Good evening. Thank you for your patience with me as I try not to cough tonight. Got two passages that I’d like us to read. The first is from the gospel of Matthew chapter four. I believe that’s on page 1,200, excuse me, 1,027 of your pew Bibles. And then we’ll turn to numbers chapter 13. which I think is upon page 153 of your Pew Bibles. Let’s give attention to the very word of God, Matthew chapter four. Then Jesus was led up by the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
And after fasting 40 days and 40 nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, if you are the son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread. But he answered, it is written, man shall not live by bread alone, but every word that comes from the mouth of God.
Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple. and said to him, if you are the son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, he will command his angels concerning you, and on their hands, they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone. Jesus said to him again, it is written, you shall not put the Lord your God to the test. Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory, and he said to him, all these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me. And Jesus said to him, be gone, Satan.
For it is written, you shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve. And the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him. Now, if you turn to Numbers. Chapter 13, as we continue our study through this book of the Pentateuch, let’s give attention once again to the word of God.
The Lord spoke to Moses saying, send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I’m giving to the people of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a chief among them. So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran, according to the command of the Lord, all of the men who were heads of the people of Israel.
And these were their names, from the tribe of Reuben, Shamua, the son of Zakur. From the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat, the son of Hori. From the tribe of Judah, Caleb, the son of Japhuna. From the tribe of Issachar, Egal, the son of Joseph. From the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshia, the son of Nun, from the tribe of Benjamin, Pelti, the son of Raphu, from the tribe of Zebulun, Gadiel, the son of Sodai, from the tribe of Joseph, that is from the tribe of Manasseh, Gadai, the son of Susi, from the tribe of Dan, Emiel, the son of Gemali, from the tribe of Asher, Sethar, the son of Michael, from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi, the son of Vossi, from the tribe of Gan, Jewel, the son of Malchi. These are the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hosea, the son of Nun, Joshua. Moses sent him to spy out the land of Canaan and said to them, go up into the Negev and go into the hill country and see what the land is and whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, whether there are few or many.
And whether the land that they dwell in is good or bad, and whether the cities that they dwell in are in camps or strongholds, and whether the land is rich or poor, and whether there are trees in it or not, be of good courage and bring some of the fruit of the land. And the time was for the season, was the season of first ripe grapes.
So they went out and spied the land. from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, near Lobo, Hamas. And they came up into the Negev and came to Hebron. Achman, Sheshai, and Talmi, the descendants of Anak, were there. Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.
And they came to the valley of Eshkol and cut down from there a branch with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them. We also brought some pomegranates and figs. That place was called the Valley of Eshkol because of the cluster that the people of Israel cut down from there.
At the end of 40 days, they returned from spying out the land. And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran at Kadesh. They brought back word to them and to all the congregation and showed them the fruit of the land. And they told them, we came to the land to which you sent us.
It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. However, the people who dwell on the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there. The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negev, and the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country, and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the Jordan.
But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it. And the men who had gone up with them said, we are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are. So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying the land through which we have gone to spy it out is a land that devours its inhabitants. But all the people that we saw in it are of great height. And there we saw the Nephilim, the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim. And we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.
Thus far in the reading of the Word of God. Amen. Would you pray with me? Our Father and our God, once again we come to you. We come to you through this historical passage. And we ask, Lord God, that you would help us to dig out from it all the gold, the riches, that are in all that you have for us tonight. Guide and direct your servant, insufficient as I am for this, and yet, Lord God, this is the way in which you have called us to open your word in the congregation of your people. Help us, guide us by your spirit this evening. We ask all this in Jesus’s name, amen. Can you see the kingdom? In one significant sense, that’s exactly what this passage is asking us tonight. Can you see the kingdom?
If you remember that evening, as John recorded in his gospel, when Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews, came to Jesus Christ, came by night. He calls him rabbi. He seems to compliment him by telling him, we know that you’re a teacher, come from God, for no one can do what you’re doing unless you’re from God.
It’s interesting that Nicodemus visits at night. It gives us the impression that he was afraid. He’s a Pharisee, and it’s likely that the other Pharisees would not have taken kindly to his visiting Jesus at all. And so likely he’s afraid, he comes at night.
And even as he calls Jesus rabbi or teacher and professes that he knows he’s from God, Jesus does not receive that as a compliment, but tells Nicodemus, you can’t even see the kingdom. And thus you don’t know God, and you don’t know me, and you can’t know me. And you can’t really and truly know the kingdom.
You’re looking at it through these fogged glasses. In a sense, that passage in John brings us to our passage tonight as the Israelites are on their way. They have been given everything they need to make it to the promised land. We have this text which has numbered the people so we know who’s going in, who’s supposed to enter the land. We know that they’ve been given the tabernacle, the place of worship, so that even along the way that they can be conducting worship, that God could be with them, that he’s going to be guiding them by the pillar of cloud and fire all the way into the promised land. They’ve received the promises of God. As we get to numbers, we already have all the promises of God set forth and And the people know that he’s given them this land, this promised land, and that’s where they’re headed.
And that he’s with them through it. And they’ve set out. And we’ve read about their grumbling and complaining. We’ve read about the attack on Moses from his brother and sister. And now we get to this threshold, so to speak. The Israelites are on the cusp of entering into the promised land. It’s right before them. And Moses sends out spies so that they might bring back information, really and truly how to approach the attack, how they were to overcome those who were in the land and drive them out.
And so we have this passage tonight of this, these 12 men, chiefs in each of the tribes, Leaders sent, called to be of good courage and go and investigate the land, bring back some of the produce so we can actually see it ourselves and give us a report. Forty days. Forty days they went throughout the land and brought back this report. And as we’ve read this, you’ve seen that ten of the twelve bring back a bad report. Two. Caleb and Joshua bring back a good report. We won’t get to the reaction of the people yet. That’s the next chapter.
Tonight I want us to see that the fear of men obstructs one’s view of the kingdom of God. The fear of men obstructs one’s view of the kingdom of God. We’ll see that in three points tonight. First, sinners cover the promises of God. Secondly, sinners become fearful of men. And thirdly, sinners see clearly through the eyes of Christ. Well, as we’re going through this passage tonight, again, I want you to be asking yourself that question. Can I see the kingdom of God? Well, first, sinners cover the promises of God.
I want you to see that Moses gave them a very detailed instruction as to what these 12 men, these chiefs of their tribes, were to do as they went up and spied out the land. He gave them a very detailed instruction. Go up into the Negev, go to the hill country, see what the land is, whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, few or many. Is the land good, bad? Are the cities strongholds? Have they been enforced? Are they living in tents?
And then he says this, be of good courage. and bring some of the fruit of the land. This was no mere visual inspection. That’s not really what Moses was sending them off to do. This was a heart investigation. And so that’s why Moses is encouraging them with those words, be of good courage. We might say, well, you know, there could be folks in there who wouldn’t want them to take some of the fruit back.
But I am convicted that this was a heart test, testing these men. Be of good courage. Courage lies in the heart. Webster defines it as that quality of mind which enables men to encounter danger and difficulties with firmness, without fear. That’s the idea. He was sending them. Be without fear.
Come back. after you’ve been in the land 40 days and tell us how God has given you courage and bring some fruit. Now yes, that was physical, physical fruit and they did that. Bring some of that produce back and let us see how the Lord has blessed us because this is the land he’s giving us and let’s let us see some of that fruit. But really isn’t he also asking them to bring back some of that fruit of the courage that the Lord had worked in them as they spied out the land, as they entered the promised land and saw it. There’s no dispute as to the productivity of the land.
God had told them that he was sending them to a land flowing with milk and honey. And so the men, as they come back, there’s absolutely no dispute that that’s the case, that God’s word was true, that he’d given Moses back in Exodus chapter three, even before they’d been delivered out of Egypt. Moses is told, the words of God, I promise that I will bring you up out of land of affliction to the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey. And they come back, and the report, it’s almost as if, and they did, they were about to have Moses’ words written out, but they said, we came to the land which you sent us.
It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. The land was just as God had said it would be, exactly. These are the words of the men who ultimately bring a bad report, but they bring back some of the fruit of the land. So heavy that one cluster of grapes has got to be carried by two men. The Lord had spoken truth. His truth was confirmed. It didn’t need to be, but his truth was verified. These men brought it back and their vision was such that they were able to see the fruit of the land, the milk and honey, which is flowing, so to speak.
But that wasn’t all that Moses was told, that you’re going to a land, I’m giving you a land flowing with milk and honey. He said, I’ve come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, to bring them up, out of that, to a land, to a good and broad land. This was God’s work. This was his promise, that he would bring them up. These are the words of God given to Moses along with the milk and honey. God had promised to deliver them, not only out of the hands of the Egyptians, but into the promised land where he would dwell with them forever. And the Israelites had already seen the fulfillment of that first portion of the promise.
They had been delivered out of Egypt. The Red Sea had been parted. They walked through on dry land. They were able to stand on the other shore and see as their enemies were dashed, annihilated in the waters. And so they’d seen that God had actually delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians.
The first part of that promise was complete. The only part that remained was deliverance into the promised land, and now they stood right on the threshold. And as they did, as the men come back, as they’re standing, waiting to put that first foot of the 600,000 men into the promised land, what happens? What happened to that report of the good land, the land that was flowing with milk and honey. Now, as Moses reports it, the men report that it’s a land that devours its inhabitants.
Yes, God’s word was true, but that part about bringing us up into it, we’ve just completely forgotten. It’s not in our memories any longer. We’re covering it up. It’s a harsh land. And the Nephilim are there. The giants, that’s what that word means. There are giants there. And we seem like grasshoppers to them. In fact, in our eyes, we seem like grasshoppers in comparison.
They’re putting a cover over, a completely dark black cover over God’s promise, I will bring you up. and I will bring you in.” His promise is gone from their perspective. The giants have overwhelmed and overcome God’s promises. Joshua and Caleb remember the promises. We read of Caleb’s remembrance of the promise. Lord willing, next week we’ll read of Joshua’s remembrance of the promise. But 10 of the 12 bring out a very dark black cloth and cover over the promises of God, all because they saw giants.
What about Jesus? In comparison, in comparison to what happens here in this passage, as the spies go out and they look at the land, what about Jesus? As he was tested, as he went into the wilderness for, again, 40 days. There’s a sense in which these passages are connected by the 40 days, the 40 days that Jesus spends in the wilderness and the 40 days that these 12 spies spend in the promised land, a land flowing with milk and honey versus Jesus spending 40 days in the wilderness, a desolate place where he had been fasting 40 days, 40 nights. We can imagine that the 12 spies were feasting on the land, which is flowing with milk and honey, but Jesus, after fasting 40 days and 40 nights was hungry, and that’s exactly when Satan comes to him and tempts him. What did Jesus do?
He brings to memory the promises of God. There is no dark black cloth brought out by Jesus as Satan comes to him and attacks him. No, he brings out the word of God. He uncovers the word of God, the truth of God, even before this one, this Satan, who’s seeking to deceive and lie to Jesus and lead him astray. Man should not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. As he faced a powerful archenemy, Jesus relies on the promises of God. Not uncovered, but taken out and used by Jesus Christ. And what’s the result? The devil leaves him. Jesus triumphed. He survived, so to speak.
Indeed, he triumphed over the schemes of Satan by and through the word of God. Every single temptation is met with remembering the promises of God, remembering the word of God, and bringing them forth and using them to repel these attacks. Each instance of temptation, Jesus runs to the word, the promises of God, and lives. He brought forth much fruit. from the desolate wilderness in which he was subject to during his temptations.
Think of that. He’s hungry. He’s fasted. And yet, even in his weakness, Jesus is bringing fruit out of this desolate place. One may even say, through that season of temptation, Jesus produced much fruit. What about you? Do you realize that the Lord intends for you to produce fruit even when there are giants in your panoramic view? When difficult circumstances are set before you. It’s for fruit. It’s so you can produce fruit.
How often do we perceive situations this way? Do we ever perceive situations this way? Oh look, there’s a hard thing that the Lord is calling me to do. Get out of my way, Satan, for there is fruit to be had here, and I intend to harvest as much as possible. Do we think like that?
It’s exactly what Paul wrote to those in Philippi as he’s in prison, as he’s in jail. For me to live is Christ, to die is gain. If I’m to live on in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose, I cannot tell. I’m hard pressed between the two. My desire, is to depart and be with Christ, for that’s far better. But to remain unto the flesh is more necessary on your account.
Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and join the faith.” You see, Paul was seeing this difficult task in front of him. He wants to go and be with Christ. He wants to die in his flesh so he can ascend and be with Jesus Christ. For that is far better.
But Paul was able to see that there was fruit to be had in a difficult situation, where you’d have to wait to be with Christ and serve this church. It’s certainly a different way to approach things, isn’t it? Thank you, Lord, for giving me this difficult opportunity, because I can see that there’s a lot of fruit here. Tomorrow, maybe ask the Lord to show you that possibility of fruit from the labor he’s given you. Brings us to our second point, sinners become fearful of men.
Well, the spies, all the spies did recognize that there was good land that the Lord was giving them. The promised land was was very good, it flowed with milk and honey, and they brought back that fruit, that cluster of grapes so large we can’t even imagine today. But they refused to bring forth the promises of God, at least the 10. And they added this to their evaluation of the amount of milk and honey. The people who dwell there in the land are strong, the cities are fortified, very large.
We saw the descendants of Anak, the Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negev, the Hittites, the Jebusites, the Amorites, and the Canaanites. Clearly, that was the result of forgetting, probably neglecting the promises of God. Moses summarizes the report this way, the land through which we’ve gone to spy it out is a land that devours its inhabitants. Don’t go there. You’ll be devoured.
The people there are of great height. And we seemed ourselves like grasshoppers. What were they saying? What were they thinking? Well, certainly they were thinking we’re no longer the people of God. They had to be. Gone is that idea. Gone is the concept. Gone is the truth of being the people of God.
Having seen these people who are of great height, these giants, along with their fortified cities, their impression of themselves, at least as they speak to the people, is of great weakness. The spies become nothing. And it’s as if the 600,000 man army that’s in the camp behind them, so to speak, becomes as nothing in comparison to those that currently occupy the land. Truly, it’s as God has become nothing. The fear of men arises and grits them so tightly that it even affects the way they view themselves.
Has that happened to you? When you’ve been called by God, by Jesus, to pursue a particular task, whatever it is, I don’t know. And you evaluate, you analyze the thing that he’s called you to, the work, and conclude it’s difficult. The work, the task, involves risk, even danger. A few of us are called to works which involve potential loss of life, as were these Israelites. There was going to be a battle, and some might lose their lives. But generally speaking, we here in this place, in this country, aren’t called to consider losing our lives physically.
But what about spiritual danger? What about the way in which you’re thought of by others? In other words, what are the giants in your life, in your vision? What has become so overwhelming in this life that it brings you to fear? Talking to others about your faith in Jesus, is that a frightening thing?
For some of us, how will people respond? Will I lose a family relationship? Will a classmate reject me and possibly eject me from Are there friendships? Will the conversation become difficult at a holiday gathering? Maybe my family won’t even come because they know that I love Jesus and I’ll talk about him.
When that happens, when you begin to think like that, do you remember that you’re a child of God? Do you remember that God is on your side? So Paul wrote to those in Rome, what then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Does that come to mind when you’re thinking about that difficult task the Lord has given you? Do you remember his promises?
And then take courage in the fact that you’re precious in the sight of Jesus. In Mark’s gospel, we have that record when Jesus saw the disciples trying to keep the children away. He said to them, let the children come to me, don’t hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Now we think of that as little children, don’t we? But I’m thinking of that as every single child of God, every single one of you who are trusting in Jesus.
Let them come to me because you’re precious in his sight. Do you think of that? Or do you become fearful and turn away from the task, the work given? That’s exactly what happened in this passage. And that fear is not limited to the Old Testament, nor is it limited to this particular event.
Consider the disciples as they fled from Jesus Christ. Three years they’ve been with Jesus. And at the first sign of real trouble, they’re gone. Fear arose in their hearts, and they failed to take courage in the living God. It’s the same fear that grips Christians today. Well, as we think of this fear, the men, the 10 of the 12, And what was their expectation? Have you thought about that as we read through that passage? What were they thinking? What was really the problem?
Maybe their expectation was taking the land is gonna be really easy. Like walking across the Red Sea, that was easy, right? The Lord parted the Red Sea, a wall of water on each side, the ground is dry, we’re not even getting mud on our shoes. We just get to go across and then we look back upon the Egyptians and they’re in the water, they’re drowning. they’re decimated, we didn’t have to lift a finger. That was easy.
Sometimes when we head into a task, we have the same expectation. This is gonna be easy. And then it becomes hard. It’s difficult. And it tends to work stopping in us. I didn’t think it was going to be like this. I didn’t think it was going to be this hard. I didn’t think there were going to be giants here.
But remember, what did the Lord tell Moses? In a sense, he told him that it was not going to be easy. He had informed them that the promised land was occupied. The Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephium, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Gergesites, the Jebusites, so many already occupied. And he had told them. He told them, I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate and wild beasts multiply against you. Little by little, I will drive them out. There was going to be a time period where they were going to be battling back and forth. You shall drive them out before you. Exodus 23. They were told. Moses knew. There were going to be battles.
What was John told in the last book of the Bible? And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast. These are of one mind, and they hand over their power and authority to the beast. They will make war on the lamb. And those with him are the called, chosen, and faithful. The last book of the Bible. We read of this battle that’s going to be occurring.
Why do we think it’s going to be easy? That is our problem, isn’t it, at times? Indeed, the world has convinced us that living as a Christian is living an easy life. One of the best-selling books in this country is entitled this way, Your Best Life Now, Seven Steps to Living at Your Full Potential. That’s it. Right now, easy. In fact, there’s a 20th anniversary edition of that particular book. So popular. So many lies. The life of a Christian is a life of battle. Isn’t that what Jesus said? Isn’t that what Matthew recorded? Jesus saying, from the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force.
As Paul writes to Timothy, in these two letters that he writes to him, he’s constantly telling him about this battle, this charge, I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare. Chapter six of the first letter, fight the good fight of faith. And as he’s about to die, writing this second letter to Timothy, if I’m already being poured out as a drink offering, that doesn’t sound easy.
I’m being poured out. I fought the good fight. I finished the race. I’ve kept the faith. Christian life is a battle. Where’s your strength? Where’s your power? The spies were right. They were not stronger than those who occupied the land. And you, you’re not stronger than your enemy. Satan is powerful, but the king is. In fact, we don’t even have to get to the New Testament before we read of the power of the king. The psalmist sets that forth before us in the second Psalm.
Lord said to me, you are my son, today I have begotten you. Ask of me and I will make the nations your heritage and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel. The victory of Christ. The son is Jesus Christ. And God sets him on the throne and gives him all power to break all those who are in opposition to him. And it continues. It continues in the New Testament, it continues in Revelation. I read that passage from Revelation 17, they will make war on the lamb and the lamb will conquer them. I left that part out. The lamb will conquer them for he is the Lord of lords and king of kings and those who are with him are called and chosen and faithful.
So the call tonight is to be of good courage and fear no man, fear nothing in this world but fear God. Fear the Lord Jesus Christ, your King, the powerful victor and conqueror. For if you do, you are more than conquerors. In all these things, we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
That’s a powerful passage, isn’t it? How often do you think of that as the Lord hands to you that difficult task? No, I really don’t want to go to that one who’s offended me even though that’s what Jesus said to do. No, I really don’t want to go to that one that I’ve offended because that’s hard. But in all these things you’re more than conquerors through him who loved you. Fear no man but fear Christ. For he’s the victor, he’s your king. Brings us to our third point, sinners must see through the eyes of Jesus.
Remember, these men, these 12 men spent 40 days in the promised land, a place that God was giving them 40 days to spite out, 40 days of roaming throughout the land, 40 days of observation, 40 days with their eyes wide open. and their notepads being filled.
I don’t know if they had notepads, but they were taking notes somehow, someway. Forty days to see that the land was plentiful. We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey. They had to see it. It had to go throughout. And to be able to make that statement, we saw it. We went throughout. Forty days.
Even returning with that oversized cluster of grapes. Forty days just to look and see the place where the God of creation would dwell with them forever. Their new promised beautiful home with the divine one who loved them so much that he brought them out of the iron furnace with a mighty hand so that they would be able to dwell with him and commune with him in peace. And then consider Jesus’s vision.
Forty days in the wilderness. Forty days to be led to Satan, preparing him for that temptation by those 40 days in desolateness, fasting, becoming hungry, physically weak, tired. How did Jesus view what was said before him? With what eyes did Jesus see?
That’s what I’m asking. And so while Jesus addresses Satan directly, at the same time he actually looks beyond Satan. Satan is the object of Jesus’ response, be gone. But this response, this action of Jesus in commanding Satan to leave is taken as he looks beyond Satan, isn’t it? He looks beyond the obstacle of Satan to the end, to the privilege and beauty and righteousness of worship.
That’s where the temptation ends, doesn’t it? For it is written, you shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve. Then the devil left him. You see, he looks and sees the glory of God. What’s really set before him was not the wilderness. It wasn’t this giant Satan. It was the glory of God. That’s what Jesus saw. That’s what he was experiencing.
No, I won’t worship you. There’s only one that I can worship. There’s only one that I commune with. And that’s my heavenly Father. And I’m seeing the beauty and glory of him, even in this desolate place, because I’m looking beyond you, Satan. I’m looking to what God the Father has set before me.
You see, those 10 spies had foggy vision for the land. Their vision of the land was clouded by their corrupt hearts. Their vision of the land of dwelling with God was blurred by their rebellion and their distrust of the word of God and their covering up of his promises. Their vision for the giants was clear. It was clearly corrupt. In fact, that was the only thing that they saw. And they couldn’t and wouldn’t look beyond them.
But Jesus did and constantly does. And so the question for us tonight becomes, you know, how do I see the kingdom? Do I look through the teaching of Jesus Christ? Do I look through the beautiful eyes of Jesus? Because he has pure and perfect vision, he has seen the glory of his father. And thus he has seen the kingdom and knows the kingdom and wants you to see it the way he sees it.
So tonight, my suggestion is that each of us take time to pray and ask that the Lord would continue to remove that foggy vision we have. just like the spies and give us the true beautiful vision of Christ, of his kingdom and then we’ll have that ability to press on. Unlike the spies, unlike the 10 of the 12 who had no desire to press on into the promised land, as Jesus gives you that beautiful vision of the glory of his father, Your only desire will be to press on into glory. As the fear of man does obstruct one’s view of the kingdom of God, Nicodemus was unable to see. He didn’t have eyes yet for the kingdom. But Jesus, on the other hand, saw it so very clearly, even in the midst of temptation. So tonight, look through the eyes of Christ and indeed you will see the kingdom clearly.
Amen. Heavenly Father, what a joy it is to know, to follow Christ, and to even ask him, Lord Jesus, grant us eyes, clear eyes, to look beyond our fear, Indeed, crush our fear of men. Grant us a clear vision to fear you, to fear your Father, to fear the Spirit, and to see clearly your kingdom. Grant us this tonight, even tonight, Lord. We ask this in your precious name, amen.