Move Forward!

Move Forward!

This morning as I was reading my Bible, I came across the story in Numbers where the people of Israel went to scout out the land of Canaan- the Promised Land. You can read the whole story in the book of Numbers, chapters 13-14 and I encourage you to check it out, but I’ll tell you the shorter version here!

So God had previously brought the nation of Israel out of slavery in Egypt, and He was bringing them to the land He had promised to give them. A land of their very own, to be their home forever!

As the people were nearing the Promised Land, The Lord said to Moses: “Send out men to explore the land of Canaan, the land I am giving to the Israelites.” (Num. 13:2) So Moses sent out 12 scouts to see the land and what it was like. After exploring the land for 40 days, the men returned with some of the fruit they found there (which, by the way, it took 2 men to carry a single cluster of grapes!) and gave this report to Moses and to the whole community of Israel:

“We entered the land you sent us to explore, and it is indeed a bountiful country—a land flowing with milk and honey. Here is the kind of fruit it produces. But the people living there are powerful, and their towns are large and fortified. We even saw giants there!”…

But Caleb tried to quiet the people as they stood before Moses. “Let’s go at once to take the land,” he said. “We can certainly conquer it!”

But the other men who had explored the land with him disagreed. “We can’t go up against them! They are stronger than we are!” So they spread this bad report about the land among the Israelites: “The land we traveled through and explored will devour anyone who goes to live there. All the people we saw were huge. We even saw giants there, the descendants of Anak. Next to them we felt like grasshoppers, and that’s what they thought, too!”  (Numbers 13:27-33)

Then all the people of Israel began to weep and cry all night long saying, “If only we had died in Egypt, or even here in the wilderness!” they complained. “Why is the Lord taking us to this country only to have us die in battle? Our wives and our little ones will be carried off as plunder! Wouldn’t it be better for us to return to Egypt?” Then they plotted among themselves, “Let’s choose a new leader and go back to Egypt!” (Num. 14:1-4)

Can you believe that?! They were at the brink of entering the very promise of God and they wanted to go back to slavery in Egypt?! It sounds crazy, but this is oftentimes what you and I sound like when we fail to see through the eyes of faith. When it looks like having what God has promised us is impossible, and it’s too hard, we talk about going “back.” Going “back” requires no faith at all, but moving forward does!

I love the response of Joshua and Caleb: “The land we traveled through and explored is a wonderful land! And if the Lord is pleased with us, he will bring us safely into that land and give it to us. It is a rich land flowing with milk and honey. Do not rebel against the Lord, and don’t be afraid of the people of the land. They are only helpless prey to us! They have no protection, but the Lord is with us! Don’t be afraid of them!”  (Num. 14:6-9)

Joshua and Caleb saw the situation in faith. They KNEW what God had promised them, and they KNEW God was with them! It turns out that God rewarded these two men for their loyalty to Him, and He brought them safely into the land! As for the rest of the nation of Israel? They never did get to enter the Promised Land.

What about you and I? We can either keep looking back and never see the promise, OR we can grab ahold of God’s Word and move forward in faith to possess ALL that He has promised!