Deuteronomy 1:28 (ESV)
Where are we going up? Our brothers have made our hearts melt, saying, "The people are greater and taller than we. The cities are great and fortified up to heaven. And besides, we have seen the sons of the Anakim there."''
Our brothers. Israel are so quick to call these evil spies their brothers, for they are united together in unbelief. Just as believing brothers have confederacy with one another, unbelieving sons of Satan have confederacy with one another, for they have the same father. How God hates such union of devils gathered together in their rebellion against God! God surely loves the congregation of the saints, and Christ is in the midst when two or three are gathered in His name. But how odious is it when two or three gather together in rebellion against God. Surely that is what they did when they crucified the Lord of glory:
Psalm 2:1-3 (ESV)
Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? [2] The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against his Anointed, saying, [3] "Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us."
God hates the congregation of the wicked, and He will scatter them:
Genesis 11:4-8 (ESV)
Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth." [5] And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of man had built. [6] And the LORD said, "Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do. And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. [7] Come, let us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another's speech." [8] So the LORD dispersed them from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city.
And remember when Israel gathered together as brothers and danced around the golden calf and gave glory to it together. Observe what Moses made them do afterwards:
Exodus 32:27 (ESV)
And he said to them, "Thus says the LORD God of Israel, ''Put your sword on your side each of you, and go to and fro from gate to gate throughout the camp, and each of you kill his brother and his companion and his neighbor.''"
God causes war between them that together gather to war against God. There can thus be no true union outside the will of God. It will eventually be destroyed, and only union in Christ will last forever:
Revelation 7:9-10 (ESV)
After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, [10] and crying out with a loud voice, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!"
Have made our hearts melt. Some good brothers they had, who made their hearts melt and made them to be caught in fear! Sons of Satan thus hate each other and do harm to each other, for their bond is not out of love to one another but based on hatred towards God. There are no perfect bonds of love between them. Their bonds are temporary, and are not permanent bonds of the love of God. Sons of God however are united with love toward one another, and are even willing to die and sacrifice for one another. This is only possible because their Father loved them so much and offered up His own Son for them. How then can they hate each other? They only want to do good things for one another.
This evil crowd did not realize that Joshua and Caleb were their true brethren who told them the truth and tried to encourage them. Yet they sided with these enemies who discouraged and gave them fear and called them brothers! See then true love builds up faith and hope and love. But these evil spies, since they hated the brethren, tore down their faith, hope and love, and made their hearts melt.
Jesus Christ was also our true brother who built up our faith, hope and love. He was the true brother to those Jews who killed Him, for He was also a Jew, from the house of David. But they rejected His Gospel, and murdered Him, listening instead to the Pharisees, Sadducees and the priests' evil report of Him.
And see with what words did the evil spies discouraged their brethren: "The people are greater and taller than we". As though Israel's strength laid with their own strength or height or military skills. Israel was strong because their God was strong, not because of anything in themselves. Did Israel escape Egypt because they were mighty warriors? Did they lead a great revolution and took over Pharaoh's courts with violence? No. God did all the work and freed them from their bondages. All they did was to walk out of there.
Likewise it was God that saved us and freed us from our bondages to sin. Did any of us free ourselves from our slavery to sin by power and might? Did we achieve some great enlightenment by ourselves and overcome our sins? By no means! There was a supernatural working of God who convicted us of sins and a supernatural power that cleansed our sins away by Christ's blood. God freed us from our chains, we simply walked out. As it is written:
1 Corinthians 1:26-29 (ESV)
For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. [27] But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; [28] God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, [29] so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.
It is God that makes us strong and wise and sets us apart from other people. Other people are greater, richer and wiser than us. But we have God. This is what Israel could not realize. Let us put our confidence in Christ, who is our strength and our wisdom, and let us put no confidence in our flesh:
Philippians 3:3 (ESV)
For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh-
Let us give the glory to God. Being a people of God is special because of God, not because of anything in us. It is His grace and His election. We are God's people, so that makes us strong. Without God we would not even be a people at all.
Cities are great and fortified up to heaven. Also notice how unbelief makes us to exaggerate. The cities' walls were high and but they were not "up to heaven". Unbelief always makes things appear so much worse than it is. And we remember in Jericho how easily these walls that were "lifted to heaven" came down like houses built on sinking sand. No matter strong or high the fortresses in the world are, they will all crumble and fall that which is not built on the foundation of Jesus Christ:
Matthew 7:26-27 (ESV)
And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. [27] And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it."
By saying that the cities are "fortified up the heaven", the spies were implying that defeating the Amorites was impossible. Thus unbelief makes us to emphasize on the impossibility of things. Of course, it was humanly impossible that such a small army with inferior weapons go in and overtake giants who live in highly walled fortresses. But they should have known this truth, that what is impossible with man is possible with God:
Matthew 19:26 (ESV)
But Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."
It is impossible that a man born blind can be given eyes to see. It is impossible that a man sick for decades can just be healed. It is impossible that one who is dead can be brought to life. It is impossible that a virgin can be with a child. It is impossible that God can become a man, and still be God. It is impossible that God would take the punishment that His elect humans deserve and die, to rise again from the dead, never to die again. These are impossible with man, but with God those things impossible with man are possible. That's the definition of miracle.
Israel should have had confidence that they will defeat the Amorites BECAUSE they were and taller and live in high walls. They should have been joyful BECAUSE the mission was impossible. That should have meant for them that God will work, and God will do the fighting for them. Impossible situations are an opportunity for us to believe in God, who can do the impossible. This God - who sent His Son, to be a man, to die for our sins, and raised Him from the dead - what is it then this God cannot do for us, that which glorifies His name? God will do the impossible, if we ask for a miracle and trust that He is able to do what we can't. Remember when we were a small child and we couldn't open a bottle because it was impossible for us to open it with our strength, then our father came and opened it for us. That's what it means to trust in God. When we see something impossible, let's give it over to God.
And besides, we have seen the sons of the Anakim there. It seems that these Anakim were a people renowned for their great height and strength. So great was their renown, it seems that their name had reached even to the land for Egypt, for Israel knew them. The very mention of their name cast the shadow over the hearts of the Israelites, making them freeze with terror. We must ask here, why didn't they have such terror of the name of God? They ought tk have feared God more. For what is God's name?:
Exodus 3:14 (ESV)
God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." And he said, "Say this to the people of Israel, ''I AM has sent me to you.''"
God is the I Am. He is under no authority, for He does whatever He pleases. He kills and makes alive, and none can deliver from His hand of either destruction or salvation. He is the only Independent Being in the whole world, who alone sits on the throne of heaven, carrying out judgment according to His own standards.
This is the God whom Israel served, this Lion of the tribe of Judah, this independent, Almighty, self-sufficient God. Anakims breathed by the breath that God had given Him. Anakims ate whatever food and whatever drink that God gave them. Anakims could not live one more day if God had withdrawn His hand of grace. Why then didn't Israel fear the name of their God? Even devils tremble at His Holy name:
James 2:19 (ESV)
You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe-and shudder!
Matthew 8:29 (ESV)
And behold, they cried out, "What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?"
But these Israelites fear God less than these demons fear God. They fear man more than God, bringing great offense to God. Here we learn something here: what we fear above God are our idols. These Israelites had a worship-like fear of Anakims. Do we have anything that we fear above God: Money, recognition, approval, career, education, health, family, friends, our own life? Are we afraid of losing these things more than we are of losing God and Christ? Idolaters will forsake God for the above things, because they fear the things of these present world. But he that worships God alone will forsake the above things that he may have Christ:
Matthew 13:44 (ESV)
"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
We must do as Christ said:
Matthew 10:28 (ESV)
And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
It is our imagination that is fuelled by unbelief that makes to think that man can do more than hurt our body. It is our idolatrous imagination that makes us to think that man can do to us what only God can do. But we must put man to their right place and give God the honour in our fear. If Israel had more knowledge of God, their hearts would not have melted in them at the sound of Anakims. Let us remember and consider this following verse, and encourage our hearts:
1 John 4:4 (ESV)
Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
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