Walking By Faith Rather Than Sight

WE WALK BY FAITH NOT BY SIGHT...

2 Corinthians 5:7 HCSB

7 For we walk by faith, not by sight,

When the Apostle Paul wrote those words they came forth as a declaration of faith and conviction amidst a teaching regarding the victory we have over death and the grave and the glory of the life to come all because of what Jesus has done for and given to us. The Apostle Paul knew that he, and all who have been saved by Jesus, do not do this thing called life by sight but by faith. The Apostle Paul knew what death looked like, he knew what a grave looked like, he knew what trials, troubles and pain looked like. For those that do not know Jesus and live by sight, then those things mark the end. However, for those who know Jesus we know that while those things may look bad in the natural, we have faith in a God who has defeated the grave and removed the sting of death and has strengthened us to endure and overcome the troubles, trials and pains of life. We walk by faith and not by sight.

WE LOVE STORIES OF FAITH.

We love the concept of walking by faith rather than sight. We love to see and hear of examples of people who walk by faith rather than sight. As a matter of fact, many of our favorite and most memorable encounters in the Scriptures are those of men and women who walked by faith rather than by sight especially when what they saw was overwhelming...

Abraham, by faith, laid his son on the altar of sacrifice even though he couldn’t see a substitute that would save him.

Noah, by faith, built a boat even though he saw those that ridiculed him and even when didn’t see any rain falling.

I’m sure that all of us know, to some extent or another, what it is like to have regret. As we dive into our passage today we are going to find that an entire generation of God’s people were going to live with until their last days with great regret over a bad decision.

Israel walked by faith when they crossed the Red Sea even though they saw the walls of water on both sides of them.

Daniel, by faith, continued to pray to his God even though he saw a king ruling over him that refused such a thing.

Daniel walked by faith when he was thrown into the lion’s den even though what he saw was a beast that should have eaten him.

Meshach, Shadrach and Abednego walked by faith when they were thrown into the fiery furnace when all they could see was flames that should have devoured them.

The Prophets walked by faith in preaching even though they saw those that refused to listen and ultimately killed them for their preaching.

Joseph and Mary walked by faith in believing God about the baby they were expecting even though they saw so many that didn’t understand and probably accused of sexual impurity.

Zaccheaus walked by faith and climbed a tree when he wanted to see Jesus when he saw a crowd that was blocking him from seeing Jesus.

The woman with the issue of blood crawled by faith to get to Jesus even though all she could see were those who despised her because she was “unclean.”

Paul and Barnabas walked by faith in a prison cell and sang hymns to God even though all they could see were bars and shackles that suggested that they would be tortured or killed.

On and on we could go. As we continue in our series called Wanderers, it is important to remember that God is teaching His people what it means to do life with Him. He has taught them about obedience and trust with the cloud by day and pillar of fire by night. He has taught them about complaining as we saw last week. This week we are going to see how God is teaching His people how to walk by faith rather than sight as He positions them to experience the fulfillment of all their hopes, dreams and aspirations that are rooted in a promise made hundreds of years before.

Numbers 13 ESV

1 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a chief among them.” 3 So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran, according to the command of the Lord, all of them men who were heads of the people of Israel. 4 And these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur; 5 from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori; 6 from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh; 7 from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph; 8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun; 9 from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu; 10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi; 11 from the tribe of Joseph (that is, from the tribe of Manasseh), Gaddi the son of Susi; 12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli; 13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael; 14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi; 15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi. 16 These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun Joshua. 17 Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan and said to them, “Go up into the Negeb and go up into the hill country, 18 and see what the land is, and whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many, 19 and whether the land that they dwell in is good or bad, and whether the cities that they dwell in are camps or strongholds, 20 and whether the land is rich or poor, and whether there are trees in it or not. Be of good courage and bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes. 21 So they went up and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, near Lebo-hamath. 22 They went up into the Negeb and came to Hebron. Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. (Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 And they came to the Valley of Eshcol and cut down from there a branch with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them; they also brought some pomegranates and figs. 24 That place was called the Valley of Eshcol, because of the cluster that the people of Israel cut down from there. 25 At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land. 26 And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh. They brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 And they told him, “We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan.” 30 But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.” 31 Then the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.” 32 So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. 33 And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.”

Numbers 13:1–14:4 ESV

1 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a chief among them.” 3 So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran, according to the command of the Lord, all of them men who were heads of the people of Israel. 4 And these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur; 5 from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori; 6 from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh; 7 from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph; 8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun; 9 from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu; 10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi; 11 from the tribe of Joseph (that is, from the tribe of Manasseh), Gaddi the son of Susi; 12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli; 13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael; 14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi; 15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi. 16 These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun Joshua. 17 Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan and said to them, “Go up into the Negeb and go up into the hill country, 18 and see what the land is, and whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many, 19 and whether the land that they dwell in is good or bad, and whether the cities that they dwell in are camps or strongholds, 20 and whether the land is rich or poor, and whether there are trees in it or not. Be of good courage and bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes. 21 So they went up and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, near Lebo-hamath. 22 They went up into the Negeb and came to Hebron. Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. (Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 And they came to the Valley of Eshcol and cut down from there a branch with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them; they also brought some pomegranates and figs. 24 That place was called the Valley of Eshcol, because of the cluster that the people of Israel cut down from there. 25 At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land. 26 And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh. They brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 And they told him, “We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan.” 30 But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.” 31 Then the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.” 32 So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. 33 And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.” 1 Then all the congregation raised a loud cry, and the people wept that night. 2 And all the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The whole congregation said to them, “Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! 3 Why is the Lord bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become a prey. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?” 4 And they said to one another, “Let us choose a leader and go back to Egypt.”

Numbers 13:1-14:

HOPES, DREAMS AND ASPIRATIONS FULFILLED???

FROM SCOUT TO SCARED

This was a crucial point for Israel. The promise of a homeland had filled the hearts and minds of God’s people for hundreds of years—since God first made the promise to Abraham. It had been a long and hard journey to this point and the hope of one day having a place to call home, and not just any place but a beautiful and bountiful place to call home, was a sustaining hope and dream in their hearts that helped them endure the many hardships that they had faced throughout the years. Now, however, it seemed that the time had finally come for their hopes and dreams to become reality. According to God’s command, Israel had been ordered and numbered—a sure sign that a military operation was on the horizon. Now, again according to God’s command, they were told to send 12 men into the land to do some reconnaissance. They were tasked with bringing back word regarding the condition and inhabitants of the land. After 40 days, the spies brought back report and the land was so beautiful and bountiful that they labeled it a land “flowing with milk and honey.” In other words, it was more beautiful and bountiful than they had even dreamed. Along with this report, however, there came report about the inhabitants and establishments in the land as well. The people were numerous, skilled and advanced in military strength. Furthermore, their cities were fortified with well built walls surrounding the cities for protection.

The 10 spies and ultimately the majority of Israel, did not believe in God’s power, purposes, plans and promises and this showed in their unwillingness to enter the land that God had promised to give them. Because of this, God declared that not a single person of that generation, apart from Joshua and Caleb, would see a single day as an inhabitant of the Promised Land. They ended up living the rest of their lives under the shadow of great regret because of a decision that was made that was absent of faith in God.

After the report of the 12 spies was given, even though there was much excitement regarding the beauty and bounty of the land, Israel crumbled in fear and doubt when they heard about the inhabitants and strongholds that existed in the land. They cried and debated among themselves and ultimately concluded that they would not and could not enter the land. They assumed that God had led them to this place to die and rather than meet that fate, they would rather return to Egypt and submit themselves to the hardship and bondage they once knew at the expense of trusting God in this moment. In a very real way, Israel was walking by sight rather than by faith. What they saw before them compromised and overshadowed the faith that was in them. Because of their unwillingness to walk by faith, an entire generation was forced to wander around in the dessert until they all died without hope of seeing and experience the goodness and joy that God had reserved for them in the Promised Land.

I don’t believe for one minute that God would want us to live a life of regret especially when it comes to having the faith to trust and follow Him where He is leading us. However, many have, and many probably will, leave this life with regrets—both known and unknown—due to a lack of faith to trust and follow God where He is leading them in this life. I don’t want any of us to leave this world with regrets from not fully trusting and following God, therefore, what I want to do is look at this experience through the lens of what it means to walk by faith and not by sight. We are going to look at the negative examples of the faithless of Israel to learn positive lessons of what it means to walk by faith that fully trusts and follows God wherever and however it may be that He is leading us.

WALKING BY SIGHT DOUBTS GOD’S WORD.

The first think I want us to consider is that walking by faith means actually believing God’s Word. As I stated before, embedded within the Israeli people were these hopes, dreams and aspirations for a homeland. Not any homeland. The Promised homeland. The land of Canaan was promised to their forefather, Abraham, more than 400 years prior to this point. Furthermore, when Moses was instructed to send the 12 spies into the land, God was sure to remind them that the land that they were to scout out was the land that He has given to them. In other words, God was calling upon His own promise made to Abraham hundreds of years before to remind the people that this is not about what they can accomplish but about what He had promised.

I think it pretty safe to assume that this promise of God was frequently spoken of and among the people of Israel as they anticipated the fulfillment of it. However, when it came time for it actually to be fulfilled, when it came time to walk by faith or sight, it is revealed that Israel, while familiar with God’s Word, able to recite from memory God’s Word, and claim to believe in God’s Word, did not really believe God’s Word. When God said that He was giving this land to Israel He did not say how only that He would. Therefore, everything that the spies saw that seemed to them to be obstacles and hindrances to them taking the land were only perceived obstacles and hindrances because nothing can prevent the promises of God coming to fulfillment. However, because they were walking by sight rather than by faith, they crumbled in fear of the obstacles that were “in their way.” Faith called them to actually believe in God’s Word to them but sight caused them to doubt God’s Word to them.

How about us?

WALKING BY SIGHT DISTORTS OUR VISION OF WHAT IS TRUE.

The second thing I want to make note of is how walking by sight distorts our vision. This can be seen in two ways in our passage today. First, when the spies returned and reported their findings to the leaders of Israel, I think that it is clear that there appears to be a lot of exaggeration in their report. For instance, the spies reported that the land “devours its inhabitants.” This would be indicative of a land that is deserted, destitute and unfit for human occupation. We know this not to be true because they have already reported that the land was bountiful and produced extraordinary fruit. Furthermore, geographically this piece of land is known as the “Heart of the Fertile Crescent” because of its relation to large water sources such as the Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea, Tigris River, Euphrates River and Nile River to name a few. However, because of fear had replaced faith because they were walking by sight, their vision was distorted and all they could see was things not as they actually were. Furthermore, the spies reported that the ALL of the inhabitants of the land were as giants. They reach back into their history and claim that the inhabitants were the descendants of Anak of the Nephaliim which were a large race of people introduced to us in the Book of Genesis. While there could have been some there that were descendants of these larger people, archaeological finds suggest that the majority of the people living in the land were no different than Israel would have been from a physical perspective. It is like somebody assuming everybody is a certain way simply because of an experience with one. It just isn’t true.

If God be for us, who can be against us?

Similarly, just as walking by sight distorts the vision of what is true in regards to obstacles/opposition, so does walking by sight distort our vision of ourselves. When the scouts considered themselves in light of all the obstacles and opposition that they saw in the land they considered themselves to be nothing more than “grasshoppers” in comparison. On the one hand, they were like “grasshoppers” in comparison to the people in the land. The people in the land were skilled, organized, trained and well equipped. Israel was a nomadic group of people that had not even really learned what it meant to live as free people much less as a military might. However, when we think about this more thoroughly we find that the real “grasshoppers” in this encounter is not Israel but the inhabitants of the land. Israel have the One, True and Living God with them. Israel has the promise of God with them. Israel is the chosen, beloved and cherished people of God whom He has redeemed from bondage for His own pleasure and to be His own treasure. Israel has forgotten who they are. Their walking by sight rather than faith has distorted their vision of who they are. They are the people of God.

We are more than conquerors. Nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

WALKING BY SIGHT INVITES THE DISCIPLINE OF GOD

Without faith, it is impossible to please God.