So, you may read a verse in the Bible stating that Jesus is the ‘living water.” Okay, now go and look up what water is and what it does. Water will satisfy you when you are thirsty. Water will clean you up when you are dirty. Water will wash your wounds.

2 Samuel 2:21-22. Psalms 62:2 | 71:3 | 18:46 | 31:2 | 61:1 | 78:35. 1 Samuel 2:2. 2 Samuel 22:47. These Scriptures are talking about God being our rock.

1 Corinthians 10:1-4. Exodus 17:6.

Now, this rock needed to be big so enough water could come out of it to quench the thirst of over 3 million people. So, this wasn’t some little rock; it was a boulder. We don’t need to listen to the devil when He tries to make himself seem bigger than our God. Jesus is bigger than anything we are going through.

Smite – to strike, to beat, to hurt

This rock in Exodus is a beautiful representation of Jesus. In chapter 17 verse 6, it says that Moses was to smite the rock. That action represents Jesus being smitten on the cross. Matthew 26:31. Moses smote the rock so water could come out. Jesus was smitten on the cross so that living water could flow out of Him. Isaiah 53:4-5. John 19:34.

Out of His side flowed blood and water. This represented forgiveness, the Holy Ghost, and the keeping power of the Lord. Water gives strength and life.

The next time we come to this rock it’s a different story.

Now, when the children of Israel came to the rock, God commanded Moses to speak to it. Not beat it, not shake his fist and get angry at it. The first time, Christ was smitten, this second time, we speak to Him. Numbers 20:7-13.

Why did Moses smite the rock the second time?

Moses was almost like the Lord to the people. He might have thought that if he smote the rock again and the water came out that he would get the glory. If he went out and spoke to the rock, the Lord would get the glory. There’s too many people out there trying to steal God’s glory. But we have not bled and died for anyone. We were not crucified for anyone. That was Jesus who went through all that for us, so to God be the glory! At the end of the day, we all brush our teeth the way. We are little people. We own nothing, and whatever good things we have, the Lord gave them to us. We aren’t that strong or good. We ought to be on our way to Hell, but Jesus has had a lot of mercy on us. We have nothing to boast about except Jesus!

Let me talk a second about the forgotten rock.

Deuteronomy 32:18. 1 Peter 2:4. Mark 12:10. Now, here’s a little bit of Jewish history. It’s not exactly Biblical, but here’s what people think happened. When they were building Solomon’s temple, the quarry was around 3 miles away. There was not allowed the sound of a hammer inside the temple. The builders had to cut stones and beams, then bring them to the site of the temple, and the materials had to fit together right. So, each cornerstone was marked with a number. When they were bringing in one of the cornerstones, somehow the number got misplaced. They pushed the stone over the hill and the weeds soon began to grow over it.

There are some people you may know that have pushed Jesus over the hill. They’ve put Jesus out of their way and have forgotten Him. He is waiting on them, all they have to do is pull the weeds out of the way. One touch from Jesus and he can turn a life around.

We are in the Master’s hands.

Daniel 2:34. This stone was made without hands. This could represent the virgin birth. God does not need our help, but we need His. We may not have all the answers right now and we may be in a tough spot, but we are in the hands that created the universe. We may be struggling, but we are in good hands and we know that we will be alright.

If you put a basketball in my hands, it’s worth about $3. You put a basketball in Michael Jordan’s hands, it could be worth thousands. We are lumps of clay and what matters is whose hands we are in. Thank God we are in the hands of our Creator!

Jesus keeps us safe.

There was a time I saw a family having a picnic on a place of ground in the middle of a river. I went out to town for a little bit and when I passed by that river again I saw ambulances and the rescue squad. There was even a helicopter and boats. When I went to see what was going on, the power plant had opened up. The whistle for people to get out of the river had not gone off. The family that was there before was now in a flood. If the water got any higher, it was going to drown them. The people who were there to rescue them didn’t know what to do.

But there was a rock that this little family was able to cling to. One of the men came by and told us that the water would never get as high as the rock, so the family would be okay. The safest place for that family was not in a boat in the middle of the waves of the river with someone trying to help them. The safest place for them was on that rock.

The devil may be throwing a flood at you, but it will never be higher than the Rock you are putting your faith in.

A century ago, an ocean liner went down and took many people with it. One 16-year-old boy didn’t drown and the reason why was because he clung to a rock all night long before he was rescued. When he was rescued, he was asked if he shook while he held to that rock. The boy said, “Yes, of course, but that rock never shook one time.”

Jesus is our rock, my friend, and He will keep us in times of trouble. I pray this word encouraged you. Keep clinging to the Rock of our salvation! God bless you!

— Pastor Anthony Wynn