All right, good morning. Apologize for the delay.
We were on church retreat all weekend.
And so we are scrambling because we we just left the retreat site
this morning and just got in town.
But I'm delighted that you're here this morning to worship
with us. And so if you have your Bible or
your device, if you would turn or type in the Book of Numbers
this morning, we're going to be in chapter 33, Numbers 33, we're
going to be in the entire chapter.
It's quite long. It's 56 verses and a lot of it
is just places of names. And as I read through this this
week before I was, we headed out for retreat, I was thinking,
what am I going to do with this chapter?
Because it's, it's, it's literally just a, a recounting
of places. But I, I asked myself, why did
the Lord want Moses to do this? And it occurred to me that God
wanted them to remember the journey.
And so that's what the title of the sermon is this morning,
Remembering the journey. So as you guys turn there or
type that in, I won't be reading the text upfront.
I'll read parts of it as we go through it.
But let's pray as we get ready to listen to God's Word this
morning. If you will pray with me,
Father, we pray now that you would give us ears to hear what
the Spirit is speaking to us. God, we, we believe by faith.
We know that your word has told us that the Spirit is always
speaking. He is always convicting and
pointing us to Christ and leading us in truth and guiding
us. And so this morning, Lord, we,
we don't doubt whether the Spirit is speaking, but we, we
do, we're keenly aware that our ears may not be listening.
And so we ask God that you would help us to have ears that hear
this morning. Help us to listen well, Lord, to
what you are teaching us. Help us, God, to remember the
journey that you have had us on. As we look at the Israelite
journey this morning, I pray this sin now in the name of
Jesus, Amen. Why does anybody keep a
scrapbook or a photo album? Why does anybody create a
timeline or why does anybody write a diary or a journal?
Because it's a means to remember.
It's a means to remember where you've been and how far you've
come. We have to spend so much time in
our lives looking to the future, right?
We want to see where we want to go.
It's understandable, but we've often spent so much time doing
that that we forget that. We also that from time to time
need to look to the past and to see how far we've come and how
faithful God has been. God came to Moses and he
commanded him to write down their starting places of the 40
year journey in the desert. He said.
I want you to write down each of your starting places stage by
stage as a means to remember the journey that you have been on
and that I have brought you through.
And that's what the sermon is about this morning, remembering
the journey through the wilderness.
A lot of what we go through this morning is going to be a
recounting of what we looked at in numbers.
And then also Exodus, which we have not looked at it for
several years, but you probably are familiar with the story.
So this morning I'm going to position and application of the
text. I'm going to merge those two
together as we work our way through it.
We won't read all of it, but we'll read most a large chunk of
it. So let's start reading verses
one and two and Numbers 33. This is what Moses writes to us.
These are the stages of the people of Israel when they went
out of the land of Egypt by their companies under the
leadership of Moses and Aaron. Moses wrote down their starting
places stage by stage, by command of the Lord, and these
are their stages according to their starting places.
Stop there for now. So we get to the last four
chapters of Numbers. We only have 4 chapters left in
the book of Numbers. Israel is about to cross the
Jordan to begin their conquest of the Promised Land.
Moses is about to enter glory. He's going to pass off his
leadership to his successor, Joshua.
But before he dies, Moses is going to take the time to write
down their starting places, stage by stage.
Now, I imagine the Israelites are anxious to cross the Jordan,
right? They're right on the edge of the
Jordan. They're anxious to cross into
the future. But before they cross into the
future, they need to remember the past.
They need to remember their past.
My boys have started watching this TV show called Lost.
It's it's, it's like a 20 year old show.
Some of you may have heard of it or seen episodes or whatnot.
They started watching it. Me, I've never let him watch it
before. And when we watch it now, I
screen every episode ahead of time and I make sure which parts
I need to Fast forward because there is some content in it and
I Fast forward through anything. I think it's inappropriate.
So in case if you're like, pastor let's his kids watch
this, I make sure that I screen it.
When they started watching it, they got so into it.
They wanted to know everything. They're like, they wanted to
know how it ended. They're like, we don't mind.
We, we, we, we like knowing how it ends.
And they wanted to hear every full story of every character.
And I just kept telling the same answer.
I mean, they literally asked me like 50 questions and I just, I
kept telling the same answer over and over again.
You have to wait and see why. There is value in seeing the
progression. There is value in seeing the
highs and the lows, the successes and the failures.
There is value in seeing how did this character get from point A
to point Z? What was the progression?
Each of these places that we are going to look at, or if you read
this morning, each of them was a memory for the Israelites.
Some of them we're familiar with, some we are not.
But for them, when they looked at this place name, they
remembered there were memories made at each of these places.
Some of these places they had tasted the goodness of the Lord,
and some of them they had tasted the bitterness of their own sin.
Paul teaches us that we should not dwell on the past.
He says we are to forget the past and strive or strain
forward to what lies ahead. But every now and then it is
good to remember the past, to remember how God has LED us and
how He has fed us, to remember how God has sustained us and how
He has restrained us. God commanded Moses to write
these places down that they would remember their journey.
Look at verses 3 to 4. They set out from Ramsays in the
first month. On the 15th day of the first
month, on the day after the Passover, the people of Israel
went out triumphantly in the sight of all the Egyptians,
while the Egyptians were burying all their first born whom the
Lord had struck down among them. On their gods also the Lord
executed judgments. So the journey began 40 years
ago. It began on the 15th day of the
first month. About 600,000 men on foot,
besides women and children, set out from the Egyptian city
Ramsays. It was the day after Passover.
The people of Israel had lived in bitter, harsh slavery for 400
years. That's almost twice as long as
old as America is. 4, 100 years. After 4 centuries, the people of
Israel finally went out triumphantly in the side of all
the Egyptians. The Egyptians were left burying
their first born while Israel left.
Moses writes on their gods. Also, the Lord executed
judgments. This is a reminder that what God
did to Egypt was not cruel or unfair.
It was his judgement on their gods.
If you remember, the Lord had commanded Pharaoh.
He said let my people go. Pharaoh had opportunity after
opportunity to let them go, but each time he hardened his heart
and he would not let them go. And so God sent them plague
after plague after plague. There is a plausible theory that
with each of the plagues, God was not just executing judgment
on the Egyptians, he was also executing judgment on the
Egyptian so-called gods. The Egyptians worshiped the sun
God and God caused it to be dark.
The Egyptians worshiped the Nile and the Nile turned to blood.
Many of their gods had images of frogs and cattles on them and
God used these plagues to show the Egyptians I am superior to
your gods. Pharaoh's even first born son
was considered divine. All the Pharaohs were considered
divine and God put Pharaoh's first born son to death.
The Exodus is clearly a type. There's a strong typology in the
Exodus. In other words, rather than
killing a lamb, God put to death the spotless Lamb of God.
Rather than smearing an animal's blood on the doorpost of their
homes, Jesus smeared his own blood upon the cross.
And rather than putting to death the Egyptian first born, God put
to death his only begotten Son. You see, just as every Israelite
was to look back at the Exodus for all generations to come for
the next several 100 years, the the Israelites were to always
look back at the Exodus at this moment.
This is where God rescued us from slavery.
We too are to look back at the cross.
There should never come a morning we wake up where we
don't remember. This is where I was rescued from
slavery. Look at verses five to seven.
So the people of Israel set out from Ramsays and camped at
Sukkoth. And they, they and they set up
from Sukkoth and camped at Ethan, which is on the edge of
the wilderness. And they set out from Ethan and
turned back to π Hyrid, which is east east of Bail Zephon.
And they camped before Migdol. So the Israelites that when they
left, they they left Ramses, the Egyptian city.
They then went to Sukkoth. They then went to eat them.
And then when they got there, they turned back to π Hyrith.
God told them to turn back. Now why would God do that?
You were leading us out of Egypt.
Why did he tell them to turn back?
Here's what God says, Pharaoh will say of the people of
Israel. They are wandering in the land.
The wilderness has shut them in. And I will harden Pharaoh's
heart. He will pursue them and I will
get glory over Pharaoh and all his hosts, and the Egyptians
shall know that I am the Lord. Can you imagine God telling you
to turn back in this moment? This probably made no sense,
probably seem like a waste of time.
Doesn't God often tell his people to do things that make no
sense or seem like a waste of time?
Elizabeth Elliott. Our plans are interrupted.
His or not his plans are proceeding exactly as scheduled,
moving us always including those minutes or hours or years which
seem most useless or wasted or unendurable.
Brothers and sisters, what we label as a detour, what we label
as a dead end, God calls the driveway.
God never wastes any seasons in your life.
May feel like that you are just wasting time, may feel like that
you are spinning in a circle. You're not moving anywhere,
you're not going anywhere, nothing's happening.
What is going on? God?
God never wastes any seasons in your life.
He has a purpose for when He tells you to turn back, for when
He tells you to stay put, and when He tells you to move
forward. The good verses 8-9.
And they set out from high, high risk, pass through the midst of
the sea into the wilderness. And they went a three days
journey in the wilderness of Etham and camped at Mara.
And they set up from Mara and came to Elam.
At Elam there were 12 springs of water and 70 palm trees, and
they camped there. Now, if you remember from the
story in Exodus, when God told them to turn back, it seemed
like he led them into a trap. When they turned back, they were
in camp by the sea. So on one side of them was the
Red Sea. On the other side of them was
the Egyptian army bearing down on them.
That's like, how is this a good plan?
You just let us into a trap. And when the Israelites realize
this, they begin to become very fearful.
They they accuse Moses of leading them into wilderness to
kill them. And what does Moses say to them?
Moses says fear not, stand firm and see the salvation of the
Lord, which he will work for you today.
You see, God will bring us into impossible situations.
He'll bring us into situations where we feel trapped, like we
feel like we have no other choice.
God, you know, I have no other choice here but to disobey.
I have no other choice but to take matters into my own hands.
You did this, God. You forced me into this.
But God is not doing that to tempt us.
He's not doing it to trick us. He's not doing it to trouble us.
He's doing it to test us. Will we trust him?
I guarantee you, in this moment it did not cross any of their
minds. Oh, he's just going to park the
water. God brought them to this moment
to test them. Afterward, God brings them
through the midst of the sea. He brings them into the
wilderness. They go on a three days journey
into the wilderness of Ethan, but they found no water.
As they cross the sea and they go into the wilderness, they
find no water. They come tomorrow.
And the good news. What's this?
I don't have this in the story, but Mara is where we get the
name Mary. You know what the name Mary
means? Bitter.
I told my mom that my mom's name was Mary.
I was like, Mom, one day I found the other mom.
You know your name means bitter. She's like, yes, thank you,
Matthew. The good news was that there was
water. They come tomorrow and God gives
them water. That's the good news.
Here's the bad news. The water was bitter.
They couldn't drink it. Doesn't it feel like that's how
God provides for us sometimes? It's like, God, please provide
water, water. Thanks God.
You go to drink it. Thanks God.
Doesn't it often feel like that's how God provides for some
time? He gives us water, but it's
bitter water. Why did God lead them to bitter
water? To show them their own
bitterness, the people bitterly grumbled against God.
But the Lord was merciful. He listened to their cries.
And what did he do? He made the water sweet.
If there's one thing we know about the Lord is that God, our
God, is not only merciful, but He is also gracious.
Because what happened right after that?
God brought them to Elam, the very next place.
They went to Elam where there were 12 springs of water and 70
palm trees. Abundant water, abundant shade.
And if you know anything about walking in the wilderness, water
and shade are everything. They are life, and God gives
them abundant water and abundant shade.
You ever had God do that for you?
You ever had God show you grace when you were in sin?
You see, it's one thing to show grace when you're doing things
right. It's another thing when you are
shown grace when you're walking and sin.
The other day my wife and I were in conflict.
I don't remember what it in that I'm sure you never conflict was
about anymore. I don't even know what it was
about. I didn't want to talk to her.
I was upset, I was hurt. I didn't want to talk to her.
I walked into my room and I noticed she folded my clothes
and as I saw the neatly stacked pile of clothes on my dresser it
just removed all hurt and all pride.
There's something so beautiful about showing grace to a Sinner,
it just cripples you. Look at verse 10:50.
They set up from Elam and camp by the Red Sea, and they set out
from the Red Sea and camped in the wilderness of seeing.
They left Elam and they camped by the Red Sea, and then they
set up in the Red Sea and camp in the wilderness of seeing.
This is where they first began grumbling about lack of food.
I mean, if you read the Book of Numbers and the book of Exodus
and somebody said give me one word, right?
Give me one word to describe the people of Israel in these two
books. A good answer would be this
grumbling. Describe the people of Israel
grumbling, right? As painful as it is, I think it
is helpful to look at our past and remember just how sinful we
were in the past and how patient God was to our sin.
It's painful to do that. It's sometimes the reason why we
don't want to think about our past is because it's painful to
do it. It just seems like the people
were always looking for an opportunity to grumble.
I mean, every time they, it was like there's no food.
God, Well, here's food. Well, we're tired of this food.
Well, here's some different food.
Well, we want vegetables with our food.
You ever look back on your Christian life and you're just
appalled at some of the things that you used to say or used to
do? I mean, I, I hate doing this
because there's a website calledawkwardfamilyphotos.com If
you've never seen it, I highly please don't check it out now,
but I, I highly encourage you to check this website out.
When you look at this website, there's really only one question
that comes to mind. Why, why, why did you do this?
Why did you think this photo was a good idea?
Everybody has awkward family photos, don't they?
Especially from middle school. You ever look back at some of
your old middle school photos? It's like, Oh my gosh, like
what? Why did I go for this look?
It's painful to look back on them.
Remembering our past can be quite painful.
Why did you do this, Matt? Why did you say this?
But our past highlights the patience of our God.
Look at verse 12 to 14. They set out from the wilderness
of sin and seen and camped at Dofka, and they set up from
Dofka and camped at a lush, and they set up from a lush and
camped at Rafidum where there was no water for the people to
drink. So they leave the wilderness of
seeing. They go to Dofka.
They then go to a lush. They didn't go to Rafidum.
And at Rafidum is where they once again had no water.
And they begin to quarrel with Moses and the Lord.
They once again accused Moses of trying to kill them and this is
the first of two times. We looked at the second time in
Numbers. This is the first of two times
where God provided water for His people from the rock.
Why did God give his people water to drink from a rock 2
times? Why did God do this?
The Apostle Paul tells us this. They all drank the same
spiritual drink, for they all drank from the spiritual rock
that followed them, and the rock was Christ. 1st Corinthians 10
For in other words, God gave them water from a rock so that
they would know that it was God who gave it to them.
If God just put water in the desert, if he, you know, either
he led them to the water or he just made a pool of water up
here. If God did that, they would be
thankful for the gift, but they may not be thankful for the
giver. They made us think, wow, water,
what a great coincidence. You see, water is a gift.
We all want the gift of water. Water is a gift, but so is
thirst. Thirst is a gift too.
It's a gift that reminds us that we need the Lord.
Marriage is a gift, but so is singleness.
Children are a gift, but so is barrenness.
Employment is a gift, but so is unemployment.
Friendship is a gift, but so is loneliness.
They are all a gift because they've revealed to us our need
for the giver. I need the giver of gifts more
than I need the gift. Look at verse 15 to 16.
And they set out from refedum and camped in the wilderness of
Sinai. They set up in the wilderness of
Sinai and camped at Kibroth Hotava.
When they left refedum, they camped in the wilderness of
Sinai. This is where Moses went on top
of the mountain and he met with God is where God gave Moses His
commandments and His law is where God taught His people
about His Holiness. You see, the law was a mercy of
God. It was a means by which His
people would not be consumed by him, right?
God, For as many times as God almost consumed His people, He
would have for sure consumed them had they not had His law,
had they not had a means that they could have a right
relationship with the Father. It's very easy to think of this
law that God gave them as a burden.
But listen to what God tells Moses when he went up Mount
Sinai. Here's what he says to him.
If you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall
be my treasured possession among all the peoples, for all the
earth is mine, and you shall be to me a Kingdom, a priest, and a
holy nation. Exodus 19 You see, God is a
king, but He is not a tyrant. Tyrants don't make their people
their treasure possession. After they left Sinai, they went
to Kibroath Hatava. If you remember at Kibroath
Hatava, this is where the people complained there was no meat.
They said we remember the fish that we ate in Egypt and they
had a strong craving for this meat.
Then therefore God gave them meat.
God gave them exactly what they asked for, but He also gave them
something else. He gave them a very great plague
and they were buried with the meat in their mouth.
Church family, Be careful when manna is not enough.
Be careful when mana is not enough.
You see, the world has a lot of meat to offer.
They hang it in their window shops, tempting us to step
inside. Come on, just a bite.
You want this, you need this. Brothers, sisters, there's
nothing for us in there. There's nothing for us in there.
It is better to sit at a table of bread and contentment than to
be buried with a mouthful of meat.
Verses 17 to 35, I'm not going to read that because it is a
bunch of place names and that's really all that it is because
almost all of these place names, we know nothing about what
happened at them. They're not mentioned again as
much as the as thick as this book is, it could be 10 times as
thick. So here's what I want to say
about this. If you read 17 to 35, almost all
of these place names are never mentioned again in Scripture.
We don't know what happened. There's maybe only a few that
are mentioned maybe once, but even then they're not.
We don't know what happened. They're just mentioned the name.
What I take away from this, when I read that section, I was like
17 and that's a large section of the chapter.
What am I going to do with this Lord?
Here's what I took away from this is that most of life is not
the parting of the Red Sea. Most of life is simply living in
a no name place in the wilderness.
That's what most of life is, isn't it?
In other words, we want to go to the fireworks show, but most of
the Christian life is simply faithfully collecting manna on
the ground. See, faithfulness is measured
not only if we have the faith across the Red Sea, that's true,
But faithfulness is not just do we have faith to cross this Red
Sea, Faithfulness is also do we have the faith to trust God when
it nothing's really happening in our life.
I'm just stuck at Horhagidada or Jatbata or a Brona.
Can I trust God when it seems like nothing is really happening
in my life? Look at verses 36 to 39.
And they set out and they camped from Izan Gieber and camped in
the wilderness of Zen, that is Kadesh.
And they set out from Kadesh and camped at Mount Hor on the edge
of the land of Edom. And Aaron the priest went up
Mount Hor at the command of the Lord, and died there in the 40th
year after the people of Israel had come out of the land of
Egypt on the first day of the 5th month.
And Aaron was 123 years old when he died on Mount Hor.
They next come into the wilderness of Zen, and they
stayed in Kadesh. In Kadesh is where Miriam died
and she's buried. This is important because Miriam
was a prophetess. She was a leader among the women
in the wilderness. And now she has died.
Along the way of our journey, we all experience death.
It might be death of loved ones. It might be death of our dreams,
might be death of our plans. It might be the death of our
desires, but we all experience death.
And just as Miriam's death seemed to have an impact on
Moses, if you remember, it was right after Miriam's death that
Moses disobeyed God and struck the rock and anger.
And you have to wonder if they were connected.
I think they were, but I don't know.
But it seems very likely that Moses, because he is grieving
his sister's death, that he had a little bit less patience with
the people and he struck the rock and anger.
We too must be careful not to let the things or people who
have died in our life cause us to sin against God.
When the angels physically removed Lot and his family from
their houses, remember in Sodom and Gomorrah, they told him to
leave and they didn't. The angels had physically
removed them out of the city. They were uprooting Lot and his
wife and their kids from their entire lives.
That was all they had known. Lot's wife was experiencing the
feeling of death, the death of her life, the the death of
everything she had known. But rather than let this life
that she had lived be buried with the city, what did she do?
She looked back. She looked back and she became
as the city that she longed for. Be careful not to let God will
put things to death in your life.
It may be your dreams, your plans, maybe you had you ever
had your life all planned out. It's like this is my plan.
I got a five year plan, 10 year plan, 20 year plan is what I'm
going to do next year. I'm going to do this next year
and God just smashes it. Be careful that you don't let
that sin cause you to sin against God.
Only four. Marian passed four months after
his sister passed. His brother passes.
Aaron passes. He's a 123 years old Aaron.
And Aaron reminds us, oh, Aaron, you got to love Aaron.
It's like Aaron reminds us that God uses deeply flawed
characters. When Moses went up Mount Sinai
to receive the law of God, Aaron caved to the pressure of the
people and he built them a golden calf.
You got to love the answer he gives when he came down, He's
like, the people gave me this gold and I just threw it into
the fire and then a calf came out.
I don't know. When Miriam challenges Moses
authority, Aaron joins his sister in her irreverent
insubordination. When Moses struck the rock and
anger and stole God's glory, Aaron's right there with his
brother doing it in his rebellion.
Aaron. It was a deeply flawed
character. And yet God used Aaron for his
glory. Aaron was Moses spokesman.
He was the first high priest and the only high priest for 40
years in the wilderness. And it was Aaron, if you
remember, who stood between the living and the dead and made
atonement for the people and kept the plague from being any
worse. God is willing to use deeply
flawed characters. Look at verse 40 and the
Canaanite, the king of Arad who lived in the Negev in the land
of Canaan, heard of the coming of the people of Israel.
I like how it's just one verse, but it if you remember this, the
Canaanite king, we looked at this of several months ago, the
Canaanite king attacks Israel and he takes some of them
captive. This is ironic because God had
rescued them from slavery and now they're God says I'm
rescuing you from slavery to bring you into Canaan and then
some of them are captured and in slavery in Canaan and it's like
slavery, slavery. God, if you wanted us to be in
slavery, we could have stayed in Egypt.
But here the the Kenai king defeats them and slaves them.
But that's not the end of the story.
The Israelites make a vow to the Lord.
They say, Lord, if you will give us victory over them, we will
devote them all to complete destruction and God listens to
their plea. He gives them victory over them.
This short story is a reminder that when trials seem hopeless,
God is not finished writing our story yet.
We just got back from our retreat where our theme was
abounding hope. That was our retreat theme.
Abounding hope. You see, God loves.
He loves to lead us into hopeless situations.
He delights to do it. Why?
Because it is in the Valley of Despair where he strengthens our
hope. People don't get their hope
strengthen on the mountaintop. They get their hope strengthened
in the Valley of Despair. Look at verses 41 to 49.
And they set up from Mount Whore and camped at Zalmona.
And they set up from Zalmona and camped at Punan.
And they set up from Punan and camped at Oboth.
And they set up from Oboth, and camped at EI Byram in the
territory of Moab. And they set up from Yaim, and
camped at Debond Gad. And they set up from Debond Gad
and camped at Almond Debatheim. They set up from Almond
Deboytheim and camped in the mountains of A Byram before
Nebo. And they set up from the
mountains of A Byram and camped in the plains of Moab by the
Jordan at Jericho. They can't buy the Jordan from
Bait Jeshimov as far as Abel Shateem and the plains of Moab.
Now most of those names that I just read, they're not mentioned
again. Or if they are mentioned,
they're given no context of them.
But we certainly remember at the very end this comment about the
plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, because that is where
the king of Moab hired Balaam to come and curse Israel.
For three chapters, the narrator recounts to us how this Pagan
diviner tried four times to curse Israel, but God turned it
into a blessing. Do you know what I find
fascinating about that entire story of Balaam?
On top of the mountain is Balaam and Balak and the Lord, and
we're never told if Israel down in the plains has any idea this
is going on. Maybe they did, maybe they
didn't, but we're never told. Like, do they have any idea
what's going on above them? Balak and Balak are on top of
this mountain. They overlook all the people
sitting in the plains. And as far as we can tell, they
have no idea that the king of Moab has hired A Pagan diviner
to curse them. Nor do they know, perhaps, that
God is taking control of Balaam and is using him for his own
purposes to bless Israel. How many times are there battles
being fought in the heavenly places and we have no idea
what's going on behind the scenes?
You ever wonder that you ever, you ever had a day like where
you were just so angry, like like every, every little thing
just set you off and you're like, why?
How many times are the things going on behind the scenes and
you have no idea what is going on behind the scenes?
Peter would have had no idea that Satan had demanded to sift
him had Jesus not told him what's going on with Peter.
Why does Peter falter in this moment?
Why? Because Satan is sifting him.
He would have never known that had Jesus not told him.
The church in Smyrna would have had no idea that the devil was
about to throw some of them into prison, that they may be tested
and for 10 days have tribulation.
They would have had no idea had Jesus not told them.
God is always working behind the scenes, testing us, trying us,
blessing us, supplying us. We only see a small fraction of
what's really going on. There is an entire war going on
behind the scenes. We don't wrestle against flesh
and blood. We wrestle against
principalities and powers of darkness.
Look at verses 50 to 54. And the Lord spoke to Moses in
the plains of Moab by the Jordan of Jericho.
Saints, speak to the people of Israel and say to them, when you
pass over the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then you shall
drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and
destroy all their figured stones, destroy all their metal
images, and demolish all their high places.
And you shall take possession of the land and settle in it, for I
have given the land to you to possess it.
You shall inherit the land by lot, according to their clans.
To a large tribe you shall give a large inheritance.
To a small tribe you should give a small inheritance.
Wherever the lot falls for anyone that shall be his,
according to the tribes of your father's, you shall inherit.
Moses is about to die, and he is not going to cross over the
Jordan with them. He's not.
So God says. Here's some final instructions.
Make sure you communicate this to the people.
God says when you cross over the Jordan and you walk into the
land of Canaan. When you step foot into the land
of Canaan, your first order of priority when they get there is
not building a house. It's not to go on a scouting
trip to scout out all the farmland.
Where are the best fruit trees. It's not to go check out the
Canaanite nightlife. Your first order of priority
when you step into this land is to drive out all the inhabitants
of the land. You are to destroy all their
figured stones, all their metal images, all their high places.
That's your first priority. That's your only priority right
now. Certainly we don't have holy
wars anymore. We don't wage war against people
groups or against nations. But we do have a holy war
against our so-called gods. We are at war with our idols.
I asked Chad TBT the other day. What would you say is the most
worshipped idol in America? I was really curious what answer
it would give. That was really curious, Do you
know what it said? Quote.
If I had to name just one idol that dominates American culture,
I'd say it's the self expressed through individualism, autonomy,
and personal fulfilment. Wow, that's what I would say.
I would agree. When we are baptized in the
river Jordan and we crossover into the promised land of
salvation, we go to war with self.
We are always at war with our self, and the danger of not
going to war is the exact same danger the Israelites faced.
Look at 55 and 56. If you do not drive out the
inhabitants of the land from before you, then those of them
who whom you let remain shall be as barbs in your eyes and thorns
in your sides, and they shall trouble you and the land where
you dwell. And I will do to you as I
thought to do to them. God makes it very clear what
will happen if they fail to drive out the Canaanites.
He says these people, they'll be barbs or like thorns in your
eyes and thorns in your sides. Now what does that mean?
What does that mean? Have you ever tried clearing out
brambles or like BlackBerry bushes?
Ever tried clearing them out? It's very difficult.
It's very, very difficult. If you don't clear them out
completely, they will come back. I mean, I, I cut the ones out
front here and like next week there's just a whole new they,
they just come right back. If you don't clear them out
completely, they will come back. They will take over and they
will hurt. The same is true for the
Canaanites. It will not do to clear out 25%
of them. It will not do to clear out 50%
of them, or 75% or even 90%. It won't do to clear out 95% of
them. Why?
Because whatever remains, whatever portion of this
remains, it will function like a thorn in your eyes.
It will blind your spiritual vision so that you can't see God
clearly. They will function like in your
sides so that when you try to run this race, it will
perpetually keep you from running effectively.
The Canaanites must be driven out completely and so must our
sin be driven out completely. It doesn't take a large piece of
glass to stop us on our journey. Just take 1 little sliver of
glass, step on it and get it into your foot and you can't
walk very far. John Owen writes.
There is no trifling sin in the sight of God.
A little sin, if it be allowed to grow, is enough to ruin the
soul. Brothers and sisters, the
Promised land is to have no Canaanite gods, and this temple
is to have no false gods. Clear them out, go to war with
them every day. Let's pray.