ISAIAH 40
9 O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!
THREE SIMPLE WORDS
The book of Isaiah is totally amazing and can be divided into two parts.. the first part (chapters 1-39) describes the deep problems of God’s people. And the second part (chapters 40-66), outlines God’s answer to these problems.. and the answer is summed up in one word.. JESUS.
The children of Israel failed to keep the Law of God; now what they needed was God’s grace. But to receive that grace they first needed to hear God’s voice.
What is our message to the world? It is the same as the Prophet Isaiah…BEHOLD YOUR GOD!!
We have to get ourselves up into the high mountain, and shout from the heights of the hills, Behold Your God! You and I cannot reach the world sitting in the pews of the church. We go to church to worship Christ…we go to the world to do the works of Christ, proclaiming Him to the sinner. Think about it. Most of the people we meet, will never darken the doors of a church, so how will they hear the gospel? We have to take it to them.
We are not to tell them that they can have their best life now or gain prosperity by believing in Jesus. We are to tell them, “Behold your God!” We tell them that God is real and he offers salvation and eternal life to those who believe.
Are you lifting up your voice with strength and sharing the good news of the gospel?
Are you afraid to share the gospel? Ask God to give you the boldness to share His Word to the lost. Do you know someone who needs to hear the gospel? Take the time to tell them that you love them and to “Behold Your God!”
God bless you
Keith
NUMBERS 13
30 And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.
NUMBERS 14
24 But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.
HAVE YOU A CALEB SPIRIT?
Right in the midst of this uproar, Caleb stood up; he would not be silenced.
Caleb was one who was not going to go along with the majority. Oh how we need Caleb’s today, and Joshua’s for that matter. Remember that in the book of Joshua, even at age 80, he said, give me this mountain.
He is one who is like Paul in Philippians 3; always pressing on. He is seeking always to go forward, and to claim more ground. He wants to claim the prize, because there was no retirement for him.
Caleb did not put his sword away. He was ready!
Note the wonderful promise given to Caleb. Please note who one of the first judges of Israel was, that’s right, Caleb’s nephew:
9 And when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer to the children of Israel, who delivered them, even Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother.
10 And the Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he judged Israel, and went out to war: and the Lord delivered Chushanrishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed against Chushanrishathaim.
When you honour God, He will give you honour. God granted the promise He made to Caleb.
My question is:
Have you a Caleb spirit?
Have you an attitude that goes against the flow, even when the majority say you are wrong?
Are you prepared to say: Give me this mountain?
I will be 80 in 14 years, I hope by the time, I reach that age, I will be saying:
GIVE ME THIS MOUNTAIN
I want to go higher, further and deeper.
Then you have a Spirit like Caleb.
God bless you,
KK
NUMBERS 13
26 And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land.
27 And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.
28 Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there.
29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan.
30 And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.
31 But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.
32 And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.
33 And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.
THE BIGGEST BUT IN THE BIBLE
The word isn’t in the passage. It’s disguised, but can you see it?
At the start of verse 28, we have the word: Nevertheless.
They told them of everything that was good, and there was much that was good, and indeed the good outweighed the bad 10 to 1.
The conversation of these twelve spies would have been interesting. On their way, they were filled with excitement and anticipation, but coming home they had spilt into two distinct camps. Maybe Caleb and Joshua were cold shouldered by the ten? We don’t know.
All twelve spies saw the same things, but they came to two different conclusions. The answer lies in what the Lord said about Caleb in Chapter 14. He had a different spirit. As for Joshua, who the assistant of Moses, surely some of that rubbed off on him.
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They said good things about the land they had seen, but there was a catch and that was the “But.” It turned out to be the but of unbelief, the but of failing to believe the promises of God. These people knew what God had promised, they had seen him deal with the Egyptians; a more powerful force than even the Children of Anak and yet they still didn’t believe.
The ten spies saw everything through the eyes of man, but Joshua and Caleb saw everything through the eyes of God.
The ten spies saw the giants in the land.
Joshua and Caleb, saw they power of God?
Whose eyes do you see through?
If you see through man’s eyes, there will always be a BUT.
Remember that saying BUT cost the Children of Israel dearly.
Don’t say But, say like Caleb and Joshua.. let’s do it!!
God bless you,
KK