Joshua 13:1-7
When Joshua was old and well advanced in years, the LORD said to him, "You are very old, and there are still very large areas of land to be taken over.
"This is the land that remains: all the regions of the Philistines and Geshurites: from the Shihor River on the east of Egypt to the territory of Ekron on the north, all of it counted as Canaanite (the territory of the five Philistine rulers in Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath and Ekron—that of the Avvites from the south, all the land of the Canaanites, from Arah of the Sidonians as far as Aphek, the region of the Amorites, the area of the Gebalites; and all Lebanon to the east, from Baal Gad below Mount Hermon to Lebo Hamath.
"As for all the inhabitants of the mountain regions from Lebanon to Misrephoth Maim, that is, all the Sidonians, I myself will drive them out before the Israelites. Be sure to allocate this land to Israel for an inheritance, as I have instructed you, and divide it as an inheritance among the nine tribes and half of the tribe of Manasseh."
Jesus once said that the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. It seems to be the case today. I read from the book Revolution in World Missions that there are still a lot of rural areas which had not heard of Jesus and the gospels yet. These are lands that are yet to be taken over. Even in our own land, there are lands that are yet to be taken over. Living in a multiracial and multicultural society does not necessarily mean that people know what Christianity is all about. I recently read a lot of newspaper reports on the religiosity of Singaporeans today, and one talked about the 'enclave of the liked minded' while another talk about PA and uniting people of different cultures. But ask these people, what they know about Christianity, and see what they answer. There are still lands to be taken and harvest still yet to be harvested. Just like the passage suggests, there is still a long way away from taking over all the land.
It is true, we may have been serving a lot and achieving a lot, just like Joshua, but even when we are advanced in age, it does not mean that there are little left to be done about our land. The sermon yesterday talked about the providential will or sovereign will of God and it is our responsibility to know and be familiar about this will of God cos God will use anyone to accomplish His sovereign will. Sometimes, we may feel old but there are lands to be taken. There are people who have yet to hear the gospel. God can use us and will use us if our answer is yes.
So the question to us here is very simple. Are we ready to be used by God regardless of where we are or how old we are or what we have been through? This is one question some are ready to answer yes and some are hesitant to answer. I think implicitly in this question is the question whether you will die for God if the time comes. Implicit also is the question whether are we ready to stand up and not compromise.
Perhaps one thing we need to do is really circumcise ourselves (not physically) and ask ourselves these questions honestly about our lives. I have no need to look far to know that people dun know the gospel. So are you looking too far out that you didn't realise that your immediate surrounding is filled with such people??
"This is the land that remains: all the regions of the Philistines and Geshurites: from the Shihor River on the east of Egypt to the territory of Ekron on the north, all of it counted as Canaanite (the territory of the five Philistine rulers in Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath and Ekron—that of the Avvites from the south, all the land of the Canaanites, from Arah of the Sidonians as far as Aphek, the region of the Amorites, the area of the Gebalites; and all Lebanon to the east, from Baal Gad below Mount Hermon to Lebo Hamath.
"As for all the inhabitants of the mountain regions from Lebanon to Misrephoth Maim, that is, all the Sidonians, I myself will drive them out before the Israelites. Be sure to allocate this land to Israel for an inheritance, as I have instructed you, and divide it as an inheritance among the nine tribes and half of the tribe of Manasseh."
Jesus once said that the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. It seems to be the case today. I read from the book Revolution in World Missions that there are still a lot of rural areas which had not heard of Jesus and the gospels yet. These are lands that are yet to be taken over. Even in our own land, there are lands that are yet to be taken over. Living in a multiracial and multicultural society does not necessarily mean that people know what Christianity is all about. I recently read a lot of newspaper reports on the religiosity of Singaporeans today, and one talked about the 'enclave of the liked minded' while another talk about PA and uniting people of different cultures. But ask these people, what they know about Christianity, and see what they answer. There are still lands to be taken and harvest still yet to be harvested. Just like the passage suggests, there is still a long way away from taking over all the land.
It is true, we may have been serving a lot and achieving a lot, just like Joshua, but even when we are advanced in age, it does not mean that there are little left to be done about our land. The sermon yesterday talked about the providential will or sovereign will of God and it is our responsibility to know and be familiar about this will of God cos God will use anyone to accomplish His sovereign will. Sometimes, we may feel old but there are lands to be taken. There are people who have yet to hear the gospel. God can use us and will use us if our answer is yes.
So the question to us here is very simple. Are we ready to be used by God regardless of where we are or how old we are or what we have been through? This is one question some are ready to answer yes and some are hesitant to answer. I think implicitly in this question is the question whether you will die for God if the time comes. Implicit also is the question whether are we ready to stand up and not compromise.
Perhaps one thing we need to do is really circumcise ourselves (not physically) and ask ourselves these questions honestly about our lives. I have no need to look far to know that people dun know the gospel. So are you looking too far out that you didn't realise that your immediate surrounding is filled with such people??
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