We believe that a new season is upon us. You might have been shown this by the Lord already, or you might not have a clue that there could be such a thing as a new season for His people, or you might be somewhere in between.
We want to quickly tell a few stories which God has so graciously given to help us understand the amazing life He calls us to and the requirements that go along with it. Hopefully, these will be helpful in illuminating the Kingdom life and the season which is upon us.
God sent His people Israel into slavery in Egypt. Here they were able to flourish from being a large family to being a mighty people numbering in the millions. God had promised that He would bring them to a Promised Land and this people told this story throughout the generations, waiting for this day to come. But even though they held this promise, over the years they had taken on the mind-set of slaves in a foreign land. (This story can be found in Exodus)
Moses was given the task of leading this people out of slavery and into the Promised Land. Because he was raised in the palace, he did not think like a slave and so was capable of leading the people. He lead them to cross over the Red Sea as God mightily drew back the waters, crushing Pharaoh’s army and allowing them to reach safety.
God showed up in mighty ways to provide for His people and yet Israel grumbled. They longed for the life of slavery that they left. It might seem obvious that a life of freedom under the protection, provision, and guidance of God is better than a life of slavery, but this was the only life that they knew. They constantly complained that they had been taken from it! It was comfortable to them. Their flesh ached for it.
Later, (this story picks up in Numbers 13) Moses lead them to the Promised Land and they sent scouts into the land as the Lord instructed. Leaders from each of the tribes went to see what kind of land it was and if the people there were strong or weak.
All but two of the leaders came back saying that the giants who lived in the land were too powerful for them to attack. They did not trust that the Lord would hand the Land over to them which He had promised them. Joshua and Caleb believed in God, but the rest of the leaders spread a bad report to the people of God and terror overtook their hearts.
To eradicate this lack of trust in His people, God had them wander the desert for 40 years where all the adults who had not trusted God died off. They had chosen to follow leaders that were not men after God’s own heart and followed that way to death.
The young generation, however, had only known a life completely dependent on God. They had not known a life of slavery, but instead had known a life where God provided for every real need the day that they needed it. Manna from Heaven!
When the time was right, God chose Joshua and Caleb, the leaders who had believed in God over what their eyes saw, to lead this new generation of His people into the Promised Land that He had promised generations before.
This is Part 8 in the series Kingdom of God.To continue with this series, click on Pt 9. To use this as a growth tool to better understand your own calling, you might start by reading Part 1, Pt 2, Pt 3, Pt 4, Pt 5, Pt 6 and Pt 7.
Photo credit: Island-Life