The Missio Dei: Giants in the Land
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Putting together stuff that comes in boxes with instructions.
Ikea
Its not easy
Christmas
putting together presents
When I was in seminary I worked for a church doing maintenance.
How god himself is sending us out to make disciples.
most of the work was changing light bulbs, fixing leaks, painting and so on.
this however, is not the first commission found int he bible.
But once in a while I would have come carpentry work to do which I really enjoyed. I used to work construction so when carpentry work would come up I would enjoy the project.
The shed came in a box...
God sends us on mission
I knew I knew how to build a shed… but at the projection progressed I really questioned if the people who wrote the direction knew how to build a shed.
We have seen this each week of this series.
Eventually I was humbled
God is a God with a mission, and he has brought us into his mission to see all things brought into subjection.
I found out that the person who wrote the instructions did indeed know what he was talking about.
We saw the mission of God first introduced in Genesis one when God told Adam and Even to be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth, subdue it and take dominion.
We so often have this same sort of resistance to God’s instruction.
We have seen the nature of God’s mission is one that is gradual
We live in a world where the wisdom of God, his plans and instructions are viewed as irrelevant.
This is not only the case with the intellectually understanding
like the waters that flow from Ezekiel’s temple it starts small and gradually grows until it cover the whole earth and the whole earth is made new.
But we also struggle with God’s plan for his mission.
We have seen that God’s mission is to see EVERYTHING brought into subjection to Christ.
And this is not only us, but we see Israel often struggle with God’s mission.
everything we do is either being faithful or unfaithful to the mission God has given us.
Last week Pastor Zach showed us how the mission of God will go to the all the nations of the world.
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.”
1 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
If we were to keep reading we see that Moses sends 12 men, the heads of the people of Israel into Canaan to spy out the land which God promised to give them.
The Promise Land
The Promise Land
For 40 days 12 spies of Israel snuck around the land of Canaan looking to discover what sort of land it was
What sort of land it was
if the people who dwell in it are strong or week
Moses wanted the spies to see if the people dwelling in the land are strong or weak,
whether they are few or many,
and whether the land that they dwell in is good or bad,
and whether the cities that they dwell in are camps or strongholds
and whether the land is rich or poor,
and whether there are trees in it or not.
Moses also told them to bring back some fruit from the land so they could see it.
Could you image the excitement of the people.
The Promised
This is the land God promised to give to their father Abraham some 400 years earlier. (Gen 17:8)
God promised this same land to Moses and all his people even when they were enslaved in Egypt.
This land was their destination. It was the promised land
It was to be a land of blessing to the people.
nine times the bible calls this Canaan, ‘a land flowing with milk and honey’
It was a new Eden, it had abundant water, wheat, barley, vines, fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey.
abundant water, wheat, barley, vines, fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey
This is the place where the temple would be built and God would dwell with his people.
This was to be the new headquarters where the people of God would worship God and continue the mission God gave to Adam and Eve.
So after 40 days of spying out the land the 12 men came back to give their report.
All the spies agreed that the land is everything they had hoped for.
it was indeed a land flowing with milk and honey.
The showed everyone the grapes they had picked
However, there was a problem
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.
Numbers 13
The Anakim people were known as mighty warriors who were giants, they had Nephilim blood in their vains.
And not only that, but the descendants of Anak are there.
The most popular descendant of Anak was Goliath of Gath, whom David took down when the rest of Israel was too afraid to fight him.
So the spies saw the giants in Canaan walking around and in comparison they felt like grasshoppers.
There is no way we could battle these giants and win, they thought.
And not only that, but the whole land is full.
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.”
Jumbers 13 29
There is no room for Israel to settle in the land without a conflict. And they feared that any conflict would result in their demise.
They were so scared of conflict that they failed to believe God at his word, that he would give them the land.
because of their faithlessness and cowardice they doubted God’s instruction and failed to follow God’s mission.
But here is the thing, the mission of God demands conflict.
The Mission of God Demands Conflict.
The Mission of God Demands Conflict.
All throughout the bible the mission of God advances through conflict.
Even the promise given to Adam and Eve involved conflict.
The serpent would bruise the heel of the messiah, yet the messiah would crush the head of the serpent. (this is conflict)
Examples -
The Israelites knew this, they had just seen YHWH go to war with the gods of Egypt.
David and Goliath
God told Israel that they would have victory over the philistines, however the size of Goliath got them all doubting God.
For them to advance the mission God gave them they would have to come into conflict with a monster.
Jesus
Jesus’ ministry was one of constant conflict
before he even began his ministry he had to go to war with Satan in the wilderness
As soon as he begins his ministry he is in conflict with the local religious leaders
He then gets the attention of the
John the Baptist
Beheaded for his views on marriage
The apostles
each one of the martyred (except John)
When we proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ we are calling everyone everywhere to repent, to change, to bow the knee, the submit to King Jesus.
And guess what, that does not happen without a conflict. For this is Spiritual Warfare.
When we go into the world
Why are we afraid to share the gospel?
Why do we often tremble to stand up for what is right and speak against evil?
Because to do such a thing puts us on the front lines and conflict will occur.
Far to often we are so afraid of conflict that we just lay down when the pressure gets uncomfortable.
We even create theologies that create escapes from the conflict…
things are getting bad i just want Jesus to come back and rescue me from this broken world.
Yet this is not what the mission of God is all about, its not about escaping, its about subduing and taking dominion.
When we call all people everywhere to repent and follow King Jesus, there are dark powers that wage war against followers of Christ. This is spiritual warfare.
This is why Paul says,
12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
This war is waged every time you we try and push back the darkness of this world with the light of the gospel.
This war is waged every time you share the gospel and call people to forsake the kingdom of darkness and come into the kingdom of light.
This conflict comes every time you stand for whats right.
For this is the mission of God, to see all things brought into full subjection to Christ.
tempted to gossip,
every dollar you are tempted to spend unwisely,
every protest against abortion or sexual perversion
And we are to advance this mission regardless of the conflict.
every unwanted opinion on godless education,
every renouncement of injustice
and every rejection of the cultural norms you will face conflict.
Who cares if there are giants in the land.
We are bought by the blood of Christ, We serve the king who conquered the grave. We should not be afraid of conflict.
There were two spies who came back from Canaan who were not afraid of the giants or the fight that was before them.
They shared a very different report with Moses and Aaron and the rest of the people.
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.”
number
Caleb offered the minority report in regards to taking the land.
Caleb is not fearful of the giants in the land
their strongholds and mighty cities do not cause him concern
He doesn’t even want to wait, he wants to go up at once and take control.
However, Caleb’s confident proposal to take the land was quickly rebutted by the other spies
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.”
The other spies strongly disagreed with Caleb’s assessment.
They said the people are stronger than we are, therefore we don’t have a chance.
Why is there such a difference between Caleb and the other spies? Why does Caleb have confidence in this mission while the other spies act like cowards?
They both saw the same land, the same people, the same cities, and the same giants.
They both were commissioned to go by God himself
They both were given the same directions as to what to look for
They both were in Canaan for 40 days.
If they all saw and experienced the same thing, why does Caleb say we can take land and others so we can’t?
It’s all a matter of perspective
The 10 spies who were afraid focused on the size of the giants
While Caleb and Joshua focused on the size of God
The 10 spies saw the size of the giants and said, “their too big, we can’t win”
Caleb and Joshua saw the size of the giants and said, “their too big, we can’t miss”
The 10 spies thought the giants were bigger and stronger than God, while Caleb and Joshua saw God as much bigger and stronger than any giant in the land.
You see, when our perspective is centered on Christ,
the one who has all authority in heaven and on earth,
the one who has promised us that he will never leave us nor forsake us,
the one who has been given kingship and rule over every square inch of the universe,
then and only then can we confidently confronts the giants in the land with boldness knowing that our King is greater and stronger and more powerful than any giant that might stand against us!
Caleb and Joshua saw God in this way.
They had walked through the red sea
They had seen the plauges that fell upon the gods of egypt
they had seen the power of God on full display.
They had a correct view of God.
They believed the promises of God -
The size of the giants didn’t matter
It doesn’t matter how big the giants are, or how fortified the cities were, or how the whole land was occupied by enemies.
It didn’t matter how fortified the cities were, or how the whole land was occupied by enemies.
If God has promised to give them the land, they had nothing to fear.
For if God is for us, who can stand against us?
Church, It is not the size of the giants in the land that keep us from mission of God - but rather we shrink back because we have a small view of God.
do you think the church, the redeemed people of God can effectively stand opposed to the onslaught of the abortion industry?
Do you think the people of God can fight for God’s design of marriage and sexuality?
Are we able, are we called, are we empowered to fight for justice, to knock down the idols of our culture, and rather than bowing to the gods of this age call the world to bow the knee to King Jesus?
And you know what, we don’t only face giants in the land, we face giants in our own lives.
We fail to share the gospel because we are afraid of being embarrassed.
What will my co-worker think of me if I try and tell him about Jesus?
What if I lose her as a friend because she thinks being a Christian is close minded and ignorant.
we slump back from going to war with the giants of...
pornography
gossip
bitterness
and shame
not because these giants are too big, but because our view of God is too small.
Church, when we see God for who he is, when we trust his promises and rely on his power not only is it possible to conquer these giants, but our victory is guaranteed!
For the mission of God will not fail!
Every knee will bow
Every tongue will confess
Every enemy will be destoryed
And EVERYTHING will be brought into subjection to King Jesus!
Far too often we behave like the unfaithful spies, who were afraid to take the land because of giants.
We don’t believe the promises of God,
we don’t believe that God has given us the land.
We don’t believe that Christ is ruling
and we don’t believe that his glory will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea.
We don’t believe that his mission will be successful, therefore we stop trying.
We struggle to believe that all the nations will serve him,
we don’t believe that God has laid claim to every square inch of the cosmos and will build his kingdom upon the earth.
At least we don’t believe it will happen before he comes back.
We often think that the mission of God will not succeed until after he comes back.
Therefore we don’t see the motivation to take the land, to advance his mission,
so we, like the 10 unfaithful spies, don’t even try.
We cannot possibly take the land for the land is full of mighty men, giants, and its cities are strongholds.
However, the bible tells us he won’t come back until every enemy is placed under his feet.
It won’t happen all at once,
For we are like grasshoppers before them.
But like the waters of Ezekiel’s temple God’s mission starts small and then gradually advance transforming the whole world into the garden of Eden.
Now, let me try and prove this to you.
Turn with me to
We will look at verses 20-26, we do not have time to develop everything in this passage but let me show you how the mission of God, the kingdom of God advances.
20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
21 For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.
22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.
23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.
In these verses Paul is telling us that the resurrection of Jesus has guaranteed redemption for all those who belong to Christ.
1 Cor 20-23
Our future is not determined by our ability to understand the book of revelation or our ability to be Christ like - but rather our eternal future is held tight in the hands of the resurrected Christ.
Jesus resurrection is the guarantee of our resurrection and thus our eternal destiny.
Ok, so now look at verses 24-27 as Paul gives us the timeline of how the resurrected Christ will bring salvation to all his people.
24 Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power.
The end does not come UNTIL he delivers the kingdom to God the Father.
The mission of God is to see the kingdom of God complete.
To see the knowledge of God cover the earth as the waters cover the sea
To see the nations, not just saved, but discipled.
To see the Spirit of God which flows from Christ the true temple, go into all the world redeeming, renewing and restoring all things to Christ.
When this mission is complete he delivers the kingdom to God the Father.
Now, he delivers the kingdom not before, but after he destroys every rule, every authority, and every power.
Every giant in the land will fall.
not one will be able to stand when the saints of God, empowered by the spirit of God, proclaiming the gospel of God wage war.
For Jesus himself says that Christ is building his church, and the gates of hell will not prevail.
This means that the mission of God will be sucsessful.
Christ, through the Church, will subdue and take dominion of the whole earth.
24 Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power.
1 cor
He then goes on… vv.25-26
25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.
We see all throughout the NT that Christ is currently reigning.
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he is ruling and reigning with all authority in heaven and on earth sitting at the right hand of the father.
26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
27 For “God has put all things in subjection under his feet.” But when it says, “all things are put in subjection,” it is plain that he is excepted who put all things in subjection under him.
And Paul says he must reign UNTIL he has put all his enemies under his feet.
1 Cor 15
He will continue to reign from the right hand of the father until every giant in the land is put under his feet.
He will continue to reign from the right hand of the father until everything is put in subjection to him.
Now, do we currently see everything in subjection to him? no, of course not, for the mission of God is not yet finished.
The author of Hebrews recognizes this same reality when he says,
7 You made him for a little while lower than the angels; you have crowned him with glory and honor,
8 putting everything in subjection under his feet.” Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him.
7-
Indeed, we do not see everything in subjection to Christ, not yet.
But this is our mission - to see the whole world submitted to Christ,
Church, we need not be afraid of this mission.
For nothing
The giants in the land are indeed strong, but our King is far stronger.
Let us not be cowards like the 10 spies who were afraid to follow God’s command, But lets enter this land, plunder this land, subdue and take dominion with boldness and confidence that we do not go alone.
For Jesus promised us that he is with us all the way to the end.
Lets pray.
