arrogance

This morning, I read a story that could have been a metaphor for many contemporary Christians, myself included. 

In Numbers 14 is the story of the aftermath of the exploration of the Promised Land. Ten of the twelve in the expedition brought a scary report, so the people rebelled and refused to go. Then, when God told them he would punish them with forty more years of desert wandering, they changed their mind, even though Moses warned them it was no longer God’s will. 

Read this from verses 44 and 45: “Nevertheless, in their presumption they went up toward the highest point in the hill country, though neither Moses nor the ark of the Lord 's covenant moved from the camp. Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that hill country came down and attacked them and beat them down all the way to Hormah.”

It reminds me of our glibness in proclaiming things we want to be God’s will. We can decide that God’s will for our church involves things we want that exclude others. We can decide that God’s will for our lives means quitting a job that bores us to pursue full time a career that doesn’t yet exist. Or, as so many have said to me, we can believe, “This is OK because God wants me to be happy.”

Like the Israelites, in my presumption I can go forward waving God’s flag into a fight that serves only me. I can be so sure, based on what I like, what is right for all of us.

What I read today tells me that when I do that, God will let pagans beat me down if that’s what it takes to get his point across. In fact, when the non-believers seem to be winning, that may be a hint for me to re-evaluate.

A good way to start is to get back to what I know is God’s will: that I work hard on a good relationship with him. The better that relationship, the less likely I’ll act presumptuously.