He wants us to possess our promise.

They are living, benefiting, and enjoying the provision of the promise. But Joshua realizes that something is wrong. He realizes that they weren’t sanctified.

Many of us are enjoying and obtained the benefits and the provisions of the promise. We have enjoyed victories won by others. We have ridden the backs of other people’s prayers, warfare, work, and study of the Word. However, too many of us are not clean. Too many of us are unsanctified, unholy. We are in the camp and we are blessed because of it, but we haven’t been purified.

I declare to you that you can visit the Promised Land without being holy, but you cannot stay there. It is easier to obtain that it is to maintain (i.e. dates). Possession demands purity! Purity produces power to possess. Too many of you are content with visiting your promise. You visit the benefits. You occasionally visit your destiny, but you are unable to maintain possession. You can’t settle there or inhabit that place because of lack of purity. Your talent will get you to the Promised Land but it is your character that will enable you to stay there.

Some of you are acting like you are ready to possess your promise but you need to be purified. You need to take some time and get things cleaned up and cleaned out. You will never be able to possess until you first allow God to purify! It is time for you to be sanctified. I Thessalonians 4:3-8. The day of trying to live in the Promised Land yet staying as close to the filth of this culture is over. We cannot possess without purity!


B. Healing before possession

However, I also want you to notice that as soon as they went through the purification process they didn’t immediately possess the land either. The Word says that they waited to go forward until they had healed. The Word doesn’t just say they stayed in the camp, but specifically says they stayed in the camp in their specific place until they were whole.

I am convinced that too many of us want to do battle before we are whole. We don’t want to stay in our place. God has a place designed for us. He has a place He wants us to stay in and heal in. We must learn to stay in our place until we are healed.

God wants to put some of us in our place. Too often we want to force our way into the lime light, the stage, the ministry when really we need to stay in our place and spend some time becoming whole. That’s what this time is for you. It isn’t a waste of time. Stay in your place and allow God to purify you and to heal you. Get off the stage until you have time to heal. Some of you have been broken don’t get in a hurry. Allow God to heal you. Molested. Stay in your place. Lied to. Stay in your place. Addicted. Stay in your place. Not only does possession demand holiness but wholeness. You must heal before you can possess!

C. Time for possession

I also want you to notice that the people stayed in the healing place for a season. They didn’t stay there forever. They didn’t stay there the rest of their life. There came a day when it was time to get up and move forward into possession.

I am telling some of you that it is time to get out of the counselor’s office and move forward. It is time for some of you to get over your past and possess your future. Some of you have been licking your