Unbelief

Lord, I ask that as we look at this passage

that you would give us courage.

Give me courage, Lord, for it's with some trepidation

that we look at this theme of unbelief, Lord,

knowing that there are many among us

who have experienced a kind of pain

that I have yet to experience, Lord,

a pain that might cause doubt or unbelief,

of questioning you.

And so, Lord, would you encourage us all through your word?

Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart

be pleasing in your sight, O Lord.

Would you, Lord, please forgive the sin

of the one delivering this message?

And Lord Jesus, we would see you most of all.

We pray in Jesus' name, amen.

We're continuing this morning our study of Psalm 119.

It's what can be called an historical psalm.

The psalm writer is one of the many Israelites

in exile in Babylon after Judah,

the southern kingdom, had been conquered by Babylon

and its inhabitants sent off into exile

to the kingdom of Babylon.

The psalm recounts many of Israel's failures

for two reasons.

The psalmist wants to warn the exiles

against the failures of their ancestors

and more importantly,

to tell of God's faithfulness and patience

despite his people's failures.

Now, so far we've heard through studying Psalm 106

about the Israelites grumbling,

about their jealousy,

and about their idolatry.

And this morning we're going to learn about her unbelief.

Unbelief is a very relevant topic for us.

I think most of us have heard some kind of polling

about the number of evangelicals

leaving the evangelical church.

Not that we need the polling.

I think all of us here know somebody

or are close to a person

who has left the faith that we once shared together.

You've seen it happen in the life of a sibling,

and a spouse,

a roommate,

a close friend,

or one of your children.

And for some of you,

it's happening in your life right now.

You're experiencing

unbelief

to some degree.

And I would suggest

that all of us,

all of us are to some degree

in danger of unbelief,

or else there wouldn't be such

stark warnings against unbelief

in all of Scripture.

We're going to look at what Numbers 14

and Psalm 106

have to say about unbelief.

We're going to learn about God's character.

So, what is unbelief?

Who is God?

But first I'd like to descend

into the setting of Numbers 14.

This is a very pivotal story

in the whole drama of Scripture.

So, let's descend

into the desert

of Kadesh

in Paran.

You're standing with all the other

Israelites

in the middle of this settlement.

Kadesh lies at the very edge

of the promised land,

the land that was promised to you,

your countrymen.

And this same border

would exist 3,500 years later

between Egypt

Egypt and Israel.

It's been roughly

a year and a half

since you and the Israelites

were rescued by God

from Egypt

passing through

the Red Sea.

And it's been 40 days

since the 12 spies

had been sent out

to spy out

the promised land.

And they've just

returned.

And they're holding

a single cluster

of grapes.

But the cluster

is so big

that they need to

suspend it

from a pole

carried by

two spies.

And from their sacks,

the spies also pull out

pomegranates

and figs.

You can hear

the reports

that the spies

are giving to Moses.

They say it's a land

flowing with milk

and honey.

In other words,

it's not an agricultural

wonderland

like the Nile River Basin,

but it's perfect land

for cattle

and for goats

and for growing sweet things

like dates

and grapes.

This marks

a strong contrast

to the barrenness

and desolation

of the desert

that you find yourself

in right now.

It's hot,

it's dusty,

and dry.

There's one big problem

though

that the spies report.

Unless there's people there,

they're not going to want

to give up their land

so easily.

The spies report

that they live

in fortified cities,

some with walls

that are 24 feet thick.

And the people themselves

are huge.

The spies believe them

to be

what are called

Nephilim.

These were

mythic giants

right from the pages

of your holy

and sacred history.

And the spies say

that the land

devours everyone in it.

That means

that the tribes there

are accustomed

to war.

So they have both

the experience

and the gear

to defend themselves.

And you look around,

you look at yourself,

you look at all

the Israelites around you

and you think,

man,

we are really short.

We're super skinny.

What's going to happen?

It makes sense

why the spies said

that they felt like

grasshoppers

in comparison to them.

So here's what's facing you.

You're on the very doorstep

of the vast land

promised to you

and your countrymen

and you and everyone

around you

are convinced

it's a death trap.

When you step foot

in this land,

those of you

who can hold a sword

are going to get

hacked to pieces

by giants.

And those

who don't hold swords

are going to be taken

as plunder.

You know,

life was pretty hard

in Egypt

but at least

your family

could stick together.

No one was smashing

your skull in

with a giant hammer.

Of course,

you seem to have pushed

out of your memory

a whole generation

of baby boys

being murdered

by the Egyptians.

But you're going

to ignore

that inconvenient truth

at the moment.

Anything

to justify

turning around.

Of course,

you know,

it's Moses and Aaron

that got us

into this mess

so let's get rid

of them

and let's choose

another leader

who will do

what we want.

And everyone around you

is thinking

the same thing.

And people start

to get really

freaked out

and angry

and you feel like

something's

about to happen.

People's murmuring

has led to loud

talking,

has led to shouting,

there's people

sobbing.

And you're feeling

something too

like you are

feeling so desperate

that with the right

provocation

you would do

something violent

to save your life

and the lives

of your family members.

All you can think about,

all that's fixated

in your mind's eye

is a giant.

An angry,

bloodthirsty man

with a bloody sword

bringing it down

on your head.

and you join

the chorus.

These are the words

you hear

coming from your mouth.

You scream,

if only we had died

in Egypt

or in this wilderness.

Why is the Lord

bringing us

to this land

only to let us

fall by the sword?

Our wives

and children

will be taken

as plunder.

Wouldn't it be better

for us to go

back to Egypt?

Something curious

happens

during this frenzy

which gets

everyone's attention.

Moses and Aaron

who have led you

into this death trap,

they lie down

on their stomachs,

faces to the ground

and you're not sure

why.

You assume it's because

they're feeling

really angry

or maybe

they're expecting

the Lord

to show up

which would not be good.

And then Caleb

and Joshua,

they tear their clothes.

Okay,

that has your attention.

so it gets quiet.

So quiet

you can hear

a pin drop

on the dusty rocks

of this desert

that you're standing on.

And Joshua

and Caleb say,

the land

we passed through

and explored

is exceedingly good.

If the Lord

is pleased

with us,

He will lead us

into that land,

a land flowing

with milk

and honey.

and He'll give it

to us.

Only do not

rebel against

the Lord

and do not be afraid

of the people

of the land

because we will

devour them.

Their protection

is gone.

But the Lord

is with us.

Do not be afraid

of them.

Well,

you don't buy it.

And you've heard enough.

The dam has burst.

People are losing

their minds

and now they're

picking up stones.

It seems to you

and to those around you

that Caleb and Joshua

are breaking

one of the Ten Commandments.

Ten spies,

good men,

all share

the same eyewitness account.

Ten.

Ten witnesses.

Caleb and Joshua

are bearing false witness

against them.

That's clear to you.

In such a way

as to lead you

all to your,

as to lead us,

excuse me,

as to lead you

all to your deaths.

So you think,

let's bring about

the Lord's judgment

on them.

Let's pick up

these stones

and stone them.

Let's pause the narrative.

Let's pause the narrative

and consider a few things.

First,

let's consider

Caleb's response.

It's interesting to me

that he does not agree.

Excuse me,

he doesn't disagree.

He does not disagree,

which means he agrees.

He does not disagree

with the Ten Spies

as to the giants,

okay?

Yes,

Caleb is saying,

we agree.

They are very big people.

And yes,

the cities are big

and fortified.

We have found

some remains,

actually,

3,500 years later.

24 feet thick

these walls are.

Caleb doesn't deny

any of that.

To deny it

would be like

gaslighting,

right?

Well,

you know,

if he were to deny it,

it would be like saying this,

you know,

what you saw,

you didn't actually see.

You must have had

some kind of anxiety

or heat stroke,

which is making you

exaggerate in your mind

what really isn't

that big of a deal.

It's important to note this

because, like,

we face giants,

too.

We face giants,

too.

And perhaps someone

has tried to convince you

otherwise,

that the giant you're facing

isn't really a giant.

And if you're like me,

more than likely,

you're good at

gaslighting yourself,

all on your own.

And you've questioned

your own sanity

and your own perception.

And I think what Caleb

is saying is,

yes,

the giants

are real.

pain,

trauma,

injustice,

death,

sickness,

abuse,

abandonment,

suffering,

doubts.

Whatever it is

that looms

largest in your view,

the act of trusting

in God

doesn't call for you

to deny the reality

of those giants.

It's a matter

of attention.

The giants are big,

but the Lord

is bigger.

The giants are big,

but the Lord

is bigger.

People took up

a lot of interesting

things during COVID.

One of my sons and I

we took up

adventure racing.

We watched

Eco Challenge

on Netflix.

And we thought,

oh,

let's do something

like that.

So we started

training for

one of these races

which involved

running,

orienteering,

paddling,

and mountain biking.

And in learning

mountain biking,

I have had to

painfully relearn

what I learned

when I was 15.

And that was when

I learned how to

drive a car.

The lesson is this.

Whatever you focus

on,

that's where you go.

Whatever you focus

on,

that's where you go.

So if I'm

mountain biking,

and if there's a

tight turn to

avoid a tree,

I better focus

on the path

where I'm supposed

to go.

Okay?

But it's human

nature when one

sees a giant tree

coming at you

very fast,

like an

full of wrath.

To keep looking

at it,

that's what we're

born to do.

Like,

that's how we

stay out of danger

is to look at the

thing that's causing

us danger.

But when you're

mountain biking,

or when you're

driving,

when you're

mountain biking

and you look

at the danger,

you're going to

collide with the

tree.

So you have to

train your eyes

and you have to

train your mind

to be continually

looking at where

you want to go.

Or else you

collide with the

tree,

which I perhaps

have painfully

learned,

you go exactly

where your

attention is

focused.

You go exactly

where your

attention is

focused.

Caleb gets

that.

Okay?

Hear what

Caleb says.

The land we

promised,

excuse me,

the land we

passed through

and explored

is exceedingly

good.

Okay?

He's focused

on the Lord's

promise.

God's promises

reflect his

character,

who he is.

He's good,

merciful,

wise,

just.

And Caleb

says,

if the Lord

is pleased

with us,

he will lead

us into

that land.

The Lord

is with us.

Again,

Caleb is

focused on

the Lord

and his

love and

his faithfulness

to his

people,

whom he has

pledged

himself to.

Unbelief

is born,

I think this

is what this

is saying,

unbelief is

born when we

have our

attention fixed

on something

else.

Unbelief

has an

object.

It's not

like belief

has an object

and unbelief

does not.

I don't

think.

Each has

their own

object.

Unbelief

has an

object like

crashing my

mountain bike

has an

object.

It's the

tree.

Belief is

nurtured

when our

attention is

focused on

God and

his character,

revealed in

his promises

and in

his acts

on behalf

of his

people.

people.

So how

is God

revealed in

Numbers

Numbers 14 · chapter mention

chapter 14?

Well,

he's revealed

as both

just and

merciful.

The Lord

descends and

appears at the

tent of meeting

and he says

to Moses,

how long

will this

people despise

me and how

long will they

not believe

in me?

In spite of

all the signs

that I've

done among

them,

I will

strike them

with the

pestilence

and disinherit

them and I

will make you,

Moses,

a nation

greater and

mightier than

they.

Israel had

turned their

backs on God.

They wanted

to return to

Egypt.

They wanted

to reverse

the exodus.

They wanted

to reverse

the foundational

event in

their identity

as a people.

It would be

just then for

God to turn

his back on

them.

It would be

perfectly just.

He didn't owe

them anything.

But Moses

appeals to God.

He prays to God

and he appeals

to two things.

First, he appeals

to God's honor

and power.

Lord, what

would Egypt

say?

Well, Lord,

Egypt would say

you weren't able

to do what you

said you were

going to do.

And then Moses

appeals to

something else.

He appeals to

God's mercy.

Moses prayed,

please pardon

the iniquity

of this people

according to

the greatness

of your

steadfast love.

So the Lord

relents,

but not without

consequences for

Israel.

The generation

of adults that

turned their

backs on the

promised land

would not be

able to cross

over, but

their children

would.

The ten spies

who gave the

bad report

would not be

able to cross

over, but

the two spies

who did,

Joshua and

Caleb, they

would.

Justice would

have the Lord

visiting the

iniquity of

the fathers

on the

children to

the third

and fourth

generation we

read elsewhere

in Scripture,

but God

restricts his

discipline just

to this

generation and

is showing

them mercy,

showing mercy

to his people

to whom he

has pledged

himself.

There's

another goal

of the

psalmist

in writing

Psalm 106.

You remember

the first

one was

don't make

the mistakes

that your

ancestors made,

so don't

fall into

unbelief.

Don't despise

the Lord

and his

promises.

The second

thing the

psalmist

wants to

do is

in spite

of everything,

the Lord

remains faithful

to us.

The Lord

remains patient

with us,

constantly

extending his

mercy to

us, even

when we

fail, even

when we

mess up, even

when we divert

our attention

from him and

everything he's

done for us.

So the

psalmist gives

us the

warning.

How then can

we avoid

unbelief?

Well, it's

actually in

some ways

rather simple

and yet it

takes a

lifetime of

constant

vigilance.

We avoid

unbelief

through

remembrance.

We avoid

unbelief

through

remembrance.

We avoid

unbelief

through

remembering.

Through

paying attention

to God,

paying attention

to his

character,

his deeds

on behalf

of his

people,

I'd like to

offer you

three ways.

There's a lot

of ways we

can remember

God and

remember him

and his

works.

I'm going

to offer

you three

ways.

The first

one has been

really important

to me.

It's my

family.

It's what we

call the

daily

examine.

The daily

examine.

E-X-A-M-E-M.

At the core

of the daily

examine is

reviewing the

emotions we've

had throughout

the course of

the day.

We pray out

of those.

What we

notice when

we reflect

on our

day is that

we experience

both

consolation

and

desolation.

Consolation,

desolation.

A person

dwells in a

state of

consolation when

he or she

is moving

towards God's

active presence

in the world.

And we know

we are moving

in this way

when we sense

the growth

of love

or faith

or hope

in us.

A person

dwells in a

state of

desolation

when she

or he

is moving

away from

God's active

presence in

the world.

And we know

we are moving

in this way

when we sense

the growth

of resentment

and gratitude,

selfishness,

doubt,

fear,

and so

on.

The way

we practice

this in

my family

is to talk

about

consolation

and desolation

as a

paradox.

I've told

you this

before.

It was

seven years

ago,

you remember?

So let me

tell you

again.

A paradox,

right?

We can go

through a

day being

pulled towards

God and being

pulled away

from him,

experiencing

consolation and

desolation.

It's a

paradox,

which sounds

like a

pair of

ducks.

So we

as family

talk about

two ducks,

the yay

duck and

the yuck

duck.

And the

yay duck

is this

bright,

gleaming,

shiny duck.

Smells

good,

fluffy.

And there's

the yuck

duck,

smelly,

dirty,

gross,

noisy,

repellent.

So yay

ducks and

yuck ducks.

And so at

the end of

the day,

we say,

what are

your yay

ducks and

your yuck

ducks?

We also

did this a

few weeks

ago.

I took two

of my

sons and

five of

their friends

to a

summer camp

for a

week.

And every

night we

would do

yay ducks

and yuck

ducks.

And there

was a

kid who

was the

most homesick

I've ever

seen anybody

in my life.

It was

really sad.

I just

cried for

like three

or four

hours straight.

But by the

end of the

first day,

he was

saying,

this is the

greatest camp

in the

world.

So that

was great.

So at

the end

of the

day,

we said,

what are

your yuck

ducks?

And he

volunteered,

like,

well,

I felt

really

homesick

and I

missed

my

family.

So the

point of

talking about

your yuck

ducks is

to pray

out of

that.

Like,

well,

what happened

because of

your

homesickness?

And he

started to

observe that

all of his

friends,

his six

other friends,

it was

beautiful,

guys.

All six

of these

boys rallied

around this

one boy,

cheering him

up.

Doing

things with

him,

it was

awesome.

And he

also found

courage,

a courage

that he

had never

really sought

for,

a kind

that he

never knew

he had.

So we

were able

to pray

out of

that,

Lord,

thank you

for the

courage

you gave

me in

light of

my really

missing

my family,

thank you

for my

friends.

And so

can you

imagine

doing this

every day?

So every

day is full

of consolations

and desolations

and praying

out of

your

desolations

and finding,

oh God,

you were

present there.

You were

working there.

You were

working on

my behalf.

You were

loving me,

showing me

grace.

So when

we consider

both our

consolations

and desolations,

we discover

and remember

how God

has been

showing us

goodness

and faithfulness

to us.

So the

first is

the daily

examine.

Yay ducks

and yuck ducks.

The second

way is to

surround

yourself

the second

way is to

remember

Hebrews

Hebrews 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3.

Okay?

So in

Hebrews

Hebrews 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3,

the writer

of Hebrews

is referencing

Numbers 14

and warning

his readers

about

unbelief.

He writes,

take care,

brothers,

lest there

be in

any of

you an

evil,

unbelieving

heart,

leading you

to fall

away from

the living

God.

But exhort

one another

every day

as long

as it

is called

today.

That none

of you

may be

hardened

by the

deceitfulness

of sin.

In other

words,

if you

want to

safeguard

yourself

against

unbelief,

surround

yourself

with a

bunch

of

Caleb's,

right?

Surround

yourself

with a

bunch

of

people

who are

going to

tell you,

yes,

the giants

are big,

but the

Lord is

with you.

And the

Lord has

taken away

its

protection,

and he's

going to

conquer these

giants.

The Lord

loves you.

We do

this by

attending

worship on

Sundays.

You can be a

part of a

core group.

Sign-ups happen

soon.

They meet in the

fall and the

spring.

You can meet

with believers

who will pray

for you and

encourage you

and point you

to Jesus when

your giants are

taking up all

your mind space.

to

a third way

to remember

the way

Jesus told

us to

remember.

Excuse me,

the third

way to

remember

is the

way

Jesus told

us to

remember,

and that's

to regularly

sit at this

table,

eating this

meal,

with God's

family,

doing this

in remembrance

of me.

In Numbers

Numbers 14 · chapter mention

chapter 14,

we see both

mercy and

justice,

but their

intention,

their intention,

and it's

unclear from

Numbers 14

how that

tension is

resolved.

But at this

table, we see

it clearly.

On the

cross,

Christ has

absorbed all

the consequences

of our

unbelief.

He dies

outside the

gates of the

holy city,

absorbing all

that God's

justice requires

that we might

enter into it

and enjoy the

fulfillment of

all of God's

promises,

including,

and especially,

eternal life

with him.

Eternal life

with him

after he

has vanquished

every giant.

Pain,

trauma,

sickness,

abuse,

abandonment,

suffering,

and doubt.

He will once

and forever

destroy.

The giants

are big.

The Lord is

bigger.

So as we come

to this table,

let us fix our

eyes on Jesus,

the pioneer

and perfecter

of our faith.

For the joy

set before him,

he endured the

cross,

scorning its

shame,

and sat down

at the right

hand of the

throne of God.

Consider him

who endured

such opposition

from sinners

so that you

will not grow

weary

and lose

heart.

In the name

of the Father

and of the Son

and of the Holy

Spirit,

Amen.

Let's pray.

Lord,

we ask

that as we

remember you

at this table,

you would

encourage us.

Lord,

thank you

for not just

leaving us

teachings,

but you

leave us

yourself,

you leave us

your Holy

Spirit,

and you

leave us

this meal

with which

we're going

to be fed.

So encourage

us and

strengthen us.

Lord,

we believe.

Help our

unbelief.

In Jesus'

name,

Amen.