Moving Forward

I've often wondered why God didn't allow Moses to cross the Jordan with the people.  I know that Moses didn't listen to Him in particular circumstances, but we all do that from time to time and still are able to reap God's blessings.  David is a perfect example of that because he would have been killed for committing adultery, brought back to life just to be killed again for murder.  But even though he was found out and guilty, God had mercy on him.  So why is Moses any different?  After all he was the intermediary between God and the people.

I'm my Deuteronomy reading today, I read this, "And he [Moses] said to them; 'I am one hundred and twenty years old today, I can no longer go out and com in.  Also the Lord has said to me, "You shall not cross over this Jordan." The Lord your God Himself crosses over before you...Joshua himself crosses over before you, just as the Lord has said...Be strong and of good courage...for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you.  He will not leave you nor forsake you'" (31:2-3,6).  I think God wouldn't let Moses go because He wanted to make sure they followed Him, though later it shows that He already knew they'd turn away.  God was ready to establish a true relationship with His people in the land He promised them.  He wanted to turn their focus away from the person they had been following and realize God was their leader.  In this passage Moses puts a lot of emphasis on the name of God for this reason.  He wanted to reassure the people that God is God and he was just a man who God was using.  Even more than that though, he wanted to reassure them that even though he was leaving, God would set up someone to go before them and guide them.  Joshua this man.  Emphasis is placed on Joshua's name too.  God wasn't going to make the people go alone, He had another leader planned, but this leader was new and would make the people feel more vulnerable going into the promise land.  The people needed to learn how to trust.  After their years of wondering in the desert, they still hadn't mastered this.  They still complained, which was what got Moses into trouble.  This would be the people's final test.  They were now about to enter hardship and they knew it.  Was God actually going to be there for them?  Should they follow Joshua? Was this even good enough for them?  They must have had questions, but they decided to trust.  How often do I trust even when I'm guided?  Honestly, not very often.

I'll end by pointing out that Moses encourages the people by focusing on the positives.  "Be strong and of good courage.  You know why?  Because God, He is with you.  Not me, I'm only human and will die soon, but God, He is eternal and will never leave you nor will He forsake you."

Alleluia.