Overcoming The Grasshopper Complex Series

OVERCOMING THE GRASSHOPPER COMPLEX

Numbers 13:25-33

Introduction: One of my favorite Comic scenes, is when Charlie brown goes to Lucy for some counseling advice.

Sitting next to her ‘lemonade stand/office, Lucy prepares to offer her sage advice,

Charlie brown, I read this week of some fears that are apart of many peoples lives…maybe even your own there is Claustrophobia, the fear of enclosed spaces. Then there is Hyrdophobia the fear of heights,or maybe you have Phobophobia: fear of being afraid.

Chalrie Brown then leaps to his feet and gleefully shouts, THAT”S IT!

Of all the phobias and complexes that people have there is none more damaging to the Christian, then when he/she gives into the GRASSHOPPER COMPLEX.

How many times have you and I been given a challenge by God only to turn in fear because we felt that we couldn’t do it?

Has this ever happened to you?

• You filled out a job application but could not attend the interview because you kept hearing a voice in the back of your head, “You will fail”. So you quit before you could begin.

• Or perhaps you were raised in a home where one or both parents expected perfection from you. Nothing you did was ever right. So now, you feel you cannot do anything because you believe you are doomed for perpetual failure

This is how the Grasshopper works in instilling fear in the hearts of believers. The grasshopper complex paralyzes Christians from moving forward in God pursuing God’s will for their lives.You know that God has called you to a task. You know that you are in God’s will. Nevertheless the fear that you will fail,;or the feelings that you are not good enough halt you from moving forward in your faith.

If that is how you feel, then know that you are not alone. The Grasshopper Complex is the number one affliction of many Christians. It has afflicted some of the most famous of spiritual heroes, like Gideon, Peter, even Moses and Joshua were faced with it. The difference is, that these men, by faith overcame the giants that would impede their faith, and moved on to victory. ….Their lives are testimonies that you do not have to remain where you are, but can with faith in God’s Promise, Provision, and Presence you can overcome any giant or obstacle Satan puts in your path.

For almost 400 years, the Israelites had reached the edge of destiny. All through their lives in Egypt, they were told of how God had promised their fore fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, that He would bring them to a land of Promise. A land of prosperity flowing with milk and honey, ; A land of perpetuity, where their generations could live out their lives in peace; A land of provision where they could live out their existence without fear of enemy attacks, secure in God’s presence.

They were a people, a generation who could say like no other,

1 The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?( Psalm 27:1)

Now they stand before their destiny. I can I can only imagine the questions going through their minds. IS this it? What wil it be like? Is it all ours? Let’s take a close look GOD’S COMMANDS TO MOSES;

I. GOD’S INSTRUCTION TO MOSES ( read 13:1-20):

The very first thing God does is Command( v.1-2) Moses to commission 12 men(v. 3-16)to scout out the land. These men were respected leaders from each of the twelve tribes. Each one had a specific call (v. 17-20) to go into the land and report back to Moses and Isreal what it was really like.

God’s instructions through Moses to the spies were simple and specific,

"Go up through the Negev and then into the hill country. Look the land over, see what it is like. Assess the people: Are they strong or weak? Are there few or many? Observe the land: Is it pleasant or harsh? Describe the towns where they live: Are they open camps or fortified with walls? And the soil: Is it fertile or barren? Are there forests? And try to bring back a sample of the produce that grows there—this is the season for the first ripe grapes." ( The Message)

Most of us are familiar with how our government takes a census every couple years to assess the condition of the nation. They send a survey in the mail, they have assessors come to our doors, or they have annoying telemarketers call during supper time.

This was not the case here. The Spies were to scout out the land under cover. They were to take notes, and even bring back samples of the produce of the land. These instructions I believe fulfilled a two fold purpose.