“To be right with God often means to be wrong with men.” Oshea, also known as Joshua, and Caleb chose to have faith in God when the other spies did not. The other spies even convinced the entire Israelite congregation that going into Canaan was a bad idea. The Israelites then plotted to make themselves a new leader, have Joshua and Caleb stoned to death, and head back to Egypt. They would have successfully carried out their plan had God Himself not interfered.
The crisis that Joshua and Caleb experienced reminds me of what is happening to the world today. You see multiple riots, people threatening to kill one another, and society begging to go back to our old ways. Sad to say life will never go back to the way it was. These things are going to happen because we are being molded and shaped for something greater. We are being prepared for a better life in heaven. Just like how the Israelites were brought out of Egypt to have a better life in Canaan, we are being brought out of our old sinful ways so we can enjoy eternal life with Jesus.
Just like Joshua and Caleb, we need to remember the reason why we are on this journey and remember Who it was that promised to take us to the promised land. It’s easy to complain when times get tough. It’s easy to blame others and get our minds clouded by the things we see happening around us. But we need to see the bigger picture and trust in God. We cannot forget the reason why trials must take place.
Truly in the end times the majority will act like the Israelite multitude and only a hand full will remain faithful to God. Our job as Christians is to get as much people as we can to put their faith and trust back in the hands of God. Dangerous things happen when we try to fix things on our own. After the Israelites realized they sinned against God, and after God pronounced the verdict of their consequences, they tried to continue to claim Canaan in their own terms and in their own time. Because God said the Israelites would remain in the wilderness another 40 years, they then tried to conquer the land which they previously despised. Funny how we don’t want what God gives us in the first place, but when He takes it away from us then we fight to keep it.
Moses warned the Israelites not to pursue the promised land anymore, at least this was not the right time. But they went anyway. Moses warned them that God would not be on their side if they attacked the enemies. But they went anyway. The Israelites died and lost the battle without a doubt.
We need to be patient and wait for God’s time. God told the Israelites He would give them Canaan but they murmured and complained and finally tried to do things their way. I know it’s hard to be patient, but we need to remember to “be still and know that He is God.”
I think... 