“And we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.” Numbers 13:33
Did you know that how you see yourself is how others will see you? Have you ever met someone who really wasn’t attractive but they thought they were so attractive that you began to see attractive things about them? Have you ever noticed that people who have a lot of charisma are just great to be around? They feel good about themselves and somehow that makes everyone else feel good when they are around them.
We see this same principle in the children of Israel in Numbers 13:33. God had told Moses to send out 12 spies to check out the land He had promised to give them. 12 spies went out and sure enough the land was just as God said, flowing with milk and honey with wonderful fruit. Fruit so big that they had to carry one cluster of grapes between two men. However, if you remember, 10 of the 12 spies only saw the problems – they saw the giants, the walled cities and they saw how little they appeared in their own eyes. What they were seeing was a reflection of the faith that was on the inside of them. This alone kept them from every promise that God had delivered them out of bondage for, instead they wondered around the wilderness for forty years. Wouldn’t that be a shame? For God to deliver you out of a place and desire to take you to a place of promise but you are unable to go because of the way you see things?
If your perception isn’t lining up with what God says about you then there is only one way to change that. You have got to begin to see yourself through the mirror of God’s word. What does God say about you? Well…He says that you are more than a conqueror through Christ Jesus, He says that you are the head and not the tail, He says that you are blessed coming in and blessed going out, He says that you were healed by the stripes of Jesus, He says that you are forgiven and that your sins have been cast as far from you as the east is from the west, He says that Jesus became poor so that you might be made rich, He says that He sent His only son to die on that cross so you could enjoy the abundant life of healing, prosperity, great relationships, peace and so much more. The very best way for you to know what God says about you is to get in the word and find out.
Often we have words, negative words, spoken over us throughout our lives that damage how we see ourselves on the inside. Or perhaps you have made some really dumb decisions in your life and you are seeing yourself in the light of those decisions. The wonderful news is that God doesn’t see you that way. Once you have become born again and give your heart and life to God, He sees you as the word of God says you are. Now you need to begin to see yourself that way. See yourself prospering. See yourself healed. See yourself happy and free. See yourself walking in the abundant life, after all, God does.
Now, let’s go back. Remember the children of Israel said that ‘as we were in our sight, so we were in their sight?’ It’s true, often other people will see you as a direct reflection of how you see yourself. But sometimes, and we know and understand that this is how the enemy works; sometimes, it’s a lie. What do I mean by that? Well, the enemy will talk to you and tell you who he says you are, he will tell you exactly why he thinks you will fail, he will say that he sees you as weak and a failure and that you will never get your prayers answered or that you will never do anything for God. Is that the truth? No, of course not, the Bible says that he is the father of lies. And in the scripture we are looking at today, we find that how the children of Israel believe the giants of the Promised Land see them is a lie as well. Let me prove it to you. Remember, the 10 spies Moses sent out believe that they are viewed as grasshoppers in the eyes of the giants.
Now look with me at Joshua 2:9-11, ‘and said to the men: “I know that the Lord has given you the land, that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land are fainthearted because of you. For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were on the other side of the Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed. And as soon as we heard these things, our hearts melted; neither did there remain any more courage in anyone because of you, for the Lord your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath.”
Please get hold of this revelation. Although the children of Israel thought that the giant saw them as small, a few chapters later, Rahab told them how the people of that land, including the giants, really saw them. They knew that the Lord had given them the land and it caused them great terror. They knew that God had delivered them from Egypt with a mighty hand. They knew that where God took them their enemies were utterly destroyed. They knew that their God was God, the God in heaven and the God on earth. They knew that no matter how big they were, no one had been able to stand up against the God of the children of Israel. Praise the Lord God Almighty!
So you see, when the enemy is lying to you and trying to get you to see yourself the way he is saying he sees you, it’s all a lie. The devil KNOWS that you are a child of the Most High God. He KNOWS that nothing is impossible with your God. He KNOWS that no weapon formed against you could ever prosper unless you let go of your promise. He KNOWS you were healed by the stripes of Jesus. He KNOWS that Jesus became poor so that you might be made rich. He KNOWS better than anyone knows that Jesus, Himself faced Satan at his own house and took the keys from him and made an open show of him, utterly defeated him. Oh yeah, he knows all this – what he is counting on is that you don’t know and if you do know what God says about you, that you don’t fully believe it.
Recognize his lies and you will defeat him. Know how he really sees you and all fear will leave. The only truth about you is what God says about you. The only truth about your situation is what God and His word says about it. Don’t buy into the lies, stand on the truth of the word of God and go ahead, step into your promised land, God has already given it to you, go ahead, it’s yours, possess it!
