Title: The three diseases that losers take
Contents
Exodus 17:1-7 The three diseases of the loser
Doctors say that by looking at a person's personality, they can diagnose the disease. For example, people who are too quick-tempered are more likely to develop high blood pressure or heart disease. Smokers who smoke cigarettes are more likely to die from lung cancer. Those who drink alcohol almost always have a bad liver and die from nursing. The same is true mentally. Those who fail usually have a disease.
After 430 years of slavery in Egypt, the goal of the Israelites was to find a land flowing with milk and honey. It is success for them to enter the land of Canaan, which they have set for themselves, whereas failure to enter the land of Canaan means failure. However, among the Israelites who had escaped Egypt, all but two of them Joshua and Caleb could not enter the land of Canaan. In other words, all but two have failed.
Their failure was because they were afflicted with three major diseases. Today, we hope to prevent these diseases in advance by examining the three diseases that prevented them from entering the land of Canaan, which they dreamed of. And we don't want to fall ill and become a failure in this foreign land.
1. Incompetence
One of the greatest ailments the Israelites had in the wilderness was malaise. They were so distressed by slavery in Egypt that they cried out to God to spare them. Then God sent Moses and miraculously set the Israelites free. The Israelites saw the miracles of ten plagues beating the Egyptians. And I clearly saw the great parting of the Red Sea.
When the Israelites saw that God was with them, they had to keep trusting in God when difficulties arose. But they did not trust God when problems occurred. Rather, they complained and resented God. They fell ill all too easily. This is what it looks like.
The first Mara's Bitter Water incident. They went through the wilderness for three days and found no water. But the scout in front said, "It's water!" and cry. They said, “Ah- so it is! God does not let us die of thirst like this!” He thanked. But when I drank the water, it was bitter and undrinkable. Then they immediately complain to God. Of course, God quenched their thirst by turning the bitter water into sweet water even for the complaining Israelites.
And while they were traveling in the wilderness, God fed the Israelites daily with manna. Gentlemen, if someone gives me food to eat for 40 years, I will have to thank him a lot. But the Israelites complained that the manna was disgusting. Even to the Israelites who complained like that, God fed them quail meat. And when they came to a place called Rephidim, water fell again. At this time, the Israelites said, “God, the water has fallen again. Thank you again for water.” It would be nice to pray like this, but the Israelites, who are already deeply stricken with malaise, start complaining. But even at this time, God quenched the thirst of the complaining Israelites by providing water from the rock.
And 12 spies were sent from a place called Kadesh-barnea, but among them, 10 spies except Joshua and Caleb complained about the land of Canaan. Then the people of Israel sympathized with the complaint, and they all fell ill with the plague of complaint. And they cried and trembled and trembled at the request to give up entering the land of Canaan and return to Egypt.
Also, the complaints of the Israelites continued. Because God appointed Moses and Aaron as leaders, other patriarchs came and complained again. “Why are you the only ones acting like leaders?” Do you think we are stupid assholes like you guys?” He complained. And their complaints continued while they were in the wilderness.
God tried to comfort them by giving them what they needed to heal their ailments. And sometimes he even disciplined them to heal their ills. But their malaise was not cured. In a way, we can see ourselves as we look at the endless complaints of the Israelites.
Change your position and think about it. If you had not drank water in the wilderness for three days, would you not have complained? And if there is no water in the wilderness, we cannot wash properly, we cannot do laundry, we cannot wash the dishes, so why not complain? Perhaps even though we live in this livable Canadian land, not in the wilderness, we may complain if there is no tap water for about three days.
And think about it. Is life in the wilderness really uncomfortable? Perhaps, when we are in the same situation as the people of Israel, no one can guarantee that ‘I will never complain.’ In other words, we too are prone to complaining when things do not go our way or when things are uncomfortable in this world. But if complaining goes too far, it's going to make me a failure.
In other words, the crossroads between success and failure is who can overcome the malaise. If you can be thankful without complaining even in difficult situations, your future will be successful. However, if there are always problems and complaints and resentment, failure will be waiting in front of them.
Ladies and gentlemen, there are many good things about living here in Canada, but sometimes there are also many bad things. When we encounter difficulties in this foreign land, it is easy for us to complain like the Israelites. And it's easy to resent each other. But keep in mind. The result of complaining is failure. Success belongs to those who overcome complaints.
2. Oblivion disease
The disease that those who fail are prone to is the disease of forgetting God's grace. The Israelites fell ill with oblivion in the wilderness. When the Israelites were liberated from Egypt, God sent ten plagues on the Egyptians. And the Israelites saw the Red Sea parting. So they danced and rejoiced, praising God.
However, when they had another problem, they forgot the God who parted the Red Sea. It's because he was afflicted with oblivion. Gentlemen, it is easy for students to study well and do well on exams. Don't forget what you've learned, remember it, and write it down on the answer sheet when you take the exam. But if you want to fail the exam, you will definitely fail if you forget what you learned a while ago.
God had bestowed many graces on the Israelites, but the Israelites forgot those graces. As a result, when faced with a problem, he became restless and anxious. And they complained to God. In other words, the Oblivioners drove them to failure. Have any of you suffered from the disease of forgetfulness that easily forgets the grace of God? Again, I pray that you will remember the grace God has given you.
Everyone, when we see successful people and victorious people, we do not easily forget the grace of God. Look at David. It was time for him to duel with General Goliath of the Philistines. King Saul, the king of Israel, and all his staff stopped David from going to fight Goliath, saying that David was not a match for Goliath. But at this point, David confesses:
“When your servant was guarding his father’s sheep, if a lion or a bear came and seized the young from the flock, I followed and struck it and rescued the young from its mouth; if it rose up and wanted to harm me, I took its beard and struck it to death. . Your servant has also struck down lions and bears, so this uncircumcised Philistine who has reproached the armies of the living God? He will be like one of his beasts. And he said, "The LORD has delivered me from the claw of a lion and from the paw of a bear; he will also deliver me from the hand of this Philistine" (1 Samuel 17:34-37).
Look. David never forgot the grace of God in the past. He never forgot yesterday's miracle. David did not forget that in the past when he was keeping sheep, he fought a bear with God's help and won. He vividly remembered winning a battle with a lion. Not forgetting such a God, he could trust that God would enable him to defeat Goliath. That is why he was able to be bold even in the face of Goliath.
Ladies and gentlemen, those who fail forget the miracles and graces that God has given them and live in despair and disappointment in themselves. However, successful people remember the miracles and grace that God gave them, believe that they will overcome all difficulties with God's grace today, and live in hope. In other words, they know how to connect yesterday's miracle to today's miracle.
Everyone, I want to ask you. How much grace has God given you so far? Have you ever been stricken with oblivion and forgot all of them? Then you are easy to get discouraged and complain every time you encounter difficulties. In other words, it is easy to go down the path of failure. Even when we come to this foreign land, we must not forget the grace that God has bestowed upon us. And we must continue to live by connecting the grace of the past to today and the future.
3. Past illness
The third disease that the unsuccessful person is prone to is none other than the disease of the past. In other words, we cannot look to the future and we keep looking at the past. It's not forward-looking, it's past-oriented. The Israelites always longed for the past in the wilderness. They always wanted to go back to the old Egypt if something uncomfortable happened.
It was because of the food. It was that they did not want to eat the manna that God gave them. The people of Israel longed for the food they ate when they were slaves in Egypt in the past. “I remember when we were in Egypt free of charge we ate fish, cucumbers, watermelons, leeks, green onions and garlic” (Numbers 11:5)
Gentlemen, the goal of the Israelites was Canaan. But they insisted on giving up Canaan for food and going back to Egypt. And since I was living an uncomfortable life in the wilderness, I kept longing for Egypt. And he did not intend to conquer the land of Canaan, but the land of Canaan was inhabited by giants and the city was strong, so he was afraid and retreated. They preferred to become slaves deprived of their freedom and merely filling their stomachs, rather than being free men who challenged themselves.
But Joshua and Caleb were forward-looking. When all the Israelites became discouraged and wanted to go back to Egypt, Joshua and Caleb shouted to trust God and move forward. In the end, all the Israelites who kept insisting on returning to their former slaves died in the wilderness. However, Joshua and Caleb, who believed in God and asked to go to the land of Canaan flowing with milk and caves, were able to enter the blessed land of Canaan in the end.
Conclusion. Those who fail suffer from three ailments. First, it is an infirmity. Second, it is oblivion. Third, it is a disease of the past. We must overcome these diseases here in Canada. Only then will God lead us to success in this foreign land. In the name of the Lord, I bless you in the name of the Lord that you may achieve the success that God gives you in this foreign land while overcoming your illness of infirmity, forgetfulness, and past ailments.