Giants Living In Your Territory

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”  (Ephesians 6:12)

A Promise, Then A Problem

Moses sent twelve spies into the land of Canaan to report on the land and its habitants.  Finally, the children of Israel were on the verge of claiming their promised territory.  After leaving Egypt, they wandered in the desert for approximately 40 years. Now, they have an opportunity to see the Promise Land. 

Imagine their anticipation and excitement.  Maybe, they thought God would allow them to walk into the Promise Land without a fight.  Maybe, they thought, “We have suffered enough.  We have been roaming around as nomads for too long. Now, we can rest.”  Some blessings will require work and effort. 

As you continue to read today’s blog, you will learn that giants occupied the land.  God wants us to face our giants.  He does not want us to retreat in fear but to confront the mountains.   How many blessings and rewards are forfeited because we do not dare to fight or confront challenging issues?

Moses tells the twelve spies, “Go through the Negev and then into the hill country.  See what the land looks like. Learn about the people who live there. Are they strong or are they weak? Are they few or are they many?  Learn about the land that they live in. Is it good land or bad land? What kind of towns do they live in? Do the towns have walls protecting them? Are the towns strongly defended? And learn other things about the land. Is the soil good for growing things, or is it poor soil? Are there trees on the land? Try to bring back some of the fruit from that land.” (Numbers 13:17-20)

When they returned, the report of the land was great. It was everything that they wanted.  However, there was a problem. “But the people living there are very powerful. The cities are very large and strongly defended. We even saw some Anakites there.” 

Who were the Anakites? 

The Anakites were the offspring of giants from the line of Anak.  In the Old Testament, they lived in the regions of Edom and Moab during the days of Abraham.   Some Christian scholars believe (myself included) that the Anakites are descendants of Nephilim. 

Genesis 6:1-4 reads, “When human beings began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of humans were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. Then the Lord said, “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever, for they are mortal; their days will be a hundred and twenty years. The Nephilim were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.” 

The offspring of this union were giants.  The Anakites were their descendants.  Ancient Jewish writings in the Dead Sea Scrolls provide additional details regarding this group.  One of the reasons for the flood in Noah’s time: God wanted to wipe out the offspring from this union.

In today’s blog, we won’t go into too much detail about the Anakites. However, it’s important to mention that they were a group of powerful giants. The Old Testament talks about different descendants of the Nephilim, like the Gibborim, Rephaim, Sons of Anak, Anikites, and Emities. I recently learned that the Amorites were also giants, which surprised me. In Amos 2:9, it says, “I destroyed the Amorites, who were as tall as cedars and as strong as oaks. I uprooted their fruit and tore down their roots.” As I read the Old Testament with this new understanding of the Amorites, it gave me a better perspective on many things.

In the face of fear, it’s understandable to feel uncertain. But we must remember that our trust in God can overcome any obstacle, no matter how daunting it may seem. The giants we face in life are simply challenges to be conquered, and with faith as our guide, we can rise to the occasion and emerge victorious.

The land was everything that God promised. “We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey! Here is its fruit. But the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large. We even saw descendants of Anak there.”

There will be a moment when God gives you a vision of something you are supposed to accomplish. (YOUR PURPOSE) He may show you some aspects of your future.  But when the time comes to take possession of your promise, there is an obstacle, problem, or opposition.  In this story, we will see where Caleb and Joshua are unafraid.  They wanted to forge ahead and possess the land.

Meanwhile, other spies said, “We cannot attack those people; they are stronger … and they spread this information among the Israelites.”

God never wants us to be afraid of facing our Goliaths in life.  Goliath is a descendant of Anakites.  Whenever confronted with challenges in life, we must overcome fear with faith.  With the Holy Spirit inside of us, we can boldly proclaim the scripture, “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” (I John 4:4)

When you have a promise from God, you cannot go by what you see.  The spies were afraid because they saw the fortified cities and the size of the giants instead of placing their confidence in a GREAT GOD. “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” (Hebrews 11:1)

God was angry because of their lack of faith.  Without faith, it is impossible to please God. (Hebrews 11:6) When we place our faith in God, we say He does what He says.  Failure to believe is saying I do not have confidence in God and his Word.

Let’s not be intimidated by the size of the giants we must confront.  Let’s place our hope, faith, and confidence in a Great God. 

The spies looked at the problem of believing in God’s Word.  God told Moses he gave them the land before they accessed the territory.  We must focus on the promise more than the circumstance.

Faith over Fear.

We heard this phrase a lot during the pandemic. We have to listen to what God is saying over the voices we hear in the world.  We have to see past our adversity through the eyes of faith.  The spies said, “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.”

In Deuteronomy 1:29-31, Moses acknowledges their fear and encourages them to forge ahead with a promise of God’s help. “Do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them.  The Lord your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes, and in the wilderness. There you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place.”  Not only did they have a promise, God had proven himself to be their Deliver repeatedly, God’s track record of deliverance. 

Remember, I asked: “How many blessings and rewards are forfeited in life because we do not dare to fight or confront tough issues?”