Murmuring

The foolishness of man subverteth his way; and his heart fretteth against the Lord. Proverbs 19:3. We go through many experiences in this walk with the Lord, that closely parallel events in the lives of men in the Scriptures. Recently I wandered through four consecutive chapters in the book of Exodus, noting people’s reactions to the dealings of the Lord, and how those reactions usually came on the eve of a great deliverance. When God deals with us, our hearts tend to fret before the Lord. When faith runs a little thin, we start fretting.

I’ve observed that just before God brings an answer, Satan comes in a wave of attack to defeat us. After we’ve been faithful to pray and pray, we often reach that moment when a wave of almost utter desperation comes at us from Satan—and that’s the time one could murmur. Satan does everything he can to move you to unbelief; and when he cannot see you defeated on that point, he has only one remaining tactic to use as a final resort, and that is the temptation to murmur. If you succumb, God will deal with you at once. You’ve lost the victory, and Satan has finally accomplished his purpose. He prefers to deal with you directly if he can, but if he can’t, then he tries to put you in a spot where God must judge you instead of bringing you the answer.

This message comes to you prophetically, for we are in that very position. With all that God has done for us in this walk, I believe we’re at the threshold of His doing more for us than we’ve seen in a whole generation. We have yet to see the great flood of blessing He intends to pour out upon His people. Consequently, Satan is trying to discourage, to depress, to bring that wave of despondency which could cause you to murmur against the Lord.

Chapters 14, 15, 16, and 17 of Exodus contain incidents illustrating the deadliness of murmuring, and God’s way of dealing with it. These specific illustrations show you the way people are tempted to murmur when on the threshold of great victory. The next time you’re tempted to gripe and complain, stop and think what you’re doing. You may be depriving yourself of a victory, or at best delaying or minimizing it for yourself.

The book of Jude quotes Enoch’s prophecy, that at the time when the Lord comes with all the hosts of His saints, He will judge the murmurers and the complainers who are walking after their own lusts (Jude 14, 16). This is a day of cynicism and criticism. The atmosphere round about us leads to that. You can react to the situations that tend to irritate you either by giving way to murmuring, or you can determine to rejoice in the Lord and in everything give thanks. If there has ever been a generation since the days of Adam that should praise God for the hour in which they are living, it is this one. God is doing such a quick work. I have never seen people mature so rapidly, or newcomers to the walk come into a dedication and spiritual depth so quickly. It’s amazing the way they stand, even under pressure. God is pouring out a double portion and therefore people are growing rapidly.

The Lord has waited for the early and the latter rain. He wants the precious fruit of the earth to be gathered to Him (James 5:7), but first the early and the latter rain must fall upon it. God is doubling the downpour of blessing upon people’s lives at a time when they are more cynical, more bitter and critical than ever before. If you let the spirit of this age affect you, you’ll be a murmurer and a complainer. But if you refuse to let the spirit of this age reach you, if you rejoice in the Lord continually, you’ll be a positive people walking with God.

I want to admonish you to heed carefully what I’m about to point out. Our way of worship is going to change. If the Lord tarries another decade, you will definitely see the services go through an incredible transition from month to month. What form will they take? Will they become quieter? more dignified? or staid and full of meditation? Definitely not! That sufficed for another generation when the pace of life was slower, but not now. In Revelation, the third chapter, the Lord gives the picture of the church in the end time. That church will be neither hot nor cold, but lukewarm. The Lord says, “I wish that you were either hot or cold, but because you’re lukewarm I’ll spew you out of My mouth” (Revelation 3:15–16). God abhors the trend of indifference and passivity, of withdrawal and the refusal to be involved, which is characteristic of our generation. He warned that because iniquity would abound, the love of many would wax cold (Matthew 24:12). That is the spirit of the age; and if we have nice quiet services with soft organ music, everybody will go to sleep just as they do in other churches where they equate their deadness and passivity with reverence. They may think they are worshiping and being reverent, but they are not; they are sleeping and relaxing. If you were to ask them what the sermon was about, you would be amazed at the answers. Try to recall some of the sermons you heard in such services. Do you remember any of them?

A deadness has come over this age and we must get away from it. Our services are going to become violent. We’re going to sing loudly, old songs and new, just as the wise scribe who is versed in the Kingdom, brings out of his treasure things both old and new (Matthew 13:52). We’ll preach. Some sermons will hit hard. Some will be difficult to hear because the amens will be so loud. Our services must be geared to this violence and fervor or we will surely drift into deadly lukewarmness. The reason this walk is constantly moving ahead and growing is because of this very violence and aggressiveness in our spiritual approach. Unconsciously God’s people are looking for an answer. They want something to stir them up, knowing that unless they’re really motivated in God they’ll go home and become passive.

Everything is working against you spiritually. You can sit down in front of a television set and waste a couple of hours before you know it. Everything drains away your time and it’s difficult to get things accomplished. You must redeem the time. You don’t realize how many factors, such as nervous tension and the noises of modern life, are draining away your energy, and making you tired all the time. Consequently, you bog down, without the initiative or drive to get out of your ruts. Therefore we’re going to come to church and do something positive to motivate and stir us to action. Unless we live up on that higher plane, we will sink to a lower one of indifference.

Many of you wouldn’t be walking with the Lord today if it hadn’t been for the intensity of the word that the Spirit of God has set loose in the earth. If we settle down into the spirit of this age, we will become like the rest of the world, cynical and critical, pleased by nothing. Newspapers and newscasts express these negative reactions and cause you to bog down in them. It takes me an hour to recover from reading the newspapers or watching the newscasts on television because I absorb too much. Besides, I don’t especially want to know what is going on in the world; I’d rather know what God is doing and be in tune with the things that really count. God seems to help me in one way or another to absorb all the worldly knowledge I need. I stay away from these things that minister the spirit of this age, for I tend to either become angry, or find myself polluted by the news. I resent the news media’s attempts to influence the thoughts and opinions of people by their own cynicism and criticism. I want to think the way God leads me to think, and therefore I stay away from other influences.

Jude prophesied that a spirit of murmuring would permeate the whole world: These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their lusts … Jude 16. If you’re not careful, that spirit will get into the church and you’ll find yourself fretting and murmuring against the Lord. Don’t do it! God is bringing a song of rejoicing. And the enemy will come in with that spirit of murmuring at the very time that God is ready to do the most for us.

Let’s illustrate this from the book of Exodus. Pharaoh decided to pursue the Israelites who had forsaken Egypt, and bring them back, for he was aware that the loss of an entire nation of slave labor would break the economy of Egypt. And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians were marching after them; and they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel cried out unto the Lord. And they said unto Moses, Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness? wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us, to bring us forth out of Egypt? Is not this the word that we spake unto thee in Egypt, saying, Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it were better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness. Exodus 14:10–12.

That’s a lie—it isn’t better to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness. If fifty percent of us in this walk were to die, it would still be better than being a part of Babylon. I’d rather walk with God than have the so-called peace and tranquility of servitude. People run away from freedom. God sets them free and they want to run back to slavery. Paul told the Galatians, “I marvel that you’re so quickly removed from the freedom that is in Christ. Where’s the joy you spake of (Galatians 1:6; 4:15)? They couldn’t wait to return to keeping Sabbath days and new moons and circumcision and all the other rituals. Paul says, “I bestowed labor upon you in vain” (Galatians 4:11).

People run away from freedom. This is a passive age. Some of our young people are unemployed, and often they say, “If I take a job I’ll lose all my welfare benefits.” Heed this carefully: if you take that attitude you’ll soon be running away from all responsibility and initiative, and instead of living your own life, you’ll find yourself in a place where someone else is dictating to you and living your life. That may not seem important to you, but you’d be far better off working hard with sore muscles than to lose the sense of freedom you should have in your spirit. I know what is happening to people’s thinking, especially that of the younger generation. They are eager to collect unemployment benefits because they don’t want to face any responsibility.

You’d better take that responsibility to earn a living. It will prepare you for the responsibility that God lays on your shoulders when He gives you a ministry. Then you’re responsible day and night. You live with it. You’re a minister. You’re a shepherd. You can’t run away from it. Develop that sense of responsibility in every area. Go ahead and try. Work hard. People kill time because they want their life dead. I would rather make it alive and activate it.

And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen today, ye shall see them again no more for ever. The Lord will fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace. And the Lord said unto Moses, Wherefore criest thou unto me? speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward. Exodus 14:13–15.

There comes a time when God becomes almost impatient with us. Do you think that’s a prayer when you stand murmuring and complaining and whining? What’s in your spirit when you cry out to God? a whine because you’re in trouble? It can’t be that. God is saying, “Come on, move! Move out! Speak to the children of Israel that they go forward.” Here they are, murmuring one day, and the next day the Lord is going to blot out the Egyptians and they will see them no more. He’ll drown them all. God destroyed the Egyptian nation by putting the Israelites on the spot. That’s what God does with us. He puts us on the spot, too. You know that’s true.

You can stand there and whine and complain, but God brought you to that place. That’s the time to stand still, because they’re rushing at me and at precisely the right moment they will be drowned unless they open their hearts to the Lord. The Lord has used me as a decoy to maneuver them into the situation. I’m a pawn in His Kingdom, and it’s His business how He wants to use my life.

The first thing God told Ananias about Saul of Tarsus was, “He’s a chosen vessel unto Me. I’m going to show him what great things (great things! isn’t that encouraging?) he must suffer for My name’s sake” (Acts 9:15–16). Do you see that He had it all worked out? God maneuvers you into a spot—perhaps because He wants to judge something—but you squeal and holler and find it easy to become discouraged and murmur and whine to the Lord. How much better it is to express faith! You’re in that position because God led you directly into it. Remember that. This status quo (which someone has defined as: “Latin for ‘the mess we’re in’ ”) is of the Lord’s doing. God brought you into it so that you can express faith and rejoice, not so you can murmur and complain.

The day the Egyptians were completely taken out of the picture, the Israelites murmured. After that victory however, they were ecstatic. The girls danced and sang psalms, and Miriam got out her tambourine and sang a beautiful song.

And Moses led Israel onward from the Red Sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water. And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah (meaning “bitterness”). And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink? And he cried unto the Lord; and the Lord showed him a tree, and he cast it into the waters, and the waters were made sweet. There he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them; and he said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his eyes, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases upon thee, which I have put upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth thee. And they came to Elim, where were twelve springs of water, and threescore ten palm-trees: and they encamped there by the waters. Exodus 15:22–27.

Why were they griping? They were a little thirsty one day and started murmuring and complaining again. They forgot all about the Red Sea. How quickly people forget their deliverances and return to their discontent. They come to church and say in effect, “Lord, You were good to me yesterday, and last week, and in years past I would have been lost if it hadn’t been for You, Lord—but what have You done for me lately? I want You to do something more for me.” He is doing something for you. All things work together for good to those who love the Lord (Romans 8:28). Stop your griping. Stop murmuring. You’re fretting against the Lord. Open your heart to trust Him. Let Him work the thing out for you.

The Israelites received a covenant of immunity. God promised that if they would walk with Him, they would suffer none of the diseases that He had brought upon the Egyptians. Isn’t that significant? God made them a people among whom there was not a feeble person; their clothes waxed not old and their feet didn’t swell during all the forty years of wilderness wanderings (Deuteronomy 8:4). However, the day before they received this wonderful covenant of immunity, they were complaining and murmuring.

Take heed, you gripers, as you read the following passages: And they took their journey from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came unto the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departing out of the land of Egypt. And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron in the wilderness: and the children of Israel said unto them, Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh-pots, when we did eat bread to the full; for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger. Exodus 16:1–3.

The very day that they complained, “God brought us out here and now we’re going to die of hunger,” was the day the Lord made the plan for them to receive the manna. Every day, for forty years, they had the very best nutritionist—God Himself—preparing their meals for them. In the morning it was there, waiting to be gathered. It tasted like wafers and honey and was very nutritious. The psalms describe it poetically as “angels’ food” (Psalm 78:25). However, on the eve of this marvelous provision, they were murmuring in their hearts. And they seemed to be getting away with it, too—but not for long.

And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, by their journeys, according to the commandment of the Lord, and encamped in Rephidim: and there was no water for the people to drink. Wherefore the people strove with Moses, and said, Give us water that we may drink. And Moses said unto them, Why strive ye with me? wherefore do ye tempt the Lord? And the people thirsted there for water; and the people murmured against Moses, and said, Wherefore hast thou brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst? Exodus 17:1–3. Is that all they can do—murmur and grumble? Again they couldn’t trust God to meet the need. Why didn’t they trust the Lord?

I’ve noticed that God always emphasizes the need before He brings His provision. He makes you sweat a little bit to see if you’re a murmurer. There is an old Jewish wail, “I know the Lord will help me, but He should help me until He helps me!” It expresses the feeling that He’s not doing anything for you right now; He’s forsaken you. No, He hasn’t forsaken you.

And Moses cried unto the Lord, saying, What shall I do unto this people? they are almost ready to stone me. And the Lord said unto Moses, Pass on before the people, and take with thee of the elders of Israel; and thy rod, wherewith thou smotest the river, take in thy hand, and go. Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. Exodus 17:4–6.

According to I Corinthians 10:4 the water of that rock followed them. I don’t know how it worked because sometimes they had to go uphill, but in some way that water kept flowing with them wherever they went in the wilderness.

Think of God’s wonderful provisions: He delivered them from the hand of the enemy, gave them a covenant of immunity from all disease, served them good food every day, and gave them a water system all the way through the wilderness! And still they griped—in spite of God’s constant care and deliverance.

And the Lord said, I have pardoned according to thy word: but in very deed, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord; because all those men that have seen my glory, and my signs, which I wrought in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have tempted me these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice; surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that despised me see it: but my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it. Numbers 14:20–24.

This took place after the spies returned from spying out the land and ten of them gave a bad report. The people murmured and complained so much that God said, “I’m going to destroy them all.” When Moses interceded for the people, God said, “I’ve pardoned them according to your word. I won’t destroy them all, but they will not enter into Canaan. They are going to die in the wilderness, and only their children will go in and possess the land.” They were murmurers. Ten times they murmured!

We get the impression everything went along smoothly until they came to Kadesh-barnea and rebelled in fear, but I want you to understand that they had become conditioned to that reaction. If all twelve spies had come back with a good report, the people still would not have agreed to go into Canaan, because they were conditioned to murmur. On ten different occasions they had murmured. God said, “That’s enough! They won’t receive the promise.” When someone says, “I don’t know why God doesn’t bless me,” I could tell him. I could probably remember ten different times when he was griping and complaining and drawing back from the Lord’s dealings, just when the Lord was positioning him so that He could bring him a blessing. It just doesn’t pay for us to murmur in our hearts. I believe we have more testing circumstances and more trying hours in this walk than anything we see elsewhere, and therefore you must be delivered from this murmuring spirit. If you aren’t free of it, you’re apt to find that right in the midst of blessing, you will be deep in problems.

The eleventh chapter of Numbers presents a fascinating picture of murmuring and judgment, in conjunction with an outpouring of the Spirit that was unequaled in Old Testament times. This fascinating story shifts back and forth from judgment to blessing five different times. Notice that the first ten verses tell about murmuring leading to judgment, and verses eleven through seventeen tell about an outpouring upon the elders. Then it shifts back to the murmuring picture again in verses eighteen through twenty-three, returning to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the elders in verses twenty-four through thirty, concluding with the story of judgment in verses thirty-one to thirty-five.

I used to wonder why the writer of this book under the anointing of the Holy Spirit didn’t tell each story separately? The reason is that the Holy Spirit wanted to interweave two things that were taking place simultaneously. The Spirit was to be taken from Moses, who was under a great burden, and laid upon seventy elders and the glory of the Lord would be present. And the Lord came down in a cloud, and spake unto him, and took of the spirit that was upon him, and gave it unto the seventy elders: and it came to pass, that, when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied, and did not cease. Numbers 11:25.

Meanwhile others were wailing, “Oh, we want flesh to eat. Our souls loathe this manna.” And God replied, “All right, I’ll give it to you.” A strong wind blew in so many quail, that for miles they covered the ground to a depth of several feet. They gathered the quail and cooked it, but before they had even started chewing it, the wrath of God brought a great plague that destroyed the murmurers. Can you imagine hearing the sound of prophesying and the wail of death simultaneously? The murmuring hearts were coming into judgment, but those who were seeking God were coming into a manifestation of glory such as they had never before seen.

This we will experience also. If you have a tendency to be negative and complain, you had better get over it in a hurry or you will be sitting there wailing while others are rejoicing and prophesying. You can complain and murmur to your own hurt. Above everything else ask God to deliver you from that murmuring spirit, and to help you walk with real faith, to do the will of God with all your heart.

This is a day of rebellion; but in the midst of the rebellion the great truth of the Lordship of Jesus Christ is being proclaimed. And when you submit to the Lord to become His bondservant, He pours out His Spirit upon you and the prophesying and the moving of God takes place.

That’s the whole scene. We go against the rebellion and murmuring, opening our hearts and submitting to the Lord because God has some good things for us in this generation and we intend to get them. I’m going to ask the Lord to set a watch on my spirit. It’s too easy to complain and murmur.

On another occasion the Israelites were thirsty and again they murmured. Moses became so furious that he struck the rock twice with his staff when God told him to speak to it.

Then God said, “That’s too bad. You didn’t sanctify Me before the people. Now you won’t go into Canaan.” That really disturbs me, because I think Moses was mentally and spiritually superior to any of the other Bible characters. Not only was he a man meek above every man on the face of the earth, but he received more divine revelation than anyone else. To no man did God reveal His glory as He did to Moses. After he had seen the glory he came down from the mount with his face shining. Moses was a spiritual man, a good man, a humble man. But one day that damnable murmuring got to him, and he blew the whole thing and missed out on the fullness of what God had for him. That murmuring spirit got to him.

We can point to another man who is called “a man after God’s own heart.” He never murmured. He reveals his cure for murmuring in the seventy-seventh psalm. David would not murmur; but he had other faults. He seduced Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah the Hittite; then maneuvered Uriah into a dangerous position in battle where he would be killed. David married Bathsheba and eventually she bore Solomon, who succeeded David to the throne. Morally David was nothing to brag about. He was also vengeful, with a rather unforgiving nature. Let’s not dwell on his faults though, for God calls him “a man after My own heart.”

Poor Moses lost out because of one occasion of murmuring. David made it fine, even receiving from God the plans for the temple and the task of gathering all the gold and jewels needed for its construction. Comparing David with Moses, I would say that Moses was a far greater man of God. In the time of Christ Jesus they glorified David, but they were all followers of Moses. Don’t murmur!

God is dealing very deeply with us. Many people need to repent of the sin of murmuring—the classic cause of defeat. It has slowed you down more than you know, opening up defeats for you that you were never able to pinpoint, robbing you of blessings that were begun in your life, just because in a critical hour you complained and murmured and criticized. We’re on the threshold of great blessings and it’s not good to let that sin remain in our hearts.

They also that err in spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmur shall receive instruction. Isaiah 29:24. What a precious promise of deliverance for God’s people in the end time. We’re not going to err in spirit; we’ll come to understanding. We’re not going to murmur; we’ll receive instruction. We stand on that promise of the Lord for deliverance and help.

Joseph had dreams and was persecuted and hated by his brothers who sold him into slavery. But we never hear him murmuring. In Twenty-four hours’ time God raised his status from that of a lowly, forgotten slave in the prison of Egypt to that of the sovereign ruler next to Pharaoh himself.

Don’t murmur or complain. It doesn’t take long—one earthquake can open a Philippian jail and a church can be started the same night. It takes just one move of God’s Spirit and everything can change. Don’t murmur. Live with hope and expectancy. This is a day of deliverance. Watch your conversation. It may reveal traits of your spirit that need to be changed. Rejoice in the Lord. Self-pity will cause a person to murmur. The intensity of the battle, as well as withdrawal and passivity will make you murmur.

I’ve never seen a G.I. who wasn’t a griper. The armies of the world go grumbling along their way, but the armies of the Lord are singing a new song unto the Lord!