What about the ten spies? They looked at the inhabitants of the land and saw that they were "men of great size" and their cities were "fortified and very large." They looked at themselves too, and in their own sight they were "like grasshoppers." Their eyes were fixed on the difficulties before them. Herein lies the reason why so many Christians fail to experience God's keeping power—difficulties fill their vision. If one keeps looking at his difficulties, he will surely find no hope in the situation. God does not want us to set our eyes on the mountains obstructing our path; He wants us to say to the mountains: "Be taken up and cast into the sea" (Mark 11:23). It is useless to set our eyes on the mountains. The more we look at the mountains, the higher they become. Many people cannot overcome because their eyes are always set on their failures. Many people are prepared ahead of time for their failures. Defeat is certain if we are constantly contemplating defeat. Many experiences of failure come because we anticipate them. We may think that we can deal with other problems but that there is no way that we can deal with one particular problem. In so thinking, we have paved the way for defeat as soon as the problem comes to us. As soon as our eyes are set on ourselves, we will surely fail. If God is to save us, He must first save our eyes from looking at ourselves to looking at His promises. We are courageous only as long as we keep God's promises in view. Once we see His promises, we will see that we can overcome!

So many of God's people lack the faith that characterized Caleb; they concentrate their thoughts on the seriousness of their illnesses, the intensity of their scars, and the insurmountable nature of their difficulties. Yet how many are there whose eyes are set on God's promises? Those who do not fear "the children of Anak" are "well able to prevail." Caleb requested Joshua to appoint Hebron as his portion; Hebron was a great city among the Anakim, and the great man among the Anakim lived there (Josh. 14:12-15). He was not dismayed by the fact that the Anakim were "men of great size," nor by the fact that Hebron was "fortified and very large"; he overcame them. The whole question in relation to overcoming is: Are we trusting in ourselves, or are we trusting in the Lord? If we are relying on ourselves then of course we have to consider whether or not the Anakim are strong or weak and whether their cities are well fortified, but if our reliance is on God, then the question of human resources does not even arise. If we are trusting in God, there is no ground for fear, and victory is assured no matter how great the men and how high the city may be.

There is another noteworthy matter in connection with Caleb. In Numbers 14:9 he exhorted the whole congregation of the children of Israel, saying: "Do not rebel against Jehovah; and do not fear the people of the land, for they will be our bread." He told the Israelites that they could go up immediately, they could overcome, and they did not have to be afraid of them, because "they will be our bread." Bread is something to eat. Bread is something that brings increased strength, that makes one stronger after he eats it. The inhabitants of the land were admittedly "men of great size," but in Caleb's eyes, they were food for God's people. He not only honored God's promises, he despised all the difficulties. Everyone who has genuine faith honors God and lightly esteems all difficulties. But this leaves no room for pride, for only those who humble themselves before God will be able to stand upon His victory.