Deuteronomy 1:42
And the Lord said to me, ‘Say to them, “Do not go up nor fight, for I am not among you; otherwise you will be defeated before your enemies.”’
When the nation of Israel was given the opportunity to go into the promise land they didn't do so because they feared the giants in the land and the fortified cities that the giants lived in. It was a normal fear ... unless, as Moses told them, you have God who keeps a fire over you the entire nation at night for warmth and a cloud over the entire nation by day for covering. God's presence should have assured them that wherever God told them to go He would be with them and take care of them. But, they rebelled and didn't have faith in what they saw or what they had experienced by God's mighty hand or what they were promised. It was, after all, the "promised" land. Once they heard that they would not be allowed to go into the land because of this remarkable unbelief they now wanted to go. Now God tells them that they had should not because "I am not among you." When God is not among us we should not move forward. We, as believers today, are to be "lead" the Spirit (Romans 8). That leading means that God goes with us. But, if God is not leading we are not to go forward or backward. The nation couldn't get it right. God said go and they stayed. God said stay and they wanted to go. Like little children rebellion at authority these people lacked the faith and obedience needed to follow God. We are to be sensitive to God's leading in our lives. If He tells us to go forward no matter what is in our path matters little. God is with us. But, if He tells us to stay no matter how strong we think we are we will face defeat without Him. The leading of the Spirit is an act of faith based upon the the promises of God in His Word. As we follow those instructions we have God's blessing. Without those, we are on our own. Not a good place to be.
No comments:
Post a Comment