Faith And Obedience

For our meditation today we will focus on Joshua 18:3,“So Joshua said to the people of Israel, "How long will you put off going in to take possession of the land, which the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you?” (ESV)

These are the words of Joshua to the people of Israel who had been delivered from the slavery in Egypt, and had now entered the Promised Land. Though the people had all of the land before them they were hesitant to take full possession of the same.

Oftentimes the Lord wants to establish us in a place, but we are slack concerning the same. God is true to His word, and faithful to fulfill all that He has promised. However, we as His children must be ready to do whatever is required of us. A good question to ask is, “Are you in the place that God wants you to be, or are you stuck because of your slackness?”

The Lord delivered the great multitudes of the Israelites from the cruel hands of Pharaoh, led them for forty long years through the wilderness, and had graciously helped them enter the land of Canaan as He promised. Through all these years the Lord mercifully provided for them and protected them through the arduous journey. However, notice how it was only when the people had faith coupled with obedience that God made them progress to the next step.

Remember that the same is true for all of us even today. Walking with God is a journey of a life time, but it also involves faith and obedience on our part at every stage. Many people keep talking about the faith and obedience that they had in years gone by. Let’s remember that it is important to consider how this faith and obedience is played out in our lives at present too. If we desire to reach the higher places that God has in store for us, it is imperative that we walk with faith and obedience every single day.

Lessons from the life of Abraham

We read in Genesis 12:1,The LORD said to Abram, "Leave your country, your relatives, and your father's home, and go to a land that I am going to show you. (GNB)

Abram grew up in a civilization that was advanced, was in a protective environment, and had a family that was big and well established. It was from such a place that God called Abram to come out. From being in a good home Abram was now called out to live in tents like a nomad. Abram willingly gave up all of the comforts, put his faith in God and walked out in obedience to the call of God.

This is what the writer of Hebrews says in Hebrews 11:8,“It was faith that made Abraham obey when God called him to go out to a country which God had promised to give him. He left his own country without knowing where he was going.” (GNB)

The reason we speak highly about the faith of Abram is the fact that when God called him, He never gave details about the land that He was taking Abram to, and yet Abram set out in faith and obedience though he had no clue what lay ahead.

Very often we hesitate to take that first step out of our comfort zone to go to the place that God wants us to get to.

The dispute between Abram and Lot

At the age of 75 God called Abram, and Abram along with his wife Sarai, and all his belongings set out on the journey. Abram’s nephew Lot also decided to accompany Abram on this journey. After a few years there was a situation that arose between Abram and Lot.

We read about this in Genesis 13:7,“So quarrels broke out between the men who took care of Abram's animals and those who took care of Lot's animals. (At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were still living in the land.)” (GNB)

Both Abram and Lot were wealthy, and their livestock had increased which caused a problem because there was not enough pastures for the livestock to graze upon. This led to dispute between the herdsmen of Abram and Lot.

The one thing that we can’t often handle is arguments between two people.

This news reached Abram, but the Lord who called Abram was silent in this situation. I believe that God was watching to see how Abram would handle the conflict.

Have you noticed how when we are in some sort of difficulty, we will sense that God is silent? The reason is God wants to observe how we are handling these situations that we encounter.

Abram’s response

Let us read the response of Abram when this dispute was brought to his notice. It is recorded in