August 14 -- "The Blessing of Wholehearted Faith"

 Today’s Reading: Joshua 14

"The Blessing of Wholehearted Faith"

Caleb the son of Jephunneh was one of the twelve Israelite spies that Moses had sent into Canaan to investigate the land and gather intelligence about their potential enemies.  When the spies returned, only two of the twelve came back with a faith-filled glowing report about victory.  The other ten brought back fear and dread.  One of the two men of faith was Caleb. 

After receiving his positive intelligence report, Moses - led by God - made a promise to Caleb, "Look Caleb, when we take the land, you can have that territory that you spied out. That's yours."  Because of his faith and because he wholly followed the Lord, he was given a special promise from God. 

It is now forty-plus years later and Caleb remembers this promise. So Caleb came to Joshua, and he said, "Hey Josh, remember when you and I spied out the land, when we came back and gave our report to Moses, and Moses promised me that I could have for my family, the territory that we spied out? Now look I'm eighty-five years old, but I'm just as strong as the day that we spied out the land.  I want your permission now to go down and take that land that was promised to me.”

I love the grit of this old fellow. Eighty-five years old, he says, "Man, I'm ready to go to battle. I'm ready to take that land that God had promised to me, that Moses promised that I could have. I want your permission now to go down and take it." So Joshua gave Caleb the permission to go down the area of Hebron, and those areas around Hebron, the areas that were promised to him. So Caleb went down and conquered that area around Hebron.  Afterwards, Joshua blessed Caleb by granting him title to the land he was promised.

Verse 14 tells us the reason that Caleb received this special allotment of land: because he wholly followed the LORD, the God of Israel.  Caleb was tenacious in his faith and his obedience to the Lord.  He was never half-hearted or lukewarm in his faith.  He “wholly” followed his God.  And the reward for his wholehearted faith was that God kept the promise he had made years earlier.

How’s your faith today?  Is it half-hearted or lukewarm?  Are you bringing back reports of fear and dread?  If so, it’s never too late to turn back to the Lord and to begin following Him with your whole heart.  God promises a special blessing to those who wholly follow Him.

August 13 -- "The Lord Our Inheritance"

 Today’s Reading: Joshua 13

"The Lord Our Inheritance"

As Joshua divides the land amongst the tribes of Israel, we read that he gave no allotment to the tribe of Levi. This is because the Lord, the God of Israel, had promised that He Himself would be their allotment.  In the original Hebrew this reads, “Yahweh Elohim-of Ishral” is their allotment (or portion).  This was not a "gag gift" or a "booby prize."  This was the greatest allotment of all.  The Levites were not to receive the deed to land, but rather the unique and incredible opportunity of fellowship and service to God, Himself.  This was their prize.

The Bible is full of references to the inheritance believers have in Christ. Ephesians 1:11 says, "In [Christ] we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will." Like the Levites, our inheritance is not something physical or material.  You can’t touch it.  Our inheritance is far greater than anything of this material world.  Our inheritance is Christ.  According to the Apostle Peter, we have been born again "into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you." (1 Peter 1:4)

One day, we will take possession of our portion, our heritage, our full inheritance. We do not have the full enjoyment of it at present.  But we walk in hope of our eternal inheritance, knowing that one day our true heritage will be realized.  The same God who was the allotment of the Levites - Yahweh Elohim-of Ishral – is our future inheritance.  And there is nothing greater than the opportunity to spend eternity with the God of Light and Love.

Revelation 21 gives us a brief but beautiful glimpse of our future inheritance: “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”  Amazing!  God will be with us.  We will be with Him. He is our portion.  He is our prize!

“My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” (Psalm 73:26)

August 12 -- "Defeating All Your Enemies"

 Today’s Reading: Joshua 12

"Defeating All Your Enemies"

Now that Israel controlled all the territory that was to become its homeland, the writer (believed to be Joshua) summarizes the entire conquest. Once Israel had won control of the land as a whole, Israel’s leaders began the task of dividing it among the tribes. Throughout the country, however, there were many areas that the Canaanites still occupied, usually because they had either escaped the Israelites or proved too difficult to conquer.

It was a major oversight that Israel left these small pockets of unconquered territory.  As we read on, we will discover that this becomes a problem for Israel later on. These “hidden” enemies will later on wreak havoc on Israel.  In the same way, we must conquer all of the enemies in our lives.  We must not let any sin or weakness or corruption be left unchallenged in our walk with Christ.  If we let our enemies escape or “hide” we, too, will discover that unconquered sin will become a problem for us later on.

I’ve seen it many times.  An enthusiastic Christian finally comes to their “Jordan River experience” where they despair of self-help and put their trust in God to fully conquer their enemies.  As they begin to experience victory, we see strongholds fall to God’s Spirit.  “Big” sins like inappropriate indulgence in sexual pleasure, drunkenness, idolatry, and carousing fall as they are confronted by conviction from the Holy Spirit.  The believer, like Joshua, may even give testimony and tout these victories publicly. But sometimes, the believer fails to attack other heart attitudes like strife, anger, lust, or envy and the like with the same fervor.  They simply let these “small” sins, and others (such as quarrelling, dissensions, and factions) remain unconquered.  They “hide” them in the valleys of their heart.  These areas remain unconquered.

Tragically, later on - at the most unsuitable moments - these “hidden” sins emerge and wreak havoc on their Christian walk.  Perhaps it is anger that emerges and causes a breakdown of a relationship.  Or interest in pornography causes the destruction of a marriage.  These are the types of things that can happen if the believer fails to confront and conquer every enemy sin that lurks in their heart.

There is no such thing as a “small” sin.  Any sin left unchecked in our hearts is a future opportunity for failure. So, conquer ALL your enemies, dear believer, not just the “big” ones.   Don’t let a single one - no matter how inconsequential it may seem - avoid the conquering power of God.

August 11 -- "Rest From War"

 Today’s Reading: Joshua 11

"Rest From War"

Ecclesiastes 3:8 tells us there is "a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war, and a time for peace.” Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the Lord had spoken to Moses. And Joshua gave it for an inheritance to Israel according to their tribal allotments. “And the land had rest from war." At long last, the time for peace had come.

The purpose of all wars, is (or should be) peace.  No war should ever be perpetual.  No war should ever be started without a just cause.  And once peace has been achieved, the war should cease.  “War is the greatest plague that can afflict humanity; it destroys religion, it destroys states, it destroys families. Any scourge is preferable to it.” Martin Luther

The Bible is very clear that all mankind is created as "Imago Dei" (in the Image of God). This alone makes all human life extremely precious and tells us that ongoing war is not God’s ideal plan for humanity.  We know from Isaiah 2:4, that in God’s future kingdom, “They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.” What a glorious Day that will be!

In the meantime, all followers of Christ are fighting a war.  Discipleship is always an inescapable war between the kingdom of self and the Kingdom of God.  This is a just war that we must win!  As Christians, we are in a spiritual skirmish of some sort on a daily basis. In warfare, battles are fought on different fronts, for different reasons, and with varying degrees of intensity. The same is true in spiritual warfare. Our spiritual battles and warfare are real, even though we cannot physically see the attacker.  But we can train ourselves and arm ourselves with the weapons of our warfare (truth, faith, righteousness, salvation).  This is how the battles are fought and the only way they can be won.

It is the spiritual forces of darkness that control the societies of the world.  Those forces are in conflict with God. We, as Christians, are God’s children. Thus, if the world is in conflict with God, the world is also in conflict with us.  So, fight the good fight.  Confront your enemies.  Fight to conquer that persistent sin in your life.  Fight to save the lives of the unborn.  Fight to return the fear of God to the public square.  Fight to reach the lost for Christ.

One day you will “take the whole land” and have rest from war. The Bible promises us that “the meek shall inherit the earth and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace!” (Psalm 37:11) But that day is not today.  So fight, dear Christian, fight!

August 10 -- "God's Power Over The Cosmos"

Today’s Reading: Joshua 10 

"God's Power Over The Cosmos"

Here in Joshua 10, an astounding astronomical miracle really took place, by which the motion of the heavenly bodies was, for several hours, suspended by God’s omnipotent power.  This particular miracle – like many in the Bible – cannot be explained by human reasoning or science.  Nor can it be explained away by those who resist God’s truth.

We cannot explain the physics or the mechanics by which God performed this particular miracle.  All we know is that a very unusual event took place, and whenever you get to miraculous events in the Bible, that's all it takes to trigger some people. Especially those who do not believe in God or those who think of God in terms of a man, and limited as a man. The miracles always create doubts and problems in the minds of people, and of course they then begin to exaggerate the problems that they see. But if you have a right concept of God, you don't need any proof or any explanation; you can just believe it because God's Word declared it.

The Biblical explanation for this miracle is found at the end of verse 14, “for the LORD fought for Israel.”  It’s really that simple.  Joshua prayed, and God supernaturally provided the light necessary for Joshua’s army to win its battle.  Keep in mind that Joshua (nor anyone else for that matter) had ever prayed this prayer before.  So, why did he pray it that day?  Why not retreat for the night and finish up the battle in the morning?  Joshua prayed that prayer that day because God was up to something.  The Lord wanted to show His mighty force on behalf of Israel.  That prayer was divinely inspired for that specific moment in time by God.

Never before.  Never again.  This miracle was Divinely engineered for this particular moment in time.  Which leads us to say, never limit God by what you have seen in the past.  There may be a battle you are facing in your life which seems to have no way out and no path to victory.  But don’t underestimate your all-powerful God.  He can do things you’ve never heard of and do them at just the right time to give you victory.

So, if God inspires you to pray for a “sun stand still” type of miracle, don’t draw back in unbelief.  Pray in faith and watch the Lord fight for you with an astounding miracle. Remember, your God has power over the cosmos!

August 9 -- "They Didn't Ask God"

 Today’s Reading: Joshua 9

"They Didn't Ask God"

The men of Israel looked them over and accepted the evidence. But they didn’t ask God about it. They listened to their story of far-away travels.  But they didn’t ask God about it. They believed their words of praise for God. But they didn’t ask God about it. They made peace with them and formalized it with a covenant. But they didn’t ask God about it!

It took only three days before Joshua and these men of Israel realized the tragedy of their action.  They had made a decision without God’s counsel and now their hands are tied.  These shady men of Gibeon intentionally deceived the Israelites as a means of self-preservation.  You can’t really blame them.  After all, if they had not pulled off this ruse, their towns and villages would have been beaten and these men probably would have lost their lives.

We must be extremely careful not to fall for the trickery of the enemy.  While it is important to use our God-given faculties (mind, will, emotions) to make decisions in life, we must be cautious to include God’s counsel in all that we do.  “’For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the LORD.” (Isaiah 55:8) 

It is interesting to note that this is really the second mistake that Joshua has made as Israel’s leader. The first one was going up against Ai when there was impurity in the community.  And now, He enters into a covenant without God’s counsel.  Had they sought counsel from God, had Joshua come to Eleazar the high priest and inquired of the Lord concerning these people, the Lord would've shown to them that these people were impostors. Joshua would've realized that these men were just seeking to disguise themselves as having come on a long journey. Their mistake was that of failure to seek God's counsel. It got them into an ungodly alliance.

Beware, lest you put too much confidence in outward appearances and fail to inquire of the Lord.  Yes, you should look at the evidence.  Yes, you should listen to the story.  Yes, you should take the circumstances into account when making life decisions.  But the most important thing you must do is turn to God for His wisdom and counsel. God's wisdom is available to anyone willing to come to Him. 

"Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know." (Jeremiah 33:3)

August 8 -- "Be Not Dismayed"

Today’s Reading: Joshua 8 

"Be Not Dismayed"

The dictionary defines “dismay” as “consternation and distress, typically that caused by something unexpected; a feeling of fear, disappointment, shock, or worry.”  In the original Hebrew language, this word means “to lower someone's spirits; make downhearted.” 

Joshua was fearful and dismayed. His spirits were down.  He was downhearted after the nation’s unexpected defeat at the small city of Ai.  Perhaps Joshua never considered the possibility that Israel would actually face losses during their military deployment to conquer the land of Canaan.  Perhaps he thought it would be one decisive win after the other.  Their defeat at Ai was “something unexpected” and it rattled Joshua’s confidence.  His morale was low.  It probably shook his equilibrium a bit.

In the same way, when you and I enter God’s “Promised Land” and begin to conquer our spiritual enemies (sin, the flesh), we sometimes get so confident that we begin to think there will never be setbacks or struggles in our battle to overcome sin.  When a setback comes – and it eventually will – it can rattle our confidence as well.  Perhaps we felt that sin would just “melt away” as we progressed in our walk with Christ.  Perhaps we never realized that some sins are more stubborn than others and may take a concentrated and prolonged effort to conquer.  When this happens, we can become dismayed – getting downhearted and discouraged.  Satan loves to use these moments in our lives to get our eyes off of our God and begin to mistrust and worry.

When the LORD saw that Joshua’s spirits were down, He spoke to him and said “Do not be dismayed.”  With these words, He inspired Joshua to new courage.  He exhorted him to be filled with faith once again.  In fact, the command “do not be dismayed” is one of the most often repeated phrases in Scripture, appearing over a dozen times.  God doesn’t want His people to be downhearted, shocked, worried, or fearful.  He wants His people to be filled with faith as they confidently rely on Him.  Yes, there will be setbacks and struggles, but never let them rob you of your joy and faith.

Whatever battle you are facing today – whatever stubborn sin is giving you disappointment and worry – listen to God’s words to you… “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9)