Fear and faith couldn’t co-exist, they were like oil and water.”
–Dan Arnold (Riding for the Brand)
“‘Assemble the people, and I will give them water.’ There the Israelites sang this song: ‘Spring up, O well! Yes, sing about it!'”
–Numbers 21:16-17(NLT)
———————————-
“Spring up, O well, within my soul,
Spring up, O well, and make me whole,
Spring up, O well, and give to me
That life abundantly.”
–Phil Wickham
Joseph Parker writes, “The children of Israel had been having a hard time. This is the way in which God makes men, by driving them from pillar to post, by making them live a long time in tents, and by commanding them to take up their tent and go on, no matter where; not for them to know, it is enough that God knows.” A characteristic of the wilderness is the scarcity of water. Now we see in Numbers 21:17-18, the digging of a well. That takes time and effort, but the water was desperately needed.
This time the water was there but the people had to dig a well. It was dug by the leaders and nobles (interesting). Moses didn’t strike the rock, there wasn’t a tree to cut down to make the water drinkable. No, men had to get their hands dirty and dig into the dirt to dig the well that would bring the refreshing, reviving water.
Take a moment and think of those who have dug wells to refresh and strengthen your life. Parker says, “Woe to any nation that forgets the memory of its well-diggers.” Digging a well requires effort. Who were those who made the effort to dig wells for your life? Who has encouraged you, who has strengthened you, who has taught and trained you?
Teaching a child to read is digging a well (Parker). Instructing them in the Word of God is digging a well. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were well-diggers and their stories we kept in front of the people to remember. Remembering those who dug wells in the past is digging a well. Then when the water gushes forth sing praise to the Lord. When water is found and the soul is refreshed, sing a song of praise.
One of the purposes of deconstruction (postmodernism) is to distort, obscure, destroy, or deny the well-diggers of the past. Distort the exploits of Joshua, deny the courage of David, destroy the teachings of Paul. “Give me liberty or give me death”–those words do not count for Patrick Henry owned slaves. The “Star-Spangled Banner” must be discarded because Francis Scott Key owned slaves. Washington, Jefferson, Madison were all slave holders, therefore their contributions are tainted. Columbus, the exploiter of the natives, or the one who brought hope through Christianity, and a new world was founded that would change the globe. Warp the purposes of the leaders, misrepresent the purposes and dwell in their faults but never in their faith. Destroy the well-diggers.
A final thought–open your eyes and see God. See the well He has provided in your own life. Drink from your own well; the water is provided. Share the water with others in acts of kindness that may bring hope. You are a well-digger. Read the chorus above again. The first part of it goes like this.
“I’ve got a river of life flowing out of me,
Makes the lame to walk and the blind to see,
Opens prison doors, sets the captives free.
I’ve got a river of life flowing out of me.”
Hmmm, perhaps you will have to be like Isaac and uncover the wells of his father.
“‘Assemble the people, and I will give them water.’ There the Israelites sang this song: ‘Spring up, O well! Yes, sing about it!'”
–Numbers 21:16-17(NLT)
———————————-
“Spring up, O well, within my soul,
Spring up, O well, and make me whole,
Spring up, O well, and give to me
That life abundantly.”
–Phil Wickham
Joseph Parker writes, “The children of Israel had been having a hard time. This is the way in which God makes men, by driving them from pillar to post, by making them live a long time in tents, and by commanding them to take up their tent and go on, no matter where; not for them to know, it is enough that God knows.” A characteristic of the wilderness is the scarcity of water. Now we see in Numbers 21:17-18, the digging of a well. That takes time and effort, but the water was desperately needed.
This time the water was there but the people had to dig a well. It was dug by the leaders and nobles (interesting). Moses didn’t strike the rock, there wasn’t a tree to cut down to make the water drinkable. No, men had to get their hands dirty and dig into the dirt to dig the well that would bring the refreshing, reviving water.
Take a moment and think of those who have dug wells to refresh and strengthen your life. Parker says, “Woe to any nation that forgets the memory of its well-diggers.” Digging a well requires effort. Who were those who made the effort to dig wells for your life? Who has encouraged you, who has strengthened you, who has taught and trained you?
Teaching a child to read is digging a well (Parker). Instructing them in the Word of God is digging a well. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were well-diggers and their stories we kept in front of the people to remember. Remembering those who dug wells in the past is digging a well. Then when the water gushes forth sing praise to the Lord. When water is found and the soul is refreshed, sing a song of praise.
One of the purposes of deconstruction (postmodernism) is to distort, obscure, destroy, or deny the well-diggers of the past. Distort the exploits of Joshua, deny the courage of David, destroy the teachings of Paul. “Give me liberty or give me death”–those words do not count for Patrick Henry owned slaves. The “Star-Spangled Banner” must be discarded because Francis Scott Key owned slaves. Washington, Jefferson, Madison were all slave holders, therefore their contributions are tainted. Columbus, the exploiter of the natives, or the one who brought hope through Christianity, and a new world was founded that would change the globe. Warp the purposes of the leaders, misrepresent the purposes and dwell in their faults but never in their faith. Destroy the well-diggers.
A final thought–open your eyes and see God. See the well He has provided in your own life. Drink from your own well; the water is provided. Share the water with others in acts of kindness that may bring hope. You are a well-digger. Read the chorus above again. The first part of it goes like this.
“I’ve got a river of life flowing out of me,
Makes the lame to walk and the blind to see,
Opens prison doors, sets the captives free.
I’ve got a river of life flowing out of me.”
Hmmm, perhaps you will have to be like Isaac and uncover the wells of his father.