When It Does Not Look Good

- Well, good morning to you. Such a privilege just to be here, to be able to share God's Word with all of us today. Wanted to start by asking all of us a question. Have you ever thought to yourself, "This does not look too good." You know, maybe you've looked at circumstances before and you're just like, "Man, this is just not looking good right now." You know, maybe it was an injury that you had, and you're thinking, you know, "This is just not looking good." Or maybe it was a meal gone wrong, you know? That has happened to me way too many times. You know, thinking I'm gonna prepare this meal. Then it comes out and it's like, oh man, that went a lot better in my head, right? That just does not look too good. Or maybe it was a sports team that lost, and you're just thinking to yourself, "Oh, man!" You know, it was a highly anticipated game, and you were really hoping they were gonna win, and then maybe it was in the middle of the game and they're losing badly, and you're just thinking, "This is not looking good." Or maybe it was a date gone wrong. Yeah, that's happened to me before. So me and my wife, you know, she was just singing here, and so she was my girlfriend at the time, and I can remember it was her brother's wedding, and so my responsibility was to pick her up at a certain time, and then as I was going to pick her up, here's what happened. She said, "Hey, can you pick me up at, you know, three-ish." So, you know, ish, in my family means I at least have 30 to 60 minutes. Her family, you got like five minutes, and so I pick her up. I think it was like 3:45. I picked her up at 3:45, 45 minutes later than I think what she was hoping for, and by the way, here's a pro move. I picked her up on an empty tank of gas, and the wedding was in Jamestown area, which is about an hour and a half away, and so we're driving down westbound on the 90, and by the way, when you're driving in that direction, there are like no gas stations anywhere, and so thankfully we made it to the wedding and they got married, by the way, and I got married, too, so it worked out. But I have learned. I have learned ish means five minutes. I have had to learn that. But you know, I recognize that that's lighthearted, but what if we looked at our circumstances and thought to ourselves, "Man, this, this is just not looking good." Maybe it was your finances. You're just, "Man, this just is not looking good." Maybe your marriage. You just thought, "Man, this is just not looking good." Or perhaps the relationships around you. You're just thinking, "Just not looking good." Maybe you feel like you're in a wilderness season of sorts, and if that's your reality, then I'm hoping that in our time together today, that we would be able to lean into Israel's time in the wilderness, because even if it feels like a wilderness time for us, we'll find that as Israel was freed from Egyptian bondage, up until the time of the Promised Land, they were in a difficult season. But even in the midst of that, we're gonna learn a story of 12 spies, and as we turn our attention to the scripture and look at these 12 spies, here's what I pray would happen. Even when things don't look good, I pray that our response would be such, I pray our response would be that we would recognize that we can trust God and that he will always be worth following. We're gonna learn that, even as we turn to Numbers chapter 13 today. Here's what the scripture says. "The Lord said to Moses, "Send some men to explore the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites. From each ancestral tribe send one of its leaders." So at the Lord's command Moses sent them out from the Desert of Paran. All of them were leaders of the Israelites." So we can see here, right in the beginning, that God was telling Moses to explore the land of Canaan, to send 12 spies, one from each ancestral tribe. And by the way, this was in part God's graciousness to them. Here's why. It's because when you actually look at Deuteronomy chapter one, what you'll find there is that the Israelites, they wanted to be able to spy out this land, just so that they can see which route that they could take. And so this was God's graciousness to them. He allowed them to be able to explore the land, and one member from each ancestral tribe. So 12 spies, and they go, and they go to explore the land. And by the way, if you wanted to know who exactly these spies were, you can look at verses four through 15, and that can give you the list there. Here's who I want you to pay attention to. Joshua and Caleb. We're gonna come back to them in just a few moments, but remember them, okay? Even as we continue in our text here, beginning in verse 17, here's what it says. "When Moses sent them to explore Canaan, he said, "Go up through the Negev and on into the hill country. See what the land is like and whether the people who live there are strong or weak, few or many. What kind of land do they live in? Is it good or bad? What kind of towns do they live in? Are they unwalled or fortified? How's the soil? Is it fertile or poor? Are there trees in it or not? Do your best to bring back some of the fruit of the land. It was the season for the first ripe grapes." So we see here, Moses gives them clear instruction, these 12 spies, that they are to go and to spy out this land that God had entrusted to them. And, you know, they were instructed to keep watch for how the land was, what the conditions were like, what the soil was like, and by the way, I think we could all appreciate Moses's request. Bring back something to eat, too, right? Bring back some grapes. Amen to that. And so that's what they do. So they go, they explore the land, they bring back some grapes, figs, pomegranates, and they spied for 40 days. 40 days they were gone. And now you can just imagine the anticipation that these Israelites were feeling. I mean, they're on the brink of the Promised Land here. This was something that they were awaiting for for such a long period of time, and now finally, it's here, and now they're waiting for 40 days and you can just imagine the eager anticipation for what is this land going to be like? You just imagine maybe some of the Israelites thinking, you know, "What would it be like to raise our kids here? Maybe the stories that we would be able to share." Thinking of the memories that they would experience and have. And 40 days, they're waiting. They're waiting. They waited hundreds of years at this point, because by the way, this was land that God had promised to Abraham long ago, hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of years ago, but now they're here, and what's it like? And so this eager anticipation I am sure is happening, and as it is happening, listen to how these spies come back. Listen to what they said. "They came back to Moses and Aaron and the whole Israelite community at Kadesh in the Desert of Paran. There they reported to them and to the whole assembly and showed them the fruit of the land." Here's its fruit. "They gave Moses this account: "We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does, it does flow with milk and honey. Here's its fruit. But the people who live there, they're powerful. The cities are fortified and very large. We even saw descendants of Anak there. The Amalekites live in the Negev, the Hittites, Jebusites and Amorites, they live in the hill country, and the Canaanites live near the sea and all along the Jordan." And so this is what we see here, right? They come back, they give a report on the land, they tell about what it was like, but they say something that's very, very interesting. The land flows with milk and honey. The land, it's beautiful, it's wonderful, but the people who live there? Far more powerful than us. The people who live there? Not really sure if this is... You know, you can start, here's what you begin to to recognize. You can start to hear the doubt surface. You start to hear the doubt rising up. You start to hear the fear that's happening. You see, the land is great and awesome, but people who live there, they're strong. Cities are fortified. They're really, really large. And this is what's beginning to happen. You can hear the doubt. You can hear the fear that is happening. However, here's what we have to recognize. Not all 12 spies had this response. See, the majority of them, they did, but I told you to remember two. Who? Joshua and Caleb. In fact, here's why. Because Caleb actually, when we turn our attention to Numbers 13:30, here's what Caleb said. "Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, "We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it." You see, what Caleb is now saying is he is now, what we hear, is we hear his faith. We can hear his trust in the Lord his God. And by the way, even when things seem impossible, even when things seem hard, even when it didn't look good, we know that in God, all things are possible. We know that in him, all things are possible. This was not well received. This was not well received by the community, because even as we keep reading here, here's what we pay attention to. "But the men who had gone up with him said, "We can't attack these people. They are stronger than we are." And they spread among the Israelis a bad report about the land that they had explored. "The land we explored devours those living in it, and all the people we see there are of great size. We saw the Nephilim there. The descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim. We seemed like grass hoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them." You see, here's what's now beginning to happen, is they feel like grasshoppers, they feel like they can't take on these giants that are now living there. I mean, just imagine this for a second. This is a freshman team taking on a varsity team. This is Rocky taking on Drago. Go Rocky. This is MJ and the Toon Squad, Michael Jordan in "Space Jam," right? Taking on the Monstars. You know, I'm not a... The newer one, okay, it was fine, and all right, but LeBron and they took on the Goon Squad, but I have to go with the original, right? Toon Squad, MJ, it's awesome. But this bad report, what begins to happen? It's beginning to spread, and now the fear and now the doubt in all of this is now beginning to come into the people of God. And what's really spreading, ladies and gentlemen, here's what we have to pay attention to. Here's what's really spreading. A lack of faith in God, a lack of trust in God. That's what's beginning to spread. That's what's beginning to just pierce through the people, and it even says the Nephilim were there. And when you look at Genesis chapter six, verse four, here's what we find about the Nephilim. I mean, it's difficult to know exactly who they were and exactly what they were like, but what we can infer is that they were giant-like creatures and potentially offspring of fallen angels. They were part of the sinfulness running its course even prior to the Flood, as it was described in Moses, and you know, or as it was described in Genesis, but what we see in this timeframe is that what they were looking at, what they saw, the spies felt like grasshoppers. They saw great and big and large fortified cities. They saw the Nephilim there, big, powerful creatures, and the doubt and really the lack of faith begins to spread like wildfire, even though, by the way, God has led them. God has led them up until this point in a pillar of cloud by day, in a pillar of fire by night. God has fed them. God has taken care of them. God has performed miracle upon miracle on their behalf. Yet they wanted to go back to Egypt. Isn't it interesting that they're embarking on this land, they hear this report, they hear what all the others are saying to them, and they want to go back to Egypt? You see, rather than trusting in God and the unknown, they wanted to go back to what they knew. Rather than trusting in the God that they know, in terms of taking on this land, knowing that God has promised this to them, rather than trusting in him through this, they want to go back to what they knew, even though this was God's will for them, even though this was God's heart and desire for them. And so this doubt, this fear, this lack of trust in God. Now this starts to turn right into rebellion. This is now getting beyond just fear. This is getting beyond doubt. This is turning into rebellion. Listen to Numbers chapter 14. "That night all the members of the community raised their voices and wept aloud. All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole assembly said to them, "If only we had died in Egypt or in this wilderness! Why is the Lord bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and children will be taken as plunder. Wouldn't it be better for us to go back to Egypt?" And they said to each other, "We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt." So now, this is flat-out rebellion. This is flat-out the people of God saying, "Uh-uh, we're not gonna do it. This fortified city, this large city. I don't know about that. Rather, why don't we choose a leader, and let's allow that leader to lead us back to where we came from." And this is their heart. This is what they wanted to do. It's now not just doubt and fear and lack of trust in God. Here's what's now beginning to happen. It's rebellion and sinfulness saying, "Nope, God, we're not going through with what you want for us. Rather, we wanna pick a new leader and we wanna go back." And so this is where Joshua and Caleb, here's what begins to happen. They now speak up. Joshua and Caleb, they echo and put in their voices here, and here's what they now say here. Numbers chapter 14. "Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had explored the land, tore their clothes and said to the entire Israelite assembly, "The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. Only do not rebel against the Lord. Do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them." And what we hear from Joshua and Caleb, you see, this Israelite, or these spies, they come back and they start to spread among the people of God, to the Israelites, "We can't do it." This doubt and this fear is now turning into rebellion, but Joshua and Caleb, what do they do? They speak up, and they talk about, "We can do it, because the Lord our God is with us." And this is where Joshua and Caleb are landing, and it's a reminder, by the way. This is very interesting. It's a reminder. Joshua and Caleb, what they do, they give a warning. They give a warning for the people of God to repent. They say, "Turn your attention to him. Turn your attention to the Lord your God. Let's not just hide in our fear. Let's just not hide in rebellion, but instead let's put our faith, let's put our trust in God." And it's almost like here's what's beginning to happen. They tore their clothes, so it's a visual representation that that's what that was. You know, there's a few different ways that that could be interpreted here, in that culture. A couple of ways, one, it was could have been an expression of mourning the dead. Secondly, it could have been just deep lament over a disaster or a plague. Or thirdly, it could have been a prophetic message that judgment would be coming. And this is, in terms of what we see, in terms of what we're reading, this is where I believe, in terms of how this is landing here. It's like Joshua and Caleb, here's what they're doing. They tore their clothes because they're giving them a visual reminder that judgment is coming, and then they also speak and they tell them, "Hey, let's turn our attention to God, right? The Lord is with us. If the Lord is pleased with us, he will give this to us." And so here's what begins to unravel here. "Then the glory." Because here's now what begins to happen. The people of God, they don't turn. In fact, what they wanna do is they wanna stone, they wanna stone Joshua and Caleb at this point. And so now God gets involved, and here's what happens. "Then the glory of the Lord appeared at the tent of meeting to all the Israelites. The Lord said to Moses, "How long will these people treat me with contempt? How long will they refuse to believe in me in spite of all the signs I've performed among them? I will strike them down with the plague and destroy them, but I will make you, Moses, into a nation greater and stronger than they." What a reminder. When we read that, it's a sobering reminder of this, that God, he will always deal with sin. God will always deal with it. And now, it's different when we think about this side of the cross and understanding the beauty and the glory of our forgiveness and what that means, but here, God was instructing his people and giving them a certain command that they were not willing to obey. God gets involved. And even at this point, Moses, what begins to happen, is Moses pleads with God, Moses pleads with God for forgiveness for the people. He asks God that he would pardon them. And so here's what we can hear in terms of Moses' response. "Moses said to the Lord, "Then the Egyptians will hear about it. By your power, you brought these people up from among them. And they will tell the inhabitants of this land about it. They have already heard that you, Lord, are with these people, and that you, Lord, have been seen face to face, that your cloud stays over them, and that you go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. If you put all these people to death, leaving none alive, the nations who have heard this report about you will say, "The Lord was not able to bring these people into the land he promised them on oath, so he slaughtered them in the wilderness. Now may the Lord's strength be displayed, just as you have declared. The Lord is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children for the sins of the parents to the third and fourth generation. In accordance with your great love, forgive the sins of these people, just as you have pardoned them from the time they have left Egypt until now." And here's what happens. God in his graciousness, he forgives the people. He forgives them. However, there would still be consequences for their sin. There would still be consequences for their sinfulness and for their rebellion, and it's a reminder to us that we experience forgiveness, certainly, but sometimes there are still consequences to the choices we make, and that should humble us. But there were specific consequences for this time, for this context, for this situation, and I just wanted to read them for us, because God in his sovereignty had allowed these consequences to happen because he was going to be teaching his people some things. And by the way, that's oftentimes what the wilderness season will do, is it not? It'll teach us dependency on God. It'll teach us to trust in him maybe further and more deeply than ever before. And so here's where, here's the specific consequences for this situation. The consequences included the current generation of people, 20 years and older, who had seen all of the signs performed in Egypt would not be able to enter the Promised Land. So if they were 20 years and older and they saw all of the signs in Egypt, they were not able to enter the Promised Land. Exceptions to this were Caleb and Joshua. They would be able to. In fact, Joshua would be the one that would lead the people of God into the Promised Land eventually. Another consequence would be that the Israelites, they would continue to wander in the wilderness for 40 years, one year for each day that they had explored the land. Also the children of this generation, right here that we see, they would have to suffer for 40 years in the wilderness before being able to enter the Promised Land because of the sinfulness that ensued, and then the 10 other spies who had spread a bad report to the whole assembly of Israel and stirred up rebellion, they would die in a plague. And all of this happens because what we see in this context is that their rebellion, their sinfulness, their lack of trust in God led to destruction. And so for our context, for our time and our purposes, what I would love to do is I would love to ask, you know, it's a sobering reminder, but before we even get to some lessons, I want all of us to hear kind of how this story wraps up, because in verse 39, here's what happens. "When Moses reported this to all the Israelites, they mourned bitterly. And early the next morning, they set out for the highest point in the hill country, saying," here's what they want. We don't wanna face the consequences, right? "Now we're ready. We're ready to go up to the land the Lord promised. Surely we have sinned." But Moses said, "Why are you disobeying the Lord's command? This will not succeed. Do not go up, because the Lord is not with you. You will be defeated by your enemies, for the Amalekites and the Canaanites will face you there. Because you have turned away from the Lord, he will not be with you and you will fall by the sword." Nevertheless, in their presumption they went up toward the highest point in the hill country, though neither Moses nor the ark of the Lord's covenant moved from the camp. Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that hill country came down and attacked them and beat them all the way to Hormah."

- It's a sobering reminder for how this ends, that even in this, what we can learn is, I think we can learn a few lessons here. We can learn a few lessons from the story that I think will be really, really important for us, because what we see here are some principles that I think just arise from the text of scripture, from Numbers 13 and 14, that I think will be incredibly important for us to recognize. Here's the first principle we can see, is that rebellion against God, it will only lead to destruction. You see, rebellion, sinfulness, kind of, we wanna do what we wanna do, that will only lead to destruction. And by the way, this lesson that we learned, it shouldn't shock us. It shouldn't shock us in the least bit, because what we see here was we see the ramifications of the people of God not following him, and it led to their destruction, and in fact, listen to their rebellion again in Numbers 14. "Why is the Lord bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and children will be taken as plunder. Wouldn't it be better for us to go back to Egypt?" And they said to each other, "We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt." This was what they wanted. They wanted a new plan. They wanted a new leader, and they wanted to forsake what God had for them, and it only led to their destruction. And what a reminder for us, ladies and gentlemen, that our sinfulness, that our rebellion, it will lead to destruction, and it does not just affect you, because even when we saw some of these consequences here and how this impacted the people of God, it also affected future generations. And just a reminder that our sinfulness, it doesn't just affect you, but it can affect everybody around you. And in fact, when we learn from the psalm writer in Psalm 106, as he's recounting Israel's history, here's what he said. "Many times he delivered them, but they were bent on rebellion and they wasted away in their sin." You see, sinfulness, here's what it will do. It will cause a wasting away, and may that may that not be the case for us. May we recognize that we can trust God, that we don't have to waste away in our sin. When we turn our attention to the Lord our God, when we turn our attention to him, when we recognize that he is all that we need, even if it seems daunting, even if it doesn't look good, we can know that our God is for us, that he's with us. But thanks be to God, thanks be to God, because as we turn to Jesus, he defeated death by his death in order for us to not have to pay for the penalty of our sin, because this is what Jesus has done, and this is where I would encourage us to turn to what the writer of Hebrews said. "See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold to our original conviction, firmly to the very end. As has just been said: Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion." And so this is, brothers and sisters, I would encourage us, as we hear the voice of God, don't harden your heart. Don't harden your heart to the voice of God. But, rather, would we have a spirit that says, "God, whatever it is that you want, may my heart be moldable. May my heart be shaped by you. May my heart want whatever you have," because choosing to rebel, choosing sinfulness, it will lead to a wasting away. I can remember my wife and I having a conversation with an older gentleman who loved the Lord and was encouraging us, and he had said to us, you know, he was just encouraging us to keep following Jesus and whatnot, and he told us, "Hey, you know, keep following Jesus, because sin ages you." Time will age you, too, but he was making a point, that sinfulness, rebellion, not wanting what God has orchestrated and has ordained for us, it will lead to destruction, and we know that those that turn themselves away from Christ, those that turn themselves away from the cross, it will ultimately lead to destruction, but this is why we say thanks be to God for what Jesus has done on our behalf. And this leads me to the second point that I would love for us to glean wisdom from, and it's this, is that our God, he can always be trusted. You see, our God, he can always be trusted. When we look at, you know, what Joshua and Caleb saw, it's powerful because they were in a situation where they had to recognize that God could be trusted, because what we hear from them is we don't hear this spirit of fear that comes out, the spirit of doubt that happens, but rather, they knew something about God, and I hope that we do, too, and it's simply this, that he can be trusted. He can be trusted. In fact, when we look at their response again, listen to it. "The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them." You see, their response, I believe can teach us just a couple of things here, two truths that I hope that we would be able to see. First off, this one, is that his promises can be trusted. You see, our God can always be trusted, and we have to recognize that his promises can always be trusted. I love what they said, right? In verse eight, "If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land." This is land that God had promised Abraham. This was land that God had promised to his people, and what they recognize here, Caleb and Joshua, they understand that if the Lord has brought them to it, he will see them through it. And this was their response. They have a response of faith. They recognize the Lord their God, and they knew that his promises can be trusted, and later, as I mentioned earlier, Joshua would be the one that would eventually lead his people, would lead the people of God into the Promised Land. But I hope that even today, in our time, that we would recognize that the promises of God can be trusted, that his promises to us are yes and amen, that God has given us the Holy Spirit, guaranteeing, promising what is to come, that we can recognize and rest assured that he who began a good work in us will bring it to completion. We can realize that, as surely as Jesus came, he will come again, and he will destroy evil and bring in new creation. And as surely as God takes care of the flowers and the grass of the fields, he will take care of you and me. You know why? Because the promises of God can always be trusted. Secondly, I would tell us this, is that his presence can be trusted. God's presence can be trusted. If you look at verse nine again, if you just read right in the text that we all have in front of us, right? Here's what it says. Joshua and Caleb, they say, "Their protection is gone." They want to infuse faith into the people of God, not fear, not doubt, not saying, "We can't do it. They're far more powerful than we are." Joshua and Caleb. "Their protection is gone." Why? "Because the Lord is with us. The Lord is the one who's leading us. The Lord is the one who will bring us through this." You see, his presence can be trusted. You see, his presence is a shield. It's a strong tower. It's a refuge that we can run to. He has led his people then, and he will lead us now. You see, there's healing and there's strength and there's renewed vision in his presence. This is why we emphasize to every single person, spend time with God. Spend time with God. Let his presence wash over your heart. Let it wash over your life, because here's what might happen. Here's what might happen, is that you might look at your problems and you might feel like a grasshopper when you look at the problems you face. But when you spend time with God, you'll be able to look at your problems and say, "That problem's power is gone, because the Lord is with me," because we'll realize that those problems, they're like grasshoppers compared to God. But we might feel like a grasshopper if we're not spending time with God, if we're not recognizing that this is his battle, that the battle belongs to him, that we can trust him in and through this situation. And I pray and I hope that we would realize and recognize from what Joshua and Caleb said that God's presence can be trusted, no matter what we're walking through, no matter what we're facing this day. Our God can always be trusted. But thirdly, I would tell us, following God wholeheartedly is our highest call. This is a lesson that we learn from this story here, and it's tucked away in Numbers 14, verse 24, because as we see this verse, I think we'll learn something about Caleb that I think is powerful. In fact, why don't we just read it here? It says this. God says, he's speaking to Moses, "But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it." Did you catch it? You see, Caleb, you know, we know a thing or two about Joshua, don't we? I mean, he was Moses' assistant, his aide. Not a guarantee, but maybe we would expect Joshua to have some level of faith, right? I mean, come on, you got to hang out with Moses, man. I mean, that's pretty awesome, right? But Caleb, who's he? I mean, we know some things about him, certainly, but how powerful is it that what we do know about Caleb is that he followed God wholeheartedly? What an incredible thing to be known for, to follow God wholeheartedly with our lives, because I think maybe sometimes in our culture, in our day and age, we don't recognize maybe all the time that following God is our highest call, because maybe we might want to follow God halfheartedly, or maybe we might want to follow God with a quarter heart, and maybe our heart is divided. Maybe our heart is fractured because we're following success, we're following fame, we're following fortune, but what matters, all of that stuff is temporary, because what matters is your devotion to God. What matters is your allegiance to him. Caleb followed God wholeheartedly, and God would make good on that promise as God would allow Caleb to enter into the Promised Land. But may we realize that this is our highest call, and by the way, what a beautiful thing to pass on to the next generation. Not the rebellion, not the turning away from God, but rather, a life lived that glorifies, honors, and follows God wholeheartedly. That, there is blessing in that. See, and not just material blessing, but the blessing of knowing God as your Savior, of knowing God as your refuge, of knowing God as your rock. See, this is what Caleb understood, that he followed God wholeheartedly. He had a different spirit, and may we emulate that as well? So if I were to summarize everything that I've told us today in one main idea, it would be this. Even if it does not look good, God can always be trusted and he will always be worth following. You see, even if it doesn't look good, God can always be trusted and he will always be worth following. See, it did not look good when spies saw a fortified and armed city, yet rebellion was not the answer. Why? Because God can be trusted, and he will always be worth following. It did not look good when Israel had to wander in the wilderness for 40 years, yet God can always be trusted, and he will always be worth following. It did not look good when Israel's rebellion led them away into captivity, yet God can always be trusted, and he will always be worth following. It did not look good when the Roman empire took over Jerusalem, yet God can always be trusted and he will always be worth following. It did not look good when Jesus' own people rejected him. He came to his own, but his own did not receive him, yet God can always be trusted and he will always be worth following. It did not look good when Jesus' disciples deserted him and left him all alone, yet God can always be trusted and he will always be worth following. It did not look good when Jesus was left to die on a cross, the worst possible way known to mankind to die. As he is hanging on a Roman cross, it did not look good yet, even though it did not look good, as everyone saw a crucified Messiah and darkness covering over the whole land, God can always be trusted and he will always be worth following, because three days later, Jesus would get up from the dead, and everything forever changed forevermore. You see, God... God can always be trusted and he will always be worth following. So, if the diagnosis doesn't look good, God can always be trusted. He will always be worth following. If the family situation does not look good, God can always be trusted. He will always be worth following. If the anxiety, the depression, things in your soul, if they don't look good, God can always be trusted and he will always be worth following. If the past few years have not looked good, God can always be trusted and he will always be worth following. If today does not look good, God can always be trusted. He will always be worth following, because God is good, and he will make everything beautiful and good in due time. Even if we can't fully see it right now, even if we can't fully see it today, even if it doesn't look good, he is good, and may we not have the response like the other 10 spies. We're like grasshoppers. We can't do it. No way. But instead, may we learn from Joshua Caleb and say, "The Lord is with us. The Lord will lead us. We can certainly do it." May that be the response of the people of God when things may not look always like you want them to, because oftentimes they may not, but even in the midst of those times, it's an opportunity to lean into God, to trust his presence, and to trust that he's leading us no matter what.