Psalm 78:41

Psalm 78:41

Again and again they put God to the test

When we began this Psalm it was exciting to anticipate the catalogue of events that accompanied Israel’s travels as the Lord God provided for and watched over His chosen people. You will remember that each story was a parable “an earthly story with a spiritual meaning that can only be understood by revelation”. Sadly, the narrative has moved away from the faithful provision of the Lord to the fickle unbelief and rebellion of the people, and their constant failure to stay true to their God. The whole point of the Psalm was to provide an account that could be passed on so that successive generations could hear about the marvellous acts of their God. We have now discovered that God never failed to live up to His promises and provision, but the people failed miserably in their devotion and obedience to Him. 

So, we learn that parables can be stories of human failure as well as divine excellence. The lesson for us all is simple, we should not put the Lord God to the test, and we should not be objects of vexation to Him for He is still “the Holy One of Israel.” If those people had just realised how precious they were and how amazing it was, that they had been chosen by the Creator God to be His people on earth. If they had only remained true to Him, how different the narrative would have been!

The history of the church is no different, is it? Rebellion, power struggles, disunity, violation of God’s commandments, compromise with the world, the elevation of men, the questioning of God’s Word and the constant complaints about the journey. Nothing has changed – we have put our God to the test, we have vexed the Holy One of Israel and the parable should still be told to those who will listen. 

 

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