Sermon by – Lead Pastor Justin Kendrick – Vox Church
My Personal Sermon Notes …
Deuteronomy 1:26–31 (ESV)
“Yet you would not go up, but rebelled against the command of the Lord your God. And you murmured in your tents and said, ‘Because the Lord hated us he has brought us out of the land of Egypt, to give us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us. Where are we going up? Our brothers have made our hearts melt, saying, “The people are greater and taller than we. The cities are great and fortified up to heaven. And besides, we have seen the sons of the Anakim there.”’ Then I said to you, ‘Do not be in dread or afraid of them. The Lord your God who goes before you will himself fight for you, just as he did for you in Egypt before your eyes, and in the wilderness, where you have seen how the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way that you went until you came to this place.’”
The Orphan Spirit at the Edge of Promise
The book of Deuteronomy is the final word of Moses to Israel—a fatherly benediction spoken to a younger generation on the brink of stepping into the Promised Land. These words come at the end of Moses’ life, just before he passes the mantle of leadership. But they are not merely historical; they expose a timeless truth about the human soul.
Underneath the surface of our souls, something is not quite right.
Moses’ encouragement is simple and profound:
“Do not be afraid.”
This is the most frequent command in all of Scripture.
But Moses isn’t speaking to healthy, life-preserving fears—he’s speaking to the unhealthy ones. The anxiety that simmers below the surface of our lives often takes one of three forms:
- Comparison – “The people are greater than we are.”
We measure ourselves against others and always fall short. - Apathy – “The cities are fortified to heaven.”
We assume the system is stacked against us, so why try? - Overactive Imagination – “The sons of the Anakim are there.”
We’re consumed by irrational “what ifs” and giants we’ve never met.
These are symptoms. The real problem lies deeper.
The Lie Beneath the Surface
“Because the Lord hated us…” — Deuteronomy 1:27
How could they say this? After all the miracles—the parting of the sea, the manna, the pillar of fire—they still believed God hated them. Everything about their journey should have shouted the opposite. Yet, something in the human psyche is allergic to the love of God.
“Everyone is screwed up, broken, clingy, and scared. Even the people who seem to have it more or less together.”
— Anne Lamott
Even after witnessing more of God than any generation before them, Israel still lived under the weight of a lie:
“God is against us. He tolerates us at best. He hates us.”
This is the orphan spirit. It tells us:
- I don’t belong.
- I’m not good enough.
- I’m not loved.
“The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.”
— Henry David Thoreau
We bury ourselves in distractions—work, family, hobbies—but never face the core fear. We live in a constant hum of hypervigilance that eventually manifests in our minds, relationships, and bodies. And like Israel at Kadesh Barnea, we come to a crossroad.
A New Roadmap: God Carries Us
In verses 30–31, Moses reveals the truth:
“The Lord your God who goes before you will himself fight for you… where you have seen how the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way…”
(Deuteronomy 1:30–31)
This passage gives us a roadmap out of the orphan spirit:
1. Learn the Story Behind You
Your story is more than trauma or coincidence. It’s a miracle journey. God brought you here.
“I was the lion.”
— C.S. Lewis, The Horse and His Boy
In The Horse and His Boy, Shasta learns that what he thought were moments of abandonment were, in fact, moments of divine rescue. Like Joseph, who endured betrayal and imprisonment, we eventually learn to say:
“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good…”
— Genesis 50:20 (ESV)
2. See the Power Behind You
We often think we work for God. But the Gospel says:
God works for us.
“From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear, no eye has seen a God besides you, who acts for those who wait for him.”
— Isaiah 64:4 (ESV)
Religion says, earn it.
Grace says, receive it.
Jesus is the proof that God moved first.
Through Jesus, God fought for us, went before us, and bore our sin.
“God didn’t deliver Israel because they were righteous. He delivered them because He is faithful.”
Like the blood of the lamb that marked their doorposts, Jesus marks us—not because we’re good, but because He is gracious.
3. Stay in His Arms
“And in the wilderness… the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son…”
— Deuteronomy 1:31
Moses reminds us: God didn’t just carry them through the hard times—He carried them the whole way.
This is the doctrine of union with Christ.
“There is no joy in the world like the joy of bringing another soul to Christ.”
— Charles Spurgeon
Union with Christ means:
- We are in Christ
- We live through Christ
- We are sustained by Christ
“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself… neither can you… Apart from me you can do nothing… As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love.”
— John 15:4–5, 9 (ESV)
Real change doesn’t come through trying harder—it comes through trusting deeper. The more we dwell in His love, the more we want to sin less. Our hearts begin to bend toward His.
Embrace Dependence
Dependence is not weakness—it is spiritual clarity.
It produces:
- Humility
- Non-judgmental compassion
- Confidence rooted in identity
- Wholeness
“The greatest trap in life is not success, popularity or power, but self-rejection… Being the beloved constitutes the core truth of our existence.”
— Henri Nouwen, The Return of the Prodigal Son
Rembrandt captured it on canvas—God is the Father running to the wayward child. And He calls us home not with condemnation, but with open arms.
Conclusion: Come Out of the Orphan Spirit
You are not tolerated.
You are not hated.
You are not alone.
You are loved, carried, and called.
Stay in His arms.
VoxNotas 
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