No Murmuring Allowed
Pastors Rodney & Adonica Howard-BrownePublish date: 11/30/2025
Foundation Scripture:
Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. 1 Corinthians 10:10 KJV
1. Murmuring and Complaining.
a. Philippians 2:14 KJV –– Do all things without murmurings and disputings.
b. Murmuring and complaining are the opposite of being thankful and appreciative.
c. To murmur means: to murmur, mutter, grumble; say anything against in a low tone; to confer secretly together; to discontentedly complain.
d. The Hebrew word implies a permanent or continual state; an entrenched negative attitude; being obstinate; stubbornly holding onto a grudge.
e. Murmuring is not just complaining—it is complaining against God.
f. It is questioning His goodness, doubting His faithfulness, and speaking words that contradict His promises.
g. In scripture, murmuring and unbelief walk hand-in-hand.
h. A murmuring mouth reveals an unbelieving heart.
2. Forgetting What God Has Done.
a. Murmuring begins when we forget what God has done.
b. Psalm 106:7 KJV –– Our fathers understood not thy wonders… they remembered not the multitude of thy mercies; but provoked him… at the sea.
c. Israel murmured at the Red Sea, though their deliverance from Egypt was fresh in their memory.
d. When the Lord wanted to lead them into the Promised Land, they refused to trust Him.
e. Numbers 14:11 KJV –– And the Lord said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them?
f. Murmuring is spiritual amnesia.
3. Blaming God.
a. Murmuring twists trials into accusations against God.
b. Exodus 16:8 KJV –– Your murmurings are not against us, but against the LORD.
c. They complained about Moses, but God said: “You’re talking about ME.”
d. Murmuring is a lying accusation that says to God:
- You are not enough.
- You don’t care.
- You failed me.
- Your promise isn’t true.
e. We know from His Word, that God is faithful and just and keeps His covenant promises.
f. When people murmur and complain about what God did or didn’t do for them, it reveals more about them, than it does about God.
g. It reveals that they have a wicked, unbelieving heart, and they refuse to take responsibility for their own attitude, words, and actions.
h. God takes murmuring seriously because:
- It attacks His character.
- It denies His faithfulness.
- It releases a spirit of rebellion.
- It spreads like a disease and infects others.
i. Israel didn’t fall in the wilderness because of giants, enemies, or impossible circumstances.
j. They fell because of their murmuring and unbelief.
4. Murmuring Opens the Door to Destruction.
a. When you open your mouth to accuse God, you also open your life to be attacked by the devil, the destroyer (1 Cor.10:10).
b. You put yourself in a place where God cannot protect you.
c. Numbers 14:26-28 KJV –– And the Lord spake…, saying, 27 How long shall I bear with this evil congregation, which murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against me. 28 Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the Lord, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you:
d. They had complained, saying: “If only we had died in the land of Egypt! Or if only we had died in this wilderness!” (Num. 14:2)
e. And so, God gave them what they asked for.
f. Be very careful what you say out of your mouth, if you are whining and complaining, because you might just get exactly what you say!
5. Unbelief Blocks the Promises of God.
a. The Israelites murmured and died in the wilderness, because of a stubborn heart of unbelief.
b. Hebrews 3:12,19 KJV –– Take heed… lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief… So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.
c. There is a difference between doubt and unbelief.
d. Doubt is when you are struggling to believe.
e. Unbelief is when you refuse to believe, no matter what evidence there is to the contrary.
f. Unbelief is a choice to deliberately forget His past faithfulness.
g. Unbelief shuts the door to miracles.
h. God is willing, God is able, but unbelief refuses to receive.
6. Mind Your Mouth.
a. God allowed Israel to have what they kept saying.
b. Check your attitude and your confession, because they will set the direction of your life.
c. The tongue can:
- Build faith.
- Release grace.
- Or open the door to the enemy.
d. Murmuring invites defeat, discouragement, and spiritual dryness.
e. Murmuring brings the wilderness.
f. Faith brings the Promised Land.
g. Guard your mouth and resolve today:
- No murmuring.
- No complaining.
- No speaking against God’s plan.
- No releasing words of unbelief.
h. When pressure comes:
- Instead of complaining, worship.
- Instead of murmuring, praise.
- Instead of doubting, declare the Word.
i. Speak: Life; victory; faith; the Word of God; the promises of God.
7. Gratitude and Praise.
a. Praise is the opposite of murmuring.
b. Habakkuk 3:17–18 KJV –– Yet I will rejoice in the Lord… I will joy in the God of my salvation.
c. Gratitude is the cure for murmuring.
d. Remember your testimonies—what He’s done for you.
e. Rehearse His goodness often.
f. Keep a heart filled with gratitude.
g. You can’t complain and praise at the same time.
h. Faith praises before the breakthrough.
i. Today, choose to silence the murmuring voice and lift the voice of faith and appreciation.