God has spoken, but what does man have to say? Dt 1:20-22

“I said to you, ‘You have come to the hill country of the Amorites which the Lord our God is about to give us. See, the Lord your God has placed the land before you; go up, take possession, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has spoken to you. Do not fear or be dismayed.’ Then all of you approached me and said, ‘Let us send men before us, that they may search out the land for us, and bring back to us word of the way by which we should go up and the cities which we shall enter.’” (Deuteronomy 1:20-22)

The Israelites had made the eleven day journey from Mount Horeb to Kadesh-barnea. They presently stood on the very border of the land that God had promised to give them, the land of Canaan. As they stood there, Moses delivered to them the command of God: rise up, go forward, and possess the land. You would have expected them to immediately march forward in obedience to God’s command, but instead, the decided to inquire of man as to what they should do. Instead of responding to God and going forth, they took a more cautious “wait and see” approach. They would wait to see what those who went to spy out the land would have to say before the decided whether or not they would obey the command of the Lord. In the end, they chose unbelief and disobedience with regards to the command of God and earned for themselves a forty year tour of the wilderness.

Their plan seemed reasonable; let’s send in some men to find the best way to go up and possess the land; but in their planning, they completely left out the Lord. They never stopped to consider their necessity, nor the efficacy, of asking the Lord what He thought of the situation or how He would have them to go up and possess the land. In the end, they placed more confidence on the counsel of man than they did on the counsel of God.

God often asks us to do things that are beyond our abilities. God’s plans and purposes for our lives are so great, that they are impossible to accomplish on our own. God asks us to do and be what we cannot, so that when by His grace we do and become, He alone will receive the glory. It is for this reason that, when faced with the command of God to rise up, go forth, and possess our own promised land, it is vital that we seek the Lord for the wisdom, strength, and courage to do so.

Consider how differently David responded when facing a similar situation. “David inquired of God, saying, ‘Shall I go up against the Philistines? And will You give them into my hand?’ Then the Lord said to him, ‘Go up, for I will give them into your hand.’ David inquired again of God, and God said to him, ‘You shall not go up after them; circle around behind them and come at them in front of the balsam trees. It shall be when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, then you shall go out to battle, for God will have gone out before you to strike the army of the Philistines.’” (1 Chronicles 14:10, 14-15) If faith comes by hearing the Word of God, then unbelief comes from hearing the word of man. David was little concerned with what man had to say or how they thought he should fight his war, he was only concerned with what God had to say, and in taking time to hear the voice of God, his heart was built up in faith and he gained strength and courage to go forth in battle and win the victory for the Lord.

God has set before us the entire Kingdom of God, and He bids us to rise up and go forth and possess His kingdom. Now is the time to respond. Now is the time to choose faith. It matters little what others have to say. God has spoken and we must respond.

David Robison

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