Num. 33:11 And they removed from the Red sea, and encamped in the wilderness of Sin.

After their deliverance from slavery in the land of Egypt, the Israelites began their long journey toward the Promised Land. God did not lead them by the direct route along the Mediterranean coastline. This was because they were not prepared to war against the people that resided there. Rather, God led them southward, in a roundabout way, through what the Bible calls the wilderness.

The Wilderness of Sin does not refer to sinfulness, but is an untranslated word that biblical scholars suspect that the name Sin here refers to the Semitic moon-deity Sin. The Wilderness of Sin witnessed the Hebrews’ failure in their obedience to God (Exodus 16:1-4). Although the Wilderness of Sin was at the beginning of their journey, the Israelites had already begun to complain. On reaching the wilderness of Sin, the Israelites began to complain over the lack of food, as they had already consumed all the corn they had brought with them from Egypt. God heard their murmurings, and so provided them with abundant manna in the morning and quails in the evening.

It is so easy to read the scriptures and judge the people of Israel. Why didn't they just trust God? How could they have experienced the miracle of the Red Sea and in less than one month forgot all about it? Why are they such a complaining group of people? Why are they so ungrateful?

We are judgmental, until we find ourselves in the Wilderness of Sin. Do we complain about what we do not have? Do we remember God’s blessing and give thanks for them? God had been good to Israel. He delivered them out of the slavery in Egypt and let them cross the Red Sea miraculously. They had so much to be thankful for. But instead of being thankful for what God had blessed them, they complained of what they did not have. And, we are often guilty of behaving like them. We are sometimes in the Wilderness of Sin. We didn’t trust God, we complain, and we rebel.

We sin when we find ourselves in the Wilderness of Sin. Complaints are sin against God. They are signs of unbelief and ungratefulness. Questions like, "Why is this happening to me?" “Why God didn’t grant my wish?” “Is God listening to my prayers?”and "Where is God?" are murmurs and the persons who are doing such are questioning God’s authority. Where are the convictions, "God will provide" and "I will trust the LORD”?

If we had count our blessings and the number of times that God has delivered us from troubles, perhaps we would think twice before we complain. The trouble with the Israelites was that they had forgotten about how God delivered them from their bondage in Egypt and how He made them crossed the Red Sea on dry land. If they had remembered them, they would be always grateful to God. But they didn’t and hence, they complained.

Count our blessings; they are definitely more than we can be thankful for. God has even given us lots of things that we did not ask for. Do you pray for good health every day? Do you pray for safety when you cross the road or in a moving vehicle? Do you pray for your loved one’s health and safety? We don’t; until they are sick. But God has been granting them and taking care of those needs without we even ask.

We are in the Wilderness of Sin when we forget God’s blessings and load Him with tonnes of complaints. Those who trust God remember His blessings and are thankful for them (1 Thessalonians 5:18).

Brethren, we need to get out from the Wilderness of Sin and into the garden of Faith and Thankfulness. Remember this hymn, Count Your Blessings, when we pray:

So, amid the conflict whether great or small,

Do not be discouraged, God is over all;

Count your many blessings, angels will attend,

Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.

Count your blessings, name them one by one,

Count your many blessings, see what God has done.

And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.

Jimmy Lau

Psa 119:97  Oh how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day.

Num. 34:2 Command the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land of Canaan; (this is the land that shall fall unto you for an inheritance, even the land of Canaan with the coasts thereof:)

The details given in this chapter mark the general boundary of the inheritance of Israel west of the Jordan. It also marks the end of their forty year wandering in the wilderness. The tribes of Israel were all elated to see the land of Canaan.

It reminds me of this hymn, To Canaan’s Land I’m On My Way. The first stanza of this beautiful hymn goes like this:

To Canaan’s land I’m on my way,

Where the soul never dies;

My darkest night will turn to day,

Where the soul never dies.

We like to sing songs about Canaan Land. But which Canaan Land are we heading? The false doctrine of premillennialism wants the physical Canaan Land situated beside the Mediterranean Sea. But nothing could be further from the truth. If Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob did not look forward to that physical land of Canaan, why should we desire it? The scripture says that Abraham “looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God” (Hebrew 11:10). His eyes were not fixed on that land beside the Mediterranean Sea. The faithful patriarchs desired a city that is heavenly and not earthly (Hebrews 11:16). And, so should we!

Why would I want to become Christian so that I can live in Canaan in the future? I could live in Canaan now (the land of Israel today) if I want to. The scriptures tell me that this earth will be burned up when the Lord returns (2 Peter 3:10). So, why would I want to come back to this “blackened” earth? I want to be like Abraham who looked forward to a city that is in heaven. No, Canaan Land is not Heaven.

Our inheritance is Heaven. And, we must prepare ourselves to enter that eternal home. What did it take for Israel to inherit the land of Canaan?

The first step: Get out of Egypt.

The second step: Cross the Red Sea.

The third step: Cross the wilderness.

The fourth step: Cross the Jordan River.

The Final Step: Welcome to the Promised Land.

Our journey to heaven is the same:

First, we have to get out of Egypt. Egypt represents bondage to sin. Sin enslaves us and we need to be free get out of its hold. Only the blood of Christ can deliver us from this bondage of sin (John 1:29).

Second, we have to cross the Red Sea. The Red Sea represents a rebirth (1 Corinthiaan 10:2). We have to be born again (John 3:3-5). In baptism we become new creatures in Christ (Romans 6:4; 2 Corinthians 5:17).

Third, we have to cross the wilderness. The wilderness represents our journeys before we reach heaven. We have to persevere because the journey is going to be long and hard (Revelations 2:10).

Forth, we have to cross the Jordan River. The Jordan River was Israelites’ final passage into the Promised Land. It represents the end of our life on this earth as we cross over to meet God (Hebrews 9:27)

Finally, when we have finished the race and crossed over, God says: Welcome Home: “Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world” (Matthew 25:34).

It is a picture of the victorious Christian that is available to every child of God. It is a picture of victory in the midst of struggle. What a wonderful day it will be!

When we all get to heaven,

What a day of rejoicing that will be!

When we all see Jesus,

We’ll sing and shout the victory!

                                         ~ Eliza E. Hewitt, Hymn, When We All Get To Heaven~

Jimmy Lau

Psa 119:97  Oh how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day.

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” (Luke 2:14)

This the Christmas season so I guess it’s appropriate to present an editorial related to this time.  I’ll start by telling you that there are a lot of things that I like about this holiday season, but also there are a lot that I don’t like.

In the “like” category of things, I like the feelings of “good will” and “cheer” that we see and hear expressed towards others.  My thoughts on this aspect is, why don’t we see it all year.  It you notice in the above scripture, there’s no time limit mentioned so wouldn’t it be nice if “peace” and “good will” were year-round things?

I like the music however, since it starts at Thanksgiving, by Christmas I’m getting a little tired of it.  I can only listen to “The Little Drummer Boy” so many times before my discomfort level max’s out.

And, I like the idea of the giving and receiving of gifts, but not for the gifts themselves.  What I really like is the principle, or thought, behind them.  And neither does it have to be expensive things.  Just that someone thought enough about another person to get (or make) something for them.  In this regard, it’s the old cliche “It’s the thought that counts” that is so true.

Plus, I like that the holiday season seems to draw folks together.  Like I said earlier, it would be nice if this spirit lasted throughout the whole year.  It just seems to bring family and friends closer together and this is a good thing.

What I don’t like about this season is the crowds and the traffic problems.  It’s these things that bring about feelings opposed to the “good will” aspects of it.  These situations actually cause “ill will” and it’s a shame when that occurs any time during the year, but especially so at this time.

I mean, here we are in a season of “good will” and certain things about it causes hostility and “ill will.”  Seems like an oxymoron, doesn’t it?  I’m sure that, like myself, you’ve seen on the news, the fights and the battles in stores over this years’ “got to have” toys.  We see “peace” go right out the window, don’t we?

No, I’m not anti-Christmas like some people claim they are.  You know, the “bah humbug” people.  I just don’t believe that this holiday has anything to do with the actual birth of Christ or that we have any directive or inference in the Bible to celebrate it as such.  I believe that history will reveal it to have been a pagan holiday that was adopted by the Roman church in about 330 AD and since that time has been worshiped as the birthday of Jesus Christ.

Let me say it this way:   if we’re going to be true to the Scriptures, we have to understand that there is no command or inference given for Christians to worship the day of Christ’s birth.  If we had been given such a command or inference, we’d have also been given the date to do so and not left with the adoption of a Roman pagan holiday for it.

Yes, the Scriptures do tell us ABOUT the birth of Christ and where it occurred, but the significance of His birth is not the date, but rather how it was accomplished because that is what established His “bona fides,” so to speak.  It was the fulfillment of several prophesies regarding the coming of the Messiah, not the least of which is the one found in Isa. 7:14 where it predicts that He would be born of a “virgin.”

The place of His birth is also significant because it too fulfills the prophesy told in Micah 5:2 that the Savior would be born in Bethlehem.  Other prophesies regarding the birth of the Messiah we can look at are the ones addressing His lineage.  IE: He would be of the tribe of Judah (Gen. 49:10 and Micah 5:2).  Others relating to this can be read in Gen. 17:18 and then in Matt. 1:1-2.

That is the significance of His birth; the fulfillment of the prophesies regarding it.   That proves that this Jesus of Nazareth, that was born of a virgin in the town of Bethlehem is the true Christ, the true Messiah.

So, is it okay for me to enjoy this season?  I certainly believe so, as long as I understand it to be a non-religious holiday, similar in nature to Memorial Day, Thanksgiving or any other holiday of the year.  What we have to keep in mind is that the Christian’s worship of Christ, as the Savior of the world, is that it’s a 365 days of the year celebration rather than just one.

I also believe that it’s perfectly okay for me to exchange gifts with loved ones.  That I can enjoy the love and “good will” brought on by the occasion of this holiday.  You see, Christians benefit from the liberty that’s found in Christ.  The 14th chapter of Romans shows us this principle.  That we can observe or enjoy a holiday so long as we understand it’s appropriate significance.  But that passage also shows that it’s alright to not participate if one doesn’t desire to.

Let me close my thoughts here by saying this: I really don’t believe in Christmas as a Bible based holiday, but I do believe in the One that the holiday remembers.  His birth was indeed miraculous, but it is His death, burial and resurrection that saves us.  It was man’s sins that crucified Him and yet, He loves us anyway.  That is what we need to remember and celebrate.

Respectfully submitted,

Ron Covey