Text: Numbers 13:25-33
“And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.” —Numbers 13:33
My favorite song is “God Is Able.” I have it in several different languages and renditions on my playlist, which I listen to often. This personal “heartsong” has become a sort of anthem for my life. I don’t ever want to be looking at a crisis and get distracted from the fact that nothing of its stature is at all intimidating to my God. He is always able, no matter the size of the giants I face.
Numbers 13 is a place in Israel’s history where the people felt stuck between two different chapters in life. It also gives us a tragic warning of what happens when we let the trials of life distract us from the “able-ness” of our God. Here we see that the antithesis of a “God-is-able” theology is a demoralizing form of “grasshopper” me-ology.
The Israelites had been delivered from the cruelty of Egyptian slavery yet still found themselves in a dull and drab wilderness short of their promised land. Maybe you’ve felt like this a time or two in your life, when you know you’ve come out of something difficult, but you are still well short of that blissful place of promise and refuge. This “wilderness” experience can be a very critical place in life. What we do in the wilderness determines what the next chapter will look like. Are we going to hold that God is able, or will we let the circumstances cripple us?
Unfortunately, the majority of those in Numbers 13 took their eyes off of God. It was in this wilderness place that Moses sent out twelve spies to seek out the land and to bring back a report to the rest of the people. The last instruction he gave them was: “Be of good courage…” (Numbers 13:20). Tragically, the spies came back with “grasshopper” vision—all but two of them (Joshua and Caleb) referenced the size of the giants and said, “we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them” (Numbers 13:33). Woefully, their adversaries saw them the same way they saw themselves—pitiful and pathetic!
These spies discouraged the hearts of the people by obsessing over the size of the giants in the land and the difficulty of the mission that God had given them.
“Grasshopper” vision is what happens when our eyes look at our problems or obstacles in regard to their intimidating size or our own personal inadequacy, rather than looking at them in regard to the greatness and the all-sufficient power of our God. People with grasshopper vision view God in proportion to the enormity of their problems rather than viewing their problems in contrast to the size of their God.
Caleb, however, encouraged them to keep their eyes on God’s “able-ness,” to trust His promise, and to keep moving forward (Numbers 13:30). He does not say, “Let us go up and conquer it”; but, “Let us go up at once and occupy [possess] it.” The former relies on self while the latter relies on God to do what He has already promised to do. It later says of Caleb: “Therefore Hebron [the mountain once possessed by giants] became the inheritance of Caleb… because he wholly followed the LORD, the God of Israel” (Joshua 14:14).
God isn’t calling you to conquer anything. He is simply asking you to “occupy” what He has already promised and conquered Himself. He wants you to occupy a faith-filled mindset. He wants you to occupy a God-size vision. He wants you to occupy a believer’s heart. He wants you to occupy a “trust-in-Him” spirit—an overcoming attitude. He wants you to occupy a peace in the midst of the storm. In Christ, we don’t fight for victory; we fight from victory. We occupy what Christ has already conquered for us on the cross.
Whatever giants may be standing before you today, let them not meet in you a grasshopper mentality. Let them tremble at the reality of a faith-filled worshiper completely occupied by the strength, size, and greatness of their God. Because He truly is able! Think about that as you seek to abide in Him this week.
PRAYER
God, thank you for your greatness—the sovereignty to promise and the sufficiency to come through. Let us not waver in unbelief or be crippled by grasshopper vision. May our hearts swell with faith as we begin to see those problems shrink in proportion to the immensity of WHO you are. You are all-powerful and all sufficient, and you have called us into a journey of seeing the impossible give way to miracles. We worship you today as the God who is the same yesterday, today, and forevermore. In Jesus’ blessed name, Amen.
Questions for personal reflection, small group discussion, or dinner table conversations:
- What kinds of risks are involved in standing up for what you believe?
- What did Moses tell the spies to look for and what were they told to bring back? (Numbers 13:18-20)
- What did Caleb say and how did the other spies react to Caleb’s comment? (13:30-31)
- How can trusting in Christ give you the courage to face difficulties this coming week?
- In what ways can you shift from fighting for victory to fighting from victory? How can this shape your worship?
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