of idolatory.

As I meditated on the first part of this writing, I also realized that God wants us to go to Him for guidance each and every time we need a solution, even if the problem is the same that you faced before or the problem is something that your family member or a friend faced before. Even if they are Godly and were guided by God to the solution, you should not put your faith on that solution and follow it. Rather you should go to the Feet of the Lord, and a solution would be granted to you, which will be the right solution for your exact problem.

Solutions from God can never become an object of worship or a go to place for every problem for a child of God. This also holds true when a saint of God prays over you and you are delivered. The Saint of God was sent to you with a task by God – that to pray and heal you. Never make that saint of God your go to place – but always run to the feet of the Lord, for the man of woman of God is but Human.

Praise the Lord!

Glory to Jesus.