August 2, 2019

Chasing Mirages

Numbers 34

Heath Herrington
Friday's Devo

August 2, 2019

Friday's Devo

August 2, 2019

Central Truth

The worst curse Satan can throw will not prevail over the one God wants to bless.

Key Verse | Numbers 34:1-2

The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, "Command the people of Israel, and say to them, When you enter the land of Canaan (this is the land that shall fall to you for an inheritance, the land of Canaan as defined by its borders)."

Numbers 34

Boundaries of the Land

The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Command the people of Israel, and say to them, When you enter the land of Canaan (this is the land that shall fall to you for an inheritance, the land of Canaan as defined by its borders), your south side shall be from the wilderness of Zin alongside Edom, and your southern border shall run from the end of the Salt Sea on the east. And your border shall turn south of the ascent of Akrabbim, and cross to Zin, and its limit shall be south of Kadesh-barnea. Then it shall go on to Hazar-addar, and pass along to Azmon. And the border shall turn from Azmon to the Brook of Egypt, and its limit shall be at the sea.

For the western border, you shall have the Great Sea and its 1 34:6 Syriac; Hebrew lacks its coast. This shall be your western border.

This shall be your northern border: from the Great Sea you shall draw a line to Mount Hor. From Mount Hor you shall draw a line to Lebo-hamath, and the limit of the border shall be at Zedad. Then the border shall extend to Ziphron, and its limit shall be at Hazar-enan. This shall be your northern border.

10 You shall draw a line for your eastern border from Hazar-enan to Shepham. 11 And the border shall go down from Shepham to Riblah on the east side of Ain. And the border shall go down and reach to the shoulder of the Sea of Chinnereth on the east. 12 And the border shall go down to the Jordan, and its limit shall be at the Salt Sea. This shall be your land as defined by its borders all around.”

13 Moses commanded the people of Israel, saying, “This is the land that you shall inherit by lot, which the LORD has commanded to give to the nine tribes and to the half-tribe. 14 For the tribe of the people of Reuben by fathers' houses and the tribe of the people of Gad by their fathers' houses have received their inheritance, and also the half-tribe of Manasseh. 15 The two tribes and the half-tribe have received their inheritance beyond the Jordan east of Jericho, toward the sunrise.”

List of Tribal Chiefs

16 The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 17 “These are the names of the men who shall divide the land to you for inheritance: Eleazar the priest and Joshua the son of Nun. 18 You shall take one chief from every tribe to divide the land for inheritance. 19 These are the names of the men: Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh. 20 Of the tribe of the people of Simeon, Shemuel the son of Ammihud. 21 Of the tribe of Benjamin, Elidad the son of Chislon. 22 Of the tribe of the people of Dan a chief, Bukki the son of Jogli. 23 Of the people of Joseph: of the tribe of the people of Manasseh a chief, Hanniel the son of Ephod. 24 And of the tribe of the people of Ephraim a chief, Kemuel the son of Shiphtan. 25 Of the tribe of the people of Zebulun a chief, Elizaphan the son of Parnach. 26 Of the tribe of the people of Issachar a chief, Paltiel the son of Azzan. 27 And of the tribe of the people of Asher a chief, Ahihud the son of Shelomi. 28 Of the tribe of the people of Naphtali a chief, Pedahel the son of Ammihud.” 29 These are the men whom the LORD commanded to divide the inheritance for the people of Israel in the land of Canaan.

Footnotes

[1] 34:6 Syriac; Hebrew lacks its

Dive Deeper | Numbers 34

I wonder if Moses was overwhelmed by God's command for him to tell the Israelites exactly where they were to go to reach the Promised Land? If I'm Moses, I may have been like, "You want me to tell them to go where?!" What the Israelites thought was good for them was not actually good for them. God had a different plan, a different route, and a different set of boundaries. 

Israel was going to have to take control of the Promised Land by conquest. They would have to drive out the Canaanites to take possession of it. They might have been tempted to think they earned the land, but they didn't. It was given to them by God as an inheritance. And because it was crucial that this land was to be divided in such a specific way, it mattered to the Lord WHO was to be in charge of stewarding this land for all those who would inherit it.

One of my favorite verses in the Bible is Proverbs 16:9: "The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps." I am a man who struggles from desiring that my own plans be fulfilled. But if my plans were fulfilled, I would likely be in a very different place than I am today. Proverbs 14:12 says, "There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death."  

Have you ever suddenly realized you spent years chasing something that, in fact, was simply just a mirage? Maybe you've reached that point today? The interesting thing about a mirage is that, to a desert wanderer, it becomes the most attractive and yet the most deceitful thing. I know I fall victim to mirage-chasing when I convince myself that something other than God may bring me life. But once I reset my gaze toward the Lord and see these mirages for what they are, my path becomes clear.

Discussion Questions

1. Whom or what are you following? Why?

2. In times when you struggle to trust God's promises, why do you think you struggle?

3. What is "wealth" to you? How often do you believe your blessings were earned versus being inherited?

4. Whom are you listening to? Have you ever considered that the Lord has placed leaders in your life (above you) to follow for specific purposes?

5. What in your life do you think could be a mirage?