Wednesday, April 18, 2018

Warnings in the Waiting Time

Dueteronomy (did I lose you already) starts with a recap of the journey so far and some clear warnings.  I was surprised that God gave the same warning 3 times in the second chapter: "do not harass or contend".   The Israelites rejected the promise and then tried to take it on their own terms. They messed up big time.  As a consequence, God was going to take them back through lands that were promised to other tribes and peoples.  God warned them that this land was NOT their land and they were not to mess with the people as they passed through.  If you have kids this probably sounds familiar.  When my kids miss out on things they complain, whine, fight, might attempt to steal it back, try to take what they can get, debate, etc.  Essentially this is what God was expecting the disobedient Israelites to do.  I love looking in the 1828 dictionary for definitions:

harass - to weary, to fatigue to excess, to tease 
contend - to strive, to struggle in opposition 

So, what do you do when God isn't doing things your way?  What do you do in the waiting time? 

Instead of harassing and contending Moses told the people to pay for their food and drink, receive what they were given and follow God.   If you read the Bible people wait years, decades and potentially their whole lives for promises.  Hebrews 11 is a LONG list of people who lived their whole lives in expectation of the promise - and never saw it.  That is called faith.  Will you choose to trust God and follow?  Will you do this without fatiguing, harassing and striving against him or others to get your way?  Can you be patient and wait?  Will you walk into it when it is there (even if there are giants)?  Receive what you are given and follow.

In our own frustration and pain we might mess with others who seem to be blessed by God.  We want to disrupt what they have (harass and contend).  This is called jealousy and bitterness.  STOP!

Here is the deal about the inheritance on this side of the cross.  You get an inheritance when someone dies.  Jesus died and now we have the Holy Spirit as a deposit in us - the power that raised Jesus from the dead lives in us.  Our inheritance is secure.  There is room for all of us.  Land is a finite commodity - there is only so much.  But the inheritance we have in Christ is available to ALL - there is no limit and no reason to be jealous about what someone else has.  God has given us all a role and a place - Christ is the head and we are the body. Are we walking into what he has given us?  Are we living in the power of the Spirit and the promises he has made to us?  Are we trusting even when we can't see?

In the in between time, instead of harassing God for what you want and striving or contending for your own plan, I encourage you to think on your inheritance.  Lean into Jesus and his truth.  Learn more about the way of the cross. Get to know your Savior and Lord.  Come to understand what Isaiah 30:15, "This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it." Learn the ways of repentance - do it quickly and restore relationships around you (as much as it is up to you).  Rest - cease striving - believe that God is at work even if you can't see it and don't understand it.  This doesn't mean become a sluggard but it does mean to stop trying to qualify yourself and push yourself to the front.  Ahh, quietness. Well, I clearly have much to learn about that.  I hear that it helps you listen to his voice more than your own though!  Trust leading to strength - trusting in God's character, resources, promises - more than our own. Who is stronger in the end anyway??   You have a secure inheritance - learn to live in the wealth of what Christ has done on your behalf.  All else is less than. 

Do you know what happens when the Israelites do come back around to the promised land?  This: "The Lord our God gave him over to us, and we defeated him, his sons and all his people."  God conquered on behalf of this rag tag bunch of desert wanderers.  This is before crossing Jordan and the infamous Battle of Jericho - his is contending for them when they follow his commands and desire to walk into his promises.  Only God!









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