Numbers 13 - 14
"Them Be Giants"

• Left Egypt
• Stuck in the Desert
• Trying to get to the Promised Land
• Many miracles on the way 

Time to Move into the Land

• Moses wants some “environmental scanning”

- Competitor Analysis
- SWOT Analysis

• So he sends out spies (that is, consultants) out into the land 

What would the environmental scanning tell them?

• Strong or Weak?
• Few or Many?
• Land Good or Bad?
• Land Rich or Poor?
• Energy sources (wood) available?
• Samples available? 

What conclusion did the spies present to the leaders of Israel?

• “Our conclusion is that the economic and social opportunities presented to us in the PL are significant”

 
• “However, we also believe that the threats we perceived, especially the fortified cities and the height-enhanced descendants of Anak, would preclude us from recommending that we proceed toward the PL; in fact, we recommend reversing course away from these threats.” 

OR, in other words:

• THEM BE GIANTS!

 
• WE'RE GRASSHOPPERS!

 
• Let's go back to EGYPT! 

Was there a “Minority Report”?

• YES!

 
• Caleb quiets the crowd and says

-“Let's Go Up at Once!”

• Only Joshua joins him in this report. 

What was the difference between Josh and Caleb and the majority?

• Joshua and Caleb focused on the opportunities God presented and God's strength and power He had clearly demonstrated to them in the past

 
• The spies focused on the threats that were posed, the power of their enemies, and their own weaknesses. 

What influenced the spies' report?

• The Scripture suggests the report was “bad” or in some translations,“evil”

- This is the sense of “slander” ; the spies slander both the land as well as the Lord

• God says that the Israelites “hate” or “despise” Him

- “Despise” here means that the spies and the people as a whole reject His power, authority and blessing (“10 times”!!!) 

The Israelites misunderstand or forget the mission God had given

• Their ultimate mission was to get to the Promised Land; that's where they are, they see how great it is…and drop the ball.

 
• They want to go back to Egypt (where they were in slavery!)

- Realistically, they could not go back anyway, for any number of reasons

- We often want to go “back to Egypt” (“laying bricks”) but that probably isn't where God is calling UC either. 

If the Lord delights in us, He will give us this Land of milk and honey

• While we know that we will not always have “milk and honey,” we are promised that we will mature through trials

 
• However, in this case, God offers the Israelites milk and honey, if they are up to the challenge and they reject it! 

Stuck in the Desert

• As a result of this lack of belief and rejection of their mission and of God, the Israelites are forced to wander through the desert for 40 more years

- In part this is to “change the culture”; all of those who are over 20 years old will die (compare Numbers 1: getting rid of all the warriors)

• Except Caleb and Joshua! Who understand God's power and authority and direction in their lives

 
• In fact, trusting in God, Caleb eventually settles in the area of the giants! (Joshua 14) 

So what can we learn from Numbers 13-14?

• These are the people who have seen all the miracles, the Red Sea parting, the pillar of fire, manna, etc.

- They even saw the “cloud” earlier in the exact same place where the spies were sent out
 
• Yet, they focus on themselves and their own weakness rather than God's strength

- Here I Corinthians 10 is instructive

We best “take heed”;  “God was not pleased” 

Which brings us to the question:

• Do we desire the mission God has for us?

- Being salt and light in Athens/at UGA

• OR “evil” which in this case means grumbling, focusing on our own desires and frailties, and missing what God is doing around us

 
• Do we see the “giants” (the challenging threats) and not the “cloud” (the powerful presence of the Lord) 

What are the “Giants” at UC

• Right Now:

- A New Pastor
- A very likely increasingly hostile academic environment
- An increasingly complicated and unhappy world

• Mark 13/Matt. 24/Luke 21

• The “birth pangs”

“Creation groaning”: Romans 8

Compare Kuyper/sphere sovereignty 

What might be giants?

• In the near future:

- Staying in the house or moving?
- Staying independent or joining a denomination?
- Higher visibility on campus?
- Complicated and contentious theological issues?
- New technologies, new music, new ministries?
 
This is the “midget” giant, really a pet

- “Less talk, more action”? 

What do we need to do at University Church?

• We must remember God's mercies toward us and that His power can work through us

 
• We should avoid seeing only the “threats” and instead seeing our individual lives and the life of the church as a whole through the lens of God's strengths as well as our own strengths and weaknesses

- II Corinthians 12 is helpful in this context

• We must remember our mission

- “Salt and Light in Athens and at UGA 

Conclusion

• “Managing resistance to change”

 
• Making Godly decisions

 
• Remembering that we are the people of the rolled-away stone

 
• Isaiah 43: 18-19 

Sermon by Dr. Bud Hamilton