“An exceeding good land,” are the words wherewith the two faithful spies, Joshua and Caleb, described the land of Canaan, amid the complaints and murmurs of their brethren; and who can deny their application to the land beyond Jordan—the place of promise and rest for Jehovah’s chosen people? Yet not only did they bear testimony to the land, but, as regards the competency of Israel to take possession of it, this is their witness: “We are well able to overcome it”; and further, “if the Lord delight in us, then he will bring us into the land and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey” (Num. 13:30; 14:830And 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. (Numbers 13:30)
8If the Lord delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. (Numbers 14:8)). Now this Canaan was a type of the present not the future heaven—a type of that place into which faith is conducted to-day, and where it finds all its rest, joys and satisfaction. True we are still, as to our natural life, in this world, and we are called to pass through it as strangers; the cloud and the manna defining our path as well as sustaining us in it. How blessed to think of this! If it were but adopted, how it would dispose of the many anxieties and cares which, alas! too often weigh down the heart.
But life in Canaan is not traversing the wilderness, however true and faithful we may be in it; neither is it the needful and salutary exercise of heart and lessons of the way.
Now as regards this land of promise, it is very instructive to see the manner of its description in the book of Deuteronomy, because it equally applies to that place above, where our Savior is, and where alone true rest and satisfaction can be found. It will be found, then, that the description is twofold: namely, in Deut. 8 it is described in its own essential excellencies, and they are of such an order as to place those brought into that land in a condition of absolute independence in the right and true sense of the term—“without scarceness” and no lack of anything in it. Is it possible to overestimate or unduly to magnify the richness of such “an exceeding good land”? and may I ask, if Canaan, as an earthly rest and portion, was all that to Jehovah’s ancient people, is not heaven, the place “where Christ sitteth at the right hand of God,” as rich a possession and as satisfying a rest for faith to-day? Is it not sorrowful to think that there are many hearts who are contented with leaving heaven as a reported region of future and postponed enjoyment? Consequently they never really retire from earth in heart or affection, and while never rising beyond the wilderness in experience, they never really possess faith or power to carry them even through it according to the mind and thoughts of God. Alas! that it should be so.
But we find that in chapter 11, this goodly land is described in its comparative and contrasted excellencies; in Egypt, anxiety and trouble were evinced around its river, the great source of fertility and refreshment; sowing and watering in the land of bondage, tell their own tale. In Canaan on the contrary, it was drinking water of the rain of heaven, being cared for by the Lord Himself, His eyes resting upon that bright and blessed country from the beginning of the year, even unto the end of the year; and such, though in a far more perfect way, is that place into which the blessed Spirit leads faith in conscious realization and enjoyment to-day. Who can fully or adequately portray the light and glory of that scene where Christ is? It is from thence comes all true energy and divine power to surmount the various hindrances in our way; we are never really true to our calling in the wilderness, until we have found a home in heaven, and from thence come back, as it were, to be practically heavenly strangers in a land that is not ours.
Now, when we go the book of Numbers, to where we find Israel on the eve of leaving the wilderness, and entering this goodly land, we are met with one or two striking and solemn facts, which are not without a significant voice for us to-day. In Num. 13 is recorded the mission of the twelve spies and the searching of the land—they were sent, they went up, and searched the land, and this is their report: “We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and with honey, and this is the fruit of it”—exhibiting at the same time a branch with one cluster of grapes, borne between two upon a staff, as well as pomegranates and figs. What could have been more convincing or assuring? Yet in the face of all this, arises the wildest outburst of unbelief on the part of ten of these spies, ending with their evil report of the land, and the most solemn and rebellious murmuring of Israel. Observe, there was no question as to the beauty and fertility of the land in itself; still the purport of their witness and report, save Joshua and Caleb, was to deter the people from going up and possessing it. And has not this a solemn counterpart in the history of many at the present time? Verily the history of the ten spies is being repeated in this day; the truth as to the Christian’s heavenly position and relationship is admitted, because it is impossible honestly to deny it; but the unbelief which marked the spies, is as prevalent to-day, and as they sought to hinder Israel by mapping out their evil report, so has it been attempted in this day to deter souls from entering in and spiritually possessing what divine goodness and grace has made theirs. It is striking to see how set against the mind of God at any given moment, the enemy is; in the wilderness, while on the very borders of Canaan, he will have tools for his object in the ten spies, while on the other side of Jordan, and in the land, he will seek to accomplish the same purpose and present the same testimony in the two-and-a-half tribes. May the Lord waken up His saints to the design of the enemy, and, in His grace, preserve us not only from being deceived and robbed of our blessing, but also from becoming the tools of the enemy for this end.
It is very cheering to see in the end of this record of the searching of the land, how the faithful, in such a moment, will rise to the height of their calling and openly assert it, and this was the case with Joshua and Caleb in their day; and beautiful was their testimony. It amounted to this: Jehovah’s heart and hand were enough to lead His people into the land of His choice for them, and so it is with faith now. Unbelief may minutely portray its evil report by mapping out the difficulties and dangers, but the Joshuas and Calebs of to-day will be only the more manifested as each such crisis declares itself. May the Lord grant to all His beloved saints more grace and faith, boldly and fearlessly to put the soles of their feet upon what He has so graciously made ours—may no evil report of the land, however speciously given, deter them from practically going up; and may there be raised up many true- hearted ones who will stand up earnestly and faithfully at this time, for the true calling and testimony of the saints, and by their practical heavenly ways, as well as by their lips and pens, encourage the hearts of their brethren in this day of trial and difficulty.