Deuteronomy 1:21

The Lord. .. hath set the land before thee.

The heritage of grace

There is a heritage of grace which we ought to be bold enough to win for our own possession. All that one believer has gained is free to another. We may be strong in faith, fervent in love, and abundant in labour; there is nothing to prevent it; let us go up and take possession. The sweetest experience and the brightest grace are as much for us as for any of our brethren. Jehovah has set it before us; no one can deny our right; let us go up and possess it in His name. The world also lies before us to be conquered for the Lord Jesus. We are not to leave any country a corner of it unsubdued. That slum near our house is before us, not to baffle our endeavours, but to yield to them. We have only to summon courage enough to go forward, and we shall win dark homes and hard hearts for Jesus. Let us never leave the people in a lane or alley to die because we have not enough faith in Jesus and His Gospel to go up and possess the land. No spot is too benighted, no person is so profane as to be beyond the power of grace. Cowardice, begone! Faith marches to the conquest. (C. H. Spurgeon.)

The folly of unbelief

Moses recounted what had occurred in the wilderness of Paran about two years after the Israelites went out of Egypt. They had reached Kadesh on the verge of the Negeb or South Country. They resolved to send spies before them to reconnoitre. This resolve, as the sequel proved, showed a want of faith on the part of many, and even a determined desire on the part of some to find an excuse for returning to Egypt. The majority of the spies, while extolling the country, magnified the difficulties which seemed to be on the path to its conquest. Only two of the spies were on the Lord’s side. But the latent unbelief of the people brushed aside their arguments. Only too]ate the people repented of their folly, and were driven back before the Amorites to their forty years of wandering. Moses dwelt on this incident because it showed the folly and punishment of unbelief, and was thus a warning example. So it is to the Christian Church (1 Corinthians 10:6). It shows--

I. Some hindrances to faith.

1. The history is typical of what often occurs in the Christian life. Many come to the borders of the kingdom of God and fail to enter.

2. The causes of failure are similar, the chief cause is unbelief. Because of this the Israelites could not enter. The proofs God had given of His power and willingness aggravated this unbelief. Every step of the journey proved the Divine goodness. But they forgot all God had done. Unbelief frustrated all.

3. So is it with individual men. Barriers to entrance to the Divine kingdom are raised by themselves. They do not trust in the Divine promises. They are troubled by the thought that they are too sinful--that they must repent, prepare themselves, etc. But salvation does not depend on these things, though they may show that our hearts are set on it. The slave who is offered freedom does not need to attempt to purchase it. So sinful men may enter the strait gate in the Divine strength, through Christ. It was not their preparedness that entitled the Israelites to enter into the land of promise, but their faith in the Divine promises.

II. Difficulties in the way of spiritual progress.

(1) The desert life, the hardship of conquest, were not to the taste of many of the Israelites. In Egypt they enjoyed many luxuries now denied them. So not a few wished to return to Egypt. But this was folly--the way to death, to fall into the hands of the enraged Pharaoh.

(2) This is a faint type of those who turn their backs on the spiritual kingdom, lured by the pleasures of the world.

(3) Do not let any think, as some in Israel seemed to do, that if God intends us to overcome He will enable us to do so without effort. Israel could not possess Canaan till the Amorites and other foes were overcome, the strong cities overthrown, etc. This the Israelites in unbelief thought could not be accomplished.

(4) This is the plea of many at the entrance of the spiritual life. The way is too difficult, the enemies are too strong, we cannot overcome. But the New Testament word is, “If God be for us, who can be against us?” Christ has commanded us to strive and agonise to enter.

(5) Let no man be deterred by this. Every noble life is a struggle. Good men, from the very constitution of things, must suffer. Even goodness incarnate was rewarded by the world with a cross. These difficulties are raised by the adversary.

(6) There are some events peculiarly saddening. A ship wrecked at the harbour mouth--a runner fainting when close to the goal--an heir bartering his inheritance for a mess of pottage. But sadder still--a sight fit to make angels weep--is it to see an heir of immortal glory turning from his father’s house back to the far country and the swine troughs! (W. Frank Scott.)