STUCK IN THE WILDERNESS

Psa. 78:8

Morning Meditation 1/3/15

"And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation; a generation that set not their heart aright, and whose spirit was not stedfast with God."

Israel had the faith to get them out of Egypt but not enough to get them into Canaan. Getting out of Egypt is salvation but getting into Canaan is the life of victory in Christ. There are several attitudes that are listed that caused the Lord to fix their destiny in the wilderness for forty years but verse 8 pretty well sums it up. And these things continue to plague the people of God today and retard their progress in His kingdom.

There is a time when the parents are not the example to follow. Verse 8 says, "And might not be as their fathers. When the fathers chose to reject the Lord and not follow Him in the way, it is time for the children to by pass the fathers and serve the Lord. This is not a disobedience that will be punished by the Lord.

Matthew 10:34-37, "Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man's foes shall be they of his own household. He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me." The idea presented in these verses is that we are to put the Lord first. If in putting Him first, one of the ones named in these verses drops into second place and it causes problems, these are problems that cannot be solved by changing our priorities.

The Psalmist begins to name the sins of the fathers that caused them to be stuck in the wilderness. First, he calls them stubborn. This word means, "to rebel, be stubborn, be rebellious, be refractory." These describe words that do not fit when serving the Lord. A rebel is one that refuses to keep the rules. A stubborn person is one who rejects the rules to start with. He is going to have his own way no matter who it hurts.

The next word that is mentioned in this verse is rebellious. The word "rebellious" describes an attitude that revolts against what he is told to do. In this case it is the Lord who is telling what to do. The rebellious person hears the rule, hears the need of the rule described, but is offended at the authority that issues the rule and determines that he will not keep it. The rebellious are determined to make their own rules and no matter how much trouble their life-style hurts others they continue in their rebellion.

The Psalmist next goes to the core of the problem. He says they, "set not their heart aright." The one who refuses to deal with a depraved heart is in trouble. He is refusing to let God deal with a heart out of control. Matthew 15:18-19, "But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:" All one has to do to see that the Lord sets forth a permanent and eternal truth is to look around you. Men do the evil they do because they have a heart that is terminally ill and they cannot fix it. The Psalmist says, "They set not their hearts aright." While the sinner cannot fix his heart, he can bring it to the One who can.

Finally, the Psalmist says, "And whose spirit was not steadfast with God." The word "steadfast" means they wouldn't be faithful. They were people who were sincere when trouble came. They feared the Lord because they knew what He could do in the way of punishment. But they pushed the Lord to the breaking point over and over again. As a result they suffered the consequences. They did not enter the promised land. God has plenty of time. Time does not touch God. He is from everlasting to everlasting. He lives in an eternal now. God can beat the opposition just by waiting. The young man whose spirit is not stedfast with God, lives his life and thinks he is winning the battle against God. He continues his up one minute, and down the next kind of life, and the first thing he knows he is an old man. He walks with a cane. God does not get older. God has not changed and the man still has a spirit that is not steadfast with God. Then the man dies. There is nothing now he can do to correct it. He finally comes before God in the final Judgment. Hebrews 9:27, "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:"

If he is a Christian, 1 Corinthians 3:15 says, "If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire." But who wants to be saved just by fire? If you are unsaved, you will face eternity in an eternal hell without hope of ever recovering.

Are you one who had enough faith to get out of Egypt (you are saved) but you have been stubborn and rebellious against God since then. You are not a steadfast Christian. You are completely undependable to render Him service. There is a penalty to pay. Get your life right while you can.

In Christ

Bro. White