Joshua 14:6-15

⁶ Now the people of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what the Lord said to Moses the man of God at Kadesh Barnea about you and me. ⁷ I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh Barnea to explore the land. And I brought him back a report according to my convictions, ⁸ but my fellow Israelites who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt in fear. I, however, followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly. ⁹ So on that day Moses swore to me, ‘The land on which your feet have walked will be your inheritance and that of your children forever, because you have followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly.’
¹⁰ “Now then, just as the Lord promised, he has kept me alive for forty-five years since the time he said this to Moses, while Israel moved about in the wilderness. So here I am today, eighty-five years old! ¹¹ I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I’m just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then. ¹² Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me that day. You yourself heard then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large and fortified, but, the Lord helping me, I will drive them out just as he said.” ¹³ Then Joshua blessed Caleb son of Jephunneh and gave him Hebron as his inheritance. ¹⁴ So Hebron has belonged to Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite ever since, because he followed the Lord, the God of Israel, wholeheartedly. ¹⁵ (Hebron used to be called Kiriath Arba after Arba, who was the greatest man among the Anakites.) Then the land had rest from war.

Introduction

Following the Lord wholeheartedly does not necessarily make us great or famous but it’s rewarded with a blessed life. Out of the 12-men that Moses sent to spy Canaan, only Joshua and Caleb trusted that God would help them occupy the land. The ten spies who were scared gave bad report to Moses and influence others not to enter Canaan.
Recently, when the amendment of the church constitution was presented, those who were scared about the tenure of elders assumed that elders would abuse their authority. Unsuspecting people were persuaded to join their assumption. If elders abuse their authority, would God ignore them? Wise elders would serve God wholeheartedly.

The ten scared spies together with those who believed them assumed that it’s better to die in the wilderness. That was what happened. They did not enter the Promised Land. Caleb said that he reported back to Moses according what he believed. He was convinced that God would surely give him an inheritance in the Promised Land.

1. Belief

⁶ Now the people of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what the Lord said to Moses the man of God at Kadesh Barnea about you and me. ⁷ I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh Barnea to explore the land. And I brought him back a report according to my convictions, ⁸ but my fellow Israelites who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt in fear. I, however, followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly. ⁹ So on that day Moses swore to me, ‘The land on which your feet have walked will be your inheritance and that of your children forever, because you have followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly.’

Caleb firmly believed that God would eventually give the land in Canaan which his feet have walked on. It is also the same conviction that made him no reservation to ask Joshua of the land that God has promised through Moses. But why did Caleb have to ask Joshua when the land was already allotted their tribe?
When the people of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, Caleb presented his case, why? Could it be that they questioned why Caleb has personally chosen his inheritance? Everyone participated in draw lots for inheritance. Caleb might have told the people of Judah that he won’t join the draw lots because Moses has assigned a land for him.

The manner of knowing what tribe and clans would get was by cast lots. The land that Moses promised to Caleb could have been included in the draw lots to be divided in proportion to the number of people. Caleb wanted claim the land for his family. So instead of arguing about it, they approached Joshua, in which Joshua gladly granted.
Caleb presented his case to Joshua in the hearing of the people of Judah for them to know that his claim was valid. It was also a chance for Caleb to testify that following the Lord wholeheartedly would result to blessing. His conviction didn’t fade away.
Testifying for what we firmly believe, our conviction does not necessarily produce the result we wish. We don’t control results but we can testify about the Lord.

Paul

Paul was testifying about his personal experience and conviction of the Lord Jesus when Governor Festus interrupted him. Part of Paul’s testimony says in Acts 26:22-24,
“²² But God has helped me to this very day; so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen— ²³ that the Messiah would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would bring the message of light to his own people and to the Gentiles.” ²⁴ At this point Festus interrupted Paul’s defense. “You are out of your mind, Paul!” he shouted. “Your great learning is driving you insane.”

Governor Festus was newly assigned governor of Judah and he might have been trying to impress the audience including King Agrippa, high-ranking military officers and prominent men in Caesarea who were listening. Festus took that opportunity to advance his political stature but he missed the opportunity to secure his eternal life.
Faithfully testifying for the Lord depends upon our conviction. Caleb remained faithful to his conviction and trusted the Lord’s promise. It took him more than 45 years before the blessing of following the Lord wholeheartedly came to reality.

2. Blessing

¹⁰ “Now then, just as the Lord promised, he has kept me alive for forty-five years since the time he said this to Moses, while Israel moved about in the wilderness. So here I am today, eighty-five years old! ¹¹ I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I’m just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then. ¹² Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me that day. You yourself heard then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large and fortified, but, the Lord helping me, I will drive them out just as he said.” ¹³ Then Joshua blessed Caleb son of Jephunneh and gave him Hebron as his inheritance. ¹⁴ So Hebron has belonged to Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite ever since, because he followed the Lord, the God of Israel, wholeheartedly. ¹⁵ (Hebron used to be called Kiriath Arba after Arba, who was the greatest man among the Anakites.) Then the land had rest from war.

Joshua had no hesitation. He blessed Caleb and granted his request in the hearing of the people of Judah. The inheritance of Caleb was actually more challenging to be taken over than we may imagine. Caleb had to drive out the remnants of the huge Anakites. The cities of the Anakites in Hebron could have given interest to other people of Judah that was why they needed to come to Joshua for confirmation.
Caleb had no problem in driving the huge Anakites out. He trusted God to help him. Age didn’t matter to Caleb. He trusted God when he was a young man. He kept on trusting God in his old age. He experienced the Lord’s faithfulness against their enemies.
With many trials in life, in this church, do you still have conviction as before?
It says in 1 Samuel 15:29, ²⁹ He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a human being, that he should change his mind.
What does it mean to us individually, as a church? The church has gone through challenging times. People come and go. This reality is not exclusive to this church. It happens in other churches, too. We may not control if people choose to go somewhere. What we can control is our decision to stay true to our conviction.

Stay in One Church

In spite of challenging situations, you remained faithful in this church. One person shared his conviction. He said that when they were sure of coming to Canada, his father advised him that to find a church to grow spiritually. His father told him to remain in that church and support it. His father may have experienced problems as a pastor.

Those Israelites who were persuaded to believe the bad report of the ten spies who were scared by the huge residents of Canaan never saw the fulfillment of God’s promise. But Caleb and Joshua who trusted the Lord wholeheartedly reported to Moses according to their conviction, what they firmly believed. The Israelites tried to kill them.
It says in Numbers 14:7-10, ⁷ “The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. ⁸ If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. ⁹ Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them.” ¹⁰ But the whole assembly talked about stoning them. Then the glory of the Lord appeared at the tent of meeting to all the Israelites.

Such disheartening event often happens in church life. There are people who want to throw anything to those who sincerely follow the Lord wholeheartedly. God allows challenging times to test those who would trust Him and those who pretend.
Faith is a gift from God, therefore, only God can strengthen our faith in Him. God may use the Bible, circumstances or anybody for us to grow deeper in our knowledge of the Lord but only God can help us grow in our faith in Him. Circumstances, places, or believers may inspire us but they can never make faith grow strong.

A farmer may water or cultivate his plant but only God can make plants grow. Similarly, a preacher may diligently delivers inspiring sermons, we may read inspiring Christian books or articles but only God can make our faith grow.
It says in 1 Corinthians 3:7-9, ⁷ So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. ⁸ The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. ⁹ For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.

Check your faith. Are you still shaken by circumstances? Seek the Lord’s help.
Ask God to help you serve Him wholeheartedly like Caleb and Joshua.
We pray that our wholehearted devotion to the Lord may inspire others.
Our desire is to please the Lord. As genuine Christians, we also welcome blessings on earth but we should be more focused on the eternal significance of our lifestyle.

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