Hi, Zane.
Let me begin by dropping on you some very good and relevant advice as given by Peter in 2 Peter 3:11-13: “Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat.” NIV. That point in time described here by Peter could be very close.
I’m choosing to send another composition from the Old Testament…before heading out the door to the mill where I need to turn out a bunch of 3”x10”x15’ timbers in Douglas Fir.
Have a blessed day. Love and prayers—Tua/Ray.
The very same sentence that concluded yesterday’s reading concludes this one—“Then the land had rest from war” (14:15). And once again, it offers a nice reprieve from all the violence and conquering going on—even if it is justified as a “Holy War.” However, ask this question: “The land had rest from war for how long?” History reveals the sad answer—NOT LONG.
My own limited reflections observe that war and conquest run deep through the entire panorama of human history. But so do hypocrisies and ideological discrepancies. (I wonder why?) For example, we who are citizens of the USA should not deceive ourselves into thinking that our forefathers took over this great land mass with the happy consent of its indigenous peoples. We are grossly naïve to think that our own national history is free of atrocities and violations of “human rights.” I have no choice but to be very cynical concerning man’s ability to create a lasting utopia. I have to conclude that war and conquest are here to stay on planet earth until the return of the Supreme Conqueror and the set up of His transformational “new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness” (2 Peter 3:13). And if we take to heart the end-time Biblical predictions yet to come announcing war, suffering, and death, I think it’s appropriate to say, “We haven’t seen anything yet!”
Perhaps it would be stabilizing to review something that is about as mind-boggling as it gets—that is, Jesus’ words in John 11:25-26—“I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” Of course the best answer to that question is, “YES!”
The FOCUS VERSE above is part of Caleb’s personal testimony as he appeals to Joshua for permission to follow through with his conquering and occupation of the area of Hebron. Notice Caleb’s use of the word “convictions.” That indicates his true belief system—his passion. Those convictions influenced him to follow the LORD “wholeheartedly.” Caleb, in other words, nurtured a HEART AFTER GOD that set him apart from the crowd. I have to admit that this eighty-five-year-old invincible warrior is pretty impressive.
Conclusion: Don’t settle for just being another old conqueror. How about being MORE? “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:37-39).