Moses' "small" sin

Chapter 20 of Numbers finds the Israelites grumbling to Moses over a lack of water. So God instructs Moses (Numbers 20:8, NLT),

As the people watch, speak to the rock over there, and it will pour out its water.

Here is Moses' response to the people, along with his actions (Numbers 20:10-11, NLT),

“Listen, you rebels!” he shouted. “Must we bring you water from this rock?” Then Moses raised his hand and struck the rock twice with the staff, and water gushed out.

OK, end of story, right? Evidently not! Moses' actions lead God to say (Numbers 20, 12, NLT),

Because you did not trust me enough to demonstrate my holiness to the people of Israel, you will not lead them into the land I am giving them!

Whoa! What did Moses do wrong? Well, for starters, he says "must we bring you water," rather than attribute the miracle to God. Second, he strikes the rock, rather than speaks to it, as God commanded.

Forbidding the great Moses from entering the promised land seems like strong punishment for such a "small" sin. But we must realize that any sin brings us infinitely far from God's righteousness. Simply, there are no "small" sins, and there are no "unjust" punishments from God.

As scary as that is, Moses' story, thankfully, does not end there. As a great testament to God's mercy, Moses makes another appearance in the Bible, and a dramatic one at that, when Moses, along with Elijah, speaks with Jesus during the transfiguration.

So the key lessons: (1) no sin is "small" in God's eyes; (2) sins have consequences; (3) God's mercy can overcome our sins.