February 2 - Numbers 13-15
This is one of the saddest passages in the whole Bible. It tells of God's people not being able to enter the Promised Land because of their fearful unbelief. The spies were sent in, the bad report was given, and the people refused to trust God to give them the victory. The sentence for their sin was a slow death wandering in the wilderness. When they heard the punishment, they wanted to change their minds, but they had already missed God's opportunity. Now, their children had to endure 40 years of wandering in the wilderness and 40 years of funerals, until that whole generation had died before they could enter Canaan. What a tragedy!
As I was talking to a man at lunch recently, he spoke of making a "life mistake." I had not ever heard that exact term before, but it is very appropriate for this passage. The Israelites had made a mistake that effected the rest of their lives and the lives of their children. I pray that none of us will know the heartache of such a decision. However, if you have made a "life mistake", I want you to know that God will still bless you and be there for you, if you will turn to Him once and for all. While Israel wandered, God still fed them the manna, He still led them, and He still defeated their enemies. Just because they missed God's best, they did not miss His blessings completely. God still cares for you even though you have missed His perfect will for your life. He can still cause you to have a wonderful life, if you will trust Him.
However, this does not mean that we can sin against God knowingly or presumptuously as it says in Numbers 15:30, and not face serious consequences. I think some people want to sin, ask for forgiveness, and have all of the consequences taken away. That is seldom if ever the case. As this verse tells us, God is not disposed to forgive sins we commit knowingly. If we know God's word, and we willfully disobey it, God carries out the most complete punishment, so that we do not ever want to do that again. I am not talking about losing your salvation because of a sin. If you think that way, you misunderstand salvation by grace through faith. What I am talking about is how God deals with sins we commit once we are saved. I John 1:9 tells us if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. That verse is true, and it is wonderful to be forgiven. However, this verse says nothing about taking away the consequences of the sin. The consequences keep us from wanting to commit the sin again after we have been forgiven. Numbers 14:20 says that God pardoned Israel's life mistake, but they still had the consequence of wandering in the wilderness for 40 years.
As I was talking to a man at lunch recently, he spoke of making a "life mistake." I had not ever heard that exact term before, but it is very appropriate for this passage. The Israelites had made a mistake that effected the rest of their lives and the lives of their children. I pray that none of us will know the heartache of such a decision. However, if you have made a "life mistake", I want you to know that God will still bless you and be there for you, if you will turn to Him once and for all. While Israel wandered, God still fed them the manna, He still led them, and He still defeated their enemies. Just because they missed God's best, they did not miss His blessings completely. God still cares for you even though you have missed His perfect will for your life. He can still cause you to have a wonderful life, if you will trust Him.
However, this does not mean that we can sin against God knowingly or presumptuously as it says in Numbers 15:30, and not face serious consequences. I think some people want to sin, ask for forgiveness, and have all of the consequences taken away. That is seldom if ever the case. As this verse tells us, God is not disposed to forgive sins we commit knowingly. If we know God's word, and we willfully disobey it, God carries out the most complete punishment, so that we do not ever want to do that again. I am not talking about losing your salvation because of a sin. If you think that way, you misunderstand salvation by grace through faith. What I am talking about is how God deals with sins we commit once we are saved. I John 1:9 tells us if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. That verse is true, and it is wonderful to be forgiven. However, this verse says nothing about taking away the consequences of the sin. The consequences keep us from wanting to commit the sin again after we have been forgiven. Numbers 14:20 says that God pardoned Israel's life mistake, but they still had the consequence of wandering in the wilderness for 40 years.