Near To

We read of how the twelve spies came back with large clusters of grapes. All of them praised the land and showed the fruits, but the enemy was mighty. The nations were great and the spies were like grasshoppers in comparison. For this reason they had no faith for victory and taking possession of the land. Joshua and Caleb agreed with the other spies in everything except in the matter of not being able to overcome the enemy. All the people had now “come near to,” but they did not have faith to enter in.

From this we see how easy it is to listen to unbelief. All the people listened to the ten. Why? They did not believe in God’s grace and power, and it sounded so humble when they said that they could not overcome. “But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes; and they spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying: ‘The land we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land which flows with milk and honey. Only do not rebel against the Lord, nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread; their protection has departed from them, and the Lord is with us. Do not fear them.’ And all the congregation said to stone them with stones. Now the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of meeting before all the children of Israel.” Num. 14:6-10.

They had come near to the promised land, but did not have faith to go in and conquer the enemy. This is because they did not believe in the Lord, but only in their own strength. If God had sent a plague into the land so that all the inhabitants had lain there dead, then they would have had faith to enter. Then they would have praised God and said, “He has done everything; we didn’t need to do a thing.” That is the way the religious masses would like to have it. But what would that be in comparison to God’s giving them power so that they themselves overcame? “If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land, only do not rebel against the Lord,” said Joshua and Caleb.

Here is the crux of the matter. Does the Lord delight in us? The children of Israel, if the Lord had delighted in them, would have consumed their enemies as if they were bread. This might sound like pride and arrogance, but in fact this was true faith in God who had called them to possess the land. When you hear this, you can hear the difference! But are you also able to hear the difference today between those who have faith in victory over sin in the body and those who do not have faith and who say, “He has done everything, we are to do nothing”?

“And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who were not willing to believe?” CH 3:18 (Norw. transl.). Why would they not believe? Because they did not want to fight and were afraid to suffer. Many people suffer because of sin in the body, which is constantly manifesting itself, and they seek the baptism of the Spirit. They think then that all sin will be torn up by the roots and done away with. They think that the power they receive will take away the sufferings. Here many people are thoroughly deceived. It is impossible to cease from sin without suffering in the flesh. (See 1 Pet. 4:1.) “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you” so that you can suffer in the flesh and be finished with sin. Then you can be witnesses of what Jesus has made possible for us. Acts 1:8.

If we read further about Israel, we find that Moses prayed that God would forgive them, just as He had done ever since they left Egypt. “Then the Lord said: ‘I have pardoned, according to your word; but truly, as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord—because all these men who have seen My glory and the signs which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have put Me to the test now these ten times, and have not heeded My voice, they certainly shall not see the land of which I swore to their fathers, nor shall any of those who rejected Me see it.’” Numbers 14:20-23.

In other words, they received the forgiveness of sins, but they did not get victory in the land and partake of the glory there. They had to return to the wilderness and wander there for 40 years. They continued to murmur, and the Lord sent fiery serpents among them, and many died. They confessed their sin and Moses prayed for them. If they were bitten they were to look up to the serpent, and they would live. This was an amazing thing that required faith. It was only those who believed who lived, but this bronze serpent could not prevent them from being bitten in the first place.

“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:14-15.

This is the first thing that is preached to us, and without it none of us would be saved, “...through this man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you....” Most people stop here and never come to what is written next: “...and by Him everyone that believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses.” Acts 13:38-39 (RSV). The greatest thing for most people is to preach Jesus as the bronze serpent. They do not know Jesus as High Priest.

Later we can read that Israel, long after they had entered the land, was still burning incense to the bronze serpent. But then they had fallen away and Hezekiah, who was zealous for the Lord, broke it in pieces. “He removed the high places and broke the sacred pillars, cut down the wooden image and broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made; for until those days the children of Israel burned incense to it, and called it Nehushtan.” 2 Kings 18:4.

Down through the ages there has been a vast amount of idolatry with Jesus as the bronze serpent. There are millions who think that they are worshiping God by kneeling in front of a crucifix. They place it at crossroads, where they kneel and kiss it, or on their property. Think of all those who wear it as an ornament around their neck. This is an awful deception. Because they do not know the great mystery, the new and living way through the flesh, and Jesus as High Priest, there is no spiritual development, only a wandering in the wilderness with sin and divisions, murmuring and complaining. The heavenly calling is something completely different!