Joshua 13:1-14:15
God has given the land to Israel. Still, there was the challenge: ‘there is still very much land to be possessed’(13:1). ‘God... has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing’. Now, we must ‘lead a life worthy of His calling’(Ephesians 1:3; 4:1). ‘Joshua was old and advanced in years’. Caleb was ‘eighty five years old’(13:1; 14:10).These were men of faith. Forty five years earlier, they had called on the people to trust and obey: ‘The Lord... will bring us into this land... Only, do not rebel against the Lord’(14:7-10; Numbers 14:6-9). They had persevered: ‘I press on...’. They had been preserved: ‘Kept by the power of God’(Philippians 3:14; 1 Peter 1:5). ‘I am still as strong to this day as I was’, ‘We will serve the Lord’(14:11; 24:15). This is faith - for yesterday, today and tomorrow!
Joshua 15:1-63
‘The land of Negeb’ had little water. The request was made - ‘Give me also springs of water’. The request was granted. Trusting in the Lord’s promise - ‘the heavenly Father will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him’, we receive His blessing - ‘rivers of living water’(19; Luke 11:13; John 7:38-39). ‘The people of Judah could not drive out’ the Jebusites. We may contrast Judah’s failure with Caleb’s faith - ‘the Lord will be with me, and I shall drive them out as the Lord said’. Learning from Judah’s failure - ‘Do not be conformed to this world’- , we must build on Caleb’s faith - ‘Be transformed by the renewal of your mind’. Let us commit ourselves to doing ‘God’s will - His good, pleasing and perfect will’(63; 14:12; Romans 12:2). Do His will. Let His ‘rivers of living water’ flow freely.
Joshua 16:1-17:18
Compromise is a poor substitute for obedience. Fail to obey God, and you may have to live with the consequences of your disobedience: ‘they did not drive out the Canaanites... so the Canaanites have dwelt in the midst of Ephraim to this day (16:10). Settling for anything less than God’s very best will surely lead us far from Him and His blessing: ‘He gave them what they asked, but sent a wasting disease among them’(Psalm 106:15). If we are to make real spiritual progress, we must not rest on our laurels’- ‘We are a numerous people’. We must do the work of God: ‘you shall drive out the Canaanites’. Our obedience must be more than ‘empty words’. We must not live as ‘the sons of disobedience’. We must ‘live as the children of light’- ‘God’s own people’(14,18; Ephesians 5:6-10; 1 Peter 2:9).
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Blessings in Christ
Christ in all the Scriptures
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