Saturday, November 21, 2020

From Obscurity to God’s Favor

 By:  Dale Weckbacher

 

Text:  Joshua 24:1-13

 

Joshua 24:13

I gave you a land on which you had not labored and cities that you had not built, and you dwell in them.  You eat the fruit of vineyards and olive orchards that you did not plant.’

(ESV)

 

One of my favorite presidents in United States history is Abraham Lincoln a man who came from the obscurity of a humble log cabin to election as President of the United States in 1860.  Lincoln was a self-educated man who had a life of electoral defeat until achieving election as the 16th President of the United States.  As President, Lincoln faced a time of serious divisiveness in the nation resulting in a bloody civil war.  While the life of Lincoln was shortened by an assassin’s bullet, his leadership held the United States together during a time of serious divisiveness. 

 

The contentious election the United States continues to experience shows the United States has divided once again but this time the division is not territorial, north versus south, but philosophical.  The question that must be answered is will the United States continue as a free constitutional republic where individuals are free to pursue their dreams or become socialist with individuals having greater dependence on government.  The founding documents of the United States speak of the unalienable rights of each individual to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness (1) with the role of government limited to the protection of these rights as stated in the Bill of Rights.  (2)  This makes the real question one of whether the role of government is the protector of individual rights as envisioned by the authors of the nation’s founding documents or the provider of rights, leaving God out of the equation. 

 

The United States and the rest of the world need something they can unify behind.  The mention by the authors of the Declaration of Independence of God-given unalienable rights indicates they believed the unifying force to be a belief in God with the role of government being the protection of the right to worship God without government interference.  This right to freely gather to worship God is presently under fire in some states with lockdown orders restricting religious gatherings while allowing other gatherings.  The question for God’s people is whether they will remain unified in Christ while functioning in the context of restrictions on gathering or divide.  Jesus gave the Church clear instructions to spread the Gospel and make disciples under the power of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8; Mark 16:15; Matthew 28:19-20).  Therefore, the Church must seek God’s guidance on how to remain unified behind its God-given mission in a safe manner so as not to spread Covid19. 

 

The history lesson of Joshua 24:1-13 illustrates what an obscure group of people can accomplish through dependence on God’s power.  The Egyptians did not view the Israelites as a threat and pursued them through the Red Sea, only to be destroyed by the power of God (Exodus 14).  The Amorites believed they could easily defeat the ordinary Israelites, only to suffer defeat through God’s empowerment of Israel’s army as Moses prayed in intercession (Numbers 21:21-30).  The Canaanites beginning with Jericho also underestimated the power of a group of ordinary people who have the power of God behind them (Joshua 6).  Today’s world underestimates the power of the Church, a group of ordinary people, to bring unity to a divided nation and world. 

 

The challenge for God’s people is will they rise up to promote unity in Christ by calling for the nation to return to the Godly principles upon which it was founded or remain silent.  The history lesson provided by Joshua in Joshua 24:1-13 is a story of God using obscure people, beginning with Abraham and transforming them into people used by God to depose the evil Canaanites from the land promised to Abraham.  It illustrates a journey from obscurity to mightily used by God to rid the land of Canaan of the evil people living in the land.  The Church has a similar opportunity to move from a group of obscure people to a might force used by God to bring unity, not through condoning or accepting evil practices like abortion on demand or gay marriage, but unity in Christ. 

 

To accomplish this, the Church must put aside its non-essential theological differences like when the rapture will occur, and instead focus on the fact that Jesus is returning for His bride and that the bride must be ready for Christ’s return (John 14:1-3).  The Church must stop the bickering over what style of music to allow in worship and instead focus on the object of worship, Jesus Christ (John 12:27-36).  The Church must put aside its division over whether people are born predestined to accept Christ or not and instead focus on presenting the Gospel through Scripture, allowing the Holy Spirit to convict individuals of their sin so they can choose to accept Christ or not (John 16:4-15). 

 

To return the United States to its once great and united position of greatness as a world power requires God’s people returning to Godly principles in their own lives and showing unity within the Church.  Jesus taught His Disciples that the world would know they are His disciples by their love for each other (John 13:34-35).  However, throughout Church history, the Church has shown the same divisiveness seen in the world.  My prayer is that Churches across the world would put aside their differences and unify around the Godly mission of spreading the Gospel and making disciples.  The Church must unify and focus on lifting up Jesus Christ so He can draw people to him through the convicting power of the Holy Spirit.  I challenge the Church and all believers to focus on lifting up Jesus Christ. 

 

1. National Archives. The Declaration of Independence. archives.gov. [Online] The National Archives. [Cited: November 21, 2020.] https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/declaration.

 

2. —. The Bill of Rights. archives.gov. [Online] The National Archives. [Cited: November 21, 2020.] https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/bill-of-rights.

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