The Spirit to Conquer Canaan (Deut. 34:1-12)
We will finish Deut. 34 today. This is the chapter that finishes Moses’ final ministry. Moses was born in the Levite tribe to his parents in Egypt. So, I believe it is God Who gives birth, God Who chooses which parents we are born to, and God Who chose Moses to be born in Egypt, the superpower nation. If God has done those things, then God has a plan, and until you find that plan of God, your life will always be wandering.
Why did God allow me to be born to these Levite parents? Why did God allow me to be born in Egypt? Why is it that when I was born, the Pharaoh had made a proclamation to kill all the newborn babies? What mission did Moses’ mother have to put Moses in the Nile River instead of killing him?
There’s not a single thing that goes according to our will. Ever since we’re born, we are born under a misconception. We don’t ask the question, “Why was I born to these parents?” We need to ask, “Why was I born on the battlefield? Why was I born in a time when babies were being killed?” If you don’t ask these questions, you’ll keep living your life however you want to, then as you get older, there will be things happening to you and you won’t know the reason.
Moses’ mother put him in a basket made of reeds and put him in the Nile River so he could be found by the Pharaoh’s daughter. Even though his life was saved, this young child doesn’t know. Moses lived under the princess without a mother for 40 years in Egypt, but we’re interested in the palace. But it’s possible we’re not very interested in why God put us there. It might be possible that we think, “Isn’t it better for us to live under the power of the Pharaoh than under a powerless mother?” People live their lives with these kinds of thoughts. There are people living centered on themselves with their own interpretations and plans.
Moses lived for 40 years in the palace, rejected being the son of the Pharaoh’s daughter, and eventually killed someone. I said this last time, but the Levites were people who used their swords to kill people. Moses is one member of that spiritual family line as well. Because he was not able to hold his anger, he killed someone. We think it’s very mighty that Moses was the son of the Pharaoh’s daughter, but he’s not that great. He couldn’t become the Pharaoh anyway, he was from a different bloodline.
In Hebrews, it says Moses chose God’s Word over all the power, glory, and wealth of the kingdom. It’s not really that Moses chose that himself, but God gave Moses the heart to not value the things of the world. Because of that, he wanted to save the Israelites, but he forgot about the spiritual things and he wanted to fight in a physical way. That’s why he had to run away as a murderous criminal. Then he spent 40 years in the wilderness, married to Jethro’s daughter.
From Moses’ perspective, he probably could not understand his 80 years of life. “Why do I have to live my life like this? And why did I commit murder?” Don’t you think he would have had these complicated thoughts, “Wouldn’t it have been better for me to stay in the palace quietly?” Are there any of you who think life is very complicated, and it’s not that clear to you? It’s possible you may not know why you’re living in America. “I lived such a busy life, studying, making money, and working,” but just like Moses, when you have spiritual problems, you’ll have a problem you cannot solve.
How would you be able to beat someone to death unless you had a spiritual problem? It means he had some part of himself he couldn’t control, that’s actually the problem of Moses’ family line. If you have this kind of spiritual problem, then your life really doesn’t work out. Until that problem is resolved, it will torment that person for their whole life.
When I went on my trip, I met someone, and he told me the story of the suffering in his life. We can see it, but it’s possible they don’t know their own problem. They say, “I’m suffering so much because of this. Even though I’m a pastor, it’s so difficult.” He said, “I can’t even tell anyone about it.” I shared a good word with him, and he said, “I can at least know what my problem is. I’m thankful because I was able to hear the answer that these are the forces of darkness that have been tormenting me ever since I was young.”
Even though you hear the answer, unless you’re completely sure this is the forces of darkness, you will continue to suffer. I told him this, “That devil is listening to our conversation right now. However, if you really acknowledge that these are the forces of darkness that have been tormenting you ever since you were young, that demon will flee. That darkness is not just darkness, but it’s the forces of darkness that have been holding onto me and controlling me ever since I was young. That’s why I need the Christ.
Especially for remnants, you may think that, “Satan, sin, Christ,” they seem so distant from you, or even if you know it’s related to you, you may say that the suffering is caused by darkness without really knowing what it is. But when the devil oppresses you, he doesn’t just do it; there’s a process, and usually, his method is through scars. These scars happened from some incident happening.
Instead of using that as an opportunity for blessings, it oppresses your entire life like in Isaiah 42. Even as a pastor, he was giving all these messages, going out into the world and succeeding, but he was suffering. There are many people like this in America. They study and succeed and things seem to go well but they suffer without knowing why, so we have no choice but to constantly obsess over something else.
I am suffering, I cannot solve it, and instead of holding onto the gospel, I keep holding onto something else instead. I’m holding onto something else, but it’s actually delicious. It has a good taste. Because I suffer so much, I keep going in that direction, and one day, I become addicted to it. Once you’re addicted, you won’t be able to escape. You were never able to escape, but you just fell into that circumstance. People who are a little more legalistic will struggle against it because they don’t want to do bad things.
For 40 years after Moses murdered that man, he lived looking towards God, tending sheep. One day, when he was 80 years old, he discovered his problem and the problem of Israel. The LORD told Moses personally through the Holy Spirit through the burning bush. Until that point, it seems like God is not there, but one day, God’s Word begins to come into us.
God told Moses, “Bring my people out of Egypt and take a three days’ journey into the wilderness to give the blood sacrifice,” but if you don’t understand what those words mean, you cannot undertake that mission. God gave Moses a tremendous mission, but if he doesn’t understand what the blood sacrifice means, he cannot do it. Just like us, we are given a tremendous Word through the pulpit message, but we don’t understand it, so we live our lives wandering through the wilderness.
However, God allows us to realize this through the Holy Spirit. Moses realized, “My problem and the problem of the Israelites can only be solved by the blood sacrifice.” Ever since Moses was very young, he heard from his mother about the covenant of Gen. 3:15 and the blood sacrifice and the covenant, but the Word wasn’t his until he was very old. At that point, the problem holding onto Moses began to be solved, and because of that, he held onto God’s Word and went towards Egypt.
Is Jesus Christ the answer to your life? If you are suffering spiritually or mentally right now, you’ve heard of Jesus Christ, but is He the answer to that problem? If He is not your answer, you’ll have to remain in your suffering, and even if you struggle for 80 years, you cannot resolve this. The pastor I was talking to grew up in a Christian environment, but he didn’t know what the curses and problems of the family line were, so he was living in suffering until now. Even though he was saying that Jesus is the Christ, and He is the solution to Satan, sin, and curses, he wasn’t able to solve his own problems. If we’re not able to solve our own problems, it means we’re always living, oppressed and controlled by that problem.
The moment when God begins to use you is when Christ becomes your answer. Before that point, you’ve heard everything but it hasn’t been your answer. Imagine how much Moses struggled. In the 40 years in the wilderness, he gave up on his life. Then, he received the word of the blood sacrifice, which is spilling the blood of a lamb or goat so he could become near to God again. That’s the problem the Israelites suffered from in Egypt. No matter what these people tried, Moses had no answer and the Israelites in Egypt did not have an answer. But once Moses received the answer, he was able to relay it.
The moment they applied the blood of the Passover Lamb on their doorpost, they were set free from all the curses and disasters of idolatry and the Pharaoh of Egypt, but you can only escape if you believe. So, all of the Israelites followed Moses’ words and applied the blood on the doorpost, and when they applied that blood, the angel of curses passed over their house. Then, they were liberated from the authority of Pharaoh, the god of this world, which is Satan. There is no other answer. It doesn’t matter even if you’re a pastor or a missionary. If you don’t have the answer yourself, you will be oppressed.
If a pastor is like that, his wife is even worse. So, his wife actually went on missions in Russia, got a mental illness, and did ministry with me for a few years because of that. This isn’t about going forward in bravery but Christ must really be your answer. You know all the Bible, you studied theology, but Christ is not your answer. There was no method to solve this problem. Because of that, he was living in suffering. It’s the same thing in America. People think, “All I have to do is study and get a good job,” but they cannot solve their own personal suffering.
Even though they go to church, Christ is not their answer. Moses did this for 80 years. Christ was not his answer. Yes, we need to study and yes we need to make money and acknowledge, but it’s not the answer to save me. Yes, if I have money, I’d live more comfortably. If I’m a little more educated, I’ll be higher off than other people. However, that is not the answer to your problem. Even when Moses lived in the palace, he did not have the answer to his problem, and even when he threw away all his possessions and lived in the wilderness, he still did not have the answer.
But one day, when Moses understood what a spiritual problem is and that Christ is truly his answer, the forces of darkness knew that Moses knew this, and because it was his personal answer, he was able to give that answer to many others. You can do ministry without the answer, that pastor did everything, he gave messages, but he didn’t have anything by himself, so he was doing all his ministry but he was under so much suffering.
The stream of Moses and you and I are all the same. The moment you receive that true answer, you will receive the mission and goal of your life. That was the land of Canaan. The land of Canaan is not the place we go to after we die, because that would mean Moses never got to go to heaven, but some people say Canaan was heaven. Moses never went into Canaan, and there are a lot of people who say, ‘The people who died in the wilderness did not go to heaven,” and there are people who speak incorrectly like that.
The land of Canaan is establishing God’s kingdom on this earth. Heaven is a place that we need to go to ultimately, but God’s kingdom needs to be established on this earth. It is the land of Canaan where we are doing missions, where there’s the forces of darkness in the land of Canaan where Satan is controlling everyone with idolatry and the great cravings of our sinful nature, like in Eph. 2:1-3. That is where we must go and conquer, go and fight there. Do you think God’s hobby is killing people? Go there and establish God’s Kingdom.
But Moses was not able to go into Canaan. Instead, he raises up the next generation, Joshua, and then he finishes his mission on earth. It doesn’t matter how robustly you and I live like Moses did, if we’re not able to raise the future generations to relay this covenant, then our life ends with just us. If you don’t relay the next generation that can continue the work that was started by you, then the future generations will be lost to darkness. Especially if you’re older, you need to set your focus on raising the next generation that is able to continue the missions and the goal you had in life.
It says in Deut. 34:9 that Joshua was filled with the spirit of wisdom because Moses had laid his hands on him. Wisdom is Christ, so the Holy Spirit of God was filling Joshua. Moses did his ministry with the strength of the filling of the Holy Spirit, and that’s the strength we need to do ministry. In this kingdom of the world, we eat, we do everything, and everyone is living for the things of earth. However, the Kingdom of Satan is controlling this world, ruling the kingdom of the air. It doesn’t matter how much you try to succeed in this world; you cannot overcome Satan because Satan is the ruler of the kingdom of air, and that is how he works. That authority is given to Satan by God. God allowed Satan to control the earth because authority is not something we make ourselves, but we are given that authority by someone else. That means God allowed that.
You and I must live with the power and authority that comes from the throne of heaven in order to overcome that Satan. If you don’t know this, and you live your walk of faith thinking that eating and walking is everything, you will absolutely crumble. When you fall, you will fall without knowing the reason why. Kingdom of Satan. One day, this takes over you. It takes over you without any reason. It’s because you think, “All I have to do is live diligently and make a living, just like Moses,” but that is not the case.
You need to have the blessing and the power of the throne of heaven in order to break down Satan’s kingdom on earth and save it. After the exodus, they were wandering in the wilderness during Deuteronomy, and they can only enter into Canaan once they had divided the land among the tribes. That means you, too, must determine your region of this world, of Satan’s kingdom, where the kingdom of God will be established without working. But people who do not know this wandered for 40 years in the wilderness, and then died. There are many believers like that. They think that their standard of faith is living for the physical things but they are destroyed because they do not understand the spiritual things and problems.
But the words of the bible do not change, the Word of God doesn’t change even one letter. That Word has been fulfilled within Jesus Christ, therefore through Jesus Christ, go to all nations. But it just so happens that all nations are gathered here in America. They’re already here, there’s no need for us to go, therefore, you must designate your region. Break down the kingdom of Satan and establish God’s Kingdom, it means plant the flag of Jesus Christ, who is already victorious. Raising the kingdom of God is a continuous process, from the Old Testament to the New Testament until Jesus’ second coming.
Your business is a tool to give influence to one region. As you give that influence through your business, give spiritual influence. Find the disciple whom God has prepared in this region, and through the region, spread the kingdom of God. That is the work that a business person must do. Thats is missions. Missions might also be going to a faraway nation, but America is the land of missions. Even the missions field that was opened in South America, it was opened by a meeting in America. We didn’t go there initially. There are Russian and African people here, and yes, we do have to go out on missions as well, but if you live in America without knowing this, that is a problem. You need to find a reason why made America a superpower nation, and the reason for your life.
Especially our future generations, if you don’t know this, then you’ll always wander. Making a living? Even dogs can eat and live. We adopted a cat for $25 and all she does is eat, sleep, get loved, and poop. I clean up that poop. It’s much better being a cat than being a human, because humans have so many worries. I don’t think that cat worries about getting sick, I don’t think that cat worries about medical bills. Even the cat doesn’t worry about things like that, it just lives. But maybe humans are worse than cats because we’re always worried. We’re always worrying about this or that. It’s because we don’t know who we are.
Have you ever seen a soldier worry about their clothes? You guys are not soldiers but if you’re a soldier of the US army, you don’t have to worry about clothes, housing, medical bills, or your studies. The American government provides all of that. Because all you have to think about is the mission given to you by the nation. If the Christians lose hold of the one mission they’ve received from God, which is Christ, then they will suffer all the pain. It’s because we don’t believe in God’s word. All we have to do is believe but we don’t.
Instead, we believe in the words of the people of the world. Those are the words Satan uses to upset us. God said, “Do not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil,” but we don’t believe in those words; we keep putting something else on top of God’s Word. When Satan asked, “What is God’s Word?” They added, “Don’t touch it either, because if you touch it, you may die.” Satan knows whether you are holding onto God’s word accurately or not. That’s why Satan tests you. If you’re not certain in God’s covenant, then the demons will go into your thoughts and your heart. Then you are going to make all your actions and decisions based on your thoughts. That is the beginning of all problems and all suffering.
We keep adding other things to the covenant God wants us to fulfill for our entire life. We keep arguing and debating with God, “I understand God’s Kingdom, but what about this as well?” You keep on putting more things on top, like, “God, I have to succeed too, don’t I? I understand I have a mission, but you don’t want to believe in Canaan. God said, “In the kingdom of God, you will live in buildings you did not build and reap harvests you did not plant.
God has provided everything for you, there is a certain region you must conquer or take care of it, and in that region, there are people whom God has prepared in that field to receive that gospel , but you keep saying,” I this and I that,” but it’s not about you; God has called you. That time and opportunity is given by God as well. But you keep saying, “Me, me, I can’t do this,” or, “it’s hard for me.” But God has prepared it.
So if you’re not able to pray, you cannot be led. If you’re never able to pray, then that person is never receiving the guidance of the Holy Spirit. There is no way we can know God through knowledge. In your regional field, it’s different, the entry-points are all different. You shouldn’t have just one frame of mind, thinking they’re all the same. Even when you’re fishing, all the oceans are different. The currents are different. The fish inside the water is different. There are places where the fish are and places where the fish is not. By default everyone is unable to know where the fish are; it’s only possible for someone who controls where the fish go. It’s only possible if a person is able to move and stop the wind. But even if there’s a little bit of a breeze, there are certain fish that don’t go there. It’s all different.
In the field you’ve designated, it’s different. How can we know that difference? That’s why we must receive the guidance of God’s Holy Spirit. That is why we must receive the spirit of wisdom from the throne of heaven, we must have that spirit of wisdom. Because we must receive the wisdom of God for us to go into the field as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. If someone is not able to pray, they will never be able to receive guidance in their field. You must have the power that comes from the throne of heaven to overcome the power of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, because he makes everyone confused. Satan knows what you love to do and uses that against you. Satan uses your spiritual problems against you. That is how you must first receive the filling of the power of the throne of heaven.
I talked a lot with the pastors about this. Pastors from the Presbyterian denominations may not understand this very well, because theologically they’ve changed the Holy Spirit into the filling of the Word. It’s not incorrect because Jesus said the Holy Spirit will allow us to remember His Word, and in the Pentecostal denomination, they understand the Holy Spirit as power. But they only think they receive the filling of the Holy Spirit if they have some kind of spiritual gift or power like speaking in tongues or seeing something with their eyes.
You can’t say they’re wrong; they’re both right but you shouldn’t be skewed in that direction. If you’re filled with the Holy Spirit, you might be filled with God’s Word. If someone is filled with the Holy Spirit, they may speak in tongues or prophesy, things may happen but you must not understand it in one way only. How should we know it? As in Acts 1:8, you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you and you will be witnesses.
Why does God give you the spirit of wisdom and power? So you can save people until the ends of the earth. That was the same reason He gave the filling of the spirit of power to save Canaan. Students, study with that strength. For professionals, you need to run your business with this spirit of wisdom as well. You don’t know anything, the business field changes every day and you cannot control anything; you’re not the creator. If you were God, it would be okay, but you’re not God. If you knew how God would change the competition tomorrow, you wouldn’t need this, but you’re not God. That’s how God filled Joshua and Caleb with the power of the Holy Spirit.
How do you receive it? Just ask for it in faith. But if someone has gone to another special kind of church for a long time and they’re imprinted, it might be difficult for them because the Pentecostals think, “If you don’t speak in tongues, you didn’t receive the filling of the Holy Spirit.” But in 1 Corinthians it says, “Why do you speak in tongues? We’re beyond that, that’s just a trick for people.” All the people in the field are dying but you have no interest in those people and you speak in tongues by yourself? That’s actually an obstacle. There are people in the field who are dying, asking for the Word of God, but you’re being divided. That’s an obstacle.
Without a doubt, the Holy Spirit will guide you to save people in the field, so why do you pray? It’s for that. If you need to study, why would you pray? Just study with your brain. If you run a business, why pray? Nonbelievers run businesses just fine without prayer. The reason God tells us to pray is that He has power the nonbelievers cannot compare to, and we save nonbelievers with that. Otherwise it’s possible to spend your life praying unnecessary prayers, never saving even one person, always suffering, and then you die.
God gave you your job as a precious tool to save people but you don’t. What’s the difference? Faith. Because you have no faith in the Word God has given to you, you live your life physically and then go. Students, study while you pray. The smart people cannot solve the problems of the world. In fact, they make more problems in the world. Because they themselves don’t have the answer to their own suffering in life, so they have to do something, but whatever they do spreads their misery. That’s the history of mankind until now. All the superpower nations have all the power and strength and cause problems with it. Weaker nations don’t have strength to cause problems. Weaker nations are just enslaved by the powerful nations. We were given the church to change that kingdom into the Kingdom of God, but if you’re not able to do that, you’re enslaved to the kingdom of the earth.
For you and me, we’re receiving the word of God’s mission to raise the next generation of Joshua, so we need the spirit of wisdom. Pray five minutes a day, “God, I must save my field so fill me with the spirit of wisdom.” Just believe exactly the Word God gives you because He is the One giving it to you. What is the filling of the Holy Spirit? It is not being filled with your own thoughts, it is not being filled with your worries. It is talking about being completely seized by the spirit of the Triune God. Your thoughts are not seized by yourself for Satan; it must be completely seized by the spirit of the Triune God, and the Christ has promised you this power.
But you say you don’t need this, so you’re going crazy because Satan goes into your heart, because you say you don’t need it. One day, Moses realized and Joshua realized, that’s why God was bound to use them. For the remnants, studying well is not the issue; it doesn’t matter if you do it well or not. If you study well, you might get into a better company, but can they solve their own problems? Can they solve the problems of their future? They cannot. So, the one who studies with this strength will save the future.
For the church officers, you must work with this strength for the works of God to save people. That’s the words of the Bible. May you start anew today because everything in the past is gone. It doesn’t matter what happened in the past; you need to let go of that. People who are drunk will cry and lament about their past, they go back to their past failures or success because they are not confident in their present. If I have power in the present day, why would I go to the past? I must live in the present; why are you hiding in the past? Or, you need to live in the present, but instead, you reject the present and live in the unnecessary future you’ve created.
There are Christians who dream of the future, but even if you dream of it, you won’t get there. Their present reality is so miserable so they only dream of the future, but even if you don’t dream it, Christ will take you there. What’s important is that Christ is seated at the right hand of the throne of heaven and God works when you pray, but you lose hold of that and go into your past and an unnecessary future. Pray right now, “May God’s Kingdom be established on the land I am stepping on, in my business and studies.” If this isn’t restored, you hide your life in drugs. We hide our lives because we’re not able to do this. God’s power, with me now, once you get a taste for that, it doesn’t even compare to drugs. God has prepared this blessing for you and me.
May you and I hold onto this for just five minutes a day and really conquer the field. If you pray in the name of Jesus Christ holding onto the word you received today, God works. It doesn’t come immediately but it’s on its way and God will reveal it in its time schedule. When you pray, God answers. Let us pray holding onto God’s Word because if God’s Word is in you, you’re a disciple of Christ and God will work according to His Word. Let us pray.
Let us pray for the region you must spiritually conquer. God gave you your job so you can conquer spiritually with your job, so that these kinds of churches can rise up in the 50 states of America. Let us pray especially for the Yakima regional church.
If you can see the invisible work God is doing now, you’ll be thankful. What is God doing now? Even now, God is doing His work to save people. He loves us, therefore, He saves us, and I hope your main job will be to save people. Making a living is secondary, then you will go into God’s Word. Everything you pray for moves the throne of heaven and the answers are coming even now. He is the One Who controls the time schedule. That is prayer. When people pray knowing this mystery, they will be thankful.
Let us pray for our missions fields. Let us pray for Utah, El Salvador, Sedona, Navajo, South America, Africa, Mongolia, and Karen.
Now may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the unending love of God, and the indwelling, working, guidance, and communion of the Holy Spirit, be upon all the heads of all the people of God, the people of all nations, and the remnants who desire to hold onto the covenant of Christ, to be filled with the Holy Spirit of wisdom, and to fulfill God’s Kingdom in their regions, be with us from now until forevermore always, amen.