The Cost of Unbelief
The Lord has me back in the Old Testament and I am grateful. The book of Exodus has long been my favorite book of the Bible as it shows God reaching into a awful situation and demonstrating His ultimate authority and power. Then, He goes on throughout the book to show them His character and establish relationship with a people who sometimes wanted that relationship and at other times determined that it was too hard and slavery in Egypt sounded better.
Well, now I am in Deuteronomy. This book contains the second telling of the Law to the sons and daughters of those who refused to trust God and enter into the land 40 years before. When the children of Israel departed from Sinai they traveled through the wilderness to Kadesh Barnea and sent 12 spies into the land to bring back report of it. Those spies went out and did not come back with an encouraging report. The power of words, people!
The book of Deuteronomy opens with Moses giving a brief history lesson to these children who have wandered in the wilderness for 40 years. It opens with:
Deut 1:1-3 These are the words which Moses spoke to all Israel on this side of the Jordan in the wilderness....It is an eleven days journey from Horeb (the mountain range Mt Sinai is part of) to Kadesh Barnea. Now it came to pass in the 40th year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month...."
11 days journey that extended into 40 years. All. because. of. unbelief.
They refused to believe God. 11 days became 40 years. Stop and consider how much time that is! 365 x 40 = 14,600 days.
In the opening chapter of Deuteronomy we are reminded of the evils of unbelief.
Unbelief assigns horrible motives and assumes the worst about the Lord. (Deut 1:26-27)
Unbelief chooses to filter everything by the eyes of flesh. (Deut 1:28)
Unbelief quickly forgets the amazing power and mighty works of God. (Deut 1:29-31)
Unbelief is a wretched horrible deeply rooted sin that calls out against everything God desires for us. It is as old as the Garden where Satan tempted Eve with the lie that God was keeping something from her by telling her not to eat of a certain tree. So Eve determined that what her eyes told her, what her hands could handle and her mouth could taste was more important than walking in obedience to the God who had created all she had seen, felt, tasted up until then and she ate.
Unbelief will be fought against as long a you are dwelling in this fleshly body, but it must be battled. It must be thrown off. But how?
Well, where Eve failed, Jesus shows us the way. See, when Jesus was tempted by Satan in the wilderness (Matt 4:1-11) how did He respond to every attack? With the Word of God. But you have to know it in order to do battle with it. When I am renewing my mind in the Word and choosing to memorize it and chew on it, I am reminding myself of truth and putting on the mind of Christ. This mind enables me to see things in light of the Lord and not my flesh. It becomes the filter by which I determine every other stimulus that enters my life and keeps me centered on the truth and everlasting nature of Him, not the temporal fleeting nature of this world.
Unbelief will always cost more than what God is asking of you. It might seem like the more expedient choice at the time, but it will ALWAYS be more costly, 11 days vs 40 years? Fight it. Fight it with the Word and do not let unbelief keep having dominion over you.
Well, now I am in Deuteronomy. This book contains the second telling of the Law to the sons and daughters of those who refused to trust God and enter into the land 40 years before. When the children of Israel departed from Sinai they traveled through the wilderness to Kadesh Barnea and sent 12 spies into the land to bring back report of it. Those spies went out and did not come back with an encouraging report. The power of words, people!
The book of Deuteronomy opens with Moses giving a brief history lesson to these children who have wandered in the wilderness for 40 years. It opens with:
Deut 1:1-3 These are the words which Moses spoke to all Israel on this side of the Jordan in the wilderness....It is an eleven days journey from Horeb (the mountain range Mt Sinai is part of) to Kadesh Barnea. Now it came to pass in the 40th year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month...."
11 days journey that extended into 40 years. All. because. of. unbelief.
They refused to believe God. 11 days became 40 years. Stop and consider how much time that is! 365 x 40 = 14,600 days.
In the opening chapter of Deuteronomy we are reminded of the evils of unbelief.
Unbelief assigns horrible motives and assumes the worst about the Lord. (Deut 1:26-27)
Unbelief chooses to filter everything by the eyes of flesh. (Deut 1:28)
Unbelief quickly forgets the amazing power and mighty works of God. (Deut 1:29-31)
Unbelief is a wretched horrible deeply rooted sin that calls out against everything God desires for us. It is as old as the Garden where Satan tempted Eve with the lie that God was keeping something from her by telling her not to eat of a certain tree. So Eve determined that what her eyes told her, what her hands could handle and her mouth could taste was more important than walking in obedience to the God who had created all she had seen, felt, tasted up until then and she ate.
Well, where Eve failed, Jesus shows us the way. See, when Jesus was tempted by Satan in the wilderness (Matt 4:1-11) how did He respond to every attack? With the Word of God. But you have to know it in order to do battle with it. When I am renewing my mind in the Word and choosing to memorize it and chew on it, I am reminding myself of truth and putting on the mind of Christ. This mind enables me to see things in light of the Lord and not my flesh. It becomes the filter by which I determine every other stimulus that enters my life and keeps me centered on the truth and everlasting nature of Him, not the temporal fleeting nature of this world.
Unbelief will always cost more than what God is asking of you. It might seem like the more expedient choice at the time, but it will ALWAYS be more costly, 11 days vs 40 years? Fight it. Fight it with the Word and do not let unbelief keep having dominion over you.