Joshua
12 through 14 provides a list of the kings and their territories that
have been defeated by God through the army of Israel. It describes
in great detail the names of the kings defeated and their towns. It
appears that every small area had its own king. “These
are the kings of the land whom the Israelites took over.”
After the inventory of the assets, there is a warning that there is
still land to be taken. God spoke to Joshua, “You
are very old and there are still very large areas of land to be taken
over“.
The united army of Israel defeated the major cities and strong
armies, but once the inheritance was given, the clans were given the
task of completely taking over the land. “As
for the inhabitants of the mountain regions… I Myself will drive
them out before the Israelites.
Be sure to allocate this land to Israel as an inheritance as I have
instructed you.” Remember
God’s promise to the nation, “I
will give you every place where you set your foot as a promise to
Moses”
(Joshua 1:3). This is exactly the same process with salvation. God
offers us complete forgiveness and complete spiritual restoration;
all we have to do is, by faith, accept the gift. Very often our fear
is not of the Canaanites, but of what we will have to give up. Do
you believe God’s promise?
As
I read the information, I imagine that this is almost like a Real
Estate Guide for land you might be considering buying to build on.
“The
rim of the Arnon Gorge… plateau of Medeba… all of Mount Hermon…
the bank of the Jordan…“.
During this walk through of the land, we learn there are also
problems. “But
the Israelites did not drive out the people of Geshur and Maacah“.
They were only two small tribes, but God’s direction was clear not
to allow any of the Canaanites to remain. Compromising our faith
always begins with small things. Ephesians chapter 4 warns believers
not to “allow
the devil to have a foothold”
in your life. The chapter gives us several things to watch for,
“Steal
no longer… share with those in need…unwholesome talk…bitterness,
rage, anger…be kind and compassionate… forgiving one another just
as in Christ, God forgives you“.
Finally
the chapter begins to list the inheritance given to each tribe and
clan. There are a couple of interesting notes. “The
Levites received no share of the land“.
As God instructed, the Levites’ inheritance was God Himself.
Because their work was to minister in the temple, possessing land
would be a distraction. The people were to meet the Levites’ needs
by their giving. We need to support our pastors and ministers as
well so they will not be distracted. Finally, Caleb asks for the
land where the giants were living. “Here
I am eighty-five years old… I am still as strong today as the day
Moses sent me out… give me the hill country… 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“.
It is true that those who are walking in God’s Word never seem to
loose their enthusiasm for serving with vigor. May you be encouraged
and refreshed in a new way today by the Word of God and by His
Spirit.