← ArchiveNumbersSunday, February 24, 2019DateFebruary 24, 2019Speaker—TextNumbersPassages in this sermonNumbers 133:45Deuteronomy 110:31Numbers 13:110:52Exodus 1227:36Exodus 332:26Numbers 1441:58TranscriptMachine transcribed. Click any line to jump there.0:00Transcribed by ESO, translated by — Transcribed by —0:30Transcribed by —1:00Transcribed by — Transcribed by — Transcribed by — Transcribed by — Transcribed by — Transcribed by — Transcribed by — Transcribed by — Transcribed by — Transcribed by — Transcribed by — Transcribed by — Transcribed by —1:28Perspective in your life is everything. I was reading a story this week, and it was just too good not to share. The story goes this way. There was an older man driving down a country road, probably a dirt road,1:54and he stops the car because he sees this young boy working out in the field, and this young boy was a farmhand. And so this man rolls down the window, he cranks it down and says, boy, this corn's about to turn yellow. And the young boy says, well, yes, sir, we planted yellow corn this year. So the man says, well, it doesn't look like you're going to get a good crop. Only half is growing. And he said, yes, sir, we planted on halves this year.2:23So by this time, the man was a little perturbed at the young boy, and he said, boy, you're not too far from a fool, are you? And the young boy said, yes, sir, there's a fence between us. Some of you will get that later. You know what that reminds me of? It matters which side of the fence you're on. And the side of the fence that you're looking from determines how you're looking.2:51And this is what faith does in our life. It makes us look in a way that God helps us see our situations and our circumstances. And then we say, Lord, how do you change me? Whether you change the circumstance or not, Lord, how do you change me? So with that, let's look at the word of the Lord. And we are called to answer this question as the words of the Lord speak to us and also the community of faith thousands of years ago.3:14We're called to answer this question as Israel had to answer. Today, will you choose fear or will you choose faith? In your life today, will you choose fear or are you going to choose faith? Now, we're going to read a lot of scriptures. We're going to read parts of two chapters today. So follow along with me.3:43Beginning in Numbers 13, verse 1. This is the words of the Lord. The Lord spoke to Moses. Send men to scout out the land of Canaan. I am giving to the Israelites. Send one man who is the leader among them from each of their ancestral tribes. Verse 16.4:14Verse 16. These were the names of the men Moses sent out to scout out the land. And Moses named Hosea, son of Nun, Joshua. When Moses sent them out to scout the land of Canaan, he told them, Go up this way to the Negev. Then go up into the hill country. See what the land is like and whether the people who live there are strong or weak, few or many.4:39Is the land they live in good or bad? Are the cities they live in encampments or fortifications? Is the land fertile or unproductive? Are there trees in it or not? Be courageous. Bring back some fruit from the land. It was a season for the first ripe grapes. Verse 26.5:08Verse 26. The men went back to Moses, Aaron, and the entire Israelite community in the wilderness of Paran at Kadesh. They brought back a report for them and the whole community. And they showed them the fruit of the land. They reported to Moses, We went into the land where you sent us. Indeed, it is flowing with milk and honey. And here is some of his fruit.5:37However, the people living in the land are strong. And the cities are large and fortified. We also saw the descendants of Anak there. Then Caleb, verse 30, quieted the people in the presence of Moses and said, Let's go up now and take possession of the land because we can certainly conquer it.5:59But the man who had gone up with him responded, We can't attack the people because they are stronger than we are. So they gave a negative report to the Israelites about the land they had scouted. The land we passed through to explore is one that devours its inhabitants. And all of the people we saw in it are great and of great size. We even saw the Nephilim there, the descendants of Anak, come from the Nephilim.6:28To ourselves we seem like grasshoppers. And we must have seen the same to them. Verse 5 of chapter 14. Then Moses and Aaron fell face down in front of the whole assembly of the Israelite community. Joshua, son of Nun, and Caleb, son of Jephunneh, who were among these who scouted out the land, tore their clothes. And they said to the entire Israelite community,6:57The land we passed through and explored is an extremely good land. If the Lord is pleased with us, he will bring us into this land. A land flowing with milk and honey, and he will give it to us. Only, don't rebel against the Lord. 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.7:24Don't be afraid of them. Don't be afraid of them. Verse 11. The Lord said to Moses, How long will these people despise me? And how long will they not trust in me, despite all the signs I have performed among them? I will strike them with the plague and destroy them. Then I will make you into a greater and mightier nation than they are. Verse 23.7:53Verse 23. And verse 24. None of those who have despised me will see it. Verse 24. But since my servant Caleb has a different spirit and remain loyal to me, I will bring him into the land where he has gone, and his descendants will inherit it. Let's pray, Father. Oh, that we would be like Caleb.8:21That we would have a different spirit within us. A spirit that would cause us to take a stand for what is right. But give us a spirit today that would cause us to stand up on our convictions that what you have given will be given. That those who are for you, or who can be against them, Lord, change us because your son, Jesus Christ, has died on the cross for our sins.8:51That he has set us free from sin and death. And Lord, that there must be something different in us because you are everything that you say you are. And you will do everything that you say you will do. So Lord, open our hearts that we would choose faith today and not fear. I pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. And so Israel scouts out the land. What land?9:21What land? The land that is given by the Lord. So let me give us several principles that we can live by where we choose faith and not fear today. So let's work back into chapter 13 and verse 1. The Lord spoke to Moses and said, send men to scout out the land of Canaan. This is what faith does. Faith helps you keep the main things, the main things in your life. Faith helps us keep the main things, the main things.9:51We say, well, pastor, what are the main things? I'm glad you asked. Verse 2. Send men to scout out the lands. What's the mission? Scout out the land. Now, this is actually a false mission for several reasons. One, it's not a true scouting expedition. It's not go and see if we can overcome. It is go and see what God is going to give you. What an easy mission.10:21Just go take a couple pictures. Come back and just show everyone what God is going to do in our lives. But we see in Deuteronomy chapter 1 that this was never the desire of God. The people wanted a spy mission. The Lord says, just go. I've already given you the lands. And so Deuteronomy 1 tells us that the people were begging, Moses, we need to send spies. That's what we normally do. Because they were living by fear.10:50And what we find in Numbers chapter 13, verse 1 is God is saying, okay, if this is what you want, I'm going to give you what you want, but this is how it's going to take place. Keep the main things, the main things. Take 12 men, all leaders, one of each tribe, and go into the lands. To spy out this land. The land that is what? The land that who is giving? The land that God is giving to you. Faith always keeps the main thing, the main thing.11:20A.W. Tozer says it like this. The gaze of the Lord, or the gaze of a soul upon a saving God is faith. The gaze of a soul upon a saving God. And when you see Jesus Christ as we should see him, that helps us keep everything else in perspective, does it not? That's faith. These men, these 12 men should have come and said, God, you've already given us this.11:49That's the point. And we're going out to find out, Lord, what you're doing in our life. And so, Lord, by faith, we believe that what you say you can give, that you will give. So, Lord, may we keep the main things, the main things in our life. So, very simply for you. What's the mission in your life? What's your goal? What does God want from you? One catechism says it this way. The chief end of man is to know God and enjoy him forever.12:19The chief mission that we have is to know God and enjoy him forever. Some of you know God, but you're not enjoying him. If you don't enjoy God now, you're really going to hate heaven. Right? Think about that. We know God and we just look like we're the worst things in the world. No, God has created us to enjoy his presence. That's how Caleb can say what he says.12:48By faith, to know God and enjoy him forever are the main things, the main things in your life. Books have been written about businesses that have or experience mission drift. Mission drift is a hamburger place not selling hamburgers anymore, or a chicken place not selling chicken anymore, a pizza place selling tacos, forgetting why they're there. Dear brother and sister in Christ, why are you here?13:19What is God calling you to do in your life? He's not calling you to keep a pew warm. God's not calling us to keep this place up and running. God is calling us to charge the gates of hell and let Satan know that he has been bound by a heavenly father who sent his son, that the gates of hell will not even prevail. Against him are the main things and main things in your life.13:48You say, well, I'm working, I'm busy. Well, the goal of your life is not a job. That job is an entryway into people's lives to share Jesus Christ. Some of our moms are saying, well, I stay home with my crazy kids and it's just, I don't feel like I have a free time. Your job is to love these kids to Jesus. Don't lose sight of keeping the main thing, the main thing. What is the main thing in your life? What is God asking you to do by faith today that you say, God, I will stand up and I will take a risk for the Savior?14:18Faith helps us keep the main things, the main things. And may we not forget, if you are in Christ, you are a spy in a world that is not your own. You shouldn't be comfortable. We shouldn't be comfortable here. Because one day we have a Savior who will come and redeem this world that is not his right now. And we're spies saying, Lord, we're going to bring people with us.14:48Because we know you will come and take us home one day. And Lord, I want to be a faithful spy. Faith helps you keep the main thing, the main thing. Secondly, faith does this. Look at verse 20. God sends them to accomplish his mission, to see the land that he will be given. And then in verse 20, Moses says, find out, is this land fertile or unproductive? Are there trees in it or not?15:17And then it says this, be of good courage or be courageous. Now, why would God have to tell the people that? God's not giving lip service to these spies or the community of faith. God is telling the people, be courageous. Why? Because they need to hear it. This is what faith does. Faith helps us live courageously. So some of you just need to hear today. Be courageous. Youth, when you go to school, be of good courage.15:44Quit acting like everyone else. Go into the land and say, God is for me. And if you've been beaten down, if you're weighed down by the weights of worry or financial stress or whatever might be weighing you down right now, you say, well, I just don't feel courageous. Hear the words of God echo in your ear. Be of good courage. Only faith can do that.16:15I had the privilege of going for the first time with our staff to the Birmingham Civil Rights Museum. Let me just encourage you, if you've never gone, go. It's worth it. We are living in the hub of the civil rights genesis, right in this area. And two specific images stick out in my mind. The first is a lady, young girl by the name of Denise McNair.16:41She was one of the four girls killed when someone planted a bomb and detonated it during Sunday school. 16th Avenue Church. This girl was nine years old. If you walk through the museum, you get towards the end of the exhibits and there's a glass case. And in that, there's a plaque dedicated to those who have died.17:09And there are her shoes. And there's a piece of brick. I began to think, why is there a piece of brick in this exhibit? And I read the plaque and it says, this was actually a shard of the brick that was pulled out of her skull. And I just began to think, what cowardice. That is the antithesis of being courageous. That is wickedness personified.17:39And there's a righteous anger filled my heart. Because of the prejudice and cowardice of these men. And then we went to the end of the exhibit. And they showed a clip of those that were working on their passive demonstrations. And they were at a church and the pastor was standing up saying, okay, this is our goal. We're going to fill the jails until they can't arrest anyone.18:07We're just going to passively resist. And let them know, we're not going to stand for hate, for prejudice, and for these laws and the things that are ungodly. And so they asked people, stand up if you're willing to volunteer to go to jail. And they did exactly what you're doing, Raoul. No one stood up. And then one by one, some of the students started standing up. The youngest first.18:37And then some of the ladies stood up. And then the first thought that jumped in my mind was, where are the men? Men, why are we not leading? When things get tough and we need to be courageous, why do we send our kids in first? Why do we send the ladies in first? And just thinking in my life, oh, that I would be a risk taker for Christ. That I could be someone when God says, okay, this is what we're going to do.19:04Who's ready to stand up? I would be one of the first and say, God, I don't know how it's going to work out, but Lord, I trust you more than I trust myself. God, I'll sign up. I'm ready. By faith, I believe. You see, faith prepares you and requires you to live courageously. And I believe one of the indictments that the world will have against the church looking back years from now is that in the heat of the moment, when we needed to take a stand by our faith, that we were cowards and we didn't stand up.19:25May that never be said of us. Faith prepares you and requires us to live courageously. Edmund Burke once famously said, the only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.19:49And we know scripture, no man is good, but I would say for righteous men to do nothing. We can't look at people who are dying and going to hell as if it doesn't stir our hearts. Because if you believe what the Bible believes and you believe that someone dies without professing Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, you have to believe that they will end up in an eternity away from God. And I am not willing to let people go to hell without saying, we want you to hear the message of Jesus.20:18We shouldn't let injustice linger. Church, we need to stand up and live courageously. That's faith. That's faith. Thirdly, we see this in scripture. Look at verse 28. So you have two spies, two courageous spies, and you have ten. And they give the same report, right?20:48This land is awesome. It is a land flowing of milk and honey. And these spies give a report. And they say this in verse 28 of chapter 13. They say, here's some of this fruit. And it's so large, if you read the scripture, if you go back, that there's two men that have to carry this cluster of grapes. And then verse 28. However, however, the people in the land are strong, and their cities are large, and they have big walls.21:15And then, we saw the descendants of Anak, like the giants. Think Goliath, his grandkids. That's who these people are. And they're so big that we look like grasshoppers. You see, fear makes you say, I can't, or I won't.21:44Fear in your life makes you look at everything God wants to do, and you say, however, God, I know it's the land. God, I know you want me to do this. I know it's the land you're going to give me. But the whole grasshopper thing, I'm really small. They're really big. I just don't know. That's what fear makes us do. And if we're honest, oftentimes we're more directed by fear in our lives than we are by faith, aren't we?22:14We look and say, God, I'm too small. The walls are too high. And in the ancient world, we know that the walls were up to 35 to 50 feet tall and 15 feet thick. They weren't necessarily exaggerating. But here's what they forget. Here's what fear makes you forget. It makes you forget the promises of God. Because this land, they were not scouting out the land to figure out how to take it. If they would have had smartphones, I mean, the package was out for delivery.22:45They could have pulled up the online tracking and said, okay, God, the promised land will be delivered tomorrow. It's out for delivery. And they forget. They say, fear, we cannot take this land. The Hebrew here, the word epes means the end of the world. It could be the end. It could be no, not, but, only, yet, however. That's what fear sounds like, epes.23:16Joshua wants you to do this, but God, no, not a really good time. Hey, John, do this for me. Go share Christ with your neighbor. God, you know he might listen, but, however, and how often do we let those words of fear creep up into our vocabulary and into our hearts? And we're not willing to take a risk for God because fear lingers within us. And we must remember that fear is not from God in our life.23:46Randy Smith says this, the reality is that we fear so much today simply because we do not fear God enough. So I just ask you right now, are you searching your heart and say, God, where am I truly fearful? Maybe your kids want to serve the Lord overseas and you're scared that they might miss out or they might get hurt.24:08Maybe God's calling you to serve him and you say, Lord, you know I've passed my prime. God, you know I can't do that. God, you know this man is hard-hearted. He'll never hear that. He'll never truly hear and believe that Jesus loves him. Do not let fear reign in your life.24:37We must let the promises of God massage deep into our souls until our heart sings with confidence that we can. That we can. Not to say, I won't, or we can't, or however, or but, or nonetheless, or yet. But say, God, we can't, but you can. Let's go. Do not let fear rule your life.25:03We see this also in scripture in verse 30. Yeah, I love Caleb. There's people that are giving us support and they're fearful and you can just see Caleb in the back. You know, I imagine everyone had count around the temple or the tabernacle and Caleb's in the back going, pick me, pick me, pick me. And he finally gets his turn in verse 30. Look what Caleb says. Then Caleb quieted the people in the presence of Moses and said,25:32he heard about the walls. He heard about the whole grasshopper thing. He knows they're descendants of Anak. And he says, you know what, guys? Let's go. Let's go. I was in Moldova several years ago. And one of the pastors in that local town was named Victor. And Victor fought against the Soviet forces in Moldova.26:00And his English was very broken. But every time we would have to go somewhere, he would always say, let's go. And you know what? I'm not going to talk back to Victor. I can see Caleb doing this. Caleb's saying, let's go, guys. Calm down. Quit being fearful. Let's serve the Lord. You see, faith marks and distinguishes your life.26:27Caleb, here's some things that you need to know about Caleb. He does not contradict the report, does he? He doesn't say, they're wrong. No, he just challenges their conclusion. See, Caleb's on the other side of the fence. Caleb's on the faith side. And he says, guys, I know the walls are big. I know they're strong. But let's go. What are you waiting for? God has already promised here in verse 2.26:56He is giving you the land. Let's go. What you might not know about Caleb is his name means dog. You thought your name was bad, right? Dog. But he was anything but a dog. Caleb was a man that had faith with dogged determination. You see, what you might not know about Caleb is he was not born in the promised lands.27:23Caleb was born in Egypt. He was born a slave. And Caleb was a man who lived in a generation that struggled. Because although they were born in Egypt, God had delivered them the Passover in Exodus chapter 12. Remember, God said, if by faith you put the blood on your door, the death angel will pass over you and you'll be delivered. And this is what Caleb's people struggle with. Truly got the hang of freedom in their life.27:54They always wanted to go back to Egypt. And Caleb was a man that said, I'm not going back to my chains. I'm not going back to slavery. And this is true in Jesus Christ for you and for me. If you have tasted and seen that the Lord is good, if you have put your hope and trust in Jesus Christ, you're free. Don't go back.28:25Don't go back to the slaves and the sin that so easily hinders us and entangles us. Caleb stood up and said, guys, I don't know about you guys, but Jesus has set me free. I'm not going back. That's faith. That's faith. We need to be people who enjoy the freedom we have in Jesus Christ. And people look at us and say, y'all are living differently. Caleb, what's your problem? He says, hey, I was once a slave, but I believe that God would spare me and save me.28:53And he did. And that faith will sustain me. That's faith. But Caleb also was a man of dogged determination. Let's pull back on the dog thing. But Caleb was a man, growing up in Mississippi, there were people that you knew were just tough. We would say they were corn fed or they were cornbread fed. It's like the little guy on the playground that no one wanted to fight.29:20Because you knew if you fought this guy, you were in for it. Because he would rather die than lose. That was Caleb. I could just see Caleb walking up. And when Satan sees Caleb, he's like, oh, great. This guy again? Because I'm in for it. That's how we need to live. We need to live so determined by faith in our life that Satan was like, ugh.29:45He woke up again. He might not be the biggest or the strongest or the most eloquent, but he believes everything that God has told him to believe. And we need to let Satan know he's in for a fight because we believe everything God has for us to believe. That's Caleb knowing that faith marks and distinguishes your life.30:10It's a faith that conquers. Look what Caleb says. Let's go. Guys, what are you waiting for? I get that you can't do it, but God, let's go. And he says this in verse 30, because we can certainly conquer it. Do you have a faith in your life that conquers?30:38Because if we're honest, we all have things in our life that we say, God, you can, I know you've done this faithfully, but I just don't know if you could tackle that. May we have a faith that conquers in our lives. Let's keep going. Chapter 14, verse 6. Not only should our lives be permanently tattooed and marked by faith, but faith will always lead us back to the Lord. Look at verse 6.31:07Now we have two men, Joshua, son of Nun, and Caleb, son of Jephunneh, who were among those who scouted out the land. They tore their clothes, which is a sign of grieving. They're grieved at the disrespect of the community. And then they say this in verse 8. Listen to the words that they say. If the Lord is pleased with us, he will bring us into this land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and he will give it to us.31:30Only don't rebel against the Lord, and don't be afraid of the people of this land, for we will devour them. Their protection has been removed, and the Lord is with them. Don't be afraid of them. While the whole community threatened to stone them, the glory of the Lord appeared to all of Israel in the tent of meeting.31:57Finally, two men speak up. Faith will always lead you back to the Lord. You hear what Joshua and Caleb are doing? They're bringing the community back to God. Back to not just God, but the covenant name of God. The Lord, Adonai, Yahweh, the one true God, the one that when Moses said in Exodus 3,32:26well, who am I going to tell you, who am I going to tell them is bringing them out of Egypt? Lord, which God are you? And he says, I am. That's the God they're going back to. Joshua says, don't forget, I am. He is the Lord. He will go before you. He has given you the land. Don't forget that the covenantal God is the one who sustains you, is your faith. Bringing you back to the Lord over and over and over again.32:56It's as if nothing else mattered in the life of Joshua and Caleb than the glory of God. Man, may our lives be marked by the glory of God. May we be able to say, I don't care what y'all do, but let's think about the Lord first. We need to get back to God's presence and his holiness in our lives.33:26Spurgeon says it this way. It is perhaps one of the strongest struggles of the Christian life to learn this sentence. Not unto us, not unto us, but be unto your glory, O Lord. If we can get that right, everything else will fall in line. What would your life look like if you said, God, I don't know anything else, but may your glory be manifest in my life above all?33:55Faith brings us back to the Lord. Brings us back to the covenant that God himself has made with us. And then we see in verse 11, we see fear again. The Lord said to Moses, how long will these people despise me?34:26How long will they not trust in me despite all the signs? Don't forget. Let me just pause there. We think, well, all the signs, what? God delivered them out of Egypt through ten plagues. The last being that the firstborn male would die in every family.34:54Only those who had the lamb's blood over their door would be saved. And exactly how God promised, God delivered. If that's the only sign I get, that's enough. And then they go to the Red Sea and they can't go anymore. And the Pharaoh's chariots are crushing in on them. And the people say, we're going to die. And the sea parts. And they walk across, not on mud, not on a sandbar, not on a ferry, on dry ground.35:23And God delivers them. And then over and over again. Last week, they're complaining, God, we want garlic and onions in our diet. God, the fish, the fish in Egypt was so good. Even if it's free. God sent them quail. I mean, this is right after the quail are stacking up and God is delivering all of these signs.35:49And yet, they don't believe. This is what it tells me about my life. Sometimes we pray, God, if you'll just send me a sign, then I'll believe. There are no amount of visible signs that God can give you that creates faith in your life. That's why it's faith. Sometimes we say, God, if you would just let me see. God, let me physically see, then I will believe.36:18God says, I already have. God, I've given, Josh, I've given you my promises. I've given you my word. I've demonstrated my faithfulness to you. And why do you despise me, Josh? Why is your fear, why are you despising me now? And you say, well, is it that important? Does fear really make me despise God? Yes. Fear is breaking of faith to the one who will never break his promises. And so fear must be rooted out and attacked in our lives, in your life.36:49You see, fear breaks trust and faith. And we know that fear is the antithesis of faith. God says in Timothy that he has not given you a spirit of fear. In 1 Timothy, take it to me through 1.7, but of power and love and sound judgment. So remember this, when you fear, it is not coming from the Savior.37:17And if you're fearful right now, you say, Pastor, you don't understand what I'm going through. I'm just terrified. Lord, I'm losing my job or I'm going through cancer or I have a wayward child and it's just really difficult. And there are all these things and I can't help but stress and fear. Choose faith today. Because God has not given you a spirit of fear. An unknown author says this.37:46He says, courage is fear that has said its prayers. Courage is fear that has said its prayers. So how do we live this out? It's easy to say, well, let's choose faith and not fear. Let's look at the yellow corn and know why. But sometimes that's difficult, isn't it? It's difficult to live. So how do we live by faith? And I just want to quickly look at one verse and then demonstrate this in Joshua's life.38:15Joshua, the man that you now know as Joshua, had a different name. He was called something else. Look at verse 16 of chapter 13, 13, 16. Joshua's name once was Hosea, son of Nun. Now you say, well, why does that matter? Hosea is a Hebrew word that simply means salvation. So his name meant salvation.38:44But Moses changed his name. And we're not told in the text why Moses changed his name. But the name Joshua, Yehoshua, means the Lord is our salvation. And if you've grown up in America, especially the Bible book, you need to hear what just happens. It's one thing to know about salvation. It's another thing to say the Lord is my salvation.39:14And I just want you to know one of the greatest weights I bury and I carry as a pastor is to know that many of you come to a church over and over again and you know about salvation. You know about God. You know that God sent his only son. Whoever believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life. You know that the wages of sin is death and that God can remedy that.39:39You know about salvation, but you're stuck in the Hosea. And you've never made salvation yours. If you've not personalized that by faith, that salvation is not yours. And the greatest weight I carry is that someday some of us will be before God and he will say this,40:05depart from me for I never knew you. And we're going to say, Lord, look at what I did in your name. But we can't say, Lord, I trust on Jesus Christ who did it all. Are you living by faith in the one true God? Are you living by Hosea's standards? Are you living by Yehoshua?40:35The Lord is my salvation. You say, well, Pastor, I want that. I want that assurance that if I die right now, I would look God face to face and I would have confidence in Christ. Very simply, have you trusted in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? So, of course, I made a decision. That's not what I said. The greatest indicator of a saving grace in my life today is a sustaining grace in my life today. I don't have to convince you that I trusted Christ 30 years ago.41:06I just need to show you that I'm following Christ today. Because every day I wake up, if you have truly hoped in Jesus, you want to say, Lord, let me live by faith today. Lord, today, can you say that? We have a choice to make, don't we? By faith or by fear? And I want you to know that God loves you enough and he wants you to be in covenant relationship with him. That's why he sent Jesus to die on the cross for sins, your sins.41:35To take your place, to give you forgiveness, to make you righteous if you believe, if we make that our own. Maybe you say, well, I've done that, Pastor. Now what? Let's go back to this verse. Numbers 14, 24. God says this about Caleb. That dog, right?42:06The one born in slavery. But since my servant has a different spirit and has remained loyal to me, I will bring him into the land where he has gone and his descendants will inherit it. Only two men and all of Israel went into the promised land of this generation. Joshua and Caleb, not Moses, not Aaron.42:35The two spies that said, Lord, we believe by faith. And God, yes, they're bigger than we. God, yes, they're stronger than we are. But we don't care. Because greater is he that is for us than he is against us. The pastor said one time that an old lady at his church used to pray this prayer every day.43:01An elder lady, she would pray, Lord, if you furnish the grace today, I'll furnish the grit. That's what we need. We need to be men and women who say, we'll stand up for Jesus. We need Caleb's to say, Lord, we're in the fight. And we're ready to live by faith in the one true God. I'm going to invite our praise team to lead us in a song of response. And I just simply want to ask you this.43:31Are you willing today to say, God, I'll take a stand? God knows what you're going through in your life. Youth, the Lord knows the battles you fight in the hallways of your school every day. You're not alone. Husband, wife, God knows your marriage is crumbling. You're not alone. Will you stand on faith and say, God, I believe that you'll change my life?44:01Maybe you're in sin and you've never confessed Christ as Lord and Savior. Would you be willing to take a stand and say, God, I'll believe. So this is what I want to ask you to do. If you're willing today, just to say, God, I'm taking a stand of faith. Before I pray, would you just stand up? Say, God, I don't know what tomorrow looks like, but I'm going to take a stand of faith. But I want this side of this. Amen.44:34Amen.← Previous in NumbersSunday, February 10, 2019Next in Numbers →Sunday, March 3, 2019More sermons on Numbers →
