WORSHIP IN THE WILDERNESS

“..Let my people go, that they
may worship me in the wilderness…”
Exodus 7:16

“…God led you through the wilderness for forty years,

humbling you and testing you to prove your character,

and to find out whether or not you

would really obey his commands.”
Deuteronomy 8:2

The Bible says that after Joseph died, another pharaoh rose up and oppressed the children of Israel fearing that they would begin to outnumber the Egyptians. (Exodus 1:11-14). After the children of Israel had been in bondage for almost 400 years, God sent Moses to pharaoh with a message to release His people. The reason he demands their release is not for their human rights or equal rights, not even, their civil rights. He demands their release so they can worship Him! It would seem that God would be most concerned about the injustices and hardships of His people. However, His primary focus was worship.
His secondary objective according to scripture was to humble, prove and to see if they would really obey all of his commands. Although he knew the people would rebel and disobey Him, yet He gave them the highest probability for success. Not only did He outline His expectations with their rewards, he told them what would happen if they chose to disobey. He also performed miracle, after miracle, after miracle to prove to them that He would perform every promise that He made to them. He fed them daily with manna from heaven. Neither their clothes nor their shoes wore out. He proved to them over and over again that He was faithful, trustworthy and worthy of their worship. The wilderness was the place to see if they were worshiping because they loved and trusted God or if they were only serving Him for what He could give.
The wilderness proved if genuine worship was in the hearts of the Hebrews. But, every time they faced a hardship, instead of worshiping they murmured and complained. Their tears were not tears of adoration, but contempt because they longed for the onions and leeks of Egypt ( Numbers 11:4-15)! Moses had gone up in the mountain to talk to the Lord and stayed too long for the people. When he came down, he heard the noise of a celebration. There was singing and dancing in the camp, but they were worshipping a golden calf instead of the true God (Exodus 32:1-35).
The wilderness represents testing. Jesus was sent into the wilderness to be tested of the devil. You will be sent there, as well. The purposes for the wilderness have not changed. It is to worship God and to see what is in your heart.
What will you do in the wilderness? God has proven himself to us over and over again. He has proven Himself to be faithful and a provider. We can’t be too hard on the Hebrews, we may be just like them! Will there be a sound of celebration – but to a golden calf? Will there be tears of adoration, reverence and awe in response to a faithful God or are they tears of longing for the comfort of your own will and way? You see worship is not about location. It’s about the reality of who God is. If you can’t worship and trust God in the wilderness, you surely can’t worship and trust God in Canaan, the land of promise. Circumstances and location do not dictate worship, but it is a matter of the heart and obedience.