Services | Without God - Failure

Bulletin

Hymn # 491 “When We All Get to Heaven”

SCRIPTURE READING – Revelation 21:1 - 7

Giving of Selves and Our Offerings
OFFERTORY PRAYER
OFFERTORY MUSIC – Pru Hungate

Praise and Worship
“Great I Am”
“Echo Holy”
“God So Loved”

Proclamation of the Word
Message by Pastor Joe
“Without God - Failure”

PRAYER TIME / Time of Reflection

“The Battle Belongs”

Sermon Notes
Numbers 14:39 & 40 The people mourn the pronouncement, but attempt to take the promise land anyway
Numbers 14:41 – 43 Moses warns the people that they will not succeed without the Lord
Numbers 14:44 & 14 They went anyway and lost
Psalm 140:6 – 8 God covers you in battle
Psalm 144:1 – 8 God is our shield and stronghold
Romans 8:28 – 38 Because of God we are overwhelming conquerors

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Scritpures

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Transcript of Service

You've probably heard it said, if you think you can or you think you can't, you're probably right. We find the Hebrews at the Promised Land Order and at first they think they can't and then they think they can and they're wrong both times. What was the fact that it caused them to be wrong both times? If you have your Bibles and you should, one should turn to Numbers chapter 14 and we're going to start with 39. I want to talk about some of the context up to this time. You see God had promised Abraham, Isaac and Jacob the Promised Land.

He told Abraham that that deliverance would take about 400 plus years before he would actually deliver it. The nation of the Hebrews grew and grew and grew to a point that they were actually a nation and so God prepared them because he showed them his signs and wonders and his powers and his ability so that could trust him to do what he said he would do. He also supplied their needs and was with them through their journey from slavery to the Promised Land. Not only that but he also prepared them in the sense of he gave them his law to show them that they were separated, that they were holy, that they were a different people.

So he prepared them but he also prepared the Promised Land. If you've read Genesis when Abraham and Jacob and others lived in the Promised Land, there would be times when the Promised Land would be subject to famine and so the people would go to Egypt or other places to buy food or do whatever in those bad times. But now we see God has prepared the Promised Land because now it is a land truly flowing with milk and honey. It has an abundance of food and nest so much so that in Genesis you never see, they're talking about that the grapes are so large and it takes two men to carry them on a pole. So God has evident that he is prepared a place for them, that is a place that is worthy of them to go.

But as we saw previously when they got to the border and they sent out the spies there was a minority and majority report. Ten people said it was a land flowing with milk and honey. We can't take the land and oh no, whatever.

And the two said, no, no, we can do this if God wants us to. And the people believed the bad report so they said they had their own preferences. It would have been better for us to die in the wilderness than to take the land. So God granted them their preference. You can die in the wilderness but he did say that he would preserve their children. So that is where we are now. They are still at the border and God has told them here to leave.

But as people who never listen to God, they still don't listen to God. And so in Numbers chapter 14, 13, it says, 39 says this. And when Moses spoke these words to all the sons of Israel, to meet people mourn greatly. So that's kind of all what they do. Good news they mourn.

Bad news they mourn. They just always in a sense of grief. In the morning however, they rose up early and went up to the edge of the hill country saying, here we are, we have indeed sinned but we will go up to the place which the Lord has promised.

Has promised. Not to them now because they refused to trust him. They refused to have faith in him that he would deliver them. They considered it was that they were incapable of doing it. Therefore they could not do it. And since they could not do it on their own, they did not trust God to deliver them.

So they weren't going to. But now the God said, no, you're going to die in the wilderness what it is you wanted. Now they're going to say, no, no, we're going to go even though God has not sent us, they've acknowledged they've sinned but they haven't gotten forgiveness. They've set an acknowledgement of sin.

But both of us said, why then are you transgressing the commandment of the Lord when it will not succeed? The Lord has already told you, he's not giving you the promised land now. He's going to wait a generation because he's waiting a generation.

You are transgressing the Lord because he's told you to turn back. And you've decided you're going to do your own thing even though Moses tells them it is going to fail. And the reason for that failure is going to be obvious. Do not go up or you will be struck down before your enemies for the Lord is not among you.

You see before the Lord was going to be among them, the Lord was going to fight for them. But because they didn't trust God and thought they could only do it on their own might, they said no. Now they're going to try to do it on their own might without God. And Moses is warning them, you're going to fail because God is not with you. For their melequites and the canonites will be there in front of you. And you will fall by the sword in as much as you have turned your back from following the Lord. And the Lord will not be with you.

He's giving them the reason God is not going to keep telling him God is not going to be with you. You turn your back on God so God is not going to be with you. You're going to fail. But people do what people do. But they went up heath of state to the ridge of the hill country. Neither the Ark of the covenant of the Lord nor Moses left the camp. Now I find this interesting because most of times when we think about the Ark of the covenant, we think about it being in the Holy of Holies, where the high priest goes once a year twice into the Holy of Holies to place an offering of blood upon the mercy seat of the Ark.

And that's all we think about it. It's in this enclosed holy environment. But the Ark every time the people of God moved from place to place, and when they ultimately will go into the promised land, the Ark is what leads them ahead. So not only is God saying, I'm not going to be there. My pillar of cloud by day and my pillar of fire by night is not going to be there. The symbol of my presence, the symbol of my seed in heaven isn't going. So all of these things are telling you, I ain't going to be there.

Moses, the representative, the advocate and the leader of the Hebrews, and the Ark stay in the camp. How much more can they understand that God's not going? Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that hill country came down and struck them and beat them down as far as Horma. What happened was exactly what Moses told them who happened. They would be defeated.

There would be failure. There was failure because God was not with them. The only way they could succeed is that if God was with them.

However, even if they had succeeded, let's say that they were able to take, quote unquote, the promised land. If God isn't there, then it is that the promised land. Is it just another piece of territory in another part of the earth? What made the promised land, the promised land, was God had promised it to his people and that God would be their God and they would be his people.

But if they're in this geographical location, but God is not their God and they are not his people, then it's just some other place. Even in quote unquote, their success would be failure because God was not with them. A few years ago, I got to go to my ancestral place which was Scotland and Wales and it got a chance to take my son and my grandson. We saw this, our coat of arms for the Richard Part of because most of, I don't think we were all that noble. But the coat of arms said, with God everything without God nothing. That is so true and I'm glad it's quote unquote my family coat of arms because it's true.

If you have God in your little, you have everything. But if you have abundance, you do not have God, you are nowhere. You have nothing because you can be the richest person that this world has ever seen. Jesus this question, what will a man give for his soul? Even if you had all the earth's riches, would not be enough to buy your way into heaven.

Jesus has already done it for you. With God everything. But these people again, they determine that they did what they would do because they would do it rather than leaning on God. In Psalms 140 it says this, I said to the Lord, you are my God, give your Lord to the voice of my supplication, oh God the Lord, the strength of my salvation. You have covered my head in the day of battle. Do not grant, O Lord, the desires of the wicked, do not promote his evil devices that they not be exalted. Here's the prayer that says God fight for me, be with me, cover me because they are the evil ones. And I don't want them to accomplish anything or be that their devices be exalted.

Well guess what? The Amalekites and the Canaanites now think they're superior to the people of God because they beat them. Well they weren't the people of God, they were the people absent God. But they exalted themselves over the people of God because they did not pursue his fight. They did not pursue his presence. Psalms 144 verse 1-8 says this, Bless be the Lord by rock who trains my hands for war and my fingers for battle. God prepares us for what is necessary. And it's awesome because we're prepared to notice my loving kindness and my fortress by stronghold and my deliver, my shield and he in whom I take refuge, who subdues my people under me.

Notice he goes, God prepares me for the battle and then God fights. As we took a look at Ephesians the other day, we're to put on the armor of God. And then he tells us to stand firm and the devil will flee. Does this say we've got to fight the devil? It says the devil is going to flee. Just put on the armor of God and stand firm.

Here's in God prepared us for battle and then God fights. O Lord, what is a man that you take knowledge of him or the son of man that you think of him? Man is like a mere breath.

His days are like a passing shadow. Bow your heavens, O Lord, and come down, touch the mountains that they may smoke. Flash forth the lightning and scatter them, send out your arrows and confuse them. Stretch forth your hand on high, rescue me and deliver me out of the great waters out of the hands of the aliens, whose mouth speaks deceit and whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood. My God is a God of truth. My God is a God of righteousness and a mercy.

And if he fights for me, I cannot lose because he fights for me. And he's going to set right those things that are false and deceitful. Even though they may seem to succeed, even so they may seem to have more power. It is God who will accomplish it. And so when we do not rely on God, no matter what happens, we will fail. The people of God, when given the opportunity to take the land, only look to themselves and say, are we capable? And they'd look at the enemies that they're bigger than us, we lose.

They were wrong because they did not consider that God would fight for them. When they decided that they're going to take the promised land, even though God said not to, they lost because God was not with them. And again, as I say, even if they had succeeded, it would still be failure. And you go, well, this is a nice Old Testament passage. There's a New Testament discussion as well. And that's found in Romans chapter 8, one of my favorite. Romans is one of my favorite books of the Bible.

When I'm not reading the Bible, at the moment I'm asked the question, my two favorite books is Romans and Ephesians. When I'm reading the scriptures at that particular time, my favorite is where I'm reading because I'm learning more about God. Standing here, not Prince Romans, is one of my favorite books. And in Romans, chapter 8 is one of my favorite chapters in the book of Romans. And so verse 28 through 38 says this, to you and me, maybe to you and me.

For those whom I fornew, he also predestined to become conformed to the image of his son. We could stop there. God himself is going to make me like Jesus. Even though I kick him scream and don't try to be anything like him, we are his workmanship. He is going to make me not just the best version of Joe. He's going to make me like Jesus.

He's going to be predestined to be predestined. It's going to happen. It's not a promise. It's a promise fulfilled. It's not a thought. I'm conformed to the image of his son so that he would be the first born among many brethren. And these whom he predestined, he also called.

So he says, how is it that you know that you've been predestined because I'm calling you? I'm calling you to be my children. And these whom he calls, he also justified. He didn't excuse. He justified.

I don't have to listen to the lies of Satan. Yeah, I'm a miserable sinner. I don't bear that anymore because I'm justified. I'm not just excused for my sin. I am justified. I'm as innocent as if I'd done nothing wrong.

And these whom he justified, he also glorified. I'm not only justified for my sins and being conformed to his image. He's going to glorify me. I'm not worthy of being glorified. And yet the God of glory is going to say, he's going to glorify me and you.

What then shall we say to these things? Well, I can't do it. That's right. You can. He can.

If God is for us, if God is for us, who is against us? See, that's what the Hebrews forgot. God was for them. He showed them his power and his glory and his protection and his provision and they refused to follow him. And therefore they forgot when God is for them, it doesn't matter who is against you. He who did not spare his own son but delivered him over for us all. Howling not also with him freely give us all things.

If the God of the universe decided that he was going to offer his son to be placed on the cross to die for our sins in a pain, merciless, painful, painful way to die. He's going to withhold a mere prayer request that you have. He gave you the most important thing in heaven. He's going to withhold a penny. We're so concerned about what God may or may not do. He gave us his best.

Who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the one who justifies. It's like going to court and somebody accuses you of something's not bad and you get the court and your dad's sitting on the side.

On the days, it's like you lose because my dad is in charge. God is the one who justifies. Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather, who was raised and who is at the right hand of God who also intercedes for us.

Throughout these weeks that we've talked Moses continues to intercede for the people of God even though they don't deserve to be interceded for because they keep rebelling against Him. Well guess what? We keep being faithless. You know, as I say, I've been faithful several times, but God has always been faithful.

And Jesus, not Moses, Jesus, the one who actually died for me in Rosalind, He intercedes for me and He intercedes for you. My blood covered that. You're not condemned. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Good question. So who can do that? As if it goes with tribulation or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or peril or sword.

You list all of the terrible things that have happened. Can that separate you from the love of Christ? Now you may think so, but it doesn't happen.

Religious leaders may think so. When Job suffered, the things that Job suffered, it wasn't because Job was a sinner, it was because God was showing his great faith. So maybe the things that are you're happening, the tribulation or the stress or the persecution or your lack of financial ability or whatever God is showing just how blessed you are. Today, there are people in Africa dying because they're Christians or becoming ransomed and even after the ransom is paid, they kill them. And we should have rejected that and we should pray and we should do what we can do about our brothers and sisters in Christ suffering, but they are not being separated from the love of Christ. As a matter of fact, they're probably more blessed than you and me because God has faith in their faith, or maybe we have a little faith. So don't take a look at your circumstances and determine whether God loves you. He's going to confirm that by saying just as it's written, for your sake, we are being put to death all the day long.

For we are considered a sheep to be slaughtered. I hate to break into you sometimes when people say, well, God has a wonder