Walk the promised land with faith and humility, not fear and humiliation

Numbers 13:25-14:11, 1 Cor 10

‘The Lord is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression, but he will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, to the third and the fourth generation.’ Please pardon the iniquity of this people, according to the greatness of your steadfast love, just as you have forgiven this people, from Egypt until now.”  Then the Lord said, “I have pardoned, according to your word. Numbers 14:18-20

These things happened as a warning to us, so that we would not crave evil things as they did..Don’t be concerned for your own good but for the good of others... Don’t give offense to Jews or Gentiles or the church of God. I, too, try to please everyone in everything I do. I don’t just do what is best for me; I do what is best for others so that many may be saved. 1 Cor 10:6,24,32-33

Ten days, second Sabbath since my friend pass away and I've been fasting and seeking the Lord. Listening to How to Pursue Your Promised Land (Lessons From the Wilderness) - Bill Johnson Sermon | Bethel Church.

Ambition, designed to stand before the Lord and hear, "well done, good and faithful servant." (Matthew 25:23)

Faithfulness is defined by what you're done with His promises. 

Careless theology says, whatever God wills to happen will happen. Yet God's will is that none shall perish (2 Peter 3:9) but many are perishing (Matthew 7:13-14). 

• Somethings happen whether you believe it or not, like gravity (physical world) or love (spiritual world) or promise (Jesus will return).
• Somethings happen only when we believe and follow through with obedience. 
• God can make a promise that we don't see fulfilled, but it's not God's fault
• Unbelief is the result of fear. Fear is a horrible teacher. Fear and humility never work together, fear and humiliation will. 
• Humility is a modest opinion of one's own importance, while humiliation is the act of causing someone to feel a painful loss of pride, self-respect, or dignity. 

Here are some other differences between humility and humiliation:

• Perspective: Humility is about dealing with circumstances honestly and finding ways to navigate them. Humiliation is about feeling embarrassed by circumstances. 
• Self-awareness: Humility is about acknowledging what makes you special and unique, while humiliation is about feeling separated from the rest of humanity. 
• Emotions: Humility can produce more happiness, positive emotions, and well-being. Humiliation can lead to feelings of impotence, frustrated rage, despair, and a desire for revenge. 

People wrongfully interpret fear and humiliation as "humility." Any time we take a dysfunction in our life and give it a virtuous name, we give it permission to stay. 

• Fear masquerades as wisdom. Unbelievers were afraid to walk into the promised land and this is a warning to us. (Numbers 13:25-14:11, 1 Cor 10). They wanted to go back to slavery, forgetting how bad it was. How do we know when we are guided by fear disguised as wisdom? Because promise didn't take them there. 
• Where am I going in life that promise didn't take me? Any area of our life that we are not being pulled by a promise...we are being driven by fear. 

When the Lord gives us a promise, he is actually going into our future and giving us a word that will be necessary to get us there. 

• 1 Timothy 1:18-20 The Passion Translation (TPT): With this encouragement use your prophecies as weapons as you wage spiritual warfare by faith and with a clean conscience. For there are many who reject these virtues and are now destitute of the true faith, such as Hymenaeus and Alexander who have fallen away.
• Promise from God doesn't mean it's quick and easy, but that there will be a conflict between now and it's fulfillment. 
• Two parts to Christian advancement, 1) receiving from the Lord as a child a submissive response to our good father. What you need will be brought to you. What we need to survive is brought to us. 2) apprehending by force as one planted in the middle of a war, what we were born for is on the other side of a fight. 
• Stewarding the promise of God by memorizing and putting into action what God has said, as Joshua did. "Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do. Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do." Joshua 1:7-8 
• Declare, confess, say, do what ever is necessary to keep it in front of me. Otherwise it's easy to lose track of what God says is supposed to happen in my life. 
• We die to self will and get an upgrade into what God is declaring into our life. Saying YES to the will of God, gives us grace to fight. 

Anointing 2 Cor 1:20-22: For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory. It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ. He has commissioned us, and he has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything he has promised us.

• Not "maybe" but YES for EVERYONE: For Jesus Christ, the Son of God, does not waver between “Yes” and “No.” ... he always does what he says. - 2 Cor 1:19
• YES from GOD and AMEN from US: For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory. - 2 Cor 1:20
• Over 7000 promises from God in the Bible. Stewarding promising can be difficult, because when we hear the promise, we fail to join it with faith. We join it with fear and take comfort in fear because it keeps us away from the risk that intimidates us. 
• God declares a promise but he's waiting for human agreement. "For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory."
• God designed his will to be done through human agreement. Since the beginning, we were made co-laborers with Him. Take off your sandals and put on the Gospel of Peace
• Jesus gave us keys of authority and said, now accomplish what I told you to do. Matthew 16:19, John 20:23, Matthew 28:16-20, John 14:26. 
• God's Will: "On earth as it is in heaven.", "I will pour my Spirit on all fresh (not a token representation of every tribe)", "glory of the Lord will cover the earth as water covers the sea (Hab 2:14)"
• We often have more faith in Second Coming than the power of the Gospel. If we believed in the power of Gospel like the second coming - Christ return wouldn't be to rescue us but the crowning achievement of church victorious. 
• The gospel is powerful enough to transform a person, therefore a family, therefore a community, therefore a nation, therefore the world. Jesus is not coming back to die again and upgrade what is possible in our lifetime. The cross is enough. Faith in Jesus is my response to his Spirit speaking to me (Genesis 8:20; 9:9; Hebrews 11:7)

Promised Land, stepping into what we were born for. We were designed to work, create, be productive - not from a place of stress but inspiration. God is bringing us into a place of in productivity, fruitfulness, increase where labor would be breathed on by God and it would have an effect on surrounding nations. We see this exemplified in Joseph, Daniel, David and ultimately in Jesus and the Church. 

• In the promised land they had to work for it, plant and care for crops, but in the wilderness manna appeared on the ground. 
• God takes us through seasons of absolute trust, where we have nothing, so that he can trust us with something. The measure of what he can entrust to us, is in our measure of trust in Him. As my trust in God expands, so does my capacity to be entrusted. 
• Challenges ahead: "See, I am sending an angel before you to protect you on your journey and lead you safely to the place I have prepared for you. Pay close attention to him, and obey his instructions...You must serve only the Lord your God. If you do, I will bless you with food and water, and I will protect you from illness...I will send my terror ahead of you and create panic among all the people whose lands you invade. I will make all your enemies turn and run...But I will not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become desolate and the wild animals would multiply and threaten you. I will drive them out a little at a time until your population has increased enough to take possession of the land." Ex 23:20-33
• Law of the harvest, it takes time and effort. Reaping and sowing. Like planting trees: year 1) survive, stay alive, thrive. We can't speed it up but we can slow it down. "Bonsai Christians"
• God doesn't drive out "block E" if we are not prepared to occupy it.
• God doesn't remove abortion clinics if we are not prepared to help fathers be accountable and support families. 
• Challenges behind drive us into trusting God even when there's risk. See (Ex 11-15)
• They were baptized into Moses (1 Corinthians 10:1-5)
• This could have been an eleven day journey into promises, but lasted 40 years! 
• Rebelion was measure by the unwillingness to connect faith with the promises God gave them. 
• Our Faithfulness is seen in what we do with His promises. 

• Promised land is today, not when we die. We live the life Jesus modeled for us here on earth, as it is in heaven. Jesus is the person called the promised land. Through his life, death, and resurrection, Jesus reverses the land-exile cycle by going into exile on our behalf and then giving us the land he inherits (Bible Project). See Dispensationalism
• I've seen this inheritance in Alpha at Teen Challenge, alleluia. 
• The Holy Spirit is referred to as a river in John 7:37-39, baptism sets us up for entering this promised land of healing and ministry. 
• Romans 15:4. ESV For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
• Gifts are given to take territory, we are comforted so that we can comfort others (2 Cor 1:4, from 1 Cor 12-14)
• Teaching doesn't give gifts, we must pursue these gifts earnestly. He has given me every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms. My inheritance is your inheritance. 
• I introduce you to what God gave to me. 
• Godly hunger and thirst for righteousness. 
• Promised land is found in the person of Jesus
• He had more Joy than everyone around him put together. 
• Hebrews 1:8, 9: God anointed Jesus with gladness beyond his companions because he loved righteousness and hated wickedness. 
• Hebrews 12:2: Jesus endured the cross for "the joy that was set before him". 
• Matthew 13:44: Jesus taught that joy was essential to receiving his kingdom. 
• Luke 15:7, 10: Jesus said that there would be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who need no repentance. 
• John 3:29: John the Baptist said, "He is truly the Messiah. and my joy is now fulfilled just in hearing him". 
• Acts 2:25–28: Peter's first sermon is about the gladness of Christ.
• 120 people in a room for 10 days, came to a place of humility, tenderness and brokenness. The crowning achievement of Pentecost.
• Faithfulness, crown by explosive touch of God (you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you). 

Much of what we experience in life is determined by what we've become. When we get our inheritance quickly we squander it. Which reminds me of , yesterday, John Price shared his faith with me: The Only Thing We Can Do for God "When God whisper we say yes!