Fear or Faith

Now today we have Pastor Jason guessing here with us. Jason has on all of our family ministries here in the church and I can tell you personally as a parent. There is nobody I would rather have leading the charge of partnering with our families and my family in particular to raise the next generation for Christ is not a challenging message for us today right here in the middle of her series with right into the heart of the whole story. So I've asked him if he would speak to us some a church and all of our campuses. Please give a warm welcome to the summit churches Metro redneck man who hunts in our cows and skinny jeans.

Pastor Jason just, well, I'd like to welcome all of you to some church across all across the triangle and all of her stomach campuses. I do need to correct Pastor JD on one thing and I do not wear skinny jeans.

I can't fit into skinny jeans their slim fit baby okay slick that there is a massive difference between skinny and slick I get an amen from somebody out there okay that you are Pastor JD say that we are in the middle or the beginning of a series called the whole story and what we are doing is we are walking from the very beginning of Scripture for the book of Genesis all the way to the end. Throughout this whole year. The book of Revelation and out over the past several weeks we have been journeying from Genesis all the way through, and I today were to be in the book of numbers specifically in the book of Numbers chapter 13 and chapter 14's. If you have your Bibles. You go ahead and open them up there. But in order for us to get a an idea of what's taking place in the book of numbers at the press rewind force just for a moment and I had a set the stage so it's good. Take a minute but I gotta tell you guys a story that's gonna take us all the way back to the land of Egypt. Okay that you don't know much about much about the Bible, the people of God were enslaved in the land of Egypt. Okay this is a patio paper right here and I'm not have this represent of hard work that Took Pl. in Egypt. The reason I'm doing this is because literally for the past three months are good.

Building a patio in my backyard, and it has been hell on earth okay and that is exactly what Egypt was for God's people. There was hell on earth okay and why the people of God were enslaved in Egypt there's two stories are running parallel, there's the story of slavery.

The people of God would be enslaved in Egypt for 400 years, but the same time there's a story of hope that one day this slavery would end and we would make our way somewhere else in the reason that is happening is because God showed up in the Old Testament in Genesis chapter 15 and he said to Abram, he said this your people will be enslaved in a land that is not their own for 400 years and then after 400 years of slavery, I will bring them into a land where the possessions will be good okay so that's how the story is going. And God raises up a man by the name of Moses to come into Egypt and Moses shows up to Pharaoh.

After several hundred years and he says Pharaoh, Pharaoh old married people go okay for if you remember that song from the 90s. Okay, that's cool though, that's good, that's no big deal right so fairies like no shop buddy not happening. Alright, so what is God do. He sent some plagues and Pharaoh can't take it anymore and so eventually Pharaoh says take you and your people and your God and get out of my face and leave go leave us alone and so finally after 400 years of slavery, hope is coming to God's people as to the people of God begin their journey out of Egypt and they come as soon as early they come to their first major obstacle we know that as the Red Sea. Most this is leading the charge with his people and they get to the Red Sea and they're like oh no, were going to die Pharaoh's Army is chasing after us what we ever going to do. Moses picks up a staff he sticks it in the sand or what happens to the water and the people do what strike to the progress straight through the Red Sea onto the promised land, Pharaoh's armies giving chase. They run through the sea and God swallows them up. I mean, it is a beautiful moment.

Okay God is doing everything that he said he would do these broadest people out of slavery guineas taking them to a land that is good and the people are jacked up man, they are pumped up and that's with the book of numbers starts.

It starts in the beginning of year to post Egypt and so in the book of Numbers, God uses his man knows this to lead his people and he gives Moses three specific tasks.

Okay, because Moses on the people had been brought out of Egypt and now you are going to take them to the land that I've been promising them for a long time.

It's the land of milk and honey alright and we all know that God's milk is whole milk I get. Amen.

Somebody okay amen right there in organic honey of course right locally grown from your farmers okay so the land of milk and honey, and that's what the book of Numbers is all about.

It starts two years post Egypt and it's all about Moses leading God's people to the land that he had been promising them in the first several chapters. Moses did what God calls and organizes the people I he counts the people if you read the book of numbers or notice the first several chapters are little bit of a doozy because it's naming all of these people. The numbers in the tropics, but what you see here is that there are 600,000 able in fighting men that have come across the Red Sea. That's approximately 2 million people. I don't want to lose sight of that, because when God made the promise to Abraham that he would be a father of many nations, and that his descendents would be as many as the multitude of the stars of the sky.

How many people were there when he made that promise to help other statement is why.

Okay, that's it I think is people going to 400 years of slavery, and even in the midst of slavery.

God is still fulfilling his promise: somebody that's good stuff.

God is growing his people to be a great nation for his glory even in the midst of a difficult season. So what happens is Moses then begins to count them and he gives all of the tribes. The first several chapters he gives them all a job. Why, because all of the people of God have a responsibility. Every tribe was given the task. They were given a job on or in order to get to where God was sending and then what you see. After that is, they set up the tabernacle did smack in the middle.

Okay, the tabernacle is set up right in the middle of the people and all the tribes and and really that's supposed to be symbolic of a couple thing that God's presence would always dwell among the people that he was not going to leave them. They may have felt abandoned for generations but God was still God, and he was still good and he was not going to leave his people and that he would lead his people that he would go in front of his people. We see that when it's evidenced by cloud of smoke and a pillar color of fire writing as the presence of God moved the people of God picked up camp and they moved with him that should have been the story of the people of Israel, where God leads the people will follow that really should. That should be our story today to write.

I mean where God leads we should follow, but we all know that song and dance goes going right to me it's like it's good first season I got your good and something happens and all of a sudden I don't know why not go in there okay let starts to happen. The people of God when you're journeying. This is a 250 mile journey from Egypt to the promised land data showed off his glory.

He's doing some incredible things. The people start marching thereunder when they start complaining we don't have this we don't have that you get the numbers chapter 10 number Chapter 11. It's really start to hit the fan now okay I people are grumbling against the leadership and it's not just the people on the outskirts of the camp. It's it's people and Moses his own family okay is Miriam and I a wrong.

Okay, I get like that are ticked off, and Moses is pleading with God is like God, can we please get this show on the road because I want to kill these people and I've already pled with you twice not to do the same. Can we please just move this the ship let's go, let's go. Let's move this thing and so that's were numbers chapter 13 begins the people now have gone approximately 240 miles from where they spent the last 400 years of slavery, and they are 10 miles away from tasting the promises, the fulfillment of God's promise was people to molest tobacco Road okay. They are like right here and that's were numbers chapter 13 picks up. Let's read this again. The Lord said to Moses, since it meant to explore the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites from each ancestral tribes and one of its leaders, and so that's what happens if your readings from the Scripture, you'll see that man one person is sent us is brought out from each tribe of the 12 tribes of Israel to get 12 spies that are brought forward to these 12 spas were they doing vendor going on a camping trip maybe okay verse 17, when Moses sent them to explore Canaan. He said this, go up to the Negev and on into the hill country see what the land is like one of the people who live there are strong or weak, few or many, what kind of later they live in is good is it bad what are towns look like on the unwalled really fortified. How is the soil. Is it fertile is a poor are there trees there is in a desert me what what's it like, do your best to bring back some of the fruit of the land and the people of God are pumped okay. They are so jacked up right now because the spies are here looking at going to the land and there to bring back a good report, and people are anticipating something good you just fit generations, and something that was not good and now you're on the brink of tasting the fulfillment of the good thing that your God has been promising you so they went up and explore the land they went to the Negev, just as Moses had commanded them to do and they came to a place called Habre okay that's good to be important just a few minutes.

Make a note of that.

They came to help Ron where they cut off a branch bearing a single cluster of grapes. Two of them carried on a pole between them, along with some pomegranates and fakes and at the end of 40 days of being in the land. They came back to the camp and they gave this report when they return. This is what they said. We went into the land which you have sent us and it does flow with milk and honey, here's it's true and they got that big old cluster.

A great commander like this place is a wine country, you would not believe what's on the other side of their it's incredible and the people are pumped up they cannot they cannot believe what they're hearing. But listen what the tin said next, but the people that live there are powerful and the cities are fortified and their very large. The Amalekites were to be important here just a second as well. They live in the Negev and the Hittites, the Jebusites and Amorites and all the other rights they live in the hill country and the Canaanites lived near the scene along the Jordan River and then in verse 31. This is what they said we can not attack these people.

They are stronger than we are, and they began to spread among the entire camp of the Israelites, a bad report about the good land that the people anticipating a report of hope and expectation and anticipation. All of a sudden get a bad report and that balloon is been popped and all of a sudden the game changes will look what happens in chapter 14 verses one through four. That night, all the people of the community. Okay, how many were there again to million. All of them raised their voices and they wept aloud all the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron and the whole assembly in this is what they said if only we had died in Egypt or in this desert.

Why is the Lord bring us this land only to let us fall by the sword. We should choose a leader, although her right here on the cusp of going into what God is confronting is promising us.

We should choose a new leader Moses in a moments notice. The people of God moved from a posture of expectation and anticipation to' that's because fear is cultivated in the soil of unbelief, fear is cultivated in the soil bubbly for me.

Let me just break this down for sprightly for second okay why do most normal human beings hate clowns because we don't believe that they're nice people. Okay, that clowns are not good people. Why do I have a legitimate fears call took a phobia case, a fear of pregnant women. It's legit.

Seriously, why don't why do I fear pregnant women because I believe two things about them number one that bellybutton shouldn't poke out like that guy and number two I don't believe that they're going to make it to the hospital in time to give birth that they're going to go into labor right in front of me and I'm not gonna know what to do on the screen. My hat off okay. Imagine a pregnant clown. That's the spawn of Satan right there meant me you have a fear right everybody has fears and fears in some capacity are born there cultivated in the soil of unbelief, fear in the life of a believer sprouts most often when two things happen when we forget the promises of God towards us, and we forget his faithfulness towards us luscious questions rewind the story can okay remember these people were 400 years of hell on earth God brought them out of hell on earth, and he was leading them to a place that he had promised them for a long time and then he provided manna and quail and water from a rock is like, what more could you people want. Yet, they forgot and then on top of that, there's this promise in there that most of us would you skip over if you don't really dive into it, but it's this person has a do with the Amalekites member. I said that the Amalekites would be an important piece is important because in the book of Exodus chapter 17 Moses since a man by the name of Joshua out to fight a battle against a group of people called the Amalekites and Moses goes up on a hill. He's observing it from his place and is holding his hands up in the air as long as his hands are in the air. What's happening to people of God are winning.

But when his arm start to fall, the Amalekites begin to advance assert this constant battle going back and forth as a God. Since two men, Aaron and her up there to hold up Moses arms during this battle and they end up winning at the very end of that battle.

This is what God says to his people. He says the Amalekites will never taste victory over you as long as you're on this planet. I will constantly and always defeat them on your behalf, dwelling in the land and numbers chapter 13 kites, but they forgot and then on top of all of that. It's no coincidence in Numbers 13 that the spies when they go out the first place that they see that Scripture tells us that they see that the land is really good that it really does flow with milk and honey, that the great surveyor in the fertile soil and everything is great is a place called heparin. Why is that important because in Genesis chapter 13 a man by the name of lot and a man by the name of Abram are moving together there. They're moving forward together in life and they decide we should probably part ways lot goes the left in April goes the writing Abram settles down the place called heparin and it's there in Genesis 15 in heparin work. God makes this very specific promise.

He said this, the Lord said to Abram know for certain that your descendents will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated for 400 go 400 years, but I will punish the nation that they serve as slaves and afterward they will come out with what great possessions.

This is a pivotal moment for Abraham in the entire people of Israel and now I Numbers 13 they are actually experiencing the fullness of the promises of God coming into effect and they forgot they forgot because as one pastor said they do this they magnify the obstacles and they minimize God's promise. They magnify the obstacles in front of them and they minimize the promises of God to them now before we go point a finger at him for committees Israelites about idiots. What are they doing things you probably hold a mirror up in front of ourselves. Let the shoe sink in for second okay.

My wife and I last semester just along with many of you, we made multiply faith commitment man govern and be generous. Couple months later we get a letter from the IRS saying hey like 15 years ago you filed your taxes wrong. You owe us a couple thousand dollars for like whatever got one of those you like what the world meant we may 15 years later you can and then you know were in the middle of what tax season will this year. Guess what happened. We messed something up on her taxes and we owe more money all of a sudden were thinking to ourselves. God you really want to be this generous. Are you sure that's I don't I don't know man, then we need to cut this thing back sacrificial giving maybe not. To that extent that we need to rethink some things. We started to magnify the obstacle and minimize the promise was pretty delicate.

More practically UNC things like two words for you Northern Iowa in November. Your Tar Heels go all the way out to Iowa and they lose by four points to northern Iowa and every Tar Heel fan on the face. The plaintiff goes into their dreadful state tears terrible fire spiral.com did it go mad.

We got all the pieces but our people are going to get it done this another year because we lost one game. Where are they at this weekend and a stinking national championship game. I am not even a minute that that's not in that I what happens is you begin to magnify the obstacle and minimize the promise get the parents in the house anybody in your payer okay art parenting is easy right said nobody why what happens in parenting art we take one step forward with our kids and then we somehow we take 10 steps back when we always focus on the 10 steps back and not the one step forward, see God moving. Case in point, my five-year-old Annie starting to begin to like really understand the Bible like Kayden are really pump like a man she's like starting to get it and then three days ago she throws her two-year-old Park through window literally like Satan right like what what is going on here, we magnify the obstacle we minimize the promise many of you have been walking with Jesus for a long time and you've never taken that step to be baptized.

The New Testament says to repent and be baptized, repentance, understanding the Lordship of Jesus, for the first time baptism going public with the Lordship of Jesus, for the first time and you have magnified every single obstacle you could possibly think of, and you're stuck in your chair in the soil of uncertainty because we magnify the obstacle and we minimize the promise.

Now my oldest son Holt is a baseball player. I love the game of baseball. Okay, I love it I love what it teaches us. I love the smell. I love the sounds I love the dirt. I love the chalk. I love the superstitions.

I love that guy could go for 15 game straight never wash his jockstrap because he thinks it's a good luck charm. Okay, I love that I love it, but Gordon has pretty disgusting and sorry some more video that I love the bond that it creates between me and my oldest son might've started when he was three. We get on the side yard minister to the T-ball and I might give him his first lottery by the plague in sports right and so knows his first club start play catch and kind of thrown the ball out of his bouncing is kind like drones blood around and eventually lands in the glove is jacked up is pumped and also he starts to gain some confidence and as the years go on. We move up to a real baseball okay and this is like every father's dream right every dead dream is a play catch in the side yard, the backyard the house with your kid playing a game plan to get a baseball so I got the real ball and throw the ball a whole, and he's catching it my all. This is beautifully sorted back and that were just rivers go back and forth will set my confidence starts to grow so I start to start a little harder. I would fit in there and he's catching the like, man is that Mrs. great so then I reach back and I fire a laser out of what is a go straight into his eye socket black guy down goes Frazier he's down for the count. He screaming his head off.

You would've thought homeboys Leggett just got amputated right and on his father in him over him going body. Listen, I'm sorry man but you know what that's baseball.

That's likely to get hit your black eyes is the way it goes bad and I had convinced him before 30 to 45 minutes was not that he should get back right that I see this happen all the time I a coach to have notes on the kid gets hurt little John is playing third base kid.

It's a laser out of a 30 doesn't get his glove up and hits him in the shoulder.

He starts screaming and crying.

The mom runs out of stands on the field, which is a huge no-no. By the way parents a guy could stay in the stands rights and she puts his arms around you is like a line drive that you like that's what he wanted to do. He wanted a line drive your kid didn't get his glove up enough if you play baseball. Juergen have to understand that you're going to get hit eventually.

Okay second out kid. Not everybody gets a trophy get back in the day. Maybe. Maybe God told the same thing to his church.

Maybe we been living in the soil of fear there's obstacle to just keep jabbing you left and right and you have forgotten the promises of God. What the Lord is saying to you is to back in the game, you're gonna encounter obstacles, but my grace is sufficient for you, and my power is made perfect in your weakness. You guys I wonder how many of us need that reminder today but God still God and he still good. Don't imagine for a moment. Okay, you're in a boat with five your best friends are six of and your five buddies are rolling this way okay your own in the but this is my room okay frustrate her to be very, very, very displeased with me right here okay and then you and then you are rolling this way.

So five guys on that way and you're going this way would you say is working against the objective one right me. Okay, now imagine for a second that I pulled that you out on a pull that picture out and what you saw was a completely different picture. You saw that the five guys going this way are rolling towards a waterfall that is 5000 feet high if they keep going in that direction.

They will die.

The one guy sees it and so he's rolling this way would you say is wrong against the objective now the five why because where they are going is leading to their deaths. The 10 spies come back in Numbers chapter 13. They have been to the land and they did in that boat and they say we want to go back to Egypt. Let's go. Let's get this boat but God raises up a man by the name of Caleb and Joshua this a nice shot. Good that's leading to our death but let's listen to what happens here. Numbers chapter 13 verse 30 then Caleb silenced the people before Moses, as he said this, we should go up and take possession of that land, for we can certainly do and I can imagine. Caleb listed all these people weeping and crying and complaining, he's like shot is in our God is better. Caleb had a spirit of faith and faith is cultivated in the soil of assurance faith is cultivated in the soil of assurance and Caleb and Joshua. They saw the same thing.

The other 10 spies so they came back with something different was God describes the difference between these two and everybody else. Numbers 14 verse 22 is that I have forgiven them all of those people that are railing against me, and crying to complainant want to go back. I forgiven them. By the way got gets a bad rap. A lot of time. The Old Testament is a God of wrath and vengeance. But it's an interesting to me that God if she shows his mercy and forgiveness right here with access but not one of them will ever see the land I promised him because his consequence for their sin. Based what you see here is an guys like none of those old geezers are Internet and entering into the promised land. None of none of but because my servant Caleb listed us has a different spirit and he follows me wholeheartedly. I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendents will inherit.

Love how God describes it that Caleb had a different spirit of the different spirit isn't the movement that he led.

It's the posture of his heart. The different spirit was an internal posture, not an external movement it's on external action is that he was aligning his heart with the promises of God. He was assuring his heart that God is who God says he received all throughout Scripture right when my favorite Old Testament story, Shadrach me shack in a bin to go.

King Nebuchadnezzar radically picture him is like a little global guy for some reason okay and so King Nebuchadnezzar is like you will bow before the door should be in there like no I broke not happening like you'll go to the fiery furnace, and the like.

We don't care throw us in their we refused about you, O king, and we believe, listen, we believe that our God will rescue us. But even if he does, would rather burn faith grows in the soil of assurance Roland Bingham, a missionary to Africa weighed the costs of what it meant to follow Jesus to another country into another continent and this is what he said. I will open Africa to the gospel or I will die trying. That's faith that's made us all the obstacles in front of him. When everybody else to say no way. Don't do it. Don't go. They said I will open Africa the gospel I will die trying. Why, because he knows that God's heart for the nation supersedes the obstacles in front of guys like Manus great nose like big people going to do big things.

Shadrach me shack up in the gutter in the Bible. Roland Bingham went to Africa. What about me I just go to work 9 to 5. How I live a life of faith and have a spirit that's different about me you do that you hold fast to the promises of God Windows obstacles in the sphere start to get put in front of you, what God wants for you is for you to hold fast to his promises. Are you tired are you tired are you worn down, pray to your pre-back to the Lord. Psalm 121 verse four he who keeps Israel never slumbers nor sleeps. The Lord watches over you.

The Lord stands beside you as your protective shape. Are you anxious Philippians chapter 4 verse six be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and petition with Thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. You have a God that cares are you burden Jesus said in Matthew chapter 11 verse 28 come to me all who are weary and burdened, and what does he say he will give you rest. When he doesn't say is keep working 30 extra hours a week what he says is come to me a leg, your burdens down your phone on hard financial times. Hebrews chapter 13 verse five.

Keep your life free from the love of money and be content with what you have, for he has said I will never leave you nor forsake you. All of those things will go. The IRS will come knocking one day and your money is going to go but guess you never will you King your father you'll feel good enough Roma chapter 5 verse eight but God shows his love for us in this.while we were still sinners.

While we were still dead in Egypt, Christ died for us. You don't feel pretty enough, you don't feel left enough salt 139 verse 14 God, I praise you. The psalmist says, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made because your works are wonderful. I don't care how the culture page so I'm supposed to be. You said that you have created me and I am fearfully and wonderfully made, and if you created me and all of your works are good.

Surely I am good maybe don't have any satisfaction or direction.

Psalm 16 verse 11. The psalmist said you make known to me the path of life and in your present your right hand are pleasures forever. God, not after some crazy movement from you. He's after you aligning your heart to his promise because he's a good loving father know Israel was promised that land church, though they had overcome the obstacles in front of them to take possession there spies went in and they brought back the fruit proving just how good it was showing them it is worth your effort to trust God, yet they did not trust and they failed to enter into the promises of God, and that land and instead in their areas under season of compromise. They thought long extended draining wars 40 years worth 10 miles in the promised land and they kept wandering for 40 more years. Why because I didn't trust they trusted in their fears and not the father that's the story of Israel and you know what that's our story today to the listeners great joy.

The story you know why because every story whispers his name fact in this story. You and I were really not that much like Joshua and Caleb Rex and more like the 10 and the rest of Israel. We were created to love and to know and to trust our heavenly father. But we hightailed it out of the land we were created for and we headed back to the wilderness willingly. We literally we jump back in that boat and we started rolling back to Egypt. That is why God had to intervene through Christ Jesus left the land that we were created for and he came and he fought the decisive battle against the enemies of God to secure that promise for us once and for all you know where he didn't. He did it at the cross. He alone is God's victor in the people of God or his beneficiaries.

He trusted God alone. Nada and he drink the cup of wrath that his father gave him why so that we might know the fullness of God and not the wrath then like this by spending God's promise later brought back its fruit to show us his unfaithful rebellious scared people.

Jesus rose from the dead. Any rush to grant the sting of the enemy forever. Jesus left the promised land.

And he came to us in the wilderness and he fought the battle on our behalf and he walked out of that great.

The victor, so that those of us that trust in him might not live lives of fear but of faith because Jesus is the victor and we walk in that victory every day and that victory is what God is calling you to live in the land between time to step out in faith.

It's time to trust your father to magnify his goodness towards stop magnifying the obstacles and allowing unbelief to grow in that sort entrusted trust in trust that your father is good, good father, Ernesto writer the book of Hebrews says it's time for us to fix our eyes on Jesus, the author perfecter of our faith you for the joy set before him. Nobody did he scorn the cross endured the cross, escorted shame, he sat down to write hit a throne of God forever more and he said it is finished he is the author perfecter of our faith. Fix your eyes on him. I don't know what that fear is that you're sitting in right now. Maybe it's a job transition.

Maybe some parenting thing. Maybe you been hearing the gospel for a long time and you're just scared to take that step.

It's time to step out to step into the loving arms of your father and stop living lives. Lord Jesus would come to you today. We stated you are good that we know Lord that on the other side of this life is a promised land is a good good place but we know Lord that were does not longing for something there that we have something good here it's you we have it in you now