March 25th, 2025
How many of you have ever faced, or are facing, a situation that seems impossible? It could be a doctor’s diagnosis or a financial burden. It could be a broken marriage or a child with a problem you can’t fix. We will all face things that are beyond our ability to resolve. It’s the nature of life. However, God has given us the keys to overcome every problem in His word and it all starts with our perspective.
Isaiah 55:9 says,
“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my (God’s) ways higher than your ways and my (God’s) thoughts than your thoughts.”
The highest of worldly wisdom and knowledge is but foolishness when compared to the vastness of the mind and heart of God. His wisdom is beyond our comprehension. That’s a truth we must understand in every situation we face. God knows the way through every circumstance even if we can’t see the way through. However, many people stop there, with a statement about the mysteries of God. The mysterious ways of God will never negate His character. We cannot say our circumstance is the will and plan of God if it’s contrary to who God is. For example, I’ve heard people say of a terminal illness that God moves in mysterious ways. God always has a plan, but His plan will never be against His word. God can use every situation, but just because something happens does not mean it was God’s intention. We have an enemy and we also have a choice. For example, there is a story in Numbers 13-14 in which we see a contrast between those who saw their situation from God’s perspective and those who did not.
In this story, the Israelites were about to enter the promised land. They had seen the glory of God in the plagues as He brought them out of Egyptian slavery. They’d seen Him part the Red Sea. They’d witnessed His glory on Mount Sinai. They’d experienced the power of God in the wilderness. It was then time for them to enter the land of promise. Twelve spies were sent into the land to bring back a report and when they returned, not all of them brought a favorable account of the land. Numbers 13:32-33 says,
“They brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, ‘The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.”
Now, the report of (most of) the spies was not wrong on the surface. From a natural perspective, they were reporting the truth as far as their eyes could see. The people of the land were too strong for them to defeat in their own strength. The people of Israel were terrified after hearing the report. Numbers 14:2-5 says,
“All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt, or if only we had died in this wilderness! Why is the LORD bringing us into this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and children will become plunder. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?” So, they said to one another, “Let us appoint a leader and return to Egypt.’
Their first response was to accuse God of having plans to harm them. After everything that He had done, their hearts were turned by fear, and they cried out to be taken back to slavery.
Numbers 14:5-10 says,
‘Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown before the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel. Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes and said to the whole congregation of Israel, “The land we passed through and explored is an exceedingly good land. If the LORD delights in us, He will bring us into this land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and He will give it to us. Only do not rebel against the LORD, and do not be afraid of the people of the land, for they will be like bread for us. Their protection has been removed, and the LORD is with us. Do not be afraid of them!” But the whole congregation threatened to stone Joshua and Caleb.’
Joshua and Caleb saw the very same thing the other ten spies saw when they’d entered Canaan, but they came back with a different report because they were more aware that God was with them than they were of the enemy’s strength. David had the same response when he heard a giant taunting the Israelite army (1 Samuel 17). In that story, Goliath, a warrior giant, had been taunting the Israelite army for 40 days. The king of Israel and all his men were terrified, but a shepherd boy was willing to step into the valley to fight, because he was aware the battle was the Lord’s (1 Samuel 17:47). He was more aware of God’s greatness and faithfulness than the enemy’s strength. God is still looking for the Davids, Joshuas, and Calebs. He is looking for those who will see the giants and be more aware of His greatness than the enemy’s strength.
Joshua and Caleb knew God would fight for His people. They said, “The Lord is with us” just as David said, “the battle is the Lord’s.”
However, the story in the book of Numbers has a very somber ending. God did not judge the people immediately, because Moses interceded on their behalf, but this was His verdict:
“Truly, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord, none of the men
who have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice, shall see the land that I swore to give to their fathers. And none of those who despised me shall see it… Say to them, ‘As I live, declares the Lord, what you have said in my hearing I will do to you: your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness, and of all your number, listed in the census from twenty years old and upward, who have grumbled against me, not one shall come into the land where I swore that I would make you dwell, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun.” (Numbers 14:21-23; 28-30)
Not one of the people above 20 years of age would enter the promised land, except Joshua and Caleb. They spent the next forty years in judgment and misery, living in a barren wasteland. It wasn’t because of their enemy, and it certainly was not God’s plan. It was because of their unbelief. Look at what God said again: “As I live, declares the Lord, what you have said in my hearing I will do to you…”
Do you speak as though God will make happen whatever comes out of your mouth? Do you realize how much power your confession holds? God held an entire generation responsible for the words they spoke. Are we any less responsible for the words we speak? Luke 6:45 says, “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” God cares about our hearts. He is moved by our faith. Hebrews 3:16-19 says,
“Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies perished in the wilderness? And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? So, we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.”
Jeremiah 29:11 says,
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
He has plans for our victory, deliverance, and freedom. He has plans for us to overcome
everything that would harm us. However, we have a choice. He had good plans for every single one of the Israelites He brought out of Egypt, yet only Joshua and Caleb stepped into their promised land. Why? It wasn’t because of their enemy, and it wasn’t because it was the plan of God. They died in the wilderness because they chose to doubt Him.
We demonstrate our faith by our confession. God told them He would do to them what they said in His hearing. My friends, everything we say is within His hearing. The converse truth of this story is so powerful. He is listening for a confession of faith in accordance with His Word so He can move on our behalf. He always moves in accordance with His Word and His Spirit. Joshua and Caleb saw the promised land simply because they chose to believe God’s promise and be unmoved by the giants or the unbelief of the crowds around them. They chose to believe God and they received their inheritance!
We can trust Him with every giant, every enemy, and every concern of our hearts. Choose to be like Joshua and Caleb today. Choose to be like David. God is with you, and He has good plans for you! Whatever enemy has come against you, whatever giant you’re facing, God has a solution that will be for your victory and His Glory. He is faithful to His Word and His people. The blood of Jesus has not lost one drop of its power. The same Holy Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead dwells in the heart of every believer. You are the temple of the creator of the universe. You are the ark in which the glory of God dwells. If we only believe Him, we will see His Kingdom come like never before!
Isaiah 55:9 says,
“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my (God’s) ways higher than your ways and my (God’s) thoughts than your thoughts.”
The highest of worldly wisdom and knowledge is but foolishness when compared to the vastness of the mind and heart of God. His wisdom is beyond our comprehension. That’s a truth we must understand in every situation we face. God knows the way through every circumstance even if we can’t see the way through. However, many people stop there, with a statement about the mysteries of God. The mysterious ways of God will never negate His character. We cannot say our circumstance is the will and plan of God if it’s contrary to who God is. For example, I’ve heard people say of a terminal illness that God moves in mysterious ways. God always has a plan, but His plan will never be against His word. God can use every situation, but just because something happens does not mean it was God’s intention. We have an enemy and we also have a choice. For example, there is a story in Numbers 13-14 in which we see a contrast between those who saw their situation from God’s perspective and those who did not.
In this story, the Israelites were about to enter the promised land. They had seen the glory of God in the plagues as He brought them out of Egyptian slavery. They’d seen Him part the Red Sea. They’d witnessed His glory on Mount Sinai. They’d experienced the power of God in the wilderness. It was then time for them to enter the land of promise. Twelve spies were sent into the land to bring back a report and when they returned, not all of them brought a favorable account of the land. Numbers 13:32-33 says,
“They brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, ‘The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.”
Now, the report of (most of) the spies was not wrong on the surface. From a natural perspective, they were reporting the truth as far as their eyes could see. The people of the land were too strong for them to defeat in their own strength. The people of Israel were terrified after hearing the report. Numbers 14:2-5 says,
“All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt, or if only we had died in this wilderness! Why is the LORD bringing us into this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and children will become plunder. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?” So, they said to one another, “Let us appoint a leader and return to Egypt.’
Their first response was to accuse God of having plans to harm them. After everything that He had done, their hearts were turned by fear, and they cried out to be taken back to slavery.
Numbers 14:5-10 says,
‘Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown before the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel. Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes and said to the whole congregation of Israel, “The land we passed through and explored is an exceedingly good land. If the LORD delights in us, He will bring us into this land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and He will give it to us. Only do not rebel against the LORD, and do not be afraid of the people of the land, for they will be like bread for us. Their protection has been removed, and the LORD is with us. Do not be afraid of them!” But the whole congregation threatened to stone Joshua and Caleb.’
Joshua and Caleb saw the very same thing the other ten spies saw when they’d entered Canaan, but they came back with a different report because they were more aware that God was with them than they were of the enemy’s strength. David had the same response when he heard a giant taunting the Israelite army (1 Samuel 17). In that story, Goliath, a warrior giant, had been taunting the Israelite army for 40 days. The king of Israel and all his men were terrified, but a shepherd boy was willing to step into the valley to fight, because he was aware the battle was the Lord’s (1 Samuel 17:47). He was more aware of God’s greatness and faithfulness than the enemy’s strength. God is still looking for the Davids, Joshuas, and Calebs. He is looking for those who will see the giants and be more aware of His greatness than the enemy’s strength.
Joshua and Caleb knew God would fight for His people. They said, “The Lord is with us” just as David said, “the battle is the Lord’s.”
However, the story in the book of Numbers has a very somber ending. God did not judge the people immediately, because Moses interceded on their behalf, but this was His verdict:
“Truly, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord, none of the men
who have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice, shall see the land that I swore to give to their fathers. And none of those who despised me shall see it… Say to them, ‘As I live, declares the Lord, what you have said in my hearing I will do to you: your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness, and of all your number, listed in the census from twenty years old and upward, who have grumbled against me, not one shall come into the land where I swore that I would make you dwell, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun.” (Numbers 14:21-23; 28-30)
Not one of the people above 20 years of age would enter the promised land, except Joshua and Caleb. They spent the next forty years in judgment and misery, living in a barren wasteland. It wasn’t because of their enemy, and it certainly was not God’s plan. It was because of their unbelief. Look at what God said again: “As I live, declares the Lord, what you have said in my hearing I will do to you…”
Do you speak as though God will make happen whatever comes out of your mouth? Do you realize how much power your confession holds? God held an entire generation responsible for the words they spoke. Are we any less responsible for the words we speak? Luke 6:45 says, “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” God cares about our hearts. He is moved by our faith. Hebrews 3:16-19 says,
“Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies perished in the wilderness? And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? So, we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.”
Jeremiah 29:11 says,
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
He has plans for our victory, deliverance, and freedom. He has plans for us to overcome
everything that would harm us. However, we have a choice. He had good plans for every single one of the Israelites He brought out of Egypt, yet only Joshua and Caleb stepped into their promised land. Why? It wasn’t because of their enemy, and it wasn’t because it was the plan of God. They died in the wilderness because they chose to doubt Him.
We demonstrate our faith by our confession. God told them He would do to them what they said in His hearing. My friends, everything we say is within His hearing. The converse truth of this story is so powerful. He is listening for a confession of faith in accordance with His Word so He can move on our behalf. He always moves in accordance with His Word and His Spirit. Joshua and Caleb saw the promised land simply because they chose to believe God’s promise and be unmoved by the giants or the unbelief of the crowds around them. They chose to believe God and they received their inheritance!
We can trust Him with every giant, every enemy, and every concern of our hearts. Choose to be like Joshua and Caleb today. Choose to be like David. God is with you, and He has good plans for you! Whatever enemy has come against you, whatever giant you’re facing, God has a solution that will be for your victory and His Glory. He is faithful to His Word and His people. The blood of Jesus has not lost one drop of its power. The same Holy Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead dwells in the heart of every believer. You are the temple of the creator of the universe. You are the ark in which the glory of God dwells. If we only believe Him, we will see His Kingdom come like never before!
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