Eyes Of Faith | Faith Series | Week 2
Faith sees the same giants and fortified cities everyone else sees, but draws its conclusions from the presence and promises of God rather than the size of the obstacles. The contrast between the ten spies and Joshua and Caleb reveals how easily fear can spread when God’s people let circumstances shape their outlook. Their report, however, models a different posture—one that remembers who God is, what He has said, and how He has already proven Himself faithful. Leaders shaped by this kind of vision learn to face challenges with a settled confidence that steadies their decisions and strengthens the people they serve.
Here’s a thought: With God’s vision comes His provision.
If I found a parade winding through the streets of downtown and jumped in front of it I would appear to be leading it. This is often how we look at the great men and women of the Bible. We study their technique and marvel at their success. We decide these people must be very special to accomplish such great feats while all along God Himself was at work and these leaders simply jumped into the action and joined the parade.
The nation of Israel was on the verge of greatness in Numbers 13:25-33:
25 At the end of forty days they [the twelve spies] returned from exploring the land. 26 They came back to Moses and Aaron and the whole Israelite community at Kadesh in the Desert of Paran. There they reported to them and to the whole assembly and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 They gave Moses this account: "We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey! Here is its fruit. 28 But the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large. We even saw descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites live in the Negev; the Hittites, Jebusites and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live near the sea and along the Jordan." 30 Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, "We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it." 31 But the men who had gone up with him said, "We can't attack those people; they are stronger than we are." 32 And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored. They said, "The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. 33 We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them." NIV
Once you see the world through God’s eyes you:
See the Same Facts
It is no accident there was a “40 day” spy mission into the Promised Land. The number 40 appears repeatedly in the Bible. It became a round number that may or may not be exact. Perhaps 40 came to be used as a round number for an indefinite period with a suggestion of completeness. In other words, these twelve men thoroughly checked out the land of Canaan.
Why did the Lord instruct Moses to choose a leader from each of the twelve tribes of Israel to go ahead of them as spies? Was He still trying to decide if in fact they could take the land? Was the Lord surprised by what they found? Of course not! Were the men surprised by what they found? Of course! The Lord wanted them to overtake the land fully aware of the magnitude of this miracle that the Lord was about to perform – this was a fertile, productive land but it would be conquered only by facing a challenge.
God was as interested in growing and stretching His people as He was in giving them this land. Seeing the facts would be the first step in enlarging their vision and transforming their identity from beaten down Egyptian slaves to mighty conquerors. It was one thing to take His people out of Egypt, it was quite another to take Egypt out of His people.
I can just see all twelve of these men with eyes as big as saucers as they give the report to Moses on the Promised Land. All twelve men nodded their heads and agreed on the report.
Note how Abraham faced the facts in Romans 4:18-21:
18 Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, "So shall your offspring be." 19 Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead - since he was about a hundred years old - and that Sarah's womb was also dead. 20 Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, 21 being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. NIV
Faith is not sticking your head in the sand and ignoring the facts. It is not simply an optimistic attitude or seeing the world through rose-coloured glasses.
A psychiatrist asked, “Congratulations, Mr. Young. You're finally cured of your delusion. But why are you so sad?”
His patient replied, “Wouldn't you be sad if yesterday you were the Prime Minister of Canada and the next day you were nobody?”
I can understand why people see followers of Jesus as delusional when we try to “pump up” our faith by refusing to acknowledge reality.
I am learning that God seldom performs miracles for His people until they first see the enormity of the obstacle before them. He has a way of allowing circumstances to close in around us so completely that we realize there is only One who has the power to intervene. As uncomfortable as it is at the time, what a great strategy to grow our faith and trust in Him!
Are you facing an obstacle that seems to be bigger than your abilities and resources? Good – the Lord has you just where you need to be!
Once you see the world through God’s eyes you:
See the Same Facts
Reach Different Conclusions
Joshua and Caleb, having weighed the same facts as the other ten spies, reached a much different conclusion about the challenge that lay before them. As the report is brought to Moses ten of the men were thinking, “Yeah, so we can’t do this.” Two of the men, Joshua and Caleb, were thinking, “Yeah, so what?” When Caleb expresses his conclusion ten spies whip their heads around to glare at him in astonishment, “What, are you nuts?!”
All of these men had enough smarts to spy out this land of giants and to return in one piece. However, this huge challenge of conquering the giants would take more than intelligence and natural abilities – it would require intervention from heaven.
The principle of democracy would conclude that the majority must be right. Weighing out the reports, ten of twelve level-headed men concluded that the Israelites should not be doing this. In the world seen through God’s eyes the majority is not always right. In fact, those who see through eyes of faith are usually in the minority.
All twelve agreed on the size of the challenge ahead but two disagreed with the other ten on the size of their God-given ability to take the land. I suspect that all twelve would have agreed on the size of their God – He is all-powerful! All twelve would have agreed that He is able to conquer the giants in the land.
Where these men disagreed was not the size of their God. Where they disagreed was the size of their God amongst them. They reached very different conclusions.
A little boy was in the habit of sucking his thumb all the time. His mother tried everything to break him of the habit. Finally, one day she pointed to a man with a very large stomach and said that the man had grown his big stomach because he did not stop sucking his thumb.
The next day the child was with his mother in a supermarket, and he kept staring at a woman with a stomach that was obviously not at all normal, in fact she was very pregnant.
Finally, the annoyed woman said to the child, "Stop staring at me like that. You don't know who I am."
"No," said the boy, "but I know what you have been doing."
What is rather frightening is how words of discouragement and doubt can so easily drown out words of encouragement and faith. Sickness is more contagious than health. “Be careful little mouth what you say,” is a childhood ditty that I grew up reciting in Sunday School. It is no less true today than it was 30 years ago.
Would eyes of faith have allowed them to go and conquer any nation that they desired? To the casual reader of the Bible it would appear that the Israelites could have conquered any land to take as their own. This was not the case, however, since this land of Canaan now inhabited by giants was the specific territory promised to the descendants of Abraham. God did not plan for them to conquer Egypt and to take over the land. He planned for them to live in another land. To misuse such God-given confidence would not be faith, but presumption.
The Son of God revealed the secret to His power in John 5:19-21:
19 Jesus gave them this answer: "I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. 20 For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. Yes, to your amazement he will show him even greater things than these. 21 For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it. NIV
The Son of God promises even more power to the people of God in John 14:10-17:
10 Don't you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. 11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves. 12 I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. 15 "If you love me, you will obey what I command. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever - 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. NIV
Do you see the chain of events here? The Father lived in and through the Son. The Father now gives the Holy Spirit to live in and through the followers of the Son. Jesus did many mighty miracles. His followers will do many more mighty miracles.
When you read this promise from Jesus, “You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it,” you could easily interpret it as an unconditional promise to do for you whatever your little heart desires. This is not, however, the context in which Jesus makes this promise and the rest of the Bible does not reinforce such a misunderstood promise.
The key to the fulfillment of such a promise comes in intimacy with God. When we draw close to Him and become so submissive to Him, His will and our wills become unified and indistinguishable. We are called to seamlessness in our daily lives – where the sacred and the secular are no longer separate but one blended whole. You no longer have to pray, “God be with me” or “Come Holy Spirit.” More than anything you simply need to cultivate an awareness of His presence wherever you are and whatever you are saying or doing.
If you try to hide certain parts of your life from Him you are only kidding yourself. The next time your thoughts begin to drift into areas of lust or greed pray, “I thank you, Lord, for living within me. Occupy my thoughts, Holy Spirit.” You will be amazed at how quickly the darkness must flee when the light is turned on in your mind.
With God’s vision comes His provision. Pastor Rick Warren says it this way: "If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it." My friend Mark Manfredi says, “God pays for what He orders.”
Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of Christ (Romans 10:17). When God speaks to His people He infuses faith when His Word is embraced. How do you discern God’s voice? Here are some tips:
Practice listening to Him – I can’t describe to you what His voice sounds like any more than I can describe what my wife’s voice sounds like. You need to learn how to distinguish it for yourself.
Be a Bible student – with all of the resources available to us there is no excuse not to be.
Ask mature listeners to God’s voice for their help and discernment.
Once you have distinguished the promises of the Lord you have the inner security to face reality – even when things get rough. You then have the divine ability to stand apart from the crowd in the conclusions that you reach and the choices that you make. Such faith energizes you to do great exploits in His name!
Once you see the world through God’s eyes you:
See the Same Facts
Reach Different Conclusions
Understanding God in you changes the way you live.