Through Numbers Sample

Rebellion 

"Twelve men went to spy on Canaan,

Ten were bad and two were good.

What did they see when they spied on Canaan?

Ten were bad and two were good.

Some saw the giants strong and tall

Some saw grapes in clusters fall

Some saw that God was in it all

'Cause ten were bad and two were good."

This song resonates in today's passage. The ten bad spies looked at the situation around them and made a practical and logical assessment of their task. On the contrary, Joshua and Caleb, the two good spies, could see God fulfilling His promise in spite of the difficulties they saw. Like the ten bad spies, there are times in life when we look at circumstances and situations around us and make choices that are practical and logical to us. God expects us to move forward with faith and trust like Joshua and Caleb did, that in whatever situation we face, we believe God's promises will come to pass in our lives. 

Are we daring to take the challenge God commands in our life? We need to realise it is a command. Though God commands us, He gives us a choice of obeying or disobeying His command. Do we consciously choose to follow Him? 

The second primary principle we see here is we can never escape the consequences of the choices we make. Once we choose, there is no avoiding the effects. These consequences should instil in us a definite fear of the Lord which is the beginning of Wisdom. God will never ask us to do anything that he will not enable us to do.

So is there hope if we made the wrong choice? Yes, Jesus paid for the wrong decisions we make. Some of our choices may have consequences we will go through. The promise is that God will be with us when we go through them. However, it does require us to be bold enough to acknowledge our mistakes, repent of our choices and accept Christ's sacrifice on the cross for us and willingly follow his direction. This path may be hard as sometimes it involves forgiveness and reconciliation, sometimes with difficult people.

Thought for the day: 

Are there any choices you made that God wants you to set right? 

Jesus will help us make the wrong in our lives right.

Additional Reading - Numbers 13-15