The Two Or The Ten?
For something to be impossible it is unsolvable, hopeless, and not able to be resolved or figured out. It cannot be achieved or conquered. I want to list a few things that history has called impossible to get you thinking.
Heavier than air flight.
Space exploration.
The concept of internet.
Nuclear energy.
The 4-minute mile.
Wireless messaging.
What do you notice about that list? Maybe that all have now been achieved? At one point in history these things were laughed at and considered ridiculous to explore any further. But people believed that the impossible could happen, and it did.
There are even things science cannot deny, but also cannot explain.
The origin of life – We all know life began at some point — but how? All theories but no hard truth.
Dark matter – This mysterious material is all around us, making up most of the matter in the universe. But what exactly is dark matter? That's a question that scientists have been trying to solve for almost 100 years. (NASA)
The Tardigrade – A microscopic animal that can survive without water, can survive in outer space, can withstand temperatures -328 degrees up to 304 degrees. We are only beginning to understand parts of this 8-legged, tube shaped, smaller than a grain of sand, indestructible creature.
There’s a lot of things that man has thought to be impossible that eventually proved to be possible. With this knowledge, we shouldn’t view man’s understanding as the guide for what is possible. Maybe, just maybe, God should be our guide. Afterall, “… nothing will be impossible with God.” - Luke 1:37
There’s a story in scripture that highlights this very concept of man not knowing best. The Israelites conquest of Canaan (the promised land) was impossible to most of the Israelites, but God wanted to work outside of their limitations. It is a story that shows us that trusting God means receiving the promises, while disobeying and doubting God can lead to forfeiture of what He has for us.
In Numbers 13-14 God tells Moses to send some men to explore the land of Canaan to bring back a report. The twelve men were chosen by Moses, one leader from every tribe in of Israel, and they brought back a report after forty days of exploration in the land. They were meant to bring back a report of encouragement to build up the people’s courage and faith, but instead, ten of the twelve spies brought back fear, stories of death, worry, and discouragement. Only two spies, Joshua and Caleb, brought back a powerful and encouraging report full of faith. Let’s look at what happened.
The Ten
The ten spies who brough back a bad report said the following in Numbers 13:27-29 & 13:31-33
“We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey! Here is its fruit. 28 But the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large. We even saw descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites live in the Negev; the Hittites, Jebusites and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live near the sea and along the Jordan.” (27-29)
But the men who had gone up with him said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.” 32 And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored. They said, “The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. 33 We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.” (31-33)
The ten were fearful and lacked faith in God’s divine power to do what seemed IMPOSSIBLE to man. Even after all the miraculous signs that God had performed for them in the years leading up to this moment, they were still lacking faith in God.
God’s response is recorded in Numbers 14:11-12
The Lord said to Moses, “How long will these people treat me with contempt? How long will they refuse to believe in me, in spite of all the miraculous signs I have performed among them? I will strike them down with plague and destroy them, but I will make you into a nation greater and stronger than they.”
Moses pleaded with God to not kill the Israelites and God listened, but He promised that not a single person who witnessed all of His miracles and still didn’t have faith would enter the promised land.
It was a sad conclusion for the countless people that wandered for many years in the wilderness, watched miracle after miracle, and sign after sign. They were on the doorstep of the promise and they chose to walk away.
The Two
Joshua and Caleb’s report was full of faith and promise of God’s greatness.
Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can do it.” Numbers 13:30
Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had explored the land, tore their clothes 7 and said to the entire Israelite assembly, “The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. 8 If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. 9 Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them.” Numbers 14:6-9
This contrast in response was directly tied to the faith each spy had, and the understanding of their assignment before they were ever sent. Joshua and Caleb knew the mission. They understood the assignment. They were not sent to help weigh options.
God didn’t send the spies to gather intelligence for Him. He didn’t need to be informed. God didn’t send the spies to see if they thought they could handle the enemy. He had already promised their victory. He didn’t send the spies so that they could calculate a risk assessment to pass out to voting members. God sent them so they could see first-hand, how vast, beautiful, wonderful, how plentiful, magnificent, and prosperous their reward would be if they TRUSTED & OBEYED!
The spies’ mission was meant to bless them and excite them—showing that even the greatest enemies stood no chance against YHWH. It was a sneak peek to the promise, revealing to their human eyes just how great of an enemy God was about to deliver into their hands. Unfortunately, their focus was on their own prowess and not on the promise.
Do you understand the promises of God? Do you understand the assignment of your current situation? Do you have insurmountable obstacles in your way? What seems impossible to you? Have you concluded that because YOU aren’t strong enough, the enemy has won?
Brother, your strength is not God’s strength. Your ability to change your family, marriage, job, children, etcetera, is not God’s ability. You have to trust Him.
David didn’t slay Goliath because he was an expert marksman alone. He slew Goliath because God willed it, prepared him in the pastures, and called him to step onto the battlefield.
So, why did the spies have such different reports after seeing the same people, experiencing the same cities, and taking in the same sights? Because they were on two different missions.
The ten thought they were going to assess the probability of victory. The two believed they had already won. The ten were on a mission to determine if they could take the land. The two were on a mission to see what was already theirs.
I’ll leave you with these thinking points:
God reveals your enemy’s might to reveal His power.
Don’t forfeit the promises God gives you by assessing your ability to fulfill them.
When you don’t see the world through eyes of faith, you see only what the enemy wants you to see.
What’s wrong is wrong, even when everyone is for it. What’s right is right, even when everyone is against it.
Popular opinion doesn’t automatically mean proper perspective.
God is slow to anger and quick to forgive, but some consequences linger and sting long after the decisions are made.
Just because the influencers say it (the ten), doesn’t mean it’s right. Ask God.
We cannot walk in fear and receive promises that require in faith.
The promise is before us. Will we walk away, or will we walk in trusting that God will deliver? Let me ask you…