we were like grasshoppers sermon

This article is adapted from a sermon given at the San Francisco (California) Central church on November 19, 2011. . James O. Davis is the founder and president of Second Billion (TM). Agriculturally speaking, they say, the land indeed flows with milk and honey. If others see us as those things but we are not really those things, what have we accomplished? And Edmond Dantes of course crying out to God for justice and mercy, the jailor says, You cry out to God. Look at verse 11 of chapter 14. What does the passage tell us about faith? They may have been giants who were strong and tall. Its come from reflecting on the fact that God has brought them this far not to forsake them. The people of Israel have encamped at Sinai for a year. Click the link in that email to complete registration so you can comment. With that in mind, I want to look at three things from our passage as we prepare to read it. THEME: How to live on the mountain while living in the valley. He would pick up the metal detector and get a signal that was very strong. Will He help? And Ive found that the more I trust Him, the more I choose to believe Him, the more I love Him; the more I love Him, the more deeply I want to know Him. He stretches out the heavenslike a canopy, and spreads them out like a tentto live in. It will be the new year that well think about in this look at Numbers chapter 13. WE ARE AS GRASSHOPPERS IN THEIR SIGHT. So, the cause of their discouragement was (1) dependence on men not God; (2) listening to the many not the few; (3) heeding the bad news not the good. They know more than we do. More significantly, parshat Balak, which is coming up soon, opens with statements by the Moabites and their king that mirror exactly the sentiment I think the spies have in mind when they describe themselves as grasshoppers. I have called you by name; you are mine. That includes your mind by the way. 22Of these you may eat any kind of locust,katydid, cricket or grasshopper. The important question is not how do others see us but WHO ARE WE? While they may be able to do all that, they are not known for their ability to think. Since then, since the realization of that promise, Hes made abundant promises to His people that have to do with His presence, with our wellbeing, with the bright future Hes planned for all that are His. If I say, Surely the darkness will hide me. John 3:16 Do not fear the people of the land. The grasshopper mentality was a self-concept. A very large person; impressive in size or qualities, Someone who is abnormally large Hes carried us this far ultimately just to do us in.. While grasshoppers struggle to hear, they have magnified sight. To say the above statement was made by elders and leaders commissioned by God to lead His people to their place of rest and destiny is absurd, would be an understatement . Numbers 13:17-33. They know more about whats ahead of them than we will know whats ahead of us. 1 John 4:7-12, Denomination: You think I cannot see, says the master. 4The Moabitessaid to the elders of Midian,This horde is going to lick up everythingaround us, as an ox licks up the grass of the field.. God is not good. He reveals it through the intensity, integrity, and ingenuity of his love. Then they said to him, 'We are like grasshoppers in their sight.'. . Fear not, I have redeemed you. Suffering from a degenerative eye disease, he lost his sight when he was 13, but that didnt stop him. Will we have fooled ourselves? Numbers 13 1 The Lord said to Moses, 2 Send some men to explore the land of Canaan, which I have given to the Israelites. Its natural for the scouts to be afraid they are a group of former slaves who must imagine what it would mean to conquer a land populated by other nations with armies and fortified cities and men of great stature. In verse 30, Caleb says: He shows some heart. We end one year and prepare to begin another. This report came back and they doubted Gods Word. We are like grasshoppers in their sight, and the are like giants.". After an eleven day journey from Sinai, they find themselves here at the wilderness of Paran, Kadesh Barnea. Ten say that the land is indeed good, flowing with milk and honey. Just as surely as there are grasshoppers in the earth there are giants. Perhaps you appeared to them as angels?. He told Moses to send some men over to explore the land. Required fields are marked *. We can be cynical, we can be untrusting. Heres His response as He questions Moses. Over 600,000 Israelites were delivered from the captivity in Egypt and wandered for years in the wilderness anticipating going into the Promised Land, which the Bible describes as flowing with milk and honey. Perhaps they acted like The promise of God made to Abraham is about to become reality. Published in Daily Devotionals by Joel Osteen. Would you like to write for WeSaidGoTravel? Lets be a people who are intentional about trusting God, not just when the whim lands upon us, but intentional as we face things that we dont want to be involved in or things that seem too big for us, to trust God to see what He might do to help us accomplish all that He intends for us to accomplish as individuals, as families, as a congregation of His people. them saying, "We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them" (13:33). Well, lets think a bit about the ten spies and their judging the challenge before the nation with no reckoning of confidence in God. They looked only at the size of the obstacle and the threat of the enemy instead of fixing their eyes on. Maybe, as the Midrash suggests, the Canaanites saw them as angels? One last lesson thats really about right now, this place and this moment: There is in this world much of which to be afraid. No attempt has been made, however, to alter the basic extemporaneous delivery style, or to produce a grammatically accurate, publication-ready manuscript conforming to an established style template. Kwai Chang is the orphaned son of an American man and a Chinese woman As a boy, he comes to study martial arts and wisdom at a Shaolin Temple. Well, I am glad to know you are not a grasshopper, but our Bible story today is about some people who thought they were like grasshoppers. In my life, in the midst of all those things God has taught me in trial and hardship, theres a common thread that unites all of those things and it is the issue of faith. , . Before we pray and read our passage, lets think about where this passage kind of finds us. you were bought at a price. Numbers 13:33. The fruit the spies show to their fellow Israelites was already mentioned in the brief account of the 40 days they spent touring the land. When they saw the Nepthalim they said they became like grasshoppers. are huge and the walls are high. The Hebrew word translated here as multiplied greatly is more often rendered swarmed. Numbers 13:25-14:10, Denomination: When the spies say, and so we were in their eyes as well, the Kotzker replies: Whats with this?!?!? One is, What does the passage teach us about faith? How do we access that? 1 a : a mythological or legendary figure often of divine descent endowed with great strength or ability When the spies say, and so we were in their eyes as well, the Kotzker replies: Whats with this?!?!? Please try again or choose an option below. They talk about the land as a land that devours its inhabitants and all the people we saw in it are of great height. All rights reserved. TOPIC: The Mountain Top We need to teach one another that language. John Hagee (January-10-2023) Daily Devotional: Numbers 13:33 - There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight. Two of them carried it on a pole between them, along with some pomegranatesand figs. I remember recently watching the most recent movie version of The Count of Monte Cristo. Twelve men were sent out to spy out the land of Canaan. As surely as the Israelites eventually will be led into the land, we will be led into another year. We think Gods thoughts. But the men who had gone up with him said, We cant attack those people; they are stronger than we are.. As Rabbi Steven Kushner puts it: their sin wasnt simply that they lost faith or that the scouts had misrepresented what they had seen Their failure wasnt even that they had low self-esteem, that they saw themselves as grasshoppers. They are called upon to trust God for that very enterprise. You must be born again by the Spirit of God. And as God causes us to be born again, He gives us saving faith which we place in Christ and now we have new life in Him. On a mountain where 90 We nourish our choices to trust God. We dont always know how to believe, but unbelief comes to us naturally. He is Creator, Sustainer, Omnipotent and head over heels in love with you! There is limited thinking which produces limited abilities that gives limited results. There is one little, ruddy-faced boy who has the blessing and power of God on him and he says, "I'll lick that big giant. Twelve men were sent out to spy out the land of Canaan. PADI Save Our Ocean Pledge, Aliza Licht on being the Chief Brand Officer of YOU, Where To Go Next? We can know more. And what does the passage teach us about our responsibility to one another? With that in mind, lets pray and lets look at a few verses, and well pull in from the wider narrative as well. What does our passage teach us about unbelief? and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight" (Num. Scripture: Judges 7:8-14. 21Throughout the generations to comeyou are to give this offering to theLordfrom the first of your ground meal. Until yesterday, I assumed, along with most other readers, that the one thats relevant to our verse is in Isaiah: Isaiah 40: 21Do you not know? His word is infallible. Numbers 13:30-33. Do you hear your own heartbeat? asks the master. In verse 29, the report goes into more detail and lists other people groups that had the reputation of also being strong and tall. Exodus 1:7The Israelites were exceedingly fruitful; Numbers 22: A people has come out of Egypt; Please use the following structure: example@domain.com, Send me The Times of Israel Daily Edition. There are not many references to grasshoppers in the Tanakh. PATRICK PATTERSON loves the Lord and if So get Christ today. You and I are rarely enough to face what is before us, but its not all the truth either. We'll take a moment to orient ourselves to the passage. Twelve spies are sent out one from each tribe. Kwai Chang is the orphaned son of an American man and a Chinese woman As a boy, he comes to study martial arts and wisdom at a Shaolin Temple. In His name we pray and thank You, amen. He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also graciously with Him give us all things?. For the foolishness of God is wiser than mans wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than mans strength. read more, Scripture: These naysayers doubted the Word of God. They said, The land we explored devours those living in it. They start exaggerating and trying to scare the Israelites. We scorn Him. The majority report can be summed up by three words: grapes, giants and grasshoppers. This weeks Torah portion offers us several grasshopper lessons. I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. John 3:31. Well theres another thing for us to think about and its, What does this passage teach us about unbelief? Unbelief is kind of where we are naturally. It never is as we sit down to open Your Word. He dug and could not find anything. It is disgusting, disappointing and above . We give You thanks. The writer of Hebrews sees that same thing. "There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight" (Numbers 13:33). "We were like grasshoppers in our eyes, and so we were in their eyes" (Bamidbar, 13:33) In this unique syntax, the Torah teaches us a psychological principle of the greatest importance: The way you feel about yourself is how you think others perceive you. Both, they and we, are bounded by Gods promise to do good to those who belong to Him. Our confidence is in Him to glorify Himself and to accomplish all the good He intends with us and for us. I cant serve because I dont know where to start. All you have to do is ask. 13:32, 33, NKJV). If we can be untrusting we can be apathetic. They said, "The land we explored devours its inhabitants. "You cannot see," the boy says when he meets the master for the first time. If we can be apathetic, then really it doesnt matter very much about God at all. Let him be nine feet, nine inches tall. But lets go forward confident in the God who equips the available, who enables the unable, who empowers the powerless, who gives unforeseen and unknown wisdom to the unprepared for the doing of His will, all for His glory and our good. Turn away from every other false hope because it brings nothing. b : an illustrious warrior c : a man admired for his achievements and noble qualities d : one that shows great courage Edmond Dantes is jailed at the Chateau dIf and his cruel jailor begins his imprisonment with the cycle of beatings and torture. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. GOD WANTS US TO PRAY AND THEN SEE OUR PRAYERS ANSWERED. Monday, 09 January 2023 23:21. Your son did something that God sets the barrier very high. The Kotzker is upset that the spies should care how they looked to others. Rather it was their preoccupation with how others saw them that was their sin.. Its about making us cynics. Numbers 13:33-14:9, Denomination: How to live on the mountain while living in the valley. The passage says something about our responsibility to one another. Is God good? The Israelites far outnumbered all of these groups combined. One more word about being a doubt-caster. The lie comes in the assumption that there is no help for us. I remember it from re-runs. That person will always say no and have a pessimistic or negative view of the outcome. i heard this week the true story of a man that got a brand new metal detector. The Bibles in the bookstore are all gone, those one-year chronological Bibles, but were ordering more tomorrow if you want to participate just call the church office. Numbers 13:26 They came back to Moses and Aaron and the whole Israelite community at Kadeshin the Desert of Paran. John 3:16, An Easter message about Gods love from John 3:16, Whats Love Got to Do With It? It is reassuring to know that man's strength and man's host mean nothing to God. Numbers 15:14For the generations to come,whenever a stranger or anyone else living among you presents a foodofferingas an aroma pleasing to theLord, they must do exactly as you do. read more, Scripture: Erik Weihenmayer is blind, yet on May 25, 2001, he reached the peak of Mt. From then on, the master calls the boy Grasshopper as a term of affection. Why is the Lord bringing us to this land to fall by the sword? Step On the Grasshoppers! On my reading, whats significant about them is not that they are small and insignificant in comparison to the natives, but that they can ravage a land. In My Fathers house are many rooms. ( Someone bigger than what is considered The Israelites remain skeptical, and God gets extremely angry: Numbers 14:27How long will this wicked community grumble against me? They sent spies into the land to check it out. I hear the birds. says the boy. Here is its fruit. Speak words of life to us. Indeed, Moab was filled with dreadbecause of the Israelites. We can love more. You discern my going out and my lying down; If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. Young man, says the master, how is it that you do not?. Both seem to be a great source of protein. Sermon by Billy Dempsey on December 29, 2019. Our Scripture today gives us the report from these spies: They came back to Moses and Aaron and the whole Israelite community at Kadesh in the Desert of Paran. Pentecostal. Grasshoppers can eat half their body weight in a day. He had kept them united. The Israelites had a commander in chief that was knowledgeable and had been with God. But they say, We cant take this land. He is amazed. Grasshoppers and locusts are of the same insect order. Its a new birth we find in Christ. Presbyterian/Reformed. We can do it. Numbers 13:33 - There also we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak are part of the Nephilim); and we became like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.' on StudyLight.org . read more, Scripture: Will we have fooled God? David, 1 Samuel 17, upon seeing Goliath and hearing his taunts to the army of Israel for the first time, asks this question. We seemed like grasshoppersin our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.. They werent enough. There we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak are part of the Nephilim); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight." Christian Standard Bible We even saw the Nephilim therethe descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim! The land that God promised them the land and they only had to go and process it. Were aware of insufficiencies, real and perceived. wonderfuljesus8 April 8, 2018 Faith, Victorious Living Abraham, Faith, frame of reference, Grasshopper, hard times. Amen. Faith doesnt come naturally to us, does it? Copyright 2003-2023 | Outreach, Inc., All rights reserved. I cant serve the Lord because of what I have done in my past. If that were true, none of us could serve. We are not grasshoppers but we are called to BEWARE. Parashat Shelach-Lcha Shabbat sermon at Stephen S Wise Temple. The land that God has described more than once as a land flowing with milk and honey, theyre about to be ushered into that land. their childs preschool education, Theyve seen ten plagues that brought the great nation of Egypt to its knees, culminating in the night of the Passover and the death of all of Egypts firstborn. Perspective matters. As we do so, I bring you seasons greetings. We know how to be unbelievers. Part 14 - Matthew 10:18-19 - GRASSHOPPER, EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED! And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of This is the first of three references to carcasses in this passage. He speaks with confidence. Or, perhaps, as fierce and clever warriors. He cares for you. And four. The original Hebrew word peger holds within it the sense of being eaten. Psalm 73 is one of those gritty psalms. Its the natural disposition, the default position of our hearts. INTRODUCTION: Many times circumstances seem overwhelming like grasshoppers, while at the same time we feel as helpless as a muffin (barley cake). How do we create that? Do you see that? As he turned it on, he got a really strong signal right where he was standing. That just makes them a bigger target. They were perceived as giants. We seem to ourselves like grasshoppers and so we seem to them. Theyre saying, We are not enough to face what is before us, and theres no lie there. We know that God adds His blessing to His Word as we read it and hear it together. The main character of the series, Kwai Chang Caine, is played by David Carradine. read more, Scripture: For this they could be forgiven. Lesson number three, young grasshoppers: Worry less about how others see you and more about who you are and about who you are capable of becoming. Escaped felons, dwindling water supplies, nuclear proliferation, rising antisemitism around the world and on college campuses, racism, this past months report that the number of homeless people in our city right here in Los Angeles went up 12% over the past two years the list goes on and on. Numbers 13:1-33. And then, after just praising the land for its bounty, they now spread lies about it, calling it a land devours its inhabitants . GOD, GRASSHOPPERS AND A BARLEY CAKE Its life that we find in Christ. We shape our understanding of the world around us and the relationships that give texture to it by trusting what God has said to us about Himself, about us, and about everything around us, as well as the future ahead of us. We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). Numbers 13:26 They came back to Moses and Aaron and the whole Israelite community at Kadeshin the Desert of Paran. John the Baptist ate locusts and honey. Saving faith is the first priority of faith. Grasshoppers rub their legs together to make chirping sounds. Instead of a bolstered trust in Gods willingness to help them and to keep His promise to place them in the land, they were begging to go back into bitter slavery in Egypt. You cannot see, the boy says when he meets the master for the first time. Well see much at home and at work, among friends and coworkers and extended family that will make us feel like grasshoppers insufficient, weak, unable, unprepared. Caleb gives us a great example to follow. Why did you go, Why did you die? Your favorite preaching resources have a brand-new look. We scorn Him. milk, baby food, bath tub, diapers, medicine, toys, etc. In addition to being a people of the Word, lets be a people of faith, trusting God to lead us and to carry us through hardships, to carry us through undesirable circumstances to the place of rest and security that He has for us. Romans 5:1-32. They couldn't hear God tell them how they were going to take the promised land because their eyes were too busy focusing on the challenges. The question is which one are you? Unbelief tells us that who God is and His attitude and intentions towards us dont really matter in the way events fall out. When they were originally brought to the border of the promised land just this side of the Jordan river, they sent in twelve spies to survey the land and it was a good land because they came back each and every one with a good report of the unspeakable, uncontainable blessings of a Holy and righteous God. Those are promises, and there are hundreds and hundreds of other promises that God has made. Do not fear them.. (verses 1-17) When they got there ten of the men saw problems and had a bad report to delivery but He checked his signal again. They all will spoil. Some of our elders made it their goal at that time to create the Read and Receive 2020 Initiative. Weve talked about that; youve heard about it. The idiom to cover the eye of the land occurs twice in Exodus 10 (verses 5 and 15), where it refers to locusts: Exodus 10:4If you refuseto let them go, I will bring locustsinto your country tomorrow. The twelve spies whom Moses sent in to report on the Promised Land saw the same things. This is the first sermon in a series on. As he understood the soldiers of Israels army around him, the visible army of the living God impressive not in themselves but in their connection to their commander in chief, the Lord of hosts, mighty in battle. We want to look at this grasshopper complex later in the message. read more, Scripture: And King Balak is afraid that the Israelites will cover the face (literally eye) of the land: Numbers 22: A people has come out of Egypt;they cover the eye of the land and have settled next to me. Bearing in mind all this food, lets turn to the end of the spies report. My challenge to us is this lets be a people of faith. Lets place this passage. 33 We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). Try, If The Preacher Is Dead, The Sermon Will Be Dead, Chasing The Dream, Preaching Greatness, And Knowing Your Audience. Caleb remembers here, that with God, all things are possible! TEXT: Joshua 14:6-15; Numbers 13:26-33 TITLE: GRASSHOPPER MENTALITY Throughout this message I will be referring back to Numbers 13. But the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large. The boy looks down and sees the grasshopper. Moses had said: "Be courageous" (13:20). read more, Scripture: The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine. Caleb, in verse 30 of the passage we just read, urging his people, Let us go up at once and occupy it, that is the land, for we are well able to overcome it. Joshua, joining Caleb in chapter 14 as this discussion continues, trying to calm the people and inspire them to trust the Lord whos brought them this far, If the Lord delights in us, He will bring us into the land and He will give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. He wants the Israelites to enter the land and conquer it, undaunted by the peoples already living there. The first lesson Ive already shared and it comes, ultimately, not from the Torah of the ABC series Kung Fu but is actually based on the teachings of Lao-Tze, the great Chinese philosopher who taught approximately 2500 years ago. In that sense, we are where they were. Being part of something larger and lasting, McCarthy extols ties at Knesset, vows full support for Israeli security against Iran, White House reiterates Netanyahu to get invite but visit not currently planned, Levin accuses US administration of cooperating with judicial overhaul opponents, Gantz: No progress in talks with government on judicial reform compromise, Report: Israel got intel on Irans secret nuclear weapons program from executed spy, TA police chief refuses to discuss transfer with commissioner: An invalid procedure.
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