“And it came to pass… that the cloud was taken up from off the tabernacle of the testimony. And the children of Israel took their journeys out of the wilderness of Sinai; and the cloud rested in the wilderness of Paran” (Numbers 10:11,12).
TEXT — Numbers 10:11-28
Message
A former U. S. Defence Secretary once said, “We know, there are known knowns; things we know that we know. There are known unknowns. That is to say, there are things that we now know we don’t know. But there are also unknown unknowns. These are things we do not know, we don’t know.”
All that the children of Israel knew was that they were going to the Promised Land. What they did not know was the way to the land. Today’s passage shows us God’s choice of means to guide and lead them throughout their wilderness journey. Right from the outset, Israel was to follow this theophanic cloud. Theophany is the visible manifestation of a deity (God). For Israel, the unknown unknowns were how long and when the journey would end. This dilemma may explain their frustration with the wilderness journey. Still, they were protected and preserved by divine providence all the way to the Promised Land. Knowledge of this should strengthen our faith in the omnipotent One.
Jesus told His disciples that He would send them the Comforter; the Holy Spirit of God to guide and direct all their affairs. While He was physically with them, He told them what to do throughout their more than three years of following Him. Now, the Holy Spirit has taken up the role of guiding our steps in fulfilling God’s purpose for our lives.
As we await the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, we still have many unknown unknowns. For instance, we cannot tell exactly when He will come for His own. We need the continual guidance of the Holy Spirit as we wait and work till the Master comes. Therefore, it is essential for us to be sensitive constantly, yield to the leading of the Holy Spirit and allow His counsel to prevail.
Listed among “500 most powerful people on the planet” by the Foreign Policy magazine in 2013, Pastor (Dr.) William F. Kumuyi is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry (DCLM) headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria. DCLM started in 1973 as a 15-member Bible study group right in Kumuyi’s apartment at University of Lagos where he was a lecturer. His revolutionary Bible teaching on personal holiness and commitment to evangelism soon gained so much traction and resulted in a widespread revival.
