Numbers Day 6
Read Numbers 14:1-35
Over the past few days, we have read about the Israelites struggles and rebellion towards God. They are still very much a victim to the sin that exists in their hearts, and this sin is affecting the way that they interact with God and others. Their lack of contentment, jealousy and fear are all pointing to a distrust in God and a heart issue that needs repair. After much patience with His people, God decides to act.
Numbers 14:20-23
The Lord replied, “I have forgiven them, as you asked. Nevertheless, as surely as I live and as surely as the glory of the Lord fills the whole earth, not one of those who saw my glory and the signs I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness but who disobeyed me and tested me ten times— not one of them will ever see the land I promised on oath to their ancestors. No one who has treated me with contempt will ever see it.
God’s response to their rebellion is that they aren’t ready to inherit the Promised Land. As a result for their sins, the whole Israelite community will wander for 40 years through the wilderness before inheriting the Promised Land. It’s important for us to see God’s love, justice, care and discipline all in this one moment. Because our God is a God of justice, He cannot let the Israelites sin go unpunished. Thankfully, for you and I, God’s punishment for our sin was poured out on the person of Jesus Christ.
But while God is acting in justice, He is also acting in love. He deeply cares about the Israelites and wants to help them, not hurt them. As they wander through the wilderness for 40 years, He is trying to teach them an immeasurably important lesson…to fully rely and depend on Him. If they consistently struggle with trusting Him, He will lead them to a place where they have no choice but to trust in Him. At the end of the day, there is no greater lesson for us to learn than to fully trust in God, in every situation and season, every circumstance and setting. This wandering is something the Israelites deserve, but it is also something they deeply need to find the healing and restoration that needs to happen in their relationship with their Creator.
Today, God still allows people to walk through seasons of wilderness. There are times when this wilderness is a direct result of our own sin, but there are also moments where it’s not. A wilderness could look like the months after a fractured relationship where you feel lost or broken, it could be a season where it’s difficult for you to hear God’s voice, your wilderness could even be a season of waiting where you feel in between two major moments in your life (between your Egypt and your Promised Land). No matter what our wilderness looks like, the truth is that God is with us in the wilderness, and He desires to teach us something in the wilderness. Trust in Him and believe that whatever lesson He wants to teach you is well worth the season you must walk through to understand it.
Questions to consider.
Have you ever walked through a “wilderness” season in your life? Did you cling to God and allow Him to teach you through it or did you run to other things?
Are there any lessons that God has taught you? What type of life circumstances did these come through?
Ask that God you would be open to what He is teaching you in this season of your life. Take time to consider this next bold prayer before you pray it (and don’t feel pressured to pray this if you don’t want to). Ask God to bring you through the wilderness so that He can show you the parts of yourself that aren’t surrendered to Him and so that you can learn to trust Him more.
Over the past few days, we have read about the Israelites struggles and rebellion towards God. They are still very much a victim to the sin that exists in their hearts, and this sin is affecting the way that they interact with God and others. Their lack of contentment, jealousy and fear are all pointing to a distrust in God and a heart issue that needs repair. After much patience with His people, God decides to act.
Numbers 14:20-23
The Lord replied, “I have forgiven them, as you asked. Nevertheless, as surely as I live and as surely as the glory of the Lord fills the whole earth, not one of those who saw my glory and the signs I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness but who disobeyed me and tested me ten times— not one of them will ever see the land I promised on oath to their ancestors. No one who has treated me with contempt will ever see it.
God’s response to their rebellion is that they aren’t ready to inherit the Promised Land. As a result for their sins, the whole Israelite community will wander for 40 years through the wilderness before inheriting the Promised Land. It’s important for us to see God’s love, justice, care and discipline all in this one moment. Because our God is a God of justice, He cannot let the Israelites sin go unpunished. Thankfully, for you and I, God’s punishment for our sin was poured out on the person of Jesus Christ.
But while God is acting in justice, He is also acting in love. He deeply cares about the Israelites and wants to help them, not hurt them. As they wander through the wilderness for 40 years, He is trying to teach them an immeasurably important lesson…to fully rely and depend on Him. If they consistently struggle with trusting Him, He will lead them to a place where they have no choice but to trust in Him. At the end of the day, there is no greater lesson for us to learn than to fully trust in God, in every situation and season, every circumstance and setting. This wandering is something the Israelites deserve, but it is also something they deeply need to find the healing and restoration that needs to happen in their relationship with their Creator.
Today, God still allows people to walk through seasons of wilderness. There are times when this wilderness is a direct result of our own sin, but there are also moments where it’s not. A wilderness could look like the months after a fractured relationship where you feel lost or broken, it could be a season where it’s difficult for you to hear God’s voice, your wilderness could even be a season of waiting where you feel in between two major moments in your life (between your Egypt and your Promised Land). No matter what our wilderness looks like, the truth is that God is with us in the wilderness, and He desires to teach us something in the wilderness. Trust in Him and believe that whatever lesson He wants to teach you is well worth the season you must walk through to understand it.
Questions to consider.
Have you ever walked through a “wilderness” season in your life? Did you cling to God and allow Him to teach you through it or did you run to other things?
Are there any lessons that God has taught you? What type of life circumstances did these come through?
Ask that God you would be open to what He is teaching you in this season of your life. Take time to consider this next bold prayer before you pray it (and don’t feel pressured to pray this if you don’t want to). Ask God to bring you through the wilderness so that He can show you the parts of yourself that aren’t surrendered to Him and so that you can learn to trust Him more.