Challenges against possession

*Recap of*

*Be Inspired Bible Study*

*By Sister Leah Adepeju*

*Thursday 14th March 2019*

*Topic:* Challenges Against Possession

*Text:* These are the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land; but Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun, Joshua (the Lord is salvation). Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go up this way into the Negev (the South country); then go up into the hill country. See what the land is like and whether the people who live there are strong or weak, few or many, and whether the land in which they live is good or bad, and whether the cities in which they live are [open] camps or fortifications, and what the land is, whether it is fat (productive) or lean, whether there is timber on it or not. Make an effort to get some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the time of the first ripe grapes. So they went up and spied out the land from the Wilderness of Zin to Rehob [a town in Lebanon], at Lebo-hamath [in the far north]. When they had gone up into the Negev (the South country), they came to Hebron; and Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai the descendants of Anak were there. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) Then they came to the Valley of Eshcol (cluster of grapes), and from there cut down a branch with a single cluster of grapes; and they carried it on a pole between two of them, with some of pomegranates and the figs. That place was called the Valley of Eshcol (cluster of grapes) because of the cluster of grapes which the sons of Israel cut down there. When they returned from spying out the land, at the end of forty days, they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the sons of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran at Kadesh, and brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the land’s fruit. They reported to Moses and said, “We went in to the land where you sent us; and it certainly does flow with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. But the people who live in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified (walled) and very large; moreover, we saw there the descendants of Anak [people of great stature and courage]. [The people descended from] Amalek live in the land of the Negev (South country); the Hittite, the Jebusite, and the Amorite live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live by the [Dead] Sea and along the side of the Jordan.” Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession of it; for we will certainly conquer it.” But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people [of Canaan], for they are too strong for us.” So they gave the Israelites a bad report about the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we went, in spying it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants. And all the people that we saw in it are men of great stature. There we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak are part of the Nephilim); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”

NUMBERS 13:16‭-‬33 AMP

https://bible.com/bible/1588/num.13.16-33.AMP

Today we will be discussing challenges against possession.

What are *challenges?*
It could be a competitive power.
And possession means some kind of ownership or entitlement.
So we are discussing this evening competition against entitlement.

Let us go into the scripture. Here we read about when Moses sent 12 men thereabouts from the twelve tribes of Israel to go and spy on a land God had promised them.  In fact they were given details of how the land was flowing with milk and honey.
The land was their own haven, a place they were to possess.
They all went as appointed. They were told to get fruits from the land which they did. I believe to confirm that the land is well fertile.
But on returning to their leaders there were two reports.
The people were like, yes the land has all that has been described, it has, but the people in the land are people of great heights, in fact in *our own sight we looked like grasshoppers and they will see us as grasshoppers*  we don't think we can possess that land.
But Caleb was like, we can do it, we can take over the land.
Okay, to start with, the inhabitants of the land were not the one that referred to them as grasshoppers they referred to themselves as grasshoppers and that is the way they perceive that the inhabitants will see them.

In life if you fail to respect yourself no one will deem it necessary to respect you.
If you are the type that always speak ill of yourself, you never think anything good of yourself even when people can see that you have a lot of good, you might not be able to see that good.
This can be very mind blowing. You will see some people they have all it takes to be great in life but because they never see any greatness in themselves they will only work for the great people.
I heard a story about a rich man who had a son.
And the man was about to die and he called his son to come to him.
The son got to the father and the father gave him a suitcase. In that suitcase was a Bible.
When the son opened it, it was a Bible. He said to the father, what nonsense is this? He dropped the Bible and left.
The father eventually died.
Years had passed this son was living in extreme poverty until he came across his father's attorney after many years.
And that one was surprised to see him the way he was and he convinced him to visit his childhood home.
He gave different excuse as to why he doesn't need to, how his father thought all he deserved was a Bible? what will he use it for?
All his life he went to church as his father desired, so why does he need a bible?
Well, the attorney was able to persuade him to go back.
On getting to the building, it was so old, all the furniture had accumulated dust.
All the ornament that used to be beautiful had aged.
He went into the lounge, the Bible was still in the place he threw it.
So he took it; inside it was a key.
And the key was the key to open the safe the father had kept all his will which was willed to him, and also this son's adoption papers.
That was the day he found out the father he knew all his years rescued him from a burning house and raised him as his own child.
He was in so much shame and pain; he wept uncontrollably.
He then went back to the attorney who verified the story.
He went to where his father was buried, cried and asked for forgiveness of sin.
He decided to refurbish the house and started helping the less privileged.

The boy in this story can be compared to the Israelites who saw giants that they themselves begin to see themselves as grasshoppers.
Because of that they were willing to let go of God's promises for them to possess the land.
If that boy never ran into the attorney he would have died wretched even when he was rich.
At times we are like that.
We create challenges for ourselves in the place of possessing our possession.
We see ourselves lesser than God sees us.
For example, when people walk up to us and say, you have an amazing voice, you are like, this voice? hmm... I don't think so.
We find it hard to take compliments that are true because we have built giant in our vision that makes us see ourselves as grasshoppers.
Many are living below what stage God wants them to.
Many are gradually becoming a shadow of who God has made them.
Why? because we were raising challenges against our possession.
Note the giants did not tell the Israelites that they looked like grasshoppers but they classified themselves as grasshoppers.
Only Caleb was like, no we can do it. Caleb and Joshua were the ones that saw beyond the giants.

What do you see in the place of your possession?
What do you say in the place of your possession?
What do you do in the case of your possession?
What is your report?
The doctor has not even said anything but because you Googled it you have diagnosed yourself with cancer and all terminal diseases.
You didn't miss your period because you are waiting for the fruit of the womb you have already written barrenness in your mind of minds.
No one has written letter of eviction to you but within your heart you have given yourself letter of eviction.
The court didn't say deportation but you have already settled for it.

Why are you raising challenges over your possession?

The fact that people died of diabetes in your family doesn't mean you will die of the same illness.
The fact that people never live to certain age in your family doesn't mean you won't.

When will you arise and take that possession?

The Lord told them that the land was flowing with milk and honey, no they saw giants; what God said was irrelevant.
How much can we relate to this?
Many of us have heard and seen God's promises for us but instead of walking and working on and towards it we are busy looking at the challenges we can see?
God's ways aren't our ways.
His timing isn't our timing.
His promises are not empty neither are His plans.
But do you believe in it?

Let us pray.

Father, thank you for your word that you have sent to me this day.
Father have mercy and forgive me for all my short comings in Jesus name.
Holy Spirit, fill my heart with the understanding of your plans always in Jesus name.
Lord eternal, open my eyes to see that which you want me to see and remove every challenge I have erected over my possessions in life in Jesus name.
Lord, henceforth I decree I will possess all my possessions in the land of the living in Jesus name.
Thank you Jesus for answered prayers.

*Amen.*