by In Numbers 13 Israel is discouraged when God’s promises don’t come in their way and time. God had miraculously brought them from Egypt to their Promised Land. We find them in Numbers 13 just a hop-skip-jump from the land that “floweth with milk and honey.” It was all that God promised, yet, in 13:20 Moses had to tell God’s people to “be ye of good courage.” Why? Twelve spies were sent into the land, ten gave an evil report while two gave a good report. The “evil report” discouraged the people. So then, in 13:18-20 Moses said of the giants of the land, “whether they be strong or weak … good or bad … fat or lean” they were to “be ye of good courage.”
After 250 years, America lives in strong times physically but weak spiritually, good times physically but bad spiritually, fat times physically but lean spiritually. Believers love the Lord and want to make an eternal difference in our nation. They feel strong, good and fat to get the job done. However, they find most believers in a weak, bad, lean state, dragging them into spiritual discouragement. This is where Israel was. They had to fight “giants” for their Promised Land (13:33), but they were beaten down by their brethren (Deuteronomy 1:28), unable to “fight the good fight of faith” (1 Timothy 6:12).
After 250 years, God can turn our nation to Him by a remnant who choose not to be discouraged by the majority. Yet like Israel, when we don’t see God’s promises come in our way and time, we land right where Israel was, “discouraged because of the way” (Numbers 21:4). Like Israel, we trade victory for defeat, an eleven-day journey for forty-years in the wilderness, our Promised Land for a dry parched wilderness. We just get tired of the fight!
After 250 years, when God’s promises do not happen in our way and time, we too can become discouraged. Thus, we must remember it was God who “delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us” (2 Corinthians 1:10). What God requires of us is to trust and obey, wave the banner high with verses like Deuteronomy 1:21, “Behold, the Lord thy God hath set the land before thee: go up and possess it, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged.”
