Tag-Archive for ◊ wilderness ◊

24 Jul 2024 Deuteronomy (Program #10)

Deuteronomy (Program #10) – The Rehearsal of the Law (3)

To the assembled nation of Israel preparing to cross over the Jordan river and enter Canaan, Moses had this to say, “Hear, O Israel! You are about to cross over the Jordan this day in order to enter in and dispossess nations greater and mightier than you, cities that are big and fortified up to heaven, know therefore today that Jehovah your God is the One crossing over before you as a consuming fire; it is He who will destroy them, and it is He who will subdue them before you, so that you may dispossess them and destroy them quickly, as Jehovah has said to you.”

Surely these words must had filled the people with hope and expectation. but Moses also brought their earlier failures to remembrance, “Remember; do not forget that you made Jehovah your God furious in the wilderness; from the day that you came forth from the land of Egypt up until you came to this place, you have been rebellious against Jehovah.”  Moses once again preparing this new generation to overcome, enter and possess the land.

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19 Jul 2024 Deuteronomy (Program #5)

Deuteronomy (Program #5) -A Review of the Past (1)

Deuteronomy begins with Moses reviewing 40 years of history to the assembled children of Israel. Kadesh-barnea is at the gate of Canaan in the very place where they had arrived some 38 years before.

Deut 1: 19 And we set out from Horeb, and we went through all that great and awesome wilderness, which you saw, on the way to the hill country of the Amorites, as Jehovah our God commanded us; and we came to Kadesh-barnea.  Verse 21 “See, Jehovah your God has set the land before you; go up, possess it, as Jehovah the God of your fathers has spoken to you. Do not fear, neither be dismayed”…. “Yet you would not go up. Rather you rebelled against the word of Jehovah your God;”

The unbelief and disobedience that the people showed on that day caused their father to falter and not going to possess the land.  As we see Moses now is preparing a new generation to overcome that past and to be strong to enter in and possess the good land.

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18 Jul 2024 Deuteronomy (Program #4)

Deuteronomy (Program #4) – A Review of the Past (1)

Deuteronomy is a wonderful yet little known book in the Bible. It begins with Moses reviewing the 40 years history of the children of Israel as they wondered in the wilderness deal to their flesh and unbelieving hearts.  God used this long period, first to consumed that unbelieving generation but also to review three persons in a detail way.

Today we come to Deuteronomy to see God manifested, man exposed and Christ unveiled and presented. Hallelujah for this ministry.

In the Bible , it’s easy to see God, all of the miraculous events and creation and demonstration of His power and majesty and in passages like this one where the failures of God’s people are exposed again and again. We also get a very clear picture of what mankind is like in general and what we ourselves are like personally. But to see Christ in the Bible especially in the Old Testament in the book like Deuteronomy is not so easy. more…

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13 Jul 2024 Numbers (Program #30)

Numbers (Program #30) – Fighting (9)

After 40 years of experiences in the wilderness, God is ready to fulfill His promise to His people Israel to give them the good land.  But there are some requirements that He places upon them because this land has been occupied even polluted by various people apart from Israel; people with other gods and idols.  So before Israel can inherit the land, they must first drive out all these inhabitants, destroy their idols and tear down the high places.  If they don’t, they will be troubled by these things throughout their days.  Once again, the Old Testament provides us with a rich profound illustration of how we must possess our good land, the all-inclusive Christ.

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10 Jul 2024 Numbers (Program #27)

Numbers (Program #27) – Fighting (6)

After 40 years of journeying through the wilderness of Sinai, the children of Israel had finally arrived at the gate of the good land and the end of their long and difficult journey.  By now they had experienced a wide range of things from God’s mercy, many of His miracles and the number of wars fighting against a variety of enemies and a great number of their own failures and setbacks as well.  But through it all, God remained faithful to His promise to bring them into the land that He had given to their father Abraham.  He was also faithful to remind them of His need and He would never let them forget the necessity of offering sacrifices there were satisfying to Him.  We will review some of these marvelous point on today’s program and we will see some new things facing God’s people.

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09 Jul 2024 Numbers (Program #26)

Numbers (Program #26) – Fighting (5)

Forty years of wandering, of fighting against enemies and of learning to live by depending on God are near an end.  God’s people Israel are about to enter the land that He has promised to their fathers.  By this time Jehovah God had prepared the people and everything they would need to go in and possess this land.  But it is here, at this critical juncture that He comes to them to remind them not of their need but of His need.  From His people, God requires something that He will not provide for Himself – food.   Hard to imagine isn’t it?  God needs to be fed.  He can only be fed by His people.  Quite a story we have before us.

08 Jul 2024 Numbers (Program #25)

Numbers (Program #25) – Fighting (5)

For more than forty years the children of Israel follow one clear leadership.  Despite the occasional challenge to his leadership, Moses was the undeniable selection of Jehovah; as the unique one that was to lead them through the wilderness and to the good land.  But at 120 years of age, the Lord came to Moses to let him know that he was about to be gathered to his people and that he will not be entering into the land with the people.  We might think especially with all of things that Moses had done with and for the Lord, his concern would have been why he was being denied the opportunity to gain an entrance for himself.  But to the contrary, his only concern and care was for the people.  Who would be there to go in and come out before the people?  This is the story of a man according to God’s heart and it is an inspiring story for us to consider, as we will on this life study from the book of Numbers.

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06 Jul 2024 Numbers (Program #23)

Numbers (Program #23) – Fighting (4)

Numbers is a book that records many wonderful items related to God’s people Israel and their journey through the wilderness on their way to the good land.  But it also records some of their greatest failures.  Perhaps the greatest among these was that spoken of in chapter 25 where many among Israel committed fornication and adultery with some of the idolatrous and pagan people dwelling in the land.  This brought in God’s judgment as seen by the plague that fell upon Israel consuming 24,000.  But this judgment served as kind of purifying of the people and it enabled them eventually to go in and possess the land that they have been 40 years journeying toward.  The renumbering of God’s people for the possession of the good land is our topic today.

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04 Jul 2024 Numbers (Program #21)

Numbers (Program #21) – Fighting (2)

We all know the story of Israel’s forty-year long journey in the wilderness.  Their journey, though unnecessary long, wasn’t aimless or without a goal.  They had a definite destination, the good land, the land of Emmanuel, today’s Israel.  This land as we have seen before, is a type and even a picture of Christ, of our Christ, who is our goal and destination.  But as we’ve seen, God also has an enemy who opposes Him and frustrates His people, bringing in a kind of warfare in the spiritual realm.  The book of Numbers touches this warfare repeatedly.  Today we come to chapter 22 where the tactic employed by Satan against God’s people Israel changes dramatically,  This program is full of much insight.  We really pray that the Lord would shine in this word today.

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01 Jul 2024 Numbers (Program #18)

Numbers (Program #18) – Journeying (11)

In Numbers chapter 20, the people of God were journeying through the wilderness on their way to the good land.  But water was scarce and the two million Hebrews with their substantial flocks and herds were suffering.  As might be expected, this cause people to complain and contend with Moses.  The attitude of the people brought out frustration and even anger on the part of Moses who had seen the Lord’s own anger and judgment brought upon the people for their previous rebellion.  But Moses’ dealing with them in this case, brought in God’s judgment once more.  Only this time not upon the people, but upon Moses.

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