Succession – don’t be put off
Series: Follow me | Bible text: Numbers 13:25–33; Mark 9:24
The goal of following Jesus is to become more like him. But this goal is never achieved on earth. I quickly allow myself to be led astray on this path. We are distracted by what is not yet going as we would like. But looking back, I can see that a lot has already changed. On the path of discipleship, I repeatedly encounter two challenges. Do I draw conclusions about God from the difficulties – or do I draw conclusions about the difficulties from God? Following Jesus tries to choose the path that brings everything into connection with the living God.
The goal of following Jesus is to become more like him. Unfortunately, this goal will never be achieved on this earth. But it is a path with a goal worth striving for. The Israelites were on their way to the Promised Land. A place where «milk and honey» flow. But before they enter the land, Moses sends twelve spies into the land. They were to see whether the land was really as good as God had promised them. After their forty-day exploration tour, the men return. Ten of them are afraid, but Caleb and Joshua are not. But the Israelites let these stories deter them from their goal. We want to ask ourselves the same question this morning. How can we succeed in not being deterred from our goal of following Jesus?
Fact check
Let’s start this sermon by checking a few facts. God promised the Israelites a land flowing with «milk and honey». A land full of abundance. A land where there is enough of everything. When the spies returned, they confirmed this. » […] We came to the land to which you sent us. Theressmilk and honey, and these are indeed fruitsüThe fruits that grow there» (Numbers 13:27 NLB). They brought pomegranates, figs and a grapevine. This vine was so huge that two people had to carry it together (Numbers 13:23). God had kept his promise.
Another statement from God said that the land will not be empty. «I will drive them out one by one until you are so numerous that you can take possession of the land» (Exodus 23:30 NLB). The Israelites could climb into a made bed. The fields were well tended. The vineyards already planted and the olive trees already planted. I recently watched a documentary about the USA. It was about the Homestead Act. This law was in force from 1862 and allowed settlers to stake out a plot of land of around 65 hectares and cultivate it. But this was hard work. They had to get everything ready. But God had a different plan for the Israelites. He didn’t want them to have to spend time preparing the fields, but to be able to harvest right from the start. Nevertheless, the spies» report was rather negative. «But the people who live there are strong, and their städte are very large and well fortified; we even saw the Anakites there» (Numbers 13:28 NLB). The Anakites were considered giants and so they were afraid of them. But God had kept his promise and the Israelites were not surprised that people lived there.
Moreover, the Israelites had nothing to fear, as God had already led them victoriously to this point. When they left Egypt, Pharaoh followed them shortly afterwards with a large army (Exodus 14). They chased Israel, but the chariots and the crew were eventually killed. While the Israelites were travelling, the Amalekites attacked Israel (Exodus 17:8–16). Moses went up on a hill and stretched his arms in the air. Joshua was down in the valley fighting. At the end of the day, Israel was victorious. Despite all these promises and experiences, the Israelites became afraid. In our discipleship, too, we are easily distracted by things that are not yet going as planned. A notebook for prayer requests and experiences with God can help us not to forget so quickly.
«but»
When I was at sixth form, I had a teacher who handed out a sheet of paper at the beginning of my time at school. It said «The bumblebee is too fat for its wing area. It shouldn’t actually be able to fly. But the bumblebee doesn’t know this and just flies». Certain things keep us from following. It was the same with the scouts. They could not deny that the land was magnificent and that «milk and honey» really did flow there. But they became afraid. «But the other spies objected: «We canöcannot go into battle against them, because they are strong.ämore than we are. And they presented the land they had explored to the Israelites in a negative light: «The country we travelled through to explore devours its inhabitants. The people we have seen there are very great.ss. We even saw the giants, the Anakites. We felt like grasshoppers next to them, and in their eyes we were too» » (Deuteronomy 13:31–33 NLB). On the path of discipleship, «buts» always want to creep in. But, what about my family when.… But, what do my friends think if.… But, how am I going to afford this if.… But, how am I ever going to manage this if.… But, but, but.… Ten of the twelve spies were guided by the «but». God gave the progenitor of the Israelites a powerful promise. «Yes, I will give you and your descendants the whole land of Canaan, where you now live as a stranger, forever. And I will be their God» (Genesis 17:8 NLB). But they did not believe God, they were unbelievers. Unbelief always has one characteristic: it excludes God. The spies did not believe that God would fulfil his promise. Unbelief begins with difficulties and, in the best-case scenario, still infers God.
Connecting the living God with everything
The news from the scouts also caused the rest of the Israelites to lose heart. They wanted to choose a new leader and return to Egypt. They knew it there. Ten of the twelve spies were negative. But two reacted confidently. «Two of the spies - Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh - tore their clothes and said to the Israelites: «The land we have travelled through and explored is very good. And if the Lord is well-disposed towards us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us: It is a land flowing with milk and honey üflyssen. But do not rebel against the LORD and do not be afraid of the inhabitants of the land. They will be easy prey for us! They have no protection, but the LORD is with us! So do not be afraid of them!» (Numbers 14:6–9 NLB). Joshua and Caleb trusted God – that is, they believed him. Faith draws its conclusion from God to the difficulties. In the Bible, names have a meaning. There are various meanings for Caleb. On the one hand, it means «dog», but on the other hand it also means «wholeheartedly». He also showed this in this situation. Faith means associating the living God with everything. Caleb and Joshua brought the inhabitants of the land into contact with God. They were not ignorant, not indifferent, not careless, but they connected the living God with all of this.
There is a story in the New Testament in which Jesus Christ is asked to heal. A father brings his sick child to Jesus. It is possessed by an evil spirit, which throws the child into fire or water and tries to kill it. After the whole account, the father makes the request «Do something if you can!» This is followed by an exciting statement from Jesus: «But Jesus said to him, «You say, «If you can! All things are possible to him who believes. Immediately the child’s father cried out: I believe; help my unbelief!» (Mark 9:23–24 LUT). I believe, help my unbelief. This sounds like a paradox. But it is a twofold statement. On the one hand: I believe. I see you as the Son of God and I am convinced that you are greater than my difficulties. On the other hand: Help my unbelief: When I look at my circumstances, I cannot believe that anyone can help me here.
How do I arrive at such an attitude to life that connects the living God with everything? I am convinced that I can practise this to a certain extent. This is, for example, a morning ritual that involves engaging with God and trying to bring the day into connection with Him. Because spending time with God is the best time to invest. Another is to make special moments special and involve God.
God promised the people that they would gradually take possession of the land. This taking possession little by little is also an image for following Jesus. The goal is to be like Jesus in everything. But I don’t have to be able to do everything today. What’s more, this change doesn’t happen on my own initiative, but Jesus brings it about in me. If I let him work on me, he will gradually drive things out of my life. I will always feel two inner impulses. Basically, I want to get to the promised land, i.e. become more like Jesus. Basically, however, I also like to go where I know it, so I am afraid of the unknown. The Father’s prayer «I believe, help my unbelief» helps with this.
As a church, we have the vision of the Livestream 500(0). We have the vision of reaching many people with our livestream. There are two ways to achieve this. The first is to assume that it is impossible to connect 500 devices. I am therefore not going to do anything. No prayer for a specific person, no invitation to watch the livestream and no giveaway. But when I think of God, I realise that 5,000 devices are not a problem for Him. So I will pray for it, invite people and give away giveaways.
At the beginning of the service, we heard the song «Praise». I would like to end the sermon with a line from this song. It says «I’ll praise when I feel it, and I’ll praise when I don’t» «I praise when I feel it, and I praise when I don’t».
Possible questions for the small group
Read Bible text: Genesis 13:25–33, Mark 9:24
- Which perspective characterises me more? Do I tend to infer from the difficulties to God or from God to the difficulties?
- How can I achieve an attitude to life that connects the living God with everything? What could help me?
- In which area of life do I let the «but» guide me too much?
- Where are there areas where I actually want to go to the promised land, but am basically satisfied with the status quo? What would it be like to consciously approach this area with the prayer «I believe, help my unbelief»?
