Start Here: Numbers 13-14
Key Verse: Numbers 14:9 (CSB) "Only don't rebel against the LORD, and don't be afraid of the people of the land, for we will devour them. Their protection has been removed from them, and the LORD is with us. Don't be afraid of them!"
Major Moment: Because God's people disobeyed Him, they were sent to wander in the wilderness for 40 years.
God called our family to move away from the Midwest this past year, the only part of the country I've ever known as home. The grief of saying goodbye to loved ones was real, but a promise of goodness lay ahead. We knew this was God's will for our family, even if the steps we took felt like a mix of trusting and trembling.
When God calls us to leave the known, fear can often creep in. But deciding what to do when we encounter fear makes all the difference.
This was the case for the Israelites in our passage today. After centuries of slavery and waiting, Moses finally led God's people to the brink of their promised land, Canaan. While Israel was exiled in Egypt, Canaan had been inhabited by pagan peoples who led lives of idolatry, injustice and immorality (Leviticus 20); however, God promised, "The land of Canaan I am giving to the Israelites" (Numbers 13:2, CSB). God was about to fulfill another part of His covenant with Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3). Freedom was within grasp.
And yet, out of fear, the people chose not to embrace the goodness of God.
Of the 12 Israelite spies who were sent to explore the promised land, 10 delivered a report filled with lies and alarming exaggerations (Numbers 13:32-33). Instead of offering life-giving truths pointing toward the faithfulness of God, they discouraged the Israelites from entering Canaan. They chose to rebel against God and reject the answer to their prayers: a sacred and safe home He selected for them (Exodus 3:7-8).
This was an abundant and fertile "land flowing with milk and honey" (Numbers 14:8, CSB); God promised prosperity to replace the extreme poverty His people had endured in Egypt. Yet the people shifted their eyes away from God's provision and focused on problems. They panicked instead of offering praise. They defied the Lord and then suffered severe consequences: 40 years of wandering in the desert (Numbers 14:29; Numbers 14:34).
But two Israelite spies, Joshua and Caleb, chose to trust God. According to Scripture, Caleb was a gentile, not a biological descendant of Israel. He was a "son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite" (Numbers 32:12, CSB), and Kenaz was Esau's grandson, not from the covenantal line of Jacob (Judges 1:13; Judges 3:9). Yet Caleb stood by the promises of Israel's God, the Most High. He attempted to quiet the terrified hearts of the Israelites: "Only don't rebel against the LORD, and don't be afraid of the people of the land, for we will devour them. Their protection has been removed from them, and the LORD is with us. Don't be afraid of them!" (Numbers 14:9, CSB).
Caleb didn't see the obstacles; he saw the outcome that could only be accomplished by God's victorious hand. And God honored Caleb's belief, ultimately allowing him and his family to go into Canaan and experience God's goodness in its fullness (Numbers 14:24).
When we choose to take God at His word, He honors us as well. According to Scripture, a person's biological heritage is not what matters to God; He looks at our hearts (1 Samuel 16:7) and blesses us when we declare His faithfulness and follow His ways.
Our circumstances, no matter how fearful or seemingly hopeless, do not determine God's dependability. We serve a God who moves us through painful pasts, helps us with current problems, and grants us an abundant, promising future.
Prayer: Dear Jesus, show me any ways I am letting fear prevent me from experiencing Your abundance or goodness. Help me to trust in Your faithful promises and to believe You will make a way for them to come to pass. In Jesus' name, amen.
Name changes are significant in the Bible. So we know there was intentionality behind Moses' choice to call Hoshea by a new name, "Joshua," in Numbers 13:16. "Hoshea" meant "salvation" in Hebrew. Read More
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