Good Morning Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
In Numbers 13, we read where Moses chose a leader from every one of the 12 tribes of the Children of Israel to go into the Promised Land and spy it out. These 12 men were to go throughout the land and report back to Moses, Aaron, and the people what they had observed. When the 12 spies returned with their report, 10 men gave an “evil” report, and two men gave a “good” report. The two men with the good report were Joshua and Caleb. We all know what eventually transpired. Because the Children of Israel failed to obey God and take the Promised Land, they were exiled for 40 years until all of the men and women 20 years of age and older died out. Then Joshua led the Children of Israel into the Promised Land.
Let’s step back to where God originally announced the Children of Israel would be going to and possessing the Promised Land. God originally makes the promise in Genesis to Abraham.
Genesis 13:14-17
14 And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward:
15 For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.
16 And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.
17 Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee.
As the Children of Israel are readying to leave Egypt after 430 years of sojourning and immediately after the plagues, God speaks to Moses saying:
Exodus 13:5
And it shall be when the LORD shall bring thee into the land of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which He sware unto thy fathers to give thee, a land flowing with milk and honey, that thou shalt keep this service in this month.
Notice a key part of Exodus 13:5, “…when the LORD shall bring thee into the land……” God is saying He, Yahweh, shall bring the Children of Israel into the Promised Land. Now, when we read Moses’ retelling of what occurred in Deuteronomy 1, we should be able to spot WHY the Children of Israel failed to go in and possess the land the first time and wandered in the desert for 40 years.
Deuteronomy 1:20-23
20 And I [Moses] said unto you, Ye are come unto the mountain of the Amorites, which the LORD our God doth give unto us.
21 Behold, the LORD thy God hath set the land before thee: go up and possess it, as the LORD God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged.
22 And Ye came near unto Me every one of you, and said, We will send men before us, and they shall search us out the land, and bring us word again by what way we must go up, and into what cities we shall come.
23 And the saying pleased me well: and I took twelve men of you, one of a tribe:
Look at what Exodus 13:5 says compared to Deuteronomy 1:20-23. In Exodus 13:5, God is saying what He’ll do for the Children of Israel. In Deuteronomy 1:22, Moses is saying what the Children of Israel said to him – “WE will send men before us, and THEY shall search US out the land, and bring US word again by what way WE must go up, and into what cities WE shall come.” The capitalization is mine for emphasis of my point. Where is God in the Children of Israel’s declaration? It is all about what “WE” and “US” are going to do. God is left out.
God never commanded Moses or the Children of Israel to send in the 12 spies. God said to go in and possess the land. After Moses agreed with the Children of Israel to send in the 12 spies, God had to allow it. Had Moses and the Children of Israel obeyed God and inquired of Him what to do, God would have instructed them to do exactly what He had Joshua and the Children of Israel do in the Book of Joshua. Instead, they chose to do things in their own wisdom and in their own strength. What resulted? Failure of which we can read about in Numbers 13 and 14. Had the 12 spies never gone into the land and the 1o spies brought back an “evil” report, the Children of Israel would not have wandered the 40 years in the desert. They would have gone in and possessed the land just as God had commanded them in Exodus.
God gives us commandments for our own good. The commandments are designed to promote us (I Peter 5:6), to provide us with all good and perfect gifts (James 1:17), and to cause all grace to abound toward us, that we always having all sufficiency in all things may abound unto every good work (II Corinthians 9:8). This is why we’re commanded to acknowledge Him in all our ways, and He will direct our paths (Proverbs 3:6). Had the Children of Israel and Moses done this, the outcome would have been completely different.
In our lives as Believers, God commands us through His Word to accept His Word in faith and exercise It in faith. When we choose God’s Word as our foundation, we don’t dwell on our problem, speak about our problem, or give life to our problem. Instead, we speak the solution, The Word of God against our problem (Mark 11:23, speak TO THE mountain). When we dwell on our problem, it becomes a GIANT, and we become grasshoppers. And you’ll get the exact SAME result the Children of Israel did in Numbers 13 and 14. Joshua and Caleb never developed the image in their hearts that the 10 spies with an “evil” report did. Why do you think this is so? It really is a simple answer. Joshua and Caleb always dwelt upon and meditated The Word and the signs and wonders of God. I know, you’re asking me how do I know this? What does Romans 10:17 say:
Romans 10:17
So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
Joshua and Caleb could never have developed their measure of faith (Romans 12:3) unless they actively heard and meditated The Word of God and the signs and wonders of God. They did this throughout the journey from Egypt to the Promised Land.
Numbers 14:24 also gives us great insight.
Numbers 14:24
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.
Notice what God says about Caleb in Numbers 14:24: “…had another spirit with him and hath followed Me fully…..” What I find even more fascinating is what Caleb’s name means in Hebrew. It means “faithful, wholehearted, loyalty, all heart, bold, brave.” In other words, Caleb’s name means the same thing as Caleb felt about God’s Word: “fully persuaded.” AWESOME!!
Had the Children of Israel just obeyed God and gone into the Promised Land, they never would have had the opportunity to develop the image of the giants in the land and themselves as grasshoppers, in their hearts. They would have gone into the land and would have seen the giants and nations of the land faint before them. How do I know this? Notice what Rahab says to the two spies that went into Jericho before the siege.
Joshua 2:9-11
9 And she [Rahab] said unto the men, I know that the LORD hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you.
10 For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed.
11 And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the LORD your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath.
Moses and the Children of Israel never needed to send in the 12 spies. Rahab summed it up beautifully. The giants WERE SCARED TO DEATH of the Children of Israel and their God.
In closing, our/your precious Heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, is asking us/you to quit doubting Him and His Word and to quit giving Satan and his works so much importance. Quit building up Satan’s works into giants in your life. Quit looking at yourself as a grasshopper. Rather, speak the all-powerful Word of God, through the matchless all-powerful Name of Jesus Christ, against the works of Satan. God has given YOU/ME the power through His Word and Jesus’ Name to triumph in every situation.
Psalm 41:11
By this I know that thou favourest me, because mine enemy doth not triumph over me.
II Corinthians 2:14
Now thanks be unto God, Which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of His knowledge by us in every place.
Bless the Name of The Lord God Almighty forever!
Much love in Christ,
Larry