6 Now the people of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what the LORD said to Moses the man of God at Kadesh Barnea about you and me. 7 I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh Barnea to explore the land. And I brought him back a report according to my convictions, 8 but my fellow Israelites who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt in fear. I, however, followed the LORD my God wholeheartedly. 9 So on that day Moses swore to me, ‘The land on which your feet have walked will be your inheritance and that of your children forever, because you have followed the LORD my God wholeheartedly.’From this, Pastor Jurgen shared the three tests that Caleb had to overcome. These are the three tests any Christian must pass.
10 “Now then, just as the LORD promised, he has kept me alive for forty-five years since the time he said this to Moses, while Israel moved about in the wilderness. So here I am today, eighty-five years old! 11 I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I’m just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then. 12 Now give me this hill country that the LORD promised me that day. You yourself heard then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large and fortified, but, the LORD helping me, I will drive them out just as he said.”
13 Then Joshua blessed Caleb son of Jephunneh and gave him Hebron as his inheritance. 14 So Hebron has belonged to Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite ever since, because he followed the LORD, the God of Israel, wholeheartedly. 15 (Hebron used to be called Kiriath Arba after Arba, who was the greatest man among the Anakites.)
Then the land had rest from war.(NIV)
1. Test of Popularity
Moses had sent the twelve leaders of the tribes of Israel to do some reconnaissance on the land they were about to enter - the promised land. Ten of the leaders looked at the land and returned to Moses with the report that it was hopeless; they would all die. They had no chance of taking the land. Two men, Joshua and Caleb look at the same land and returned to tell Moses they could - and would - win and take the land God had promised. Why were Joshua and Caleb so confident? Where the others saw an insurmountable enemy, they saw the promise of God and held strong, even though popular opinion sided against them.
Now let's apply this to your life as a Christian. We are all called to be "Caleb"s. He stood against the test of popular opinion and passed. All too often, humans try to "fit in." Not wanting to draw attention to yourself and not wanting to do anything that opposes the pack are common inclinations. In fact, most kids spend the entirety of their school life just trying to "fit in." The problem with this is that, as a Christian, you were not created to fit in; you were created to stand out. Popular opinion many times - if not most the time - disagrees with the word of God. It is your job to stand for God's word, even when it means standing against the rest of the nation.
An interesting note Pastor Jurgen pointed out. Who was right: Joshua and Caleb or the other eleven? It's tempting to say it was Joshua and Caleb, but that would be incorrect. Both groups were right. Joshua and Caleb achieved victory when they faced the enemy. The other ten men died in the wilderness. As the saying goes, whether you believe you can or you believe you can't, you are right.
2. Test of Responsibility (or Difficulty)
Before I go into this one, I'd like to make a disclaimer. I'm not a hundred percent sure if this was the right title for this point. Pastor Jurgen could easily have given this a different title, but I just picked a title that ended in "ty" and fit the content. I'd like to take this moment to point out this validates the purpose of this blog. It's only a week after Alliance, and I can't remember something from the last - and thus most recent - of the sermons. Imagine how much of this I'll have forgotten in a month, or a year. Good thing I have this on record.
Anyway, the second test is taking responsibility for your actions - or lack of action. Caleb says to Joshua how he was faithful and kept his promise, and now he was expecting his inheritance. Caleb had every right to his inheritance, as he had done exactly as he said. However, Christians too often get too caught up in making excuses. Pastor Jurgen pointed out that the dictionary defines "excuse" as "an inferior or inadequate specimen of something specified." The very definition of excuse says it's invalid. Therefore, Christians must rise above excuses and do what they know they're supposed to. (FYI from the author of this blog: If you don't know what, as a Christian, you're supposed to do, a good place to start looking would be the Bible.)
Caleb had faith God would be with him when he faced his enemies. This is also important to remember. Think back to the story of David and Goliath (if you are unfamiliar with the story or need a refresher, look at 1 Samuel 17). Everyone thinks Goliath was the giant in this story, but they are sorely wrong. God was the giant on the field that day. Goliath saw a small boy coming to face Him, but David saw God in that battle. Goliath didn't stand a chance. In order to pass this test (and really any of the others) it's important to keep this in mind. Though it may seem like what you face is insurmountable, but God is always the giant in the room.
3. Test of LongevityToo often, Christians give up because things are "too hard." Caleb waited forty-five years for his inheritance, because God had promised it to him. He believed he'd receive it and held on to that for forty-five years. And what is his opinion of the wait? He says, "So here I am today, eighty-five years old! I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I’m just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then." Caleb passes the test of longevity with flying colors. Not only does he have patience and wait for the fulfillment of God's promise, he's still on fire to serve God!
How often have you given up on something because "it was too hard" or "you didn't want to wait"? Be honest. I'll be the first to admit I've failed this test time and time again. As Christians, we must learn to persevere when things get hard and trust that the Lord will come through on his promises, no matter how long it takes.
And thus ends the Alliance Conference. It was an amazing weekend. Many lives were changed, and there are still many to be changed as a result of it. I expect great things in my life and the lives of those who were there. I hope, for those of you reading this, that you got a little piece of Alliance and will take that with you as you go about your lives. Maybe, just maybe, that little piece will find itself leaking out at some point and helping to radically change your life or the life of someone around you. Because that's what this is about: change.
Expect November 14th's sermon summary/reaction/whatever sometime before November 21st.
No comments:
Post a Comment