1. Sunday in the Word Good Lessons from Good Examples
July 16, 2017
Unit 2, Study 7
Follow the Lord Wholeheartedly (Caleb)
Study Texts: Numbers 13:1-14:30; Joshua 14:6-14

2. Acknowledgements Material adapted from
Radiant Life: Adult Teacher Guide
June-July-Aug 2017
Unit 1, Good Lessons from Bad Examples
Unit 2, Good Lessons from Good Examples
Volume 91 Number 4
Gospel Publishing House, Springfield, MO 65802
@2017 ISSN
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International NIV, Copyright 1973 Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.
All Scripture quotations marked (KJV) are taken from the King James Version of the bible.

3. Follow the Lord Wholeheartedly (Caleb)
Key Verse: Jeremiah 29:13
13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. (KJV)
13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. (NIV)
Focus: To examine and emulate Caleb’s wholehearted devotion to God
Central Truth: Wholehearted devotion to God pleases Him

4. Trust God Against all Odds
The Israelites are at a critical point in their wilderness travels
The time has come to possess Canaan, the land God had promised them
Twelve men were chosen to travel through Canaan, exploring the land, the cities, the people, and were to report back to Moses
Today we will be studying about Caleb, one of the twelve spies sent to search out the land

5. Called to a Task Numbers 13:1-2; 25-29 (NIV)
13 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Send some men to explore the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites. From each ancestral tribe send one of its leaders.”
25 At the end of forty days they returned from exploring the land. 26 They came back to Moses and Aaron and the whole Israelite community at Kadesh in the Desert of Paran. There they reported to them and to the whole assembly and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 They gave Moses this account: “We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey! Here is its fruit. 28 But the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large. We even saw descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites live in the Negev; the Hittites, Jebusites and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live near the sea and along the Jordan.”

6. ?Question?
Why do you think God specified to Moses that each of the twelve tribes send a leader to be a part of the expedition to explore the land?
Each leader would have a key role in leading the nation into the land of promise
As leaders, they would affirm confidence in God, and conveyed their trust in the Lord to the people
After 40 days, they returned with their findings (v 25)
Canaan was a land of abundance (v 26-27)
BUT (v 28)-their report went from positive to negative

7. ?Question? Why did the tone and content of the report change?
The spies began to list the problems with Canaan (v28-29)
The people were great warriors, their cities were large and well fortified, and would be difficult to conquer
There were giants in the land
The thought of taking the land became ominous

8. Have Faith in God’s Plan Numbers 13:30-33 (NIV)
30 Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it.”
31 But the men who had gone up with him said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.” 32 And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored. They said, “The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. 33 We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.”

9. Have Faith in God’s Plan The Unfavorable Report
Why do you think the faithless spies responded as the did?
The faithless spies focused on obstacles rather than the promises of God
By sharing their fears, the ten unbelieving spies provoked rebellion among the people
Their report became an evil report among the people

10. Have Faith in God’s Plan Caleb’s Response
What does Caleb’s response tell us about his Character?
Caleb had courage to speak for God when almost everyone else cowered in fear
He had faith to believe in the Lord’s power and promises
Only four people trusted in God’s promises-Moses, Aaron, Joshua, and Caleb

11. Fear & Doubt are Destructive
The faithless words of the other leaders demonstrate how quickly the language of fear and doubt can distort the truth and dampen faith
It also shows the connection between unbelief and fear
Their doubt was contagious, and spread like a dangerous cancer among the people
Leaders have a tremendous role in setting the atmosphere and tone among those they lead

12. Have Faith in God’s Plan Numbers 14:1-9 (NIV)
14 That night all the members of the community raised their voices and wept aloud. 2 All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole assembly said to them, “If only we had died in Egypt! Or in this wilderness! 3 Why is the Lord bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and children will be taken as plunder. Wouldn’t it be better for us to go back to Egypt?” 4 And they said to each other, “We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt.” 5 Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown in front of the whole Israelite assembly gathered there. 6 Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had explored the land, tore their clothes 7 and said to the entire Israelite assembly, “The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. 8 If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. 9 Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them.”

13. Have a Different Spirit
There was terrible weeping that night, and it gave rise to complaining (Numbers 14:1-4)
Complaining betrays a lack of faith, as faith reflects confidence in God
Their complaining leads to open rebellion, even expressing a desire to select a new leader and return to the wilderness of even die in bondage in Egypt
Moses and Aaron fall on their faces interceding for the people (v 5), Joshua and Caleb tear their clothes in mourning (v 6)
Once again, Joshua and Caleb tried to persuade the people to trust the Lord (v 7-9)

14. God’s Response Numbers 14:10-19 (NIV)
10 But the whole assembly talked about stoning them. Then the glory of the Lord appeared at the tent of meeting to all the Israelites. 11 The Lord said to Moses, “How long will these people treat me with contempt? How long will they refuse to believe in me, in spite of all the signs I have performed among them? 12 I will strike them down with a plague and destroy them, but I will make you into a nation greater and stronger than they.” 13 Moses said to the Lord, “Then the Egyptians will hear about it! By your power you brought these people up from among them. 14 And they will tell the inhabitants of this land about it. They have already heard that you, Lord, are with these people and that you, Lord, have been seen face to face, that your cloud stays over them, and that you go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. 15 If you put all these people to death, leaving none alive, the nations who have heard this report about you will say, 16 ‘The Lord was not able to bring these people into the land he promised them on oath, so he slaughtered them in the wilderness.’ 17 “Now may the Lord’s strength be displayed, just as you have declared: 18 ‘The Lord is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.’ 19 In accordance with your great love, forgive the sin of these people, just as you have pardoned them from the time they left Egypt until now.”

15. God’s Response
God initially responded to the rebellion by expressing a desire to judge the faithless people, destroying them completely
Moses’ intercession spared the people God’s wrath, and earned His pardon.

16. Do Not Test the Lord Numbers 14:20-25
20 The Lord replied, “I have forgiven them, as you asked. 21 Nevertheless, as surely as I live and as surely as the glory of the Lord fills the whole earth, 22 not one of those who saw my glory and the signs I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness but who disobeyed me and tested me ten times— 23 not one of them will ever see the land I promised on oath to their ancestors. No one who has treated me with contempt will ever see it. 24 But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it. 25 Since the Amalekites and the Canaanites are living in the valleys, turn back tomorrow and set out toward the desert along the route to the Red Sea. [a] ”
[a] Or the Sea of Reeds

17. ?Question?
What does Scripture mean when it says that the people put God to the test?
They had murmured and disobeyed, by word and action they had doubted Gods promises
They tested the patience of God, as well as his continual willingness to forgive
In what way would God punish His people for their rebellion?
All those who rebelled would not see the Promised Land (v 23)
Why do you think complaining was so sinful in God’s eyes?
Complaining demonstrates a lack of submission, gratitude and trust in and toward the Lord
On many occasions their murmuring against Moses was ultimately against God

18. ?Question?
What do you think Numbers 14:24 means in saying Caleb had a different spirit?
Because the Israelites had a dreadful history obeying God, Caleb stood out from his fellow spies
He voiced his trust in the lord despite being in the minority
In contrast to the caustic doubt that prevailed, his spirit inspired faith
As a result, Caleb was to be allowed to enter the Promised Land

19. The Cost of Complaining Numbers 14:26-30 (NIV)
26 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron: 27 “How long will this wicked community grumble against me? I have heard the complaints of these grumbling Israelites. 28 So tell them, ‘As surely as I live, declares the Lord, I will do to you the very thing I heard you say: 29 In this wilderness your bodies will fall—every one of you twenty years old or more who was counted in the census and who has grumbled against me. 30 Not one of you will enter the land I swore with uplifted hand to make your home, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.

20. Wholehearted Devotion Rewarded Joshua 14:6-11(NIV)
6 Now the people of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what the Lord said to Moses the man of God at Kadesh Barnea about you and me. 7 I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh Barnea to explore the land. And I brought him back a report according to my convictions, 8 but my fellow Israelites who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt in fear. I, however, followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly. 9 So on that day Moses swore to me, ‘The land on which your feet have walked will be your inheritance and that of your children forever, because you have followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly.’[a] 10 “Now then, just as the Lord promised, he has kept me alive for forty-five years since the time he said this to Moses, while Israel moved about in the wilderness. So here I am today, eighty-five years old! 11 I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I’m just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then. [a]Deut. 1:36

21. ?Question?
Do you think Caleb was being prideful in explaining to Joshua his faithfulness as he sought his inheritance?
Caleb’s words reflected his consistent trust in the faithfulness of God
He trusted and served the Lord wholeheartedly
What does verse 12 tell us about Caleb’s faith?
There were still battles to be won in securing the promise, he would not rely on his own strength, but upon the Lord

22. ?Question?
How should be react if we find ourselves wavering in our confidence in the Lord?
Just like Caleb in Joshua 14, we must rehearse the promises of God regularly
We should seek God regularly, recalling past blessings, and standing on His promises
As we do, we can be like Caleb, practicing wholehearted devotion to God

23. Claim Your Inheritance Joshua 14:12-14 (NIV)
12 Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me that day. You yourself heard then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large and fortified, but, the Lord helping me, I will drive them out just as he said.” 13 Then Joshua blessed Caleb son of Jephunneh and gave him Hebron as his inheritance. 14 So Hebron has belonged to Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite ever since, because he followed the Lord, the God of Israel, wholeheartedly.

24. Claim Your Inheritance
Joshua 14: focuses on Caleb’s inheritance
Inheritance is an important concept, occurring about four dozen times in the Book of Joshua
For the Israelites, this was an inheritance of land
It would require securing the inheritance through battle, defeating a powerful foe
This would require the strength and help of the Lord
Caleb understood God would bring about the inheritance he had been promised

25. ?Question?
In what sense do we, as Christian, have an inheritance, and how do we receive it?
Today, under the new covenant, we do not look for an inheritance of land
Ours is an eternal spiritual inheritance:
4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 1 Peter 1:4 (NIV)
We too must do battle to secure our inheritance, putting on the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18)
A marvelous promise awaits those who strive to live out wholehearted trust in the Lord
God is faithful, and we can rest in the promise of a spiritual inheritance that will last forever.

26. Practical Application
Sometimes we might feel intimidated by great men of God like Caleb, whose devotion seems so strong and difficult to emulate
We must remember that wholehearted devotion is just as real and vital for us as it was for Caleb
It doesn’t happen through our own efforts, we must keep in mind that God is at work in us
It calls us to practice discipline as well as patience
As we trust in His promises and rely on His strength, we too can experience the rewards of devotion

27. Sunday in the Word Good Lessons from Good Examples
July 23, 2017
Unit 2, Study 8
Zealous for God (Phinehas)
Study Texts: Numbers 25:1-13; Joshua 22:10-34;
John 2:13-17; Romans 12:11; Hebrews 3:12-15