Water from the Rock in the Real World (part 2)

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As we saw in our last post, when the children of Israel wandered into hot and dry Rephidim in the wilderness, at the point of extreme exhaustion and thirst, they had no idea what was right beneath their feet. Until the Lord showed them.

In another biblical account, when Peter wearily drew in his net for the last time with nothing to show for an entire night of fishing, he had no idea what was just then on the other side of his little boat. Until, from the shore, the Lord called out and told him.

This is the way it is with our God. In today’s post we will be reminded that, just as it was with Israel in the wilderness, and Peter in his fishing boat, and a thousand other examples, it is the same for us today. It is a matter of trusting God, even when the going gets rough, and possibly even when, humanly speaking, all hope seems gone.

We have begun a series of posts looking at some of the events surrounding the biblical story of the Exodus. Last article, we saw the account of a place called Rephidim where God told Moses to strike the rock with his staff, and how the Lord provided water for His people in an amazing way. With the corrected chronology, we see how these stories actually occurred in the real world.

When all of the evidence comes together—the trail of pottery, evidence of people groups described in Scripture, proper distance from the true Mount Sinai, etc.—we are led by modern archaeology to a place that is today called Be’er Resisim. We see that the miracle being recorded here is not that water was made to come from nowhere and flow out of a dry rock, but rather that God told Moses precisely where to find this water and how to get at it.

“Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.”

Exodus 17:6

Exodus 17:6 seems clearly to be saying that God will stand on the specific rock that Moses should strike, and when the rock is struck water will come out. And, of course, that is what happened. I encourage you to read part one to understand the physical features of the surface of the ground at this place that is today called Be’er Resisim. The unique characteristics of this location demonstrate the reality of this story in the real world.

We will now see how an accurate view of the account gives us an even better understanding of the Author behind it, and how He works among His people.

I know what some may be thinking. “Steve, what are you trying to say? Are you saying this event at Rephidim was not really a miracle by God, but only water under rocks?”

No.

What I want to demonstrate is that this miracle of God is actually more incredible than we even imagined. And also more applicable and relatable to us today than we thought.

It is God’s Word where we find these accounts, and it is God’s world where they are told to have taken place—the same world we live in today. Both belong to Him. We are understanding that, while God can do anything He wants to do (like make water come out of a dry rock with no human explanation), He is often found to be wonderfully and miraculously performing His word within the bounds of His created world.

And if that is true, then nobody needs to be scratching their heads, wondering if these events really did actually happen, or if some man somewhere made all of this up. Apparently God did these things in such a way that we can find the evidence of them five thousand years down the road. And in that, God is being good to us moderns.

Apparently God did these things in such a way that we can find the evidence of them five thousand years down the road.

There are some important lessons we can learn as we make these types of discoveries in the world. God does not change. He works in the same ways today as He did in Moses’ day.

Through His sovereign leading, God works miracles for His obedient people, within His own world.

Israel had a need. It was a great and a practical need… water. Imagine being a father in this circumstance who not only has an extremely thirsty family to provide for, but also a large number of flocks and herds which are your very livelihood. God could have provided water for them at any time and at any place, causing water to appear wherever and whenever He chose. But it seems He did not work that way.

God knew there was near-surface water in this place the Bible calls Rephidim, and He was bringing them to that place where the water already was, waiting on them. The miracle was in the leading. Their job was to simply trust Him and obey, following His leading, even if they did not understand, and even when it got tough. Really tough. God was showing His chosen people (and us today) that He could be trusted, no matter the circumstances. He knew what He was leading them to. He knew what He was doing.

Even when the group arrived in Rephidim, there was no water to be seen in the vicinity. But though there was no outward indication of it, corrected chronology has brought to light the reality of the situation: they were standing on top of it. God knew all about it, and He had led them there. In our lives we must also remember that God sees what we do not see.

You and I have needs, many of them. We sometimes may wonder, “God, why aren’t you doing something? Why don’t you do a miracle here and help us?” Seeing the reality of this account at Rephidim can help us better understand our God and how He works. He knows where you are, and He knows where and when the needs will be met. It is our job to trust in Him, obey Him, and in childlike faith, to follow Him. We must continue in faith, even when the tough gets real tough. And when the right time comes, He will say, “Strike the rock over here,” and water will come forth.

He was bringing them to that place where the water already was, waiting on them. The miracle was in the leading.

A good illustration of this is the spread of the gospel over the last 2000 years. God has not chosen to inform the world about His only Son and the good news of the Kingdom by writing it in the clouds on Sunday afternoons, or by having an angel stand on the moon and proclaim it to all the earth at 9:00 PM each evening. 

So how did He choose to miraculously have the word go forth? In the most ordinary, real world, every day ways. One man meets another man at just the right place and in just the right time, and that man is eventually led to Christ. One woman tells another of Christ, a seed is planted, and in due time, a harvest is reaped. A young man meets a young woman on a particular day and, in time, they end up building a family and raising a crop of warriors for Christ in this world. A child is led to a VBS program by an individual who invites them, a seed is planted within the child’s heart and mind, and in God’s time, that child believes on the Lord Jesus. These and a thousand other ways.

It is the miracle of God’s sovereign hand, leading obedient people to just the right spot at just the right time, (sometimes in the nick of time), to perform a great work in the world.

Through His Sovereign and miraculous leading, God tests His people.

We see this demonstrated throughout Scripture, as well as in our own lives. I do not believe God tests His people in order to learn about them, for He already knows us. I believe there are three main reasons for the testing.

First, the testing is for our benefit, to give us information about ourselves. Second, the testing is for the benefit of others who are watching us, to learn from our obedience… or from our mistakes. And third, the testing is the Lord teaching us about Himself, and giving us the experience of living by faith, learning (hopefully) to trust Him more for the next test that comes along.

The testing from the Lord sometimes comes in the form of God waiting until the last minute to bring an answer to our situation. God is the master Story Teller, and really good stories have really good plot twists. And cliff hangers. When we face these tests, we see if we are willing to trust the Master in times of difficulty, or, if like the children of Israel, we will become faithless and complaining.

God leads to the most unlikely places and at the most unexpected times.

Think of just about any Bible story and you will see this is the case, from the call of Abraham out of an idolatrous family, to the dysfunction of Jacob’s family, to the coming of Christ into the world through a poor young virgin in Bethlehem. It is no different here in the story of water from the rock. These people are at a point of great thirst in just another seemingly dry and rocky wasteland, yet… the Lord has obviously led.

God never does things in the way we think they will be or should be done. He is always surprising us. It may be in the driest of places that we find where the cool water actually lies. If you are following the Lord, don’t be surprised to be surprised. And even if you do expect to be surprised, you will still be surprised. Through accounts such as this, we see that it is the way of the Lord.

God is still sovereignly and miraculously leading individuals and nations to The Rock who is Christ.

The Old Testament stories are filled with shadows, types, and symbols that were pointing to greater things to come. The New Testament sheds light on the stories of the Old Testament, giving us a deeper understanding of the purposes and works of God in the world. 

Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians that the rock that Israel drank from, “was Christ.” This demonstrates to us that the striking of the rock in the wilderness was a type and symbol of Christ, the greater “Rock” who was to come. It was out of this rock in the wilderness that God provided the literal water of salvation for His people. This points to the greater “Rock of offense” (1 Peter 2:8) who was struck at the cross of Calvary, and from whom would flow living water—the greater salvation.

Mankind is “life-thirsty” and in desperate need of the water of life. Christ, the Rock who was struck at the cross, cried out to the crowd, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.” (John 7:37) The offers still stands, “Come. And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.” (Rev. 22:17)

You may be in the driest, most hopeless time of your life, thirsty, looking for hope, purpose, meaning to it all. But God is miraculously leading you to the true Water of life.

Are you in need of the water of life today? We who have tasted and seen that He really is good, with Christ, invite you to come. Come to Christ and find life. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and even now, in your desperate state, you will be saved. The Rock has been struck. The water freely flows. Come and partake.

If you are believing, trusting, and obeying the Lord, you can know that God always has you in the right place at the right time. As we understand more of the details in accounts such as Exodus 17, we learn that He works miracles in His created world by His sovereign leading. We can trust Him when we don’t see the way, when we are worn out, and even when we are almost at the point of despair. Simple and faithful obedience will ultimately lead us to His miraculous provision, every time.

[Be sure to check out Dr. Gerald Aardsma’s original Biblical Chronologist newsletter article, The Route of the Exodus, Part IV: The Identification of Rephidim.]

[Here is audio of me speaking on the topic of Rephidim at our home church– God’s Sovereign and Miraculous Leading.]

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