Numbers 14: 22 – 24

“Surely all the men who have seen My glory and My signs which I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have put Me to test these ten times and have not listened to My voice, shall by no means see the land which I swore to their fathers, nor shall any of those who spurned Me see it. But My servant Caleb, because he has had a different spirit and has followed Me fully, I will bring into the land which he entered, and his descendants shall take possession of it.”

Israelites were eye witnesses to God’s awesome power while in Egypt, during the exodus from Egypt and while on their journey towards the Promised Land. They have seen how God destroyed the Egyptians, and their gods. They were eyewitnesses to the pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. They witnessed how the Lord of Hosts parted the Red Sea for them to cross. They feasted on Heavenly Manna, quail and water from the rock while in the desert. Despite witnessing and experiencing God’s protection, and provision, they still did not believe in God fully.

When Moses sent the twelve spies to scout the land they were going to possess, ten of the spies came back with a negative report. For forty days, they surveyed the land and all they could see was how miniscule they were like grasshoppers (Numbers 13: 33) before the people of Canaan. On the contrary, Caleb and Joshua, who were fully aware of God’s awesome power, believed that a God who could annihilate a massive Egyptian army is well able to dispossess these Canaanites from the land. Caleb and Joshua were certain in the power of the Almighty God. After their return, their positive report based on what they believed couldn’t prevail upon the negative report of the other ten spies who were afraid of what they saw.  

Because of their lack of faith in the Almighty God, the Israelites were doomed to wander in the desert for the next forty years, a year for each day they spent scouting the Promised Land. Until every single one of them died in the wilderness, God did not allow them to enter the Promised Land. Only Caleb, Joshua, and the younger generation, were able to enter the land, dispossess the Canaanites and claim the inheritance.

We have seen God’s awesome power, His protection, and His provision numerous times in our lives. Yet, we have not fully obeyed the Lord like Caleb and Joshua. We still doubt and shirk away from His promises. We are comfortable living in the past with our old self. No wonder we are unable to see the goodness of God in our lives. Our own unbelief is stopping us to witness the power of God in our lives. We have no right to say that God is far away or that God doesn’t listen to our pleas, when we have to introspect where we are lacking in our own faithfulness and obedience towards God.

2 Corinthians 5: 7

For we walk by faith and not by sight.

Precious Saint of God, instead of blaming God for all the evil or wrong that is happening to us, let us look within our own hearts and see where we have been disobedient to God’s commands. God has already blessed us. A Promised Land awaits us. All we need are eyes of faith and an obedient heart to enter the Promised Land, a land flowing with milk and honey, where our hungry souls will be satisfied. Let us strive to walk by faith in an Almighty God and in obedience to Him, who is well able to preserve us and lead us to the Promised Land. Let us not walk by sight in unbelief and disobedience, thereby, miss out on the blessings that are in store for us. May our good and faithful Lord preserve us as we walk in total belief in Him.