“We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there.”

Numbers 13:27–28 (ESV)

I’ve heard it said that obstacles are what you see when you take your eyes off the goal. That applies to what happened to the children of Israel at Kadesh Barnea. God was with them; the Promised Land was before them; God told them to take possession. All they had to do was to march forward. But ten of the spies returned from their forty-day reconnaissance with a bad report.

Rather than seeing a BIG God, they saw strong people, fortified cities, and fierce giants. They turned the hearts of the people from faith to fear to unbelief. And because of this, that generation of adults would die off in the wilderness and never enter the Promised Land.

Joshua and Caleb were the only spies who had a different heart.

“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.’”

Numbers 13:30 (NKJV)

A little later, Joshua and Caleb said:

“The land we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. If the LORD delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, ‘a land which flows with milk and honey.’”

Numbers 14:7–8 (NKJV)

Ten spies focused on the obstacles; two spies focused on the goal, knowing that God was with them. But in the minds of the majority, the bad report of the ten spies outweighed the good report of Caleb and Joshua. Why do people give greater weight to bad news rather than to good news?

In Hebrews 11:6 we are told that without faith it is impossible to please God. Is there something God has called us to do? Are we focused on the greatness of our God or the impossibility of the task? Faith opens the door to new frontiers, but unbelief slams the door shut.

Thanks for reading. I’m glad you’re here. 😊

Photo by Melanie Wasser on Unsplash