Sunday Sermons
Still Going Strong
Still Going Strong
As one starts reading Joshua chapter 14 we find that Eleazar the priest and various tribal leaders assisted Joshua in dividing up the land west of the Jordan. As previously noted it is once more mentioned that the Levities were not given any territory, rather, they were given specific cities in which to live (14:4). In this way God ensured that spiritual men who knew the law of God and could instruct others were to be found and available in every section of the Promised Land .
Caleb Resurfaces
Caleb recounts to Joshua the events of Numbers 13 and 14. The time interval between Joshua chapter 14 and Numbers chapters 13 is 45 years. This means that if Caleb was 40 at the time of the spying out the land mission, plus 38 years of wandering, this leaves 7 years for the period of the initial conquest. What impresses me is that for one chapter after another and one Old Testament book after another Caleb has not been mentioned (the last reference before this chapter was in Deuteronomy 1:36), yet that did not mean that he didn’t matter. For 45 years this man has been setting the example, talking about God and patiently waiting for the time when he would inherit the land. For the last seven years he has been battling the Canaanites when the major strongholds like Jericho and Hazor were taken. He has been fighting for the land that would go to other tribes and individuals. Now he is ready to go up and take the portion that God had promised to him.
Caleb’s Speech
Caleb is such a great example for believers in any generation.
- He refused to bow to incredibly strong peer pressure and contradicted the claims of the unbelieving spies.In spite of the fact that he was outnumbered by the doubters, he continued to follow the Lord fully (14:8).
The key word in the above verse is the term fully. For the Christian following the Lord fully is beyond merely believing in Jesus or attending the services. It means refusing to be anything less that the Christian that God wants me to be.
- He also did not hold back at a critical time.He spoke all that was in his heart (14:7).He was very vocal back then, along with Joshua, and boldly proclaimed that they could take the land (Numbers 14:7-10).He said this even though it was such an unpopular point of view that the congregation was about to stone him with stones (Numbers 14:10).
There are times in life that we need to speak up at that moment. Saying something courageous or bold years later, when the danger is over isn’t the same thing. Be impressed that being faithful often means being faithful alone, or at least with the minority. “God’s people then must be prepared, for devoted faith frequently means lonely faith” (2 Tim. 4:16-17) (Joshua, Dale Ralph Davis p. 117).
- He patiently waited 45 years for the fulfillment of God’s promise, and during this long time he didn’t become cynical or skeptical.He didn’t say, “Well it’s about time”, or, “All those years of waiting were wasted years”.Caleb was not bitter or resentful concerning the fact that he would inherit the land at the age of 85 rather than 40.
I find this simply amazing. How easy it would have been to settle into resentment and then become bitter at one’s brethren or God, or to dwell on what seemed like something that was so unfair. “Why did Caleb and Joshua or Moses and Aaron have to suffer because of the unbelief of others?” For the next forty years he would have to wander in the wilderness, and put his plans, life and future on hold while he waited to be rewarded. Yet this did not eat away at his faith or love for God.
How easy it is for us to get bent out of shape when the unwise or unspiritual decisions of others end up costing us in some way. We live in a culture that gets so caught up in “It is my life and I am not about to let anyone infringe upon the one and only life that I have to live”. Well, Caleb’s life was very infringed upon. The unbelieving actions of others kept him on a diet of Manna in the wilderness for some 40 years.
Personal Application
In my personal Bible reading I recently read the section at the end of Deuteronomy where Moses is allowed to see the Promised Land, but he is not allowed to enter (Deuteronomy 34). I found myself getting really upset, it seemed so unfair. Moses had interceded for these people on a number of occasions when God was ready to wipe them out and start all over with him. He put up with so much abuse and ingratitude and yet on one occasion when he loses his cool for a moment, he is disqualified from entering the land (Numbers 20:12). I just found myself getting angry because it seemed so unfair in light of all the hard work that Moses had put into leading this people. In fact, it was a job from which the had asked to be excused! Yet then I stepped back and looked at the big picture.
- First, Moses is not bent out of shape.So why should I be?
- The Promised Land was not heaven.Moses was allowed to go and be with the Lord, like Lazarus, at peace, being comforted and in paradise.
- Life in the Promised Land was not a cakewalk.The first seven years included one battle after another.
- Moses also was spared a lot of future pain and trouble.Such as the discouraging situation in Joshua chapter 7.
- God continues to compliment and exalt Moses after he is dead (Joshua 1:2).
It Was Not Lost Time
First I am so impressed that there is no bitterness against God at all. Caleb says, “The Lord has let me live, just as He spoke, these forty-five years” (Joshua 14:10). God had promised that He would inherit the land, and he simply didn’t worry about it anymore. God’s promise was enough for him, he would wait. He also seems to view the last forty-five years as God being gracious to him. That God did not owe him life, but generously allowed him to live. What is my attitude? Do I think that God owes me a certain amount of time on this earth?
At Eighty-Five
“I am still as strong today as I was in the day Moses sent me; as my strength was then, so my strength is now, for war and for going out and coming in” (Joshua 14:11).
Carefully look at verse 11 again. Caleb did not view his time in the wilderness as lost time or wasted years. “In spite of his age, Caleb was not inclined to seek retirement. He felt he was strong as ever” (Smith p. 100).
“Give Me This Hill Country”: 14:12
Caleb now at age 85 wanted a crack at the very people who had so terrified the ten spies. “Though most older people are more apt to talk about old conflicts than to take on new ones, Caleb was ready for one more good battle” (Bible Knowledge Comm. p. 357). Like Caleb we need to develop a passion to battle the errors that have lead astray many in our generation.
Things Put on Hold
All of us have things in our lives that were put on hold. Sometimes we put them on hold and at other times life in general postponed them for us. When the opportunity shows up, especially an opportunity for good works, even if it comes far later than we had hoped, what will we do? May I encourage each one of us to be like Caleb. Our moments for accomplishing things for the kingdom may not always arrive on the schedule we would have preferred. We might say, “I sure wish that opportunity had arrived when I was younger”. Yet let’s not pass on any chance to get things done for the glory of God, even if the timing does not suit our preferences.
“Perhaps the Lord Will Be With Me”: 14:12
This is not the language of doubt, but neither is it the language of presumption or arrogance. “We must remember, if we believe Numbers 13, this is not because Caleb was an optimist whereas the Israelites had been realists, but because Caleb was a believer whereas the Israelites had refused to be. He is confident but not cocky. Biblical faith will always keep this tension; it will not dictate to the sovereign God or write His script for Him, “perhaps Yahweh will”; yet it will not doubt God when it can cling to any clear promise in the matter, “as Yahweh has promised” (Dale Ralph Davis p. 120).
Mark Dunagan | mdunagan@frontier.net
Beaverton Church of Christ | 503-644-9017
www.beavertonchurchofchrist.net
