Deuteronomy 2;26

Deuteronomy 2:26 says, And I sent messengers out of the wilderness of Kedemoth unto Sihon king of Heshbon with words of peace, saying,  Verse twenty-seven adds, Let me pass through thy land: I will go along by the high way, I will neither turn unto the right hand nor to the left.  Moses said he sent word to Sihon the king of Hesbon asking for permission to pass through his land.  Matthew Henry said Moses was attempting to not disobey God, Who had told Him to contend with the people there, by contending with him peacefully.  We cannot attempt to compromise God's word because it is more convenient or peaceful to do so.  Verse twenty-eight continues, Thou shalt sell me meat for money, that I may eat; and give me water for money, that I may drink: only I will pass through on my feet;  Mose told Sihon that he would profit by allowing the people of Israel to pass through, and they would do Him no harm.  People today should never face harm by allowing Christians to move about freely in the world, and they will often profit materially from doing so.  Verse twenty-nine concludes, (As the children of Esau which dwell in Seir, and the Moabites which dwell in Ar, did unto me;) until I shall pass over Jordan into the land which the LORD our God giveth us.  Moses even gave Sihon proof of his word by citing how the people of Israel had passed through Edom and Moab without harming them.  People of the world should be able to see examples of how we as followers of Christ have always dealt honestly with other people.  Verse thirty states, But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass by him: for the LORD thy God hardened his spirit, and made his heart obstinate, that he might deliver him into thy hand, as appeareth this day.  Moses said that Sihon would not listen and let them pass because God hardened his spirit and made him obstinate.  I believe that it was a lack of believing in God that made Sihon this way, just as not believing in Jesus Christ today because someone has hardened their heart against Him leads to their everlasting destruction, but God Himself does not cause them to not believe.  Verse thirty-one adds, And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have begun to give Sihon and his land before thee: begin to possess, that thou mayest inherit his land.  God told Moses that He had already begun to give the land to Israel, so go and possess it.  God has already given us victory over the world today as Christians, and we need to claim the victory and do whatever God tells us to do.  Verse thirty-three continues, Then Sihon came out against us, he and all his people, to fight at Jahaz.  Moses said that Sihon came out to fight against them at Jahaz.  Even if we offer nothing but peace to the people of the world today, they are continually going to attempt to fight against God and us.  Verse thirty-three says, And the LORD our God delivered him before us; and we smote him, and his sons, and all his people.  Moses said God gave them the victory over SIhon and his people, just as He gives us as followers of Christ victory over the world today.  We will never win without God being for us and we will never lose if He is.  Verse thirty-four adds, And we took all his cities at that time, and utterly destroyed the men, and the women, and the little ones, of every city, we left none to remain:  Moses said they utterly destroyed Sihon and all of his people while taking possession of all of his cities.  Today, we are not called to destroy the lost people of the world, even if they are at war with God, but to share the gospel of Christ with them instead.   We are simply passing through this world on the way to Heaven, our Promised Land.  Verse thirty-five continues,  Only the cattle we took for a prey unto ourselves, and the spoil of the cities which we took.  Moses said they took the cattle and spoils from the war for themselves.  Verse thirty-six says, From Aroer, which is by the brink of the river of Arnon, and from the city that is by the river, even unto Gilead, there was not one city too strong for us: the LORD our God delivered all unto us:  Verse thirty-seven adds, Only unto the land of the children of Ammon thou camest not, nor unto any place of the river Jabbok, nor unto the cities in the mountains, nor unto whatsoever the LORD our God forbad us . Moses described the size of the land they took, which did not include any land that God had prohibited them from taking.  They could have felt that they were so powerful that they could just take everything they wanted, but obedience to God gave them their power, just as it does to Christians today.