The Journey – Land Of Blessing Series

The Journey – Land of Blessing

Deut. 1:6-7 "The LORD our God spoke to us in Horeb, saying: ’You have dwelt long enough at this mountain. Turn and take your journey, and go to the mountains of the Amorites, to all the neighboring places in the plain, in the mountains and in the lowland, in the South and on the seacoast, to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the great river, the River Euphrates.

For eleven months Israel had camped and lived at the foot of Mount Sinai (Horeb). During their time of encampment God had spoken and cut a covenant with the people. Eleven months of dwelling had allowed the people to grown accustomed to their surrounding and life was good. But in doing so they had accepted a degree of spirituality that was far from where God wanted them to be yet it seemed a glorious experience.

Deut 1:5 On this side of the Jordan in the land of Moab, Moses began to explain this law

Deuteronomy 5:24 "And you said: ’Surely the LORD our God has shown us His glory and His greatness, and we have heard His voice from the midst of the fire. We have seen this day that God speaks with man; yet he still lives.

As we see from these verses the people had an awesome encounter with God but God wanted them to move

Deut. 1:19 "So we departed from Horeb, and went through all that great and terrible wilderness which you saw on the way to the mountains of the Amorites, as the LORD our God had commanded us. Then we came to Kadesh Barnea

Deut. 1:2 It is eleven days’ journey from Horeb by way of Mount Seir to Kadesh Barnea.

It’s interesting that the people journeyed but stopped again at Kadess Barnea meaning a place in the Desert – failing again to go where God wanted them to go because of the report of the 10 spies -

Numbers 13:26-29 Now they departed and came back to Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh; they brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. Then they told him, and said: "We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. Nevertheless the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of Anak there. The Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan."

Numbers 13:31-33 But the men who had gone up with him said, "We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we." And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, "The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight."

Over the Jordan – Gods destination - were the giants in Canaan that the Israelites feared - So Jordan can be seen as a barrier of fears

It’s time to leave what we have known in the past good or bad and follow Jesus in the present. The past can plague us into thinking we cannot move on, and lull us into being comfortable with the ease of the situation.

Whether it is a satisfaction with our life in God or a fear of giants we must move on with God this will take us to cross our River Jordan’s in order to inherit all that God has for us:

Canaan was the Land of REST (Hebrews 3)

So let us:

• Break Camp with The Past

Moses led the people to make preparations to depart. The idea is to pull up the tent stakes and start on a journey. Lingering in your past, however good or bad, is not worth risking God moving on without you –

• Start A New Journey

1:7 Turn and take your journey - those words speak of excitement and fulfillment at the hand of God. Today, is the start of a fresh encounter with God leading you on an incredible journey - Do not fail to heed to the voice of God today! Do not let your past haunt you into losing the present. God’s blessings would go with them. No matter your past God wants to bless you today.