Word of Encouragement (06/29/2023)

Then the people of Judah came to Joshua at Gilgal. And Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, "You know what the LORD said to Moses the man of God in Kadesh-barnea concerning you and me. ⁷ I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land, and I brought him word again as it was in my heart. ⁸ But my brothers who went up with me made the heart of the people melt; yet I wholly followed the LORD my God. ⁹ And Moses swore on that day, saying, 'Surely the land on which your foot has trodden shall be an inheritance for you and your children forever, because you have wholly followed the LORD my God.' ¹⁰ And now, behold, the LORD has kept me alive, just as he said, these forty-five years since the time that the LORD spoke this word to Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness. And now, behold, I am this day eighty-five years old. ¹¹ I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; my strength now is as my strength was then, for war and for going and coming. ¹² So now give me this hill country of which the LORD spoke on that day, for you heard on that day how the Anakim were there, with great fortified cities. It may be that the LORD will be with me, and I shall drive them out just as the LORD said." (Josh. 14:6-12)

Let us notice which portion of the land Caleb asked for his inheritance: Hebron. We don't know how fertile this region was. Abraham did stay there for a while and purchased a plot of land for a burial ground. David, too, reigned there for seven and a half years before making Jerusalem Israel's capital. It must not have been such a bad land. But all we learn about Hebron from today's passage is that “the Anakim were there, with great fortified cities” (v. 12). The presence of the Anakim, the giants, was one of the main reasons why the previous generation refused to go into Canaan. What did Caleb say at that time? “If the LORD delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. Only do not rebel against the LORD. And do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their protection is removed from them, and the LORD is with us; do not fear them” (Num. 14:8-9)!

Do you see what's going on? In asking for Hebron, the land of the Anakim, Caleb was putting his money—his life, in fact—where his mouth was. He was asking for a possibly most difficult region to conquer! Even though he was advanced in age, he was volunteering for a difficult job—because of his confidence in God's faithfulness and also out of his sacrificial love for his countrymen. How different his spirit was from Lot's! When Abraham gave him a choice, he chose for himself what was best for him. Not so with Caleb. How could Joshua not grant and bless such a request? And God honored his request and granted him victory over the Anakim and their land.

Caleb is a wonderful example of what it means to follow the Lord wholly, isn't it? But should he have been an exception? Israel had no excuse not to fully trust in the Lord who brought them out of Egypt, sustained them through the wilderness journey, and helped them conquer the land of Canaan up to that point--not to mention His almighty power to create all things out of nothing! Remembering this gave Caleb that powerful perception of faith--the ability to see not only the magnitude of the adversities he faced but also the surpassing greatness of God's power!

But the work of God he and Israel witnessed, as amazing as it was, was only a prelude, wasn't it? Even Caleb had no idea how far the Lord would go to bring us eternal salvation, not just temporary victories over other nations—how the Lord would go all the way to the cross and suffer in our place God's infinite wrath! What more evidence do we need of God's love for us when we have the cross?

In view of this, are you willing to take on a difficult task for your wonderful Savior, which will show how strong and mighty God is?

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