The journey of the delivered Israelites from Egypt to the promised land took a longer time. The journey of eleven days took forty years to complete (Deuteronomy 1:2-3). Their leader, Moses died just before they took possession of the lands across the Jordan. By this time, a whole generation of people who encountered God and yet murmured against Him had perished in the wilderness. Will the people ever get to their destination? Why will God cause His own chosen nation to wander about for forty years for a journey that takes eleven days? Will the Israelites find a place to call home? These and many other questions were probably on the hearts of the people as they journeyed for forty years.
I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. (Joshua 1:3)
Have we not also asked God questions such as these before? We have doubted, almost given up, and sometimes questions the very core of our faith. We have asked questions such as “Does God really care?” in our lowest moments. Imagine beginning the year without a place to call home. What will you do if you are on a very tight budget and rent becomes difficult to pay? In the midst of all this, you have spent a whole lifetime walking with the Lord through the waters, the storms and the wilderness. The Israelites had similar experiences and for them, they had to dwell in tents for forty years. Joshua, the new leader after Moses received these words from the Lord, “I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them.” (Joshua 1:3-6).
The Lord promised to settle the people on every place they set their feet. Joshua was encouraged to be strong and courageous, obey the words of the book of the Law, meditate on it, and not to be afraid (Joshua 1: 9). The words of promise did not automatically propel the Israelites into the promised land. They had to fight the settlers on the land, they had to consecrate themselves to obey every instruction from the Lord and whenever they disobeyed, they faced defeat from their enemies. At the end of their journey, God gave them a place to settle, they found a home but that didn’t come without them listening and obeying the words of the Lord. Obedience was their key to their new home. Fear had to be discarded and they had to be ready for battle. As we look forward to being settled by God this year, we should also desire to obey the words of God, move on His commands and drive away fear from our hearts.
For us, we might not need to engage in physical fights to drive away the enemy but we would have to engage in spiritual battles to get rid of anything that is hindering us from possessing our place of inheritance. Our faith must be demonstrated through our actions. The Lord is going ahead of us but we must be willing and ready to stand in agreement with Him. He will provide a home for us but we need to be strong and courageous. Let’s personalize this promise made to King David:
“And I will provide a place for [my people Israel] and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning.”
1 Chronicles 17:9 (also in 2 Samuel 2:7)
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