POSSESS AND DWELL IN YOUR INHERITANCE

FULFILLING GOD’S PURPOSE FOR YOUR LIFE

A COMPARISON BETWEEN THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL AND THE CHURCH TODAY

I believe the purpose for which God set the Israelites free from Egyptian captivity was so they could inherit the Promised Land, as He had promised Abraham.

During their journey, God guided and protected the children of Israel (A Cloud moving ahead of them for direction and a Pillar of Fire at the rear/behind them for protection.)
The same way today, God through His Holy Spirit guides and protects those who diligently seek His face, who with sincere hearts seek to know His will for their lives, as they journey toward fulfilling their purpose in life-Partaking of God’s promises to the Church. (John.16:5-16)

It is also important to note that not all the Children of Israel were able to reach the Promised Land. In fact, with the exception of Joshua and Caleb, of the whole generation that left Egypt; including Moses and Aaron (these two led Israel out of captivity), all those 20years and above never made it across the Jordan. Also among the new generation of Israel, some did not inherit the Promised Land; the Reubenites, the Gadites and half the tribe of Manasseh. Though they were children of Israel, God’s chosen nation, children of Promise; they did not inherit the Promised Land.
This to me seems to suggest that, just because you are a Christian is no guarantee you will live the fullness of the life God desires for you to live here on earth, the fulfillment of His Purpose for your life. Sadly, there is evidence of this situation in the Church today, with so many Christians living life without Vision, lacking Purpose-a situation which at best I choose to call a “Passive/Dead Christianity” (Proverbs. 29:18, Hosea. 4:6), a situation where many in Christendom hardly enjoy the blessings of God, hardly enjoy God’s peace and Joy. This was never meant to be, it is not the will of God, and if it is not God’s will, then it is not our portion.
I have also noted that the same very obstacles that blocked some of the children of Israel from inheriting Canaan still affect the church today. Nothing new, the devil who caused trouble then is still the same today. We will deal with these later on.

ISRAEL’S DESTINY

I believe Israel’s destiny was not for them to just reach and possess the Promised Land, but also to dwell in it-Enjoying the Good of the Land (Milk and Honey-deut.11:8-9). Let me make this clear, this is not just about material things, for the Kingdom of God is not restricted to material wealth(Romans 14:17), but also I must emphasize that it is God’s will that we enjoy material wealth/blessings.(Deut.8, 11,Jeremiah 29:11,and the rest of the bible………)
God indeed fulfilled the promise He made to Abraham, when He got the children of Israel out of Egyptian captivity and brought them to freedom in Canaan-their destiny.
Like wise, I believe it is God’s desire for us to accomplish every purpose for which He created us.
Remember, first, God gave Israel freedom from Egyptian slavery, and then He guided them through the desert and finally brought them to Canaan. The same with the Church today. First, God gives us freedom from sin (slavery in Egypt), then He guides our lives as we navigate life's circumstances. e.g  temptation (Satan-golden calf, grumbling in the desert, etc), trials and tribulations (James.1:1-27)

BUT, Israel didn’t just find and possess the land without a fight. They had to contend for it, they fought wars, which they won only because God was with them, and they did as God commanded them to. In order to inherit Canaan, they had to persevere 40 years in the desert, as well as wars with the inhabitants of Canaan.
The same is necessary with the church today. We must persevere, we must contend for what is ours.
In Other words, once we have stood strong and stayed the course, reaching your destiny is inevitable.

WILL YOU DWELL IN YOUR INHERITANCE

Qn.Why Settle for what looks like your inheritance? Why settle for less than what God dreams and desires for you?

Numbers 32:1-42
The Gadites, Reubenites and half the tribe of Manasseh of their own will, chose not to inherit and dwell in their true inheritance, but settled for what looked like the Promised Land, a land neighboring Canaan. That land, on the east side of the Jordan also happened to be well endowed; it was fertile, had good pastures for their animals, and had good cities to dwell in. It looked just like Canaan, BUT was not Canaan, it was not their inheritance. Their inheritance was on the other side of the Jordan. That is to say, they settled for what I choose to call a “counterfeit” Inheritance.
This is exactly what I see in the Church today. Many Christians for various reasons fail or intentionally choose not to live a life of fulfillment, the life God desires for the Church. The sad reality is, today many in the Church have settled for less than God created them for-the fulfillment of His purpose for their lives, the realization of His dreams for their lives. We settle for that which looks like what God has for us, yet in reality it is not. Worse still many in the Church, having experienced some of the fruits of God’s blessings in their lives, settle for just that and don’t press on so as to develop a deeper relationship with God, so they may partake of more, of what God has in store for them.
Interestingly, having given us free will, God sometimes allows us to have our way, even when it is not in His original plan. Think about the three tribes, when they approached Moses with a desire to settle on the east side of the Jordan, he (Moses) granted them their wish, but only after they had made a promise to both God and all of Israel that they would fight alongside the rest of Israel and help them drive out all enemies from Canaan. Only then would they return to their preferred land on the east side of the Jordan.

CONTEND FOR AND INHERIT YOUR POSSESSION

Qn. Why should you fight for your God-given possession, and in the end not partake of it?

I have also noticed from Numbers 32 and Joshua 1:10-18 that though the three tribes did fight alongside the rest of Israel to possess Canaan, they themselves never possessed any lands there, since they had already been granted land on the east side of the Jordan. In other words, they contended for, but never inherited Canaan.

This again speaks of the situation I see in the Church today, where so many Christians are busy Praying and Interceding (Contending) for their nations to prosper, for the Church to prosper, and indeed God does hear their prayers, yet even as their nations and as some in the Church prosper, so many of those contending seem to be left behind, they don’t partake of what they contend for.
Which is why I ask the question, why should you fight for your God-given possession, and in the end not partake of it?
No doubt some people may want to nullify my question by referring to Abraham, but we must remember that the promise God made was not only to Abraham, but also to his (Abraham’s) seed - his descendants.




THE VICTORY IS YOURS ALREADY

Finally, just like Israel had to contend for Canaan, so do the Church today. We must contend for our portion, our destiny-the fulfillment of God’s purpose for our lives, and we must do it the right way. Like Israel, we must let God lead the way into battle. God should be at the frontline. In Hebrews 12 the Church is told to stay focused on Jesus.
Notice that Israel won all the battles into which God lead them, yet lost whenever they fought on their own terms. Their victory was in God and so is yours.
Remember in Christ Jesus, you already have the victory, but in order to see the manifestation of that victory, like Israel, you must fight. Israel always went to war with the assurance that the battle was won already, because God always assured them beforehand that He (God) had already given the enemy into their (Israel’s) hands.
The same with the Church today, in Christ Jesus we already have the assurance of Victory, but we must walk in that assurance, for we draw strength from that assurance.
Therefore though you are blessed and though your destiny is assured, first, you still must fight for the manifestation of the blessings and you must fight your way to your destiny. The Possession is yours already but you must first contend for it before you can fully partake of it.

The Church should not just sit back and expect to see God’s blessings manifesting in our lives. I believe we have a duty to take up arms (The Word of God), and fight our way to our destiny.
Remember we do not have to fight to be blessed, for in Christ Jesus we already are blessed. But we must contend for the manifestation of the blessing, just like Israel, whom though God had already given them Canaan, they still had to contend for it. Just because it belonged to them already did not mean they were going to receive it on a “silver plate”.
The same goes for the Church today. Yes we are blessed and yes in Christ Jesus we already have Victory over life’s situations, but the blessings of God will not just show up out of the blue, they will not just fall out of heaven. We must fight our way out of our “desert” experiences if we are going to fulfill our life’s purpose-reach our destiny.

SOLDIERS OF DESTINY

Remember, we the Church are soldiers of the Lord and soldiers are specifically made for battle. If you are born again and still have doubts as to whether you are a soldier or not, the following scriptures should be a wakeup call.
Ephesians 6:10-20, 2Corinthians 6:7, Psalm 144:1-2, 2Corinthians 10:3-6, 1Peter 2:11, Revelation 19:11-21, 1Timothy 6:12, 2Timothy 4:7, 1Peter 4:1, Romans 13:11-12, 1Thesalonians 5:8, Luke 10:19, 1Peter 5:8, Romans 8:37………………. ….e.t.c, e.t.c.


WHY FAIL? THE SPIRIT OF UNBELIEF

I have come to realize that the major reason Israel struggled while journeying to the Promised Land was Unbelief-Their constant failure to Trust and Believe in God’s ability to deliver them. Time and again they grumbled against Moses and Aaron, but most importantly against God Himself. I believe every weakness in them had its roots in unbelief.
This I believe is the same situation in the Church today, we believe yet, will not walk in Faith in God.
More on this to come later…enough for now………….

THE WORD OF GOD IS OUR CHOICE WEAPON OF WARFARE


God bless you