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Allison UMC
September 24, 2006
Numbers 13 and 14
A Choice to Make
(SLIDE) There are two accounts of the same story within these chapters, like two
people talking about the same event or sermon. It seems almost like they were in different
worlds, we all hear and see two different things. But with two accounts, we get a fuller
idea of the story and that is always helpful. I love the narratives of the bible, the stories of
adventure and mystery and here in Numbers we read where spies are sent, reports returned,
fighting disagreement over the next step; sounds like a good action movie to me.
This story takes 88 verses in Numbers to play out the major acts as you heard in
summary and scripture this morning. So what can this story teach us, you might ask.
Don’t make God mad, you will die? Or God has a temper, watch out! Or people of all ages
exaggerate stories, they just got caught. I think it is a bit deeper than that. This morning
we will look at four points from that force us to contemplate and make a choice about how
we will respond to God.
(SLIDE) The first point is Moses underestimates God’s power. Moses starts off his
mighty pastoral and traveling host career telling God he cannot do it. Moses says to God, I
cannot speak, I am not a people-person, I am not a leader, and God says yes you can.
Moses says, no, I am not! And God says, okay here is what we will do, your brother
Aaron will be your speaker, your leadership, his voice, you will lead my people out of
Egypt and into a new land that will be plentiful. Moses underestimated God’s power and
ability to use him, thinking of the limits instead of trusting in God’s plan initially. Moses
uses all that God gives him, has Aaron as his right hand man, and focuses on talking with
God often. Here again, as the people are on the verge of the land of Canaan, Moses
underestimates God’s power and his trust in God’s ways falters. When the people refuse
to go into the new land because of the reports they hear, Moses weeps openly and tares his
sackcloth as he is ashamed of his followers. In anger, God decides to strike them with
pestilence and disinherit them, writing off all the people forever.
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(SLIDE) Moses appeals to Yahweh quoting the best liturgy and tradition at that
time. He appeals to God’s loving character, God’s promises, and God’s steadfast
love.(verses 13-16, 17-18, 19) When God responds that the people will be forgiven and
not die all at once, I can see Moses’ face showing relief. Yet as God continues to say this
generation will die but their young will go into the Promised Land, I suspect that even
Moses is a bit skeptical. The children of these unfaithful people will live. Moses only
expects God to go so far, but God gives grace and forgiveness much greater than even
Moses could foresee. God provided forgiveness and continuation of life that even Moses
was unable and unprepared to ask for. We can choose to be like Moses and underestimate
God’s power, or ask for God to do as God knows best and expect God to do beyond even
our wildest dreams.
(SLIDE) A second choice is we can be like the spies or like Caleb. I won’t ask you
to raise your hands, but how many of us have seen something or done something and then
when retelling the story, the characters, actions, or event gets a little larger than life? Yes, I
too have done this! And this is what the spies do when they return to give the report to
Moses and the tribes awaiting to go into the Promised Land. The spies found a land that is
ripe, rich in harvest and plentiful. They saw the towns were strong, and the people were
the ancestors of Goliath. Yet as the spies spoke to Moses and the people, they were able to
focus only on their inabilities to enter this land and survive against these people. It seems
the spies got caught up in their imaginations and fears, forgetting all that God had done to
get them to where they were. They only saw the size of the people instead of the size of
their God, and they refused to go into the new land. (SLIDE) Caleb speaks out that yes,
they may be larger than us, but says in verse 30 “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we
are well able to overcome it.” Caleb remembered what God had done for them and was
confident that God would continue to provide protection and guidance, even against
people and obstacles that seemed formidable. Joshua says “If the Lord is pleased with us,
he will bring us into this land and give it to us.” (14:18) Both Caleb and Joshua were
willing to step out in faith and trust God’s leading.
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Though the land was plentiful, their fears forced them to stay in the wilderness, or want
to even return to Egypt and certain death rather than going into the new land. The people
reject Caleb’s confidence and call to go forward. They threatened to stone Moses if he led
them into Canaan. (14:10) The people wanted to stay where they were in the present, in
the area they knew, and were paralyzed by their fears.
(SLIDE) Thirdly, we can be paralyzed by our fear. The people were paralyzed by their
fear because fear can be a very destructive force. It paralyzes us, calls us to question
everything, calls us to exaggerate what is real, and calls us to want to hide in the past even
if the past is painful. The destructive forces of fear caused this first generation of people
who left Egypt to be blind to God’s leading when God asks them to go into the new land.
God sees the new land as plentiful and rich, yet with fear the scouts see it as a land of
death. They turned the people of the new land into monsters, freaks of nature that will
surely kill them. They fear death if they step into the future so much that they choose
rather to die in the wilderness or return to certain persecution in Egypt.
(SLIDE) Their lack of faith astounds God. God cries out in pain, “how long will my
people despise me? And how long will they refuse to believe in me, in spite of all the signs
that I have done among them?” In Psalm 13 God also cries how long will you refuse to
trust and believe in me, how long do I need to prove my faithfulness and love for you?
How long? How long?”
But, what about the power of fear in our lives today? For the Israelites, fear pushed
God’s plan further into the future. Fear can be like that for us today. Fear can paralyze us,
make us stop and not move forward, cause us to forget God’s love and faithfulness. Fear
can push the Promised Land further into the future for us, just like it did for the Israelites.
(SLIDE) We have another option, we can let our fear be fear that propels our faith
to trust more in God. Last year in my bible study, I was shocked to learn that another
translation for fear from the Hebrew language can mean awe. We can be in awe of God
and not in fear of God. Whenever I am fearful of something, of stepping forward, I make
myself replace the word fear with awe. This helps me be like Caleb and focus on God’s
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power instead of the destructive force of fear. Caleb and Joshua are the only scouts from
this generation who will lead the 2nd generation into the promised land because they were
in awe of God’s power, not allowing their fear to control their decision.
Unwavering faith in God will break the fear of the large inhabitants; faith in God
breaks the fear of fortified cities, and of unforeseen obstacles ahead. Faith in God breaks
the fear of encountering change, faith in God breaks the fear of the unknown because all is
known to God, and faith in God makes all things possible, even when we cannot foresee
the outcome, God can.
(SLIDE) Martin Luther in his Small Catechism says “You shall fear, love, and trust
God above all else.” Fear as awe, respect, and reverence should be given to God. Caleb
knew this and Caleb feared God to trust in God’s power to conquer giants and save the
small children. The spirit was within Caleb as he saw God’s promised land. Caleb had
faith that feared, loved, and trusted God.
(SLIDE) A few years ago, the movie the Matrix was very popular. In the Matrix,
Keanu Reeves plays Neo who is forced to choose either the red or blue pill. Take the blue
pill and everything will say are normal. For the Israelites, they wanted to take the blue pill
and stay roaming in the wilderness or even preferred returning to Egypt where they were
persecuted. It was familiar and comfortable. For us today, we can choose the blue pill as
in the Matrix and stay in the known; returning to life as normal. At Allison this means
keeping the same programs, always with the same people involved, being a member and
contributing but not tithing, not wanting anything to change, because this is familiar and
this is how it has always been.
Or we can take the red pill. For Neo in the Matrix, the red pill opened up a new
world, a rabbit hole if you will that leads to unknown places, that is moving forward with
adventure in the future. If the Israelites took the red pill, they would have entered Canaan
without losing a generation to death in the wilderness. They would have entered the land,
not been paralyzed by their fears, but allowing their fear to be in awe and trust of God’s
plan. Stepping into the unknown, knowing God is leading and preparing the way.
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(SLIDE) At Allison we too can take the red pill by making a choice to step into the
future, into the unknown land, not paralyzed by our fears but empowered knowing and
trusting that God provides steadfast faithfulness and God is leading the way. Taking the
red pill means letting go of the way it has always been, stepping forward but not forgetting
the past, letting go of our current ways of church, and going strongly in a new direction.
Trusting God to provide leadership and direction, trusting God to provide new ministries
that touch lives and new ways of being “church,” being a disciple that faithfully goes
where God is calling, never underestimating God’s power, but trusting that we are on the
brink of a new step of the journey of Allison Church and the land before us is plentiful if
we will just make the choice and trust God.
So what will it be, the blue pill of the known and comfortable, paralyzed by fear of
the future, staying with the spies? Or the red pill of the unknown, of life with Caleb and
Joshua living in awe and the power of God going forward into the unknown, never
underestimating God’s power but fearing, loving, and trusting God above all else. It’s time
to make a decision.
Let us pray: God it is all about you and about where you are leading, but at times we forget
that, get side tracked, or avoid the unknown. Remind us that to you all is known and to
listen where you are calling. Help us today make a commitment to take the red or blue
pill, to go where you are calling, and to live our lives trusting in you. Amen.