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Topic: Danger Of Self
[DCLM Daily Manna 8 October 2019 Daily Devotional by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi]
Text: Numbers 13:1-16 (KJV)
1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2 Send thou men, that they may search the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel: of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, every one a ruler among them.
3 And Moses by the commandment of the LORD sent them from the wilderness of Paran: all those men were heads of the children of Israel.
4 And these were their names: of the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur.
5 Of the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori.
6 Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh.
7 Of the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph.
8 Of the tribe of Ephraim, Oshea the son of Nun.
9 Of the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu.
10 Of the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi.
11 Of the tribe of Joseph, namely, of the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi.
12 Of the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli.
13 Of the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael.
14 Of the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi.
15 Of the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi.
16 These are the names of the men which Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Oshea the son of Nun Jehoshua.
Key Verse: “Send thou men, that they may search the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel: of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, every one a ruler among them” (Numbers 13:2).
MESSAGE:
In this age, “self” is revealed in phrases that glorify personal choice above all other values: self-determination, self-knowledge, self-esteem, self-help, even do-it-yourself. In this climate, no doctrine is safe, no dictate accepted without scrutiny. The touchstone of belief today is the individual, not the institution. The same voters who talk back to their political leaders on call-in shows and town meetings are talking back to their church leaders at parish council meetings and outreach events.
The children of Israel were now in the wilderness of Paran, just on the threshold of the Promised Land. If things had gone according to plan, they would have started occupying the land of their dream within days or weeks. The people actually demanded Moses to send spies to spy out the land for the purpose of knowing what way to go (Deuteronomy 1:22). Moses then accepted their request after obtaining approval from God. Everything went well, until the spies returned with an evil, exaggerated report that brought a serious setback to Israel’s journey of faith.
We fail at the point of success when we stop working by faith. The Christian race is a journey of faith; once we start allowing our will to override God’s purpose, everything will begin to collapse. If only these spies had stayed within their mandate without making a recommendation tainted with self and unbelief, Israel would have made it. For us to get to our own Promised Land, we must stay within God’s plan and deal with the problem of self.
Thought For The Day: Self is a forerunner of sin.
The Bible In One Year: Isaiah 9–12
