INL March 3, 2006  

SOUNDING OUT:
Nay-Sayers & Giant-Slayers

  The account of Moses sending the twelve spies to scout out the land of promise can teach us how to identify two groups of people: the nay-sayers and the giant-slayers. Let’s quickly review the account in Numbers. In chapter 13 verses 1-3 God tells Moses to send twelve men, heads from every tribe. Then later on we read:

Numbers 13:17-33, 14:1:
And Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said unto them, Get you up this way southward, and go up into the mountain:
18 And see the land, what it is; and the people that dwelleth therein, whether they be strong or weak, few or many;
19 And what the land is that they dwell in, whether it be good or bad; and what cities they be that they dwell in, whether in tents, or in strong holds;
20 And what the land is, whether it be fat or lean, whether there be wood therein, or not. And be ye of good courage, and bring of the fruit of the land. Now the time was the time of the firstripe grapes.
21 So they went up, and searched the land from the wilderness of Zin unto Rehob, as men come to Hamath.
22 And they ascended by the south, and came unto Hebron; where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the children of Anak, were. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.)
23 And they came unto the brook of Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they bare it between two upon a staff; and they brought of the pomegranates, and of the figs.
24 The place was called the brook Eshcol, because of the cluster of grapes which the children of Israel cut down from thence
25 And they returned from searching of the land after forty days.
26 And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land.
27 And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.
28 Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there.
29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan.
30 And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.
31 But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.
32 And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.
33 And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.
14:1 And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.

  God wanted Israel to know that the land He had promised them was real, and that it was a land rich in resources and provisions. God wants us to know about the blessings. His promises are real. What He promises, He can accomplish.

  Difficulties often arise when we focus on the challenges to our faith and not on the Champion of our faith. Too often we are defeated before we have even engaged the enemy. We have to remember that while the enemy is like a roaring lion roaming to and fro seeking whom he may devour; no man was ever killed by a roar.

  Twelve spies were sent, ten spies came back spineless not willing to take what God had given them. The negative report of these nay-sayers moved the people to fear and to rebel against God’s will.
 
  The Nay-Sayers are infectious, breeding doubt and discouragement. They never see the possibility of the promise. They are defeated by the roar, and they are conquered by their own fear. They will give a thousand reasons why it can't be done—even though God said just the opposite. Unfortunately the negativism of the nay-sayers is contagious

  Twelve men went into Canaan, and all twelve men came out. Every one of them could verify that God's promises were real. Although the nay-sayers will often say that they do believe that God can do what He has promised, they doubt that He will. Nay-sayers will often claim to worship the same God that created universe and called life into existence, but they doubt that He can heal, or provide, or take care of His own.

  All twelve testified that the land of promise had everything God had promised. They said, "We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit." (They had even brought back proof of the fruitfulness of the land.) But, they continued, "Nevertheless the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of Anak there.”

  Even after Caleb had quieted the people and encourage them to go on and posses the land, the Nay-Sayers continued their drumroll of defeat. They said, "We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we... the land through which we have gone... is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. There we saw giants and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight."

  Nay-sayers doubt. They doubt themselves. They doubt one-another. Worst of all, they doubt God. Furthermore, if we listen to the nay-sayers, we are likely to become infected with their doubt, too.

  The nay-sayers could not get their eyes any higher than their problems, and their doubt caused them to pout. Because the people had become infected with doubt, they succumbed to depression and despair. When they began to pout, they said foolish things like, "We would have been better off in Egypt." Or, "We should have just died in the wilderness." They had forgotten the song they had sung as they came out of the Red Sea and their enemies were defeated behind them. They turned on the leadership and would have stoned those who dared believe that it could be done.

  Those who doubt and pout, will do without. The whole generation who refused to pass over to the promised land, did die in the wilderness. People who will not believe dwell in a wilderness of questions and anxiety. Nay-sayers never get to taste and see that the Lord is good.

  The two faithful men saw the giants, too, but they saw the God who stood above the giants. They saw the same reality, but they refused to go along with the popular opinion. Two men stood their ground. Two men had the courage to believe that if God brought them to the promise, God would lead them into the promise. Two men were prepared to take on giants in the name of the Lord.

  These men weren’t nay-sayers, they were giant slayers. In the face of overwhelming odds, Caleb and Joshua believed. With the ten other men declaring that it could not be done, they wanted to go up at once and take the land. Giant-slayers take God at His Word. The giant-slayer will declare in the face of doubt and discouragement, "Let God be true and every man a liar." The giant-slayer declares, "Every promise in the book is mine; every jot, every tittle, every line!"

  Only the two names among the twelve are remembered. The other ten names are written, but no one remembers them. They faded into the dusty pages of defeated lives. But Joshua and Caleb are household names. Some thirty-five hundred years after this event, parents are still naming their children Joshua and Caleb.

  These two men lived through the wilderness and came back to take the promised land. These two men crossed over. These two men achieved greatness. They saw the walls of Jericho fall. They drove out the enemy before them. They walked with God and because they did, they achieved what others did not.

  The coward dies a thousand deaths, but the men who dare to believe, are not easily turned back. The giant-slayer achieves greatness because his trust is in the Lord. David, another famous giant-slayer, achieved greatness because His confidence was in the Lord. Although his own brothers were nay-sayers, David achieved greatness because he dared to walk with God, where lesser men were afraid to go.

  Joshua and Caleb received their portion of the promise. They walked on the ground, they built and lived in the land. They received blessings from God and honor among men.

  Now I am not into this "Name it and claim it!" or "Blab it and grab it!" theology; but when I look into the Word of God and He says, "Believer, this is for you." Then my only question is, "When do I want to receive it?” As surely as God promised it, He will perform it as we believe.

  Has God been calling you to kill some giants in your life? Giants of depression, lust, fear, or whatever. Are giants standing on your promises? Well, make today your day to believe. Make today the day that you stop running from the roar. Don’t be a nay-sayer, be a giant-slayer. Submit to God. Resist the devil and send him fleeing. Stand where Joshua and Caleb stood; stand where David stood. Watch the giants fall!