Gtcotr/021118
1 Corinthians 15:46 However,
the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual.
Approximately
1500 years Before Christ, God sent Moses to deliver the Children of Israel from
bondage and slavery to Pharaoh and Egypt. 500 years earlier, around 2000BC, God
promised Abraham that his descendants would posses all the land we know as
Israel including a broad strip of land on the eastern side of the Jordan River
now within the borders of Jordan and Syria. This is what the Bible refers to as
“The Promise
Land”.
When
Moses led the Children of God from Egypt in the spring of the year, they went
out into the wilderness of Sinai. Everyone, including Moses, expected to be in
their new homes in the Promise Land by winter. This was according to God’s
plan. However, the 200 mile trip took them 40 years of hiking and camping in
the wilderness, plus another 25 years waging war against their enemies once
they finally crossed over into the Promise Land.
Their
journey is catalogued in the Old Testament books of Exodus, Numbers and
Deuteronomy. This historical record gives us an accurate account of each step
they took and is meant to provide us with insight and encouragement as to how
we should proceed from our Egypt experience and possess our Promised Land. God
hopes our journey will be shorter.
Before
we begin learning to identify and what it takes to defeat the enemies of our
soul, it is important for us to all be on the same page. I know some of you
already know this but for the sake of clarity allow me to draw some parallels
God gives in the Bible between the Children of Israel and you. Then, as you
begin reading the Book of Exodus tomorrow, you will better understand how Bible
history is a roadmap for your life today. It will be easy to find yourself
right there in the pages of the Bible.
1.
Egypt equals the World
2.
Pharaoh equals Satan
3.
Moses equals Jesus
4.
Coming out of Egypt equals being Born Again
5.
The Red Sea equals Water Baptism
6.
The Cloud covering the Children of Israel during the
day which turned into a Pillar of Fire that stood between them and their
enemies and covered them at night equals the Holy Spirit
7.
The Wilderness equals the Journey, the Time
and the Distance between Inheriting the Promises and Possessing the Promises
8.
The Manna equals the Word of God
9.
Israel’s Natural Enemies equal our Spiritual Enemies Today
It
is vitally important to note God’s intent. He did not save His Children from
Egypt so that they could wander around in a wilderness for the rest of their
lives. Late in life Moses wrote a letter to us in reflection of this truth. In
that letter Moses said:
Deuteronomy 6:23 Then He
brought us out from there, that He might bring us in, to give us the land of
which He swore to our fathers.
Since
God saved us to give us and our children a life filled with love, joy, peace,
gentleness, goodness, faith, humility, self-control, health, wealth, wisdom and
power, why then do we at times feel so powerless or as though we are just
wandering around in a wilderness, going to Church and hearing the Word but
falling short of the promises? Why do our relationships fail; why do we get
robbed of time, peace, joy and money; why do we feel empty or without
direction; why don’t we see more power and provision?
We are not short on promises … however, we seem to be short on possessing
those promises. It was the very same way with the Children of Israel and we are
so fortunate to have a historical record of those things which caused them to
fall short. The Bible says that God gave us this account so that we might know
how we should believe and what we should do so that we don’t repeat the same mistakes
in our lives.
Life
can be divided into winners and losers. It takes two
things to win:
1.
God on your side … (God willing to fight alongside you)
2.
You on God’s side … (You, willing to fight alongside God)
One
without the other will not experience victory.
Now,
by way of introduction, let’s identify what caused some of the Children of
Israel to be victorious over their enemies while others failed.
Winners and Losers
1. The Winners
Numbers 14:9 “Only do not
rebel against the LORD, nor fear the people of the land, for they are
our bread; their protection has departed from them, and the LORD is with
us. Do not fear them.”
Numbers 13:30 Then Caleb
quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take
possession, for we are well able to overcome it.”
2. The Losers
Numbers 13
31 But the men who had gone
up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are
stronger than we.”
32 And they gave the children
of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land
through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its
inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great
stature.
33 “There we saw the giants
(the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers
in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”
·
Defeating
the Enemy is God’s job … Advancing and Engaging is ours.
o God sent His Angel
before them to drive out the enemies …
o All the Israelites
had to do was to:
§ Suit up; Show up;
and Stand up.
§ Just trust God, show
up and blow the horn …
·
We
can’t do it for God but only with God … if He isn’t fighting with us, all our efforts are just a personal crusade in vain.
·
Running
out their by ourselves, even with the Ark of the Covenant in tow, won’t bring
victory.
The Truth
Joshua 9
9 and said to the men: “I
know that the LORD has given you the land, that the terror of you has fallen on
us, and that all the inhabitants of the land are fainthearted because of you.
10 “For we have heard how the
LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and
what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were on the other side
of the Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed.
11 “And as soon as we heard these
things, our hearts melted; neither did there remain any more courage in
anyone because of you, for the LORD your God, He is God in heaven above
and on earth beneath.
There
are Six
Identifiable Enemies of the Soul
Exodus 33:2 “And I will send My
Angel before you, and I will drive out the Canaanite and the Amorite and the
Hittite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite.
God
never intended for His children to live their lives in the wilderness. When you
are in the wilderness the world looks better. A house, a job and a steak in
Egypt looks better than a tent, bread and water in the wilderness. The
wilderness is just too close to the world.
There
are Born-Again Believers living too close to the world today, looking back on
the day and missing the fun. The way out is forwards, not backwards. Why become
a slave again when you can be a king. If we don’t advance and engage our
enemies, it will be left up to our children. The people who are finally
victorious may not have been the first ones who could have been. You can break
the cycle of going in circles.
Hold
on to your winning attitude this week and begin to read the Book of Exodus with
your new perspective in mind. Next week we will identify the first enemy we all
must face, fight and conquer in order to begin to take ground in our promised
land. I am certain you will see it clearly and begin your march to victory in
Jesus’ name.
You
can be victorious! But first, you must be Born-Again! Have you been delivered
from Egypt and slavery to sin? Today Jesus will save your soul and break the
power of satan off of your life. Defeating satan was His job, following Him is now
yours …
Here is what you need to do to be saved …
·
Recognize you need a Savior
·
Repent of your sins
·
Receive Jesus by asking Him to become the Lord of your life
Satan
cannot defeat you by conquest, he must have your consent.
Pray
with me now …
