48 That same day the Lord said to Moses,49 “Go to Moab, to the mountains east of the river, and climb Mount Nebo, which is across from Jericho. Look out across the land of Canaan, the land I am giving to the people of Israel as their own special possession.50 Then you will die there on the mountain. You will join your ancestors, just as Aaron, your brother, died on Mount Hor and joined his ancestors. 51 For both of you betrayed me with the Israelites at the waters of Meribah at Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin. You failed to demonstrate my holiness to the people of Israel there. 52 So you will see the land from a distance, but you may not enter the land I am giving to the people of Israel.” Deuteronomy 32: 48-52
This was the moment that Moses got his death sentence. I can only imagine the emotions that flooded his mind when the message sank in. After everything he had done, he was not going to step into Canaan. This was the land he longed for, worked for and looked forward to.
The reason was simple! The people of Israel drove him to act in a way that displeased God. Up to this point, he had led them selflessly, interceded for them when God got angry with them and wanted to wipe out all of them. He had gone from an Egyptian royalty to a Midian exile because of them and this was what he got in return.
The people he did everything for cost him one thing he really looked forward to, but he never held it against them as we can see from the spectacular opening of Deuteronomy 33.
This is the blessing that Moses, the man of God, gave to the people of Israel before his death:
He did not just stop at not holding it against them, he went further to actually bless them before he died. This is definitely counterculture, this is not likely to be our first reaction but Moses was not alone in this. Stephen did something similar when he was being stoned to death.
As they stoned him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” He fell to his knees, shouting, “Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!” And with that, he died. Acts 7: 59 – 60.
Now, it’s our turn and we are on the stage, acting life’s drama. Offence and hurt will come and people will make us feel like giving it back to them. People will get under our skin and hurt us where it hurts most. People will lie against us, manipulate and slander us. Sometimes, they will cause irreparable damage to our reputation and self esteem. The classes of offence that will come our way are limitless. These great men that have gone before us have given us a difficult template to follow but Jesus’s death and resurrection have made following the template easier. No matter the degree of offence, the counsel remains the same.
Don’t let evil conquer you but conquer evil by doing good. Romans 12:21
The words of Romans 12: 14 – 21 are indeed very instructive on this subject. Please take some time to read them. God’s grace is sufficient for us.
Chidi Ukandu's Blog 