Remembering the Journey (Numbers 33) [2025-8-24]

All right, good morning. Apologize for the delay.

We were on church retreat all weekend.

And so we are scrambling because we we just left the retreat site

this morning and just got in town.

But I'm delighted that you're here this morning to worship

with us. And so if you have your Bible or

your device, if you would turn or type in the Book of Numbers

this morning, we're going to be in chapter 33, Numbers 33, we're

going to be in the entire chapter.

It's quite long. It's 56 verses and a lot of it

is just places of names. And as I read through this this

week before I was, we headed out for retreat, I was thinking,

what am I going to do with this chapter?

Because it's, it's, it's literally just a, a recounting

of places. But I, I asked myself, why did

the Lord want Moses to do this? And it occurred to me that God

wanted them to remember the journey.

And so that's what the title of the sermon is this morning,

Remembering the journey. So as you guys turn there or

type that in, I won't be reading the text upfront.

I'll read parts of it as we go through it.

But let's pray as we get ready to listen to God's Word this

morning. If you will pray with me,

Father, we pray now that you would give us ears to hear what

the Spirit is speaking to us. God, we, we believe by faith.

We know that your word has told us that the Spirit is always

speaking. He is always convicting and

pointing us to Christ and leading us in truth and guiding

us. And so this morning, Lord, we,

we don't doubt whether the Spirit is speaking, but we, we

do, we're keenly aware that our ears may not be listening.

And so we ask God that you would help us to have ears that hear

this morning. Help us to listen well, Lord, to

what you are teaching us. Help us, God, to remember the

journey that you have had us on. As we look at the Israelite

journey this morning, I pray this sin now in the name of

Jesus, Amen. Why does anybody keep a

scrapbook or a photo album? Why does anybody create a

timeline or why does anybody write a diary or a journal?

Because it's a means to remember.

It's a means to remember where you've been and how far you've

come. We have to spend so much time in

our lives looking to the future, right?

We want to see where we want to go.

It's understandable, but we've often spent so much time doing

that that we forget that. We also that from time to time

need to look to the past and to see how far we've come and how

faithful God has been. God came to Moses and he

commanded him to write down their starting places of the 40

year journey in the desert. He said.

I want you to write down each of your starting places stage by

stage as a means to remember the journey that you have been on

and that I have brought you through.

And that's what the sermon is about this morning, remembering

the journey through the wilderness.

A lot of what we go through this morning is going to be a

recounting of what we looked at in numbers.

And then also Exodus, which we have not looked at it for

several years, but you probably are familiar with the story.

So this morning I'm going to position and application of the

text. I'm going to merge those two

together as we work our way through it.

We won't read all of it, but we'll read most a large chunk of

it. So let's start reading verses

one and two and Numbers 33. This is what Moses writes to us.

These are the stages of the people of Israel when they went

out of the land of Egypt by their companies under the

leadership of Moses and Aaron. Moses wrote down their starting

places stage by stage, by command of the Lord, and these

are their stages according to their starting places.

Stop there for now. So we get to the last four

chapters of Numbers. We only have 4 chapters left in

the book of Numbers. Israel is about to cross the

Jordan to begin their conquest of the Promised Land.

Moses is about to enter glory. He's going to pass off his

leadership to his successor, Joshua.

But before he dies, Moses is going to take the time to write

down their starting places, stage by stage.

Now, I imagine the Israelites are anxious to cross the Jordan,

right? They're right on the edge of the

Jordan. They're anxious to cross into

the future. But before they cross into the

future, they need to remember the past.

They need to remember their past.

My boys have started watching this TV show called Lost.

It's it's, it's like a 20 year old show.

Some of you may have heard of it or seen episodes or whatnot.

They started watching it. Me, I've never let him watch it

before. And when we watch it now, I

screen every episode ahead of time and I make sure which parts

I need to Fast forward because there is some content in it and

I Fast forward through anything. I think it's inappropriate.

So in case if you're like, pastor let's his kids watch

this, I make sure that I screen it.

When they started watching it, they got so into it.

They wanted to know everything. They're like, they wanted to

know how it ended. They're like, we don't mind.

We, we, we, we like knowing how it ends.

And they wanted to hear every full story of every character.

And I just kept telling the same answer.

I mean, they literally asked me like 50 questions and I just, I

kept telling the same answer over and over again.

You have to wait and see why. There is value in seeing the

progression. There is value in seeing the

highs and the lows, the successes and the failures.

There is value in seeing how did this character get from point A

to point Z? What was the progression?

Each of these places that we are going to look at, or if you read

this morning, each of them was a memory for the Israelites.

Some of them we're familiar with, some we are not.

But for them, when they looked at this place name, they

remembered there were memories made at each of these places.

Some of these places they had tasted the goodness of the Lord,

and some of them they had tasted the bitterness of their own sin.

Paul teaches us that we should not dwell on the past.

He says we are to forget the past and strive or strain

forward to what lies ahead. But every now and then it is

good to remember the past, to remember how God has LED us and

how He has fed us, to remember how God has sustained us and how

He has restrained us. God commanded Moses to write

these places down that they would remember their journey.

Look at verses 3 to 4. They set out from Ramsays in the

first month. On the 15th day of the first

month, on the day after the Passover, the people of Israel

went out triumphantly in the sight of all the Egyptians,

while the Egyptians were burying all their first born whom the

Lord had struck down among them. On their gods also the Lord

executed judgments. So the journey began 40 years

ago. It began on the 15th day of the

first month. About 600,000 men on foot,

besides women and children, set out from the Egyptian city

Ramsays. It was the day after Passover.

The people of Israel had lived in bitter, harsh slavery for 400

years. That's almost twice as long as

old as America is. 4, 100 years. After 4 centuries, the people of

Israel finally went out triumphantly in the side of all

the Egyptians. The Egyptians were left burying

their first born while Israel left.

Moses writes on their gods. Also, the Lord executed

judgments. This is a reminder that what God

did to Egypt was not cruel or unfair.

It was his judgement on their gods.

If you remember, the Lord had commanded Pharaoh.

He said let my people go. Pharaoh had opportunity after

opportunity to let them go, but each time he hardened his heart

and he would not let them go. And so God sent them plague

after plague after plague. There is a plausible theory that

with each of the plagues, God was not just executing judgment

on the Egyptians, he was also executing judgment on the

Egyptian so-called gods. The Egyptians worshiped the sun

God and God caused it to be dark.

The Egyptians worshiped the Nile and the Nile turned to blood.

Many of their gods had images of frogs and cattles on them and

God used these plagues to show the Egyptians I am superior to

your gods. Pharaoh's even first born son

was considered divine. All the Pharaohs were considered

divine and God put Pharaoh's first born son to death.

The Exodus is clearly a type. There's a strong typology in the

Exodus. In other words, rather than

killing a lamb, God put to death the spotless Lamb of God.

Rather than smearing an animal's blood on the doorpost of their

homes, Jesus smeared his own blood upon the cross.

And rather than putting to death the Egyptian first born, God put

to death his only begotten Son. You see, just as every Israelite

was to look back at the Exodus for all generations to come for

the next several 100 years, the the Israelites were to always

look back at the Exodus at this moment.

This is where God rescued us from slavery.

We too are to look back at the cross.

There should never come a morning we wake up where we

don't remember. This is where I was rescued from

slavery. Look at verses five to seven.

So the people of Israel set out from Ramsays and camped at

Sukkoth. And they, they and they set up

from Sukkoth and camped at Ethan, which is on the edge of

the wilderness. And they set out from Ethan and

turned back to π Hyrid, which is east east of Bail Zephon.

And they camped before Migdol. So the Israelites that when they

left, they they left Ramses, the Egyptian city.

They then went to Sukkoth. They then went to eat them.

And then when they got there, they turned back to π Hyrith.

God told them to turn back. Now why would God do that?

You were leading us out of Egypt.

Why did he tell them to turn back?

Here's what God says, Pharaoh will say of the people of

Israel. They are wandering in the land.

The wilderness has shut them in. And I will harden Pharaoh's

heart. He will pursue them and I will

get glory over Pharaoh and all his hosts, and the Egyptians

shall know that I am the Lord. Can you imagine God telling you

to turn back in this moment? This probably made no sense,

probably seem like a waste of time.

Doesn't God often tell his people to do things that make no

sense or seem like a waste of time?

Elizabeth Elliott. Our plans are interrupted.

His or not his plans are proceeding exactly as scheduled,

moving us always including those minutes or hours or years which

seem most useless or wasted or unendurable.

Brothers and sisters, what we label as a detour, what we label

as a dead end, God calls the driveway.

God never wastes any seasons in your life.

May feel like that you are just wasting time, may feel like that

you are spinning in a circle. You're not moving anywhere,

you're not going anywhere, nothing's happening.

What is going on? God?

God never wastes any seasons in your life.

He has a purpose for when He tells you to turn back, for when

He tells you to stay put, and when He tells you to move

forward. The good verses 8-9.

And they set out from high, high risk, pass through the midst of

the sea into the wilderness. And they went a three days

journey in the wilderness of Etham and camped at Mara.

And they set up from Mara and came to Elam.

At Elam there were 12 springs of water and 70 palm trees, and

they camped there. Now, if you remember from the

story in Exodus, when God told them to turn back, it seemed

like he led them into a trap. When they turned back, they were

in camp by the sea. So on one side of them was the

Red Sea. On the other side of them was

the Egyptian army bearing down on them.

That's like, how is this a good plan?

You just let us into a trap. And when the Israelites realize

this, they begin to become very fearful.

They they accuse Moses of leading them into wilderness to

kill them. And what does Moses say to them?

Moses says fear not, stand firm and see the salvation of the

Lord, which he will work for you today.

You see, God will bring us into impossible situations.

He'll bring us into situations where we feel trapped, like we

feel like we have no other choice.

God, you know, I have no other choice here but to disobey.

I have no other choice but to take matters into my own hands.

You did this, God. You forced me into this.

But God is not doing that to tempt us.

He's not doing it to trick us. He's not doing it to trouble us.

He's doing it to test us. Will we trust him?

I guarantee you, in this moment it did not cross any of their

minds. Oh, he's just going to park the

water. God brought them to this moment

to test them. Afterward, God brings them

through the midst of the sea. He brings them into the

wilderness. They go on a three days journey

into the wilderness of Ethan, but they found no water.

As they cross the sea and they go into the wilderness, they

find no water. They come tomorrow.

And the good news. What's this?

I don't have this in the story, but Mara is where we get the

name Mary. You know what the name Mary

means? Bitter.

I told my mom that my mom's name was Mary.

I was like, Mom, one day I found the other mom.

You know your name means bitter. She's like, yes, thank you,

Matthew. The good news was that there was

water. They come tomorrow and God gives

them water. That's the good news.

Here's the bad news. The water was bitter.

They couldn't drink it. Doesn't it feel like that's how

God provides for us sometimes? It's like, God, please provide

water, water. Thanks God.

You go to drink it. Thanks God.

Doesn't it often feel like that's how God provides for some

time? He gives us water, but it's

bitter water. Why did God lead them to bitter

water? To show them their own

bitterness, the people bitterly grumbled against God.

But the Lord was merciful. He listened to their cries.

And what did he do? He made the water sweet.

If there's one thing we know about the Lord is that God, our

God, is not only merciful, but He is also gracious.

Because what happened right after that?

God brought them to Elam, the very next place.

They went to Elam where there were 12 springs of water and 70

palm trees. Abundant water, abundant shade.

And if you know anything about walking in the wilderness, water

and shade are everything. They are life, and God gives

them abundant water and abundant shade.

You ever had God do that for you?

You ever had God show you grace when you were in sin?

You see, it's one thing to show grace when you're doing things

right. It's another thing when you are

shown grace when you're walking and sin.

The other day my wife and I were in conflict.

I don't remember what it in that I'm sure you never conflict was

about anymore. I don't even know what it was

about. I didn't want to talk to her.

I was upset, I was hurt. I didn't want to talk to her.

I walked into my room and I noticed she folded my clothes

and as I saw the neatly stacked pile of clothes on my dresser it

just removed all hurt and all pride.

There's something so beautiful about showing grace to a Sinner,

it just cripples you. Look at verse 10:50.

They set up from Elam and camp by the Red Sea, and they set out

from the Red Sea and camped in the wilderness of seeing.

They left Elam and they camped by the Red Sea, and then they

set up in the Red Sea and camp in the wilderness of seeing.

This is where they first began grumbling about lack of food.

I mean, if you read the Book of Numbers and the book of Exodus

and somebody said give me one word, right?

Give me one word to describe the people of Israel in these two

books. A good answer would be this

grumbling. Describe the people of Israel

grumbling, right? As painful as it is, I think it

is helpful to look at our past and remember just how sinful we

were in the past and how patient God was to our sin.

It's painful to do that. It's sometimes the reason why we

don't want to think about our past is because it's painful to

do it. It just seems like the people

were always looking for an opportunity to grumble.

I mean, every time they, it was like there's no food.

God, Well, here's food. Well, we're tired of this food.

Well, here's some different food.

Well, we want vegetables with our food.

You ever look back on your Christian life and you're just

appalled at some of the things that you used to say or used to

do? I mean, I, I hate doing this

because there's a website calledawkwardfamilyphotos.com If

you've never seen it, I highly please don't check it out now,

but I, I highly encourage you to check this website out.

When you look at this website, there's really only one question

that comes to mind. Why, why, why did you do this?

Why did you think this photo was a good idea?

Everybody has awkward family photos, don't they?

Especially from middle school. You ever look back at some of

your old middle school photos? It's like, Oh my gosh, like

what? Why did I go for this look?

It's painful to look back on them.

Remembering our past can be quite painful.

Why did you do this, Matt? Why did you say this?

But our past highlights the patience of our God.

Look at verse 12 to 14. They set out from the wilderness

of sin and seen and camped at Dofka, and they set up from

Dofka and camped at a lush, and they set up from a lush and

camped at Rafidum where there was no water for the people to

drink. So they leave the wilderness of

seeing. They go to Dofka.

They then go to a lush. They didn't go to Rafidum.

And at Rafidum is where they once again had no water.

And they begin to quarrel with Moses and the Lord.

They once again accused Moses of trying to kill them and this is

the first of two times. We looked at the second time in

Numbers. This is the first of two times

where God provided water for His people from the rock.

Why did God give his people water to drink from a rock 2

times? Why did God do this?

The Apostle Paul tells us this. They all drank the same

spiritual drink, for they all drank from the spiritual rock

that followed them, and the rock was Christ. 1st Corinthians 10

For in other words, God gave them water from a rock so that

they would know that it was God who gave it to them.

If God just put water in the desert, if he, you know, either

he led them to the water or he just made a pool of water up

here. If God did that, they would be

thankful for the gift, but they may not be thankful for the

giver. They made us think, wow, water,

what a great coincidence. You see, water is a gift.

We all want the gift of water. Water is a gift, but so is

thirst. Thirst is a gift too.

It's a gift that reminds us that we need the Lord.

Marriage is a gift, but so is singleness.

Children are a gift, but so is barrenness.

Employment is a gift, but so is unemployment.

Friendship is a gift, but so is loneliness.

They are all a gift because they've revealed to us our need

for the giver. I need the giver of gifts more

than I need the gift. Look at verse 15 to 16.

And they set out from refedum and camped in the wilderness of

Sinai. They set up in the wilderness of

Sinai and camped at Kibroth Hotava.

When they left refedum, they camped in the wilderness of

Sinai. This is where Moses went on top

of the mountain and he met with God is where God gave Moses His

commandments and His law is where God taught His people

about His Holiness. You see, the law was a mercy of

God. It was a means by which His

people would not be consumed by him, right?

God, For as many times as God almost consumed His people, He

would have for sure consumed them had they not had His law,

had they not had a means that they could have a right

relationship with the Father. It's very easy to think of this

law that God gave them as a burden.

But listen to what God tells Moses when he went up Mount

Sinai. Here's what he says to him.

If you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall

be my treasured possession among all the peoples, for all the

earth is mine, and you shall be to me a Kingdom, a priest, and a

holy nation. Exodus 19 You see, God is a

king, but He is not a tyrant. Tyrants don't make their people

their treasure possession. After they left Sinai, they went

to Kibroath Hatava. If you remember at Kibroath

Hatava, this is where the people complained there was no meat.

They said we remember the fish that we ate in Egypt and they

had a strong craving for this meat.

Then therefore God gave them meat.

God gave them exactly what they asked for, but He also gave them

something else. He gave them a very great plague

and they were buried with the meat in their mouth.

Church family, Be careful when manna is not enough.

Be careful when mana is not enough.

You see, the world has a lot of meat to offer.

They hang it in their window shops, tempting us to step

inside. Come on, just a bite.

You want this, you need this. Brothers, sisters, there's

nothing for us in there. There's nothing for us in there.

It is better to sit at a table of bread and contentment than to

be buried with a mouthful of meat.

Verses 17 to 35, I'm not going to read that because it is a

bunch of place names and that's really all that it is because

almost all of these place names, we know nothing about what

happened at them. They're not mentioned again as

much as the as thick as this book is, it could be 10 times as

thick. So here's what I want to say

about this. If you read 17 to 35, almost all

of these place names are never mentioned again in Scripture.

We don't know what happened. There's maybe only a few that

are mentioned maybe once, but even then they're not.

We don't know what happened. They're just mentioned the name.

What I take away from this, when I read that section, I was like

17 and that's a large section of the chapter.

What am I going to do with this Lord?

Here's what I took away from this is that most of life is not

the parting of the Red Sea. Most of life is simply living in

a no name place in the wilderness.

That's what most of life is, isn't it?

In other words, we want to go to the fireworks show, but most of

the Christian life is simply faithfully collecting manna on

the ground. See, faithfulness is measured

not only if we have the faith across the Red Sea, that's true,

But faithfulness is not just do we have faith to cross this Red

Sea, Faithfulness is also do we have the faith to trust God when

it nothing's really happening in our life.

I'm just stuck at Horhagidada or Jatbata or a Brona.

Can I trust God when it seems like nothing is really happening

in my life? Look at verses 36 to 39.

And they set out and they camped from Izan Gieber and camped in

the wilderness of Zen, that is Kadesh.

And they set out from Kadesh and camped at Mount Hor on the edge

of the land of Edom. And Aaron the priest went up

Mount Hor at the command of the Lord, and died there in the 40th

year after the people of Israel had come out of the land of

Egypt on the first day of the 5th month.

And Aaron was 123 years old when he died on Mount Hor.

They next come into the wilderness of Zen, and they

stayed in Kadesh. In Kadesh is where Miriam died

and she's buried. This is important because Miriam

was a prophetess. She was a leader among the women

in the wilderness. And now she has died.

Along the way of our journey, we all experience death.

It might be death of loved ones. It might be death of our dreams,

might be death of our plans. It might be the death of our

desires, but we all experience death.

And just as Miriam's death seemed to have an impact on

Moses, if you remember, it was right after Miriam's death that

Moses disobeyed God and struck the rock and anger.

And you have to wonder if they were connected.

I think they were, but I don't know.

But it seems very likely that Moses, because he is grieving

his sister's death, that he had a little bit less patience with

the people and he struck the rock and anger.

We too must be careful not to let the things or people who

have died in our life cause us to sin against God.

When the angels physically removed Lot and his family from

their houses, remember in Sodom and Gomorrah, they told him to

leave and they didn't. The angels had physically

removed them out of the city. They were uprooting Lot and his

wife and their kids from their entire lives.

That was all they had known. Lot's wife was experiencing the

feeling of death, the death of her life, the the death of

everything she had known. But rather than let this life

that she had lived be buried with the city, what did she do?

She looked back. She looked back and she became

as the city that she longed for. Be careful not to let God will

put things to death in your life.

It may be your dreams, your plans, maybe you had you ever

had your life all planned out. It's like this is my plan.

I got a five year plan, 10 year plan, 20 year plan is what I'm

going to do next year. I'm going to do this next year

and God just smashes it. Be careful that you don't let

that sin cause you to sin against God.

Only four. Marian passed four months after

his sister passed. His brother passes.

Aaron passes. He's a 123 years old Aaron.

And Aaron reminds us, oh, Aaron, you got to love Aaron.

It's like Aaron reminds us that God uses deeply flawed

characters. When Moses went up Mount Sinai

to receive the law of God, Aaron caved to the pressure of the

people and he built them a golden calf.

You got to love the answer he gives when he came down, He's

like, the people gave me this gold and I just threw it into

the fire and then a calf came out.

I don't know. When Miriam challenges Moses

authority, Aaron joins his sister in her irreverent

insubordination. When Moses struck the rock and

anger and stole God's glory, Aaron's right there with his

brother doing it in his rebellion.

Aaron. It was a deeply flawed

character. And yet God used Aaron for his

glory. Aaron was Moses spokesman.

He was the first high priest and the only high priest for 40

years in the wilderness. And it was Aaron, if you

remember, who stood between the living and the dead and made

atonement for the people and kept the plague from being any

worse. God is willing to use deeply

flawed characters. Look at verse 40 and the

Canaanite, the king of Arad who lived in the Negev in the land

of Canaan, heard of the coming of the people of Israel.

I like how it's just one verse, but it if you remember this, the

Canaanite king, we looked at this of several months ago, the

Canaanite king attacks Israel and he takes some of them

captive. This is ironic because God had

rescued them from slavery and now they're God says I'm

rescuing you from slavery to bring you into Canaan and then

some of them are captured and in slavery in Canaan and it's like

slavery, slavery. God, if you wanted us to be in

slavery, we could have stayed in Egypt.

But here the the Kenai king defeats them and slaves them.

But that's not the end of the story.

The Israelites make a vow to the Lord.

They say, Lord, if you will give us victory over them, we will

devote them all to complete destruction and God listens to

their plea. He gives them victory over them.

This short story is a reminder that when trials seem hopeless,

God is not finished writing our story yet.

We just got back from our retreat where our theme was

abounding hope. That was our retreat theme.

Abounding hope. You see, God loves.

He loves to lead us into hopeless situations.

He delights to do it. Why?

Because it is in the Valley of Despair where he strengthens our

hope. People don't get their hope

strengthen on the mountaintop. They get their hope strengthened

in the Valley of Despair. Look at verses 41 to 49.

And they set up from Mount Whore and camped at Zalmona.

And they set up from Zalmona and camped at Punan.

And they set up from Punan and camped at Oboth.

And they set up from Oboth, and camped at EI Byram in the

territory of Moab. And they set up from Yaim, and

camped at Debond Gad. And they set up from Debond Gad

and camped at Almond Debatheim. They set up from Almond

Deboytheim and camped in the mountains of A Byram before

Nebo. And they set up from the

mountains of A Byram and camped in the plains of Moab by the

Jordan at Jericho. They can't buy the Jordan from

Bait Jeshimov as far as Abel Shateem and the plains of Moab.

Now most of those names that I just read, they're not mentioned

again. Or if they are mentioned,

they're given no context of them.

But we certainly remember at the very end this comment about the

plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, because that is where

the king of Moab hired Balaam to come and curse Israel.

For three chapters, the narrator recounts to us how this Pagan

diviner tried four times to curse Israel, but God turned it

into a blessing. Do you know what I find

fascinating about that entire story of Balaam?

On top of the mountain is Balaam and Balak and the Lord, and

we're never told if Israel down in the plains has any idea this

is going on. Maybe they did, maybe they

didn't, but we're never told. Like, do they have any idea

what's going on above them? Balak and Balak are on top of

this mountain. They overlook all the people

sitting in the plains. And as far as we can tell, they

have no idea that the king of Moab has hired A Pagan diviner

to curse them. Nor do they know, perhaps, that

God is taking control of Balaam and is using him for his own

purposes to bless Israel. How many times are there battles

being fought in the heavenly places and we have no idea

what's going on behind the scenes?

You ever wonder that you ever, you ever had a day like where

you were just so angry, like like every, every little thing

just set you off and you're like, why?

How many times are the things going on behind the scenes and

you have no idea what is going on behind the scenes?

Peter would have had no idea that Satan had demanded to sift

him had Jesus not told him what's going on with Peter.

Why does Peter falter in this moment?

Why? Because Satan is sifting him.

He would have never known that had Jesus not told him.

The church in Smyrna would have had no idea that the devil was

about to throw some of them into prison, that they may be tested

and for 10 days have tribulation.

They would have had no idea had Jesus not told them.

God is always working behind the scenes, testing us, trying us,

blessing us, supplying us. We only see a small fraction of

what's really going on. There is an entire war going on

behind the scenes. We don't wrestle against flesh

and blood. We wrestle against

principalities and powers of darkness.

Look at verses 50 to 54. And the Lord spoke to Moses in

the plains of Moab by the Jordan of Jericho.

Saints, speak to the people of Israel and say to them, when you

pass over the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then you shall

drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and

destroy all their figured stones, destroy all their metal

images, and demolish all their high places.

And you shall take possession of the land and settle in it, for I

have given the land to you to possess it.

You shall inherit the land by lot, according to their clans.

To a large tribe you shall give a large inheritance.

To a small tribe you should give a small inheritance.

Wherever the lot falls for anyone that shall be his,

according to the tribes of your father's, you shall inherit.

Moses is about to die, and he is not going to cross over the

Jordan with them. He's not.

So God says. Here's some final instructions.

Make sure you communicate this to the people.

God says when you cross over the Jordan and you walk into the

land of Canaan. When you step foot into the land

of Canaan, your first order of priority when they get there is

not building a house. It's not to go on a scouting

trip to scout out all the farmland.

Where are the best fruit trees. It's not to go check out the

Canaanite nightlife. Your first order of priority

when you step into this land is to drive out all the inhabitants

of the land. You are to destroy all their

figured stones, all their metal images, all their high places.

That's your first priority. That's your only priority right

now. Certainly we don't have holy

wars anymore. We don't wage war against people

groups or against nations. But we do have a holy war

against our so-called gods. We are at war with our idols.

I asked Chad TBT the other day. What would you say is the most

worshipped idol in America? I was really curious what answer

it would give. That was really curious, Do you

know what it said? Quote.

If I had to name just one idol that dominates American culture,

I'd say it's the self expressed through individualism, autonomy,

and personal fulfilment. Wow, that's what I would say.

I would agree. When we are baptized in the

river Jordan and we crossover into the promised land of

salvation, we go to war with self.

We are always at war with our self, and the danger of not

going to war is the exact same danger the Israelites faced.

Look at 55 and 56. If you do not drive out the

inhabitants of the land from before you, then those of them

who whom you let remain shall be as barbs in your eyes and thorns

in your sides, and they shall trouble you and the land where

you dwell. And I will do to you as I

thought to do to them. God makes it very clear what

will happen if they fail to drive out the Canaanites.

He says these people, they'll be barbs or like thorns in your

eyes and thorns in your sides. Now what does that mean?

What does that mean? Have you ever tried clearing out

brambles or like BlackBerry bushes?

Ever tried clearing them out? It's very difficult.

It's very, very difficult. If you don't clear them out

completely, they will come back. I mean, I, I cut the ones out

front here and like next week there's just a whole new they,

they just come right back. If you don't clear them out

completely, they will come back. They will take over and they

will hurt. The same is true for the

Canaanites. It will not do to clear out 25%

of them. It will not do to clear out 50%

of them, or 75% or even 90%. It won't do to clear out 95% of

them. Why?

Because whatever remains, whatever portion of this

remains, it will function like a thorn in your eyes.

It will blind your spiritual vision so that you can't see God

clearly. They will function like in your

sides so that when you try to run this race, it will

perpetually keep you from running effectively.

The Canaanites must be driven out completely and so must our

sin be driven out completely. It doesn't take a large piece of

glass to stop us on our journey. Just take 1 little sliver of

glass, step on it and get it into your foot and you can't

walk very far. John Owen writes.

There is no trifling sin in the sight of God.

A little sin, if it be allowed to grow, is enough to ruin the

soul. Brothers and sisters, the

Promised land is to have no Canaanite gods, and this temple

is to have no false gods. Clear them out, go to war with

them every day. Let's pray.