Click to read Joshua 13
(The previous 9 chapters can be accessed through the links from the side bars. To access chapters before those listed, go to the All Chapters section on the side bar.)
Synopsis
After 7 years of war and many places conquered, God told Joshua that there was more land to conquer. Joshua was between 90-100 years old then. God declared that He will drive the enemies out Himself. Though not in the hands yet, God wanted Joshua to allocate the land to the people as though the land belonged to them (v6-7).
Major Verses
V 1-6 - Though Joshua was already very old, God did not stop using his services. Unlike many cultures which glorify the young and neglect the old, God does not look at age as a determining factor for service.
What I learnt
We should never think of "retiring" for God's service just because of age. It is God's decision, not ours. Let's serve Him faithfully till He says to rest.
V7 - Though there were lands unconquered, God wanted them allocated to the people as well. His desire was for Israel to take the land eventually. While God had given the land, He wanted the people to act and receive the inheritance. Though God had declared the victory, the people still needed to go to battle (to act) and take the land.
What I learnt
We have "unconquered" territories to win over. These could be our unsaved relatives, friends or colleagues, or areas of our lives that we need to get right with or ....While God has given us the victory, we need to act in faith to take those lands. Until we act in faith and in obedience, these lands will never be ours to keep.
V13 -When Moses defeated Gashur and Maacah in Gilead, he did not cleansed the place of all the pagan practising inhabitants. So, these pagan continued living among the Israelites and caused problems for them (as recorded in the Book of Judges).
What I learnt
After coming to Christ, many of us fail to remove completely the sinful practises of our past. The consequences will come to haunt us. While our sins were completely forgiven, we must make it our priority to focus on the Lord and have nothing to do with sin. With this attitude, God will help us to be more like Christ as we go through His sanctification process.
V33 - The tribe of Levites were not given any land. They were dedicated to serving God and had to be mobile in order to visit the different tribes. Making them land owners would bog them down and make them ineffective. So God arranged for all other tribes to supply the Levites with their needs through donations so that they could focus on serving God and the tribes.
What I learnt
The full-time workers of the Lord need to be dedicated to serving God and His people. We must support them by bringing supplies into the house of God so that their physically needs would not become obstacles to their service. This is a good reason to tithe to the church. We should go beyond tiding and bless the workers with other supplies whenever we have opportunities to do so.
Summary
God does not expect us to "retire" from our service to Him just because of age. We must continue to serve Him according to His timing and plan. There is more land to be taken. While God has given the victory, we must act to inherit the land. Let's put our hearts and minds into taking those land...
Up Next
Joshua 14 tells us about Caleb's faith. Though already in his eighties, he was ready to take the land for himself...read it on 26th Feb.
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