C. H. Spurgeon described the Book of Numbers as the pilgrim's progress off the Bible. He did so because the Book of Numbers details Israel's journey, or Israel's pilgrimage from Egypt to the land of Canaan, their promised inheritance through the wilderness. The wilderness had many trials many dangers and many discouragements for the people. And yet, the book of Numbers describes how God brought them from Egypt through those dangers, through those toils, through those trials, through those discouragements, and He brought them to their promised inheritance in the land of Canaan, and He gave it to them. There is a sense in which we might describe the book of Numbers then as our pilgrim's progress as well. You see, if you are saved by God's grace, like Israel, you have been delivered by the blood of the Lamb from the Egypt of this world. You have been saved from what Paul described as this present evil world. You have been delivered from it by the blood of the Lamb, as Israel was delivered from Egypt by the blood of the Paschal Lamb. If you are saved by God's grace, then like Israel, you are traveling or journeying to the place of your eternal inheritance. The Bible describes heaven as our inheritance that is incorruptible, that is undefiled, it feedeth not away, and it is reserved in heaven for you. Heaven is likened to the heavenly caiman. And like Israel, we are journeying to that place and to that land if we are saved by God's grace. Like Israel, we have not only been delivered from the world by the blood, we are not only traveling to our heavenly caiman, But we are journeying through the wilderness of this world. This world is no friend of Greece or God. It is no friend of God's people. And there are many trials, many discouragements, many difficulties that we will face as we journey through the wilderness of this world. We read of one such time of discouragement that Israel encountered and experienced You'll note it there in verse 4. It's right at the end of verse 4. It tells us the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way and child of God, if you have been saved by the blood, if you are traveling to heaven, if you are journeying through this life as a pilgrim and a stranger, your heart is set on a better land, then, like Israel, you too will have trials. You too will face many discouragements as you traverse through this world. It is a reality that the people of God will have their discouragements. The word there, discouraged, in fact, is much discouraged. The Lord is laying emphasis to how great a time of discouragement this was. And it literally means they were greatly cast down. And you will notice that it was the soul of the people in their very heart They were greatly cast down and discouraged. And it is a reality that the people of God from age to age, as they travel through this life, will at times be greatly cast down as they seek to walk with the Lord. Wasn't it David who said in Psalm 42, he asked himself the question, Why art thou cast down, O my soul? And why art thou disquieted within me? It was the Lord Jesus who pointed out to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. In Luke 24, in the verse 17, He asked them why they were sad. They were greatly saddened by the events that had taken place all around them. They were cast down. We could say they were much discouraged. It was Elijah who sat down under the juniper tree in 1 Kings chapter 19. And he bemoaned that he and he only was left. And he requested that the Lord would take away his life. He felt his work was a failure. He felt that he did not want to go on in the journey and in his service. And he was cast down and discouraged. And ladies and gentlemen, if this has been the experience of the children of God in the Bible, then there will be times when it will be our experience too. The Lord has recorded these times of discouragement. And the Apostle Paul, referring to the incident that we have read of, and indeed referring to our text, In 1 Corinthians 10 and 11, He said, All these things happened unto them for examples, and they are written for our admonition. In other words, the Lord has recorded these times of discouragement in His Word that we might learn from them and that we might press on in our walk with the Lord. And this morning, I want us particularly To take this incident, although we're focusing there on verse 4, we're using it as our text, I want to take this text and consider the theme of the problem of discouragement in the life of a believer. And I want you firstly to consider what causes discouragement in the life of a believer. I want you to notice verse 4. Let's read the entire verse. For it tells us, they, that is the children of Israel, journeyed from Mount Hoer by the way of the Red Sea to compass the land of Edom. And the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way. And you'll see in verse 4 that it describes the journey the route that the children of Israel had to take. And I would highlight or circle for you to understand that they had to compass the land of Edom. So what discouraged them? The first thing that discouraged them was the difficult journey they faced. They had to compass or go around the land of Edom. The children of Israel were on the final leg of their journey. They say the final part of any journey is the most difficult. And they're on the final leg of their journey, and they come up through the wilderness, and they're on the borders of Edom. And we read in chapter 20 how Moses sent messengers to the king of Edom, and they asked if they could travel on the King's Highway, the shortcut. They wanted to take the short route to the land of Canaan so they would travel through Edom. They would travel up the east side of the River Jordan and then cross Jordan into Canaan. And the short route was to go through Edom. And they say, we will not go through your fields or your vineyards. We'll not destroy your crops. Our cattle will not eat of the grass. And if we drink of the water, we'll even pay you for it. The king of Edom thought that Israel would be a threat. And so he told them, if you pass through our land, we'll come out against you with the sword. He sent the soldiers and his armies to stand in the border of the land as a threat to Israel. Don't enter into this land. And so Israel had to do an about turn. And they had to go back down to the south, to the way of the Red Sea. And then they had to turn and encompass the land of Edom. And they had to go on a much longer journey. Brethren and sisters, there are lessons there that we should learn. You see, on their journey, they thought they would find help from one who was their earthly brethren or brother. The Edomites were the children and descendants of Esau, the brother of Jacob. And Israel thought that being a near relative that the Edomites would allow them passage. But it was the Edomites who discouraged them. It was the Edomites who made things difficult for them, who made their journey longer and further. And their soul was greatly discouraged. We're told in the life of David, that his enemies were from or in his own house. It was those in his own household who rose up against him and discouraged him. Do you remember when David came down to fight Goliath? Who was it that told him he was creating mischief? It was his own brother and his own brothers. They told him for mischief he had come to see the battle. And they put him off from fighting Goliath, or tried to. And sometimes we can find that discouragement comes not from the world, but from those of the household of faith, from those in our own household. The story is told of William Terry, the missionary to India. And when Currie had a vision for the land of India and wanted to take the gospel to that place, it wasn't the unconverted or the wantlings who discouraged him from going. It was the church men in England. And they told him, when God determines to save the heathen in India, He will do it without you or without us. The discouragement came from within. from those who were closest, those who you expected to help and encourage. And sometimes it's the near kinsfolk, it's those of the household, and I'm talking now of the household of thieves, that can be the greatest discouragement in the work of the Lord. You'll consider then that this discouragement came because of the long journey, the difficult journey, and that lengthened their journey. Do you know why it lengthened their journey? And it took them the long road to Canaan. The Lord was taking them the right road. In that psalm that we sang together, Psalm 107, and the verse 7, we read these words. He, speaking about the children of Israel, how the Lord led them through the wilderness, it tells us. And He led them forth by the right way. that they might go to a city of habitation. And Israel thought their progress was being slowed down. They weren't making the progress as quickly as they thought they should be. And it discouraged their hearts. But all the time, God was leading them in the right way. And that can be another source of discouragement in our journey for the Lord. We don't make the progress we think we should. We're not making it as quickly as we should. Maybe I'm speaking to you personally. Maybe in your Christian life you would have liked to have achieved more personally for the Lord in your service. You would like to know more of God's Word, more of the doctrines of the Bible. You would like to be one who is more instant in prayer, one who can supplicate for a much longer period of time than you would like. And yet you don't feel you've made the progress you would have liked to, child of God. We encourage you to press on, but understand this, the Lord leads His people in the right way. Maybe we can apply it to the house of God and to the work of Christ. We're not seeing the progress today that we would like to see. There's not the many conversions or multitudes of conversion that there were in your younger days and in the earlier days of our churches. Because of the lack of progress, we can become greatly cast down and discouraged. Be assured, the Lord is leading his people in the right way and he has a purpose in it all. And he will take us to the place of blessing as he took Israel to their kingdom. So, what caused our discouragement? The first thing was the difficult journey. and the discouragements they faced. But there is something else that caused them and brought on this great discouragement. And I want you to look at verse 5, for it tells us that they neglected God's provision. The people speak against God and against Moses. They say, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no bread, neither is there any water. and our soul loatheth this light bread." You'll notice they contradict themselves. And often when we get so cast down and discouraged, we can talk in a way that is contradictory. You see, they say, first of all, there is no bread. And that wasn't true. But in the very next sentence they contradict themselves. Our soul loatheth this light bread. God provided manna for them for forty years. And the bread was there six mornings in the week. The manna was there and they gathered it. And they say there is no bread, but our soul loatheth this light bread. The word loatheth there literally means worthless. They counted it as worthless. They didn't want God's provision anymore. Do you know the manna in the Bible is a type of God's Word? And it's a type of Jesus Christ. Jesus said, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord. That's how man shall live. Jesus said, I am the bread of life. The Pharisees spoke about how God gave manna in the wilderness. And Jesus said, I am the bread of life. He's the type, the fulfillment of the type of the manna. And the people now, they're saying, we don't want the man anymore. Our soul knows it. They were neglecting to feed themselves on what God had provided. And because they neglected what God had provided, they became greatly discouraged in the way. And Christian, I tell you today, if you neglect God's Word and if you neglect Jesus Christ and the communion that we have and enjoy with Him as God's people, that daily communion with Him, feeding upon Him as the living bread, reading and meditating upon God's Word. If you neglect God's provision for your soul, then you will become greatly discouraged. Your soul will be cast down. And like Israel, you will be ready to run back to the Egypt of this world. We need to feed ourselves constantly and continually upon the Word of the Lord. Isn't it a tragedy that Israel declared, We no longer want God's provision. We want something else. We want something more. And what a tragedy it is when God's people come to the conclusion that Christ and His Word is not enough for our souls. We need other things. Child of God, I tell you this morning, everything you need is found in Christ and His Word to sustain you on your journey from earth to heaven. And may we never neglect it, lest our souls become cast down and we be ready to run back to the Egypt of this world. Those are the things that cost Israel's discouragement. But I want to move on this morning, and I want you to notice, secondly, the great dangers of discouragement. You see, this is a dangerous place to be. This is a dangerous condition to find yourself in, to be greatly cast down. And you will notice the dangers that it brought. Verse 5, the first thing we notice, they spoke unadvisedly against the Lord. And the people speak against God and against Moses. What's the significance of them speaking against Moses? Moses was God's prophet. And Moses, as God's prophet, was leading the children of Israel in the right way, the way the Lord would have them to go. He was declaring God's Word and showing them that way. And so they spoke against Moses. But in reality, they were speaking against the Lord. Can I, and I'm almost reluctant to do this this morning as a preacher, but can I just say when the preacher preaches what is God's Word, never criticize that message. Now, if he starts preaching something that's not God's Word, that's a different situation altogether. But what Moses was doing, he was giving them God's Word. He was showing them the way the Lord would have them to go. And that's what they were criticizing. And In essence, they weren't really speaking against Moses. You know, when people criticize the Word of God, in essence, that it is the Word of God, they're not really speaking against a preacher. They're speaking against the Lord Himself. And the Lord emphasizes it here. The people speak against God and against Moses. And I know that true believers There is that thought within our hearts. We would never speak against the Lord. We would never falsely accuse the Lord. We can hardly understand why Israel would say these words. Didn't the Lord deliver them from Egypt? And we would never do that. And yet, we find in the Scriptures there are times when even the best of God's saints spoke unadvisedly against the Lord. I'm thinking of that incident in the life of the disciples. It's in Mark chapter 4. When they were in the little ship, they were crossing the Sea of Galilee and a ferocious storm came upon them. They thought that they were going to perish. Just like Israel in the wilderness. Israel thought they were going to perish. They thought they were going to die. And they thought the Lord had abandoned them. And so the disciples were the same in that little boat in Mark chapter 4 and in verse 38. The Lord was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep in a pillow, and they awake him and say unto him, and here's where the disciples, I, the best of God's children, what did they say? Master, carest thou not that we perish? They're speaking unadvisedly against the Lord. Lord, we're in a terrible situation. Lord, the boat is filling with water. We're going to sink. We fear we're going to perish. Do you not even care? That's the allegation against the Lord. And they're speaking unadvisedly against Him. Of course, the Lord arose. And He simply rebuked the wind and the sea. And there was a calm and a still. And of course, in the days of Moses, the Lord, He provided all the Israelites needed. And he met their needs and they didn't perish. But the Lord brought Israel in to Canaan. Child of God, you could face such a time of discouragement. The seed of the flesh in your mind or the seed that the devil would put in your mind would be, God has brought you to this place. God doesn't care about you. God will abandon you. And you have no hope. And I'm saying to you, one of the great dangers, that is one of the great dangers in a time of discouragement. You know, as we think about the disciples, I remember hearing a story or a little saying, I should say, when you're in deep water, keep your mouth shut. And you know, the disciples were in deep water. The water was coming in the boat. They were ready to go down and they opened their mouth and they speak against God. Sometimes, when we're in great troubles, rather than speaking about the Lord, we should simply speak to the Lord and ask Him, Lord, help us in our time of trouble. Let's be careful with our words when our soul is cast down. But I want you to notice another danger. Back in Numbers chapter 21, not only did they speak unadvisedly against the Lord, but they sought comfort in the world. For they said, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in this wilderness?" You know what they were really saying in their hearts? We were better off in Egypt. If you turn back to Numbers chapter 11, you'll see this same thought come through at various times in the wilderness wanderings. In Numbers chapter 11, look at verse 5 and 6. They're saying to Moses, we remember the fish which we did eat in Egypt freely. There was nothing free in Egypt. And they're speaking in error. And what they're saying is wrong. But they tell Moses, we remember the fish which we did eat in Egypt freely. The cucumbers and the melons and the leeks and the onions and the garlic. But now our soul is dried away. There is nothing at all beside this manna before our eyes. And the people wanted and determined in their heart that they would return to Egypt. Such was their discouragement. They were greatly cast down. And do you see that when they're discouraged, Their values are all wrong. They're placing value on the wrong things. They're saying we would rather be in Egypt. They were slaves in Egypt. And they're putting the importance on the temporal things. We had food. We had this. We had that. We had the other. And therefore, we'll return to Egypt. But they hadn't their freedom. They hadn't their liberty to worship the Lord. They hadn't the inheritance that God was going to give them. And their spiritual evaluation is all wrong. They're seeking comfort in the world. And there's great danger in that. You'll remember that Lot sought comfort in the world. You'll remember that Lot turned away from the fellowship of Abraham's house. And he placed more importance on his business and his workers in going to Sodom. And he felt he would prosper there. And he valued that more than the fellowship of God's people in Abraham and Abram's house. And he lost all that he had by turning back. and seeking comfort in the world. You'll remember it was said of Demas. Paul said, Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world. He put the value and he sought comfort in the world and he gave up on the service of God and he lost out and he lost God's blessing. My friend, if you seek comfort in the world in your times of discouragement, you will lose out with God. The world has nothing to offer the Christian, the true child of God. And we have to say, you are never to turn back either in heart or in reality of life. Oh, may God warn us of the dangers of being cast down. And may we be aware of what would cause us to be cast down. But let me come further. I want you to turn back to Numbers 21, because I want you to see the remedy. for being cast down. Maybe you're in that place. You've been discouraged. Maybe you've even slipped back from following the Lord. And you've sought comfort in the Word. What's the answer to your soul? What's the answer for your need? Well, we have it here in Numbers chapter 21. We learn, firstly, that the Lord chastened Israel. He sent fiery serpents among the people. Verse six. You see, the Lord always chases backsliding, whether it's in heart or in reality. And he sent those serpents among them. And much people of Israel were afflicted and some died. What happened then? Verse 8, The Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole, and it shall come to pass that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass that if the serpent had bitten any man, When He beheld the serpent of brass, He lived. Oh, you know the story well. We teach it to the children in Sunday school in the children's meeting. The serpent of brass. Moses set it up on a pole and everyone that looked to it, they were healed of their serpent or their snake bite. When we come to John chapter 3, the Lord Jesus, He was explaining to Nicodemus how a man could be born again. And Jesus said, As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up. The serpent on the pole is a type of Christ and His work on the cross. And when the people were greatly discouraged, there was the lifting up of the type of the cross work of the Lord Jesus. How He took our sins and He took our punishment. And He died on the cross to set us free. And He died on the cross to deliver us from our sins. And men and women, the remedy for discouragement is found in looking afresh to the crosswork of our Lord Jesus Christ. In Hebrews chapter 12, verse 3, we have the exhortation that we are to look unto Jesus, the author and the finisher of our faith. And it tells us in verse 3, For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be weary and faint in your minds. There's the remedy. And if you don't want to be discouraged, if you don't want to be cast down, then, child of God, you continue on a daily basis to look to Him and to look to the work of the cross. For He endured the cross and He despised the shame and He sat down at the right hand of God. And He will meet all your needs in this life. And He'll take you to heaven when you die. Keep looking to Him and maybe you're there in the valley. Your soul is cast down. You've got out of the way and you're in bypass meadow. Then look afresh to the cross. Isn't that what Jesus did for the two disciples on the road to Emmaus when they were greatly saddened at the events that had taken place? He opened the Scriptures and He expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself, His work of redemption. And we read their hearts burned within them and they returned to Jerusalem. The remedy is the cross and the work of the cross and looking to it and understanding it and feeding upon it. You'll notice there was not only a presentation of the cross, But there was prayer that was requested. Verse 7, Therefore the people came to Moses and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against thee. Pray unto the Lord that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people. Isn't that a mark of the greatness of Moses? They're ready for stoning him. They're speaking against him. They're saying all manner of evil about Him and the Lord. And when the Lord chastens the people, they come to Moses, pray for us. And Moses prayed for them. Jesus said, pray for them that despitefully use you. And it's a mark of spirituality that when we are able to pray for those who, one moment, were saying all manner of evil against us, to be able then to pray for them. that the Lord will restore them and touch them. And that's what Moses did. And I tell you, the way to get back to God and be encouraged in the Lord is through the place of earnest prayer. There was confession in the request for prayer. We have sinned. There was a calling upon the Lord to heal and restore them. And through prayer, we gaze upon the Lord and we call upon Him to meet our need and restore us from our great discouragement. You'll notice in closing that when the remedy of the cross and prayer was offered and made and sat before them, it tells us in verse 10, the children of Israel sat forward and pitched in Oboth. They pressed on. Do you know when we view the cross of Christ, we'll be able to press on in our walk with God. Discouragement hinders us on our journey. But the power of the cross makes us press on. It was Winston Churchill who made that great statement. When going through tough times, keep going. And if you are greatly discouraged and cast down in your own soul or in the work of the Lord, then keep going. Look to the Lord. view His atoning redemptive work and press on in your walk with God and in your service for Him.