Psalm 85, Numbers 33:1-56, Galatians 5:16–25
We are born. We die. The beginning and then end.
In between the beginning and the end there are many steps to take.
The Israelites were finally at the end of their wandering in the desert. They had taken many steps in the desert. With God’s blessing and care, clothes and footwear did not wear out. They were at the end of their journey was at an end.
That journey ended, and a new one was about to begin.
The Israelites were not always good at following the path that was laid out for them. They certainly messed up a lot, sometimes out of pride, sometimes out of strong emotion. It’s not as if we, too, have not stumbled on our journey.
In many ways, the new journey the Israelites were about to start was far more dangerous. Moses, their great leader, would not be with them. It was not that Joshua was a bad leader, he just wasn’t Moses.
In the desert, they were tempted but relatively isolated where their sins and failures were relatively (note the relatively) harmless to the whole. However, now they were entering a place of permanence. Isolation would no longer be a form of security. They were entering the land where other gods were worshiped. They would be sorely tempted by people who were their neighbors.
A different journey indeed.
We have a single long journey to walk. It has many stages, each them a journey unto themselves. Walking by the spirit is the way to walk our journey in a way that brings honor and glory to God, and to find the True path to the Good Life.
1) What major changes in your journey do you remember?
2) How did each of those changes affect your walk with Jesus?
3) Both the journey in the desert, and the journey at home had dangers. How were they the same, and how where they different?