God Isn’t Through With Me (Part Two)
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. 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. But my brothers who went up with me made the heart of the people melt, yet I wholly followed the Lord my God.
“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.’ 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. 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. 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.”
Then Joshua blessed him, and he gave Hebron to Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, for an inheritance. Therefore, Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb, the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this day, because he wholly followed the Lord, the God of Israel. Now the name of Hebron formerly was Kiriath-Arba. And the land had rest from war.
The affirmation “God isn’t through with me yet” is based on a simple theological premise that God created us with a mission and purpose. We were born with a seed of promise and a dream that God is still at work on something greater in our lives.
Now let's really dig into this phrase: God is not through with you. That means you can no longer sit around stationary and have a lackadaisical disposition. God has more for you to accomplish!
Previously, we established that God is not done with you if you’re not dead. There is still an unaccomplished mission, vision, and dream God has for your life as long as you draw breath.
Caleb’s life is recorded in Numbers 13 and Joshua 14. In our passage, we see that Caleb is 85 years old. He’s at an age where the average person would have checked out of life mentally, psychologically, vocationally, and perhaps, even physically.
But Caleb is still alive and still has his dreams and aspirations. Even after 45 years, he still has the same vision of possessing the Promised Land and the particular mountain known as Mount Hebron.
Out of all that he could have asked for, he wants Mount Hebron. Caleb’s life teaches us that age is just a number, and it is never too late to pursue your dream. Caleb refuses to allow his age to confine or define him. He also refuses to let any opposition or fear stop him.
As we consider Caleb’s life, we discover several key points related to his tenacity and disposition—in fact, the Bible distinguishes him as “one who has another spirit.” An example of his tenacity is in Numbers 13, where he and Joshua have the “Yes, we can!” mentality while the other ten spies are shrouded in fear.
We discovered a few weeks ago a few other things about Caleb. First, that he possessed a vision of the future from God. Like Caleb, we have to believe that God has a future for our life, and we need to know there is so much more that God wants to do in and through us.
When we have a vision of God’s preferable future for our lives, we must maintain that God-given vision for our future regardless of the audience that tries to discourage us.
We must also possess a vision, regardless of our age that could discredit us. If you’re not careful dealing with the people around you, you could get in your own head and talk yourself out of what God seeks to bring you into.
Third, you must hold on to God’s vision tenaciously, regardless of the adversities that try to dispirit you. Most people walk away from their vision because they see a wall blocking them, or they see warfare and are unwilling to fight for it.
PROFESS A VIBRANT FAITH IN GOD
God is not done with you yet, so you must possess a vision of the future from God, and not only that, but also profess a vibrant faith in God. What was the difference between Caleb and the ten spies? Joshua and Caleb had faith, while the ten had fear. The danger is making the false assumption that the majority rules.
There are moments when you have to go with the minority report. Even when the odds are against you, you must continue to believe the report of the Lord. Keep going with God.
THE OBJECT OF FAITH
When you possess a vibrant faith, you also must have the right object of your faith: God. Faith is not wishful thinking. Faith is a deep, subtle conviction about who God is and what God can do, regardless of how things may appear. We walk by faith and not by sight.
Authentic biblical faith is more than believing. It is acting on what you believe. Articulated faith without action is dead. Most folks just wait for their ship to come in, but I say, why don’t you go on and swim out to the ship?
God is not our cosmic butler or genie in a lamp. Faith must be based on who God is and what He has done. You should have an informed and intelligent faith.
You must know who God is: omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, and omnibenevolent, which means God is always good.
THE OBSTACLES TO FAITH
“Faith that cannot be tested is a faith that should never be trusted.”
If God is indeed the object of your faith, you will have obstacles to overcome. Here are three obstacles that we all will face in our faith walk:
- Limiting Beliefs - a state of mind or belief about yourself that restricts you somehow. Often these beliefs are false assumptions or accusations you make about yourself. Here are ten common limiting beliefs:
- I’m not good enough.
- I’m too old or too young.
- I don’t have enough time.
- I’m not smart enough.
- I don’t have enough experience.
- I’ll never be successful.
- I don’t have enough money.
- I’ll never overcome this.
- I’m not talented enough.
- God just doesn’t like me.
- False Self-Images - those limiting beliefs can build a mental map of false images of how you see yourself and how you perceive God. The ten spies saw themselves as grasshoppers—small and insignificant.
- Fear - if you’re not careful, fear will wither you like a grape to a raisin and immobilize you so you can’t move forward and move through the window of opportunity God has given you.
THE OVERCOMING OF FAITH
The most practical way to begin to overcome in faith is to imagine again. One of the greatest gifts you can give to yourself is the gift of exposure. God gave you this whole world to see and explore. Try something different. Explore the world around you.
Let’s not go to heaven and give God an apology because He gave us all this time and territory, and we haven’t seen anything. You can only imagine when you truly begin to explore.
Another way for you to gain exposure is by reading a book. It’s called expanding your intellect, widening your horizons, or having disciplined curiosity. Learning perceives leading. Stay curious. When you imagine, you also come to a place of hope.
Hope
Hope says, “There’s more.” Wake up every morning, breathing in optimism and hoping and believing things will be better. Expel doubt, pessimism, and despair.
Now it’s time you move from imagining to hoping to acting.
Action
You’ve got to move. God allows us to set our goals. Caleb asked for the mountain, and God gave it to him.
Next week, we’ll be talking a bit more about the whole aspect of how you’re not just in need of a vision that you possess or a faith that you profess, but that you also have to have favor to proceed.
Proceed in Victory and Favor by God
In Caleb’s life, you can see he had a different spirit. He had a different spirit because one distinguishing mark contrasts him from everybody else, even Joshua: Caleb followed God wholly. The one simple take-home in this whole message would be this: to follow God wholly.
Caleb closed up the gap between him and God. He didn’t allow disobedience, distractions, or challenges to come between him and God. Even when God took Caleb’s life on a detour into the wilderness instead of sending him straight to the Promised Land, Caleb still kept following God.
Caleb refused to allow delays to keep him from following God. It had been a 45-year delay for Caleb, but he still was waiting on God. It takes a lot of courage to wait.
Don’t get ahead of God. Don’t get impatient. Sit still. Keep following Him. Don’t let anything come between you and God.
Keep trusting and walking with Him even if it takes you to the wilderness.
