The Battle Belongs To The Lord
“Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”
Psalm 46:10
Meribah; there the Lord gave water to His thirsty people, but the name of that place doesn’t speak of refreshing! Walking through the desert, their thirst became so overpowering, and their complaining so bitter, that Moses feared the people would stone him! Then the Lord brought them to the ‘rock of Horeb’ and instructed Moses to strike the rock. Water came out of it, and the people drank. ‘The waters of Meribah’ is a reference to the doubting and complaining of the people, not the satisfaction of their thirst, “for there they tempted the Lord, saying, ‘Is the Lord among us or not?’”
No matter what challenge life brings, whether walking through deserts, climbing steep mountains, or resting beside still waters, the Lord is always with us. But if we lose sight of His promise, when overwhelming circumstance causes us to doubt and complain, we get confused. God doesn’t perform miracles because we complain; He provides blessings because He loves us. The consequence of our fear is not rescue; doubt only breeds trouble!
Meribah was in the region of Rephidim. There, the people of Amalak came and attacked the people of Israel. The battle plan is legendary, for after Moses instructed Joshua to choose men to go out and fight, he stood upon a hilltop with the ‘rod of God’ in his hands. When Moses held up the rod, Joshua and the army prevailed. When Moses’ arms got tired, and the tide of the battle turned against Joshua, two elders lifted Moses’ arms until their enemy was defeated.
What better proof than this that the Lord WAS with Israel? Joshua and the army didn’t rally to a flag to fight courageously. The ‘rod of God’ in Moses' hands, lifted high for all to see, was the banner that gave them victory and released the Lord’s power in the fight. After the battle, “the Lord said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua, …And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovah nissi: The Lord Our Banner.” From that point forward, Joshua’s trust in God never wavered. What trouble might you avoid if you left your fears and looked to the cross? To the Lord, who fights your battles for you!
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