Hello, this is pastor gary from first baptist church of laplata. In the Bible, Canaan was described as a land flowing with milk and honey. As a child, I thought this was a literal expression with honey dripping off all of the trees and milk in all of the waterways. Thanks to an overturned milk truck whose contents spilled into the River Dulais in Wales last week, England had a literal river flowing with milk! The environmental department in Wales was still assessing the impact of the spill, but I am guessing that the fish will begin demanding something to go with their milk: either Captain Crunch cereal or Oreos, “Milk’s favorite cookie.” The biblical “milk and honey” refers to an excellent agricultural climate. Milk comes from farm animals, and bees make crops grow by pollination—the honey they make is a bonus benefit. Canaan, or the Promised Land, served as a picture of Heaven for believers. It was a place God prepared for His people, to which He would lead His people, and in which He would live with His people. Hear the words of Jesus about Heaven in John 14:2-3, “…I go to prepare a place for you and [since] I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto Myself that where I am, there ye may be also.” People think God was too rough on Moses for not allowing him into the Promised Land after all Moses had endured with the Israelites; however, upon his death, Moses entered the true Promised Land of which Canaan was only a faint picture. God didn’t punish Moses—He rewarded him!
Cheryl Allison says
I meant to mention this on Tuesday but didn’t get a chance to. have you ever read the children’s book, “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie”? When you mentioned the fish demanding something to go with the milk, I immediately thought of it. The mouse first asks for some milk to go with his cookie, then a napkin to wipe his mouth, and on and on. Seriously though, I like the way you tied the spilled milk story to entering the Promised Land. I never looked at Moses not being allowed to enter Canaan as anything other than punishment by God for his disobedience.