Numbers 13-14 “The Journey Pt.2 ”

S = Numbers 13:30-31 But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.” Then the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.”

Numbers 14:1-4 Then all the congregation raised a loud cry, and the people wept that night. And all the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The whole congregation said to them, “Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! Why is the Lord bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become a prey. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?” And they said to one another, “Let us choose a leader and go back to Egypt.”

Numbers 14:20-23 Then the Lord said, “I have pardoned, according to your word. But truly, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord, none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice, shall see the land that I swore to give to their fathers. And none of those who despised me shall see it.

O = Caleb and Joshua saw that they were able to go up and occupy the land precisely because God was giving it to them. The others only saw the strength of their enemies and complained against God. They blamed God for bringing them out there in the first place and wailed that their little ones would become “prey” for the Canaanites. Don’t miss the irony of  14:31 "But your little ones, who you said would become a prey, I will bring in, and they shall know the land that you have rejected.” God was nothing like how the people portrayed him. They consistently rebelled against God and challenged him as to his character.

     What was their problem? How could they fail to recognize the amazing works of a loving God in their midst each day? After being delivered from Egyptian slavery, from the army pursuing them, through the barrier of the Red Sea, the Lord provided manna and water so that they didn’t starve or die of thirst. Their shoes and clothes didn’t wear out, they had shade from the sun and light and warmth at night, as well as protection from their enemies and neighbors alike. Yet they refused to believe. Were they stupid or uninformed? No, the problem was in their desires. They desired evil instead of the Lord (1 Cor. 10:6). As a result they could not see the loving care of Yahweh on their behalf and doubted his character.

A = I wonder if we do the same thing today. I know that Paul wrote to the church at Corinth (1 Cor. 10:1-10) and specifically called them out using the sin of Israel in the wilderness as an example. They too were beginning to desire evil, of which he gives four examples (idolatry, sexual immorality, testing God, and grumbling). So I should probably “go to school on them” and examine my own heart for these thorns, these invasive desires that seek to choke out my love for the Lord…

• Idolatry—is there something I value more than Jesus?
• Immorality—do my relationships reflect the love of God or the lust of the world?
• Testing—is there some area where I repeatedly doubt the goodness of God?
• Grumbling—are there areas in my life where I am neither thankful to, nor trusting of, the Lord and his promises?

      How could I be fed, led, protected, delivered, shaded, illuminated, and instructed on a daily basis and not learn to see and trust the loving hand of Jesus in my life? I need to pause today to actively trust and thank God for his goodness towards me. So I sit and look out my window at the sun hitting the south side of the Columnar Maples in the parking lot—causing them to glow like pillars of fire that hints of the Creator’s glory present amidst the mundane.

      All I deserved was hell and death and what I have received is so much better than that! He is always at work around me; I just need eyes to see.

P = O Lord, help me to trust you completely and then open my eyes to see what you are up to…and thank you for it all. Jesus, please keep me from desiring anything less than you and your loving plan for my life. May many others be blessed by the light of that love this week. Amen.