Names in the Old Testament are important and bring clarity to the problems that God’s people encountered.
…they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. 1Cor. 10:11
In the Book of Joshua (3:10), God said that He would drive out the people who were living in the land. Thus, God commanded Joshua to move forward. God dealt with the enemy in three ways.
- God told Joshua to completely annihilate them.
- God told Joshua to stand back and watch as He conquered.
- God allowed nations to survive “to test and strengthen” Israel in order that subsequent generations might be taught war. Judges 3:1-5
God does the same in our lives where there are challenges, sin, things by which we feel defeated.
Some, He tells you to “completely annihilate”, some; He will have you watch while He displays His majesty. But, God allows some to remain in our life to teach us to fight. He wants men who are “strong and courageous”, men who are willing to fight and men who are willing to be tried. Judges 3:4
God’s desire is NOT for us to learn to adapt or succumb but rather to learn to fight. Eph. 4
The names of the six groups of people, that God left to teach His people war and the significance of their names to our generation, are as follows:
Canaanite-to compare (to become like)
Hittite-terror (fear of man)
Hivite-impulsive (easily defeated)
Perizzite-unwalled town (moral decay)
Amorite-publicity-prominence (pride)
Jebusite-trodden underfoot (polluted)
These are important names. We struggle in the same areas. The first thing a Christian does is to compare themselves to others and those in the world. With comparison comes the desire to become like.
This comparison promotes insecurity. Insecurity brings a fear of man. From there, we find ourselves moved by impulsiveness. The sign of maturity is control over our impulses. Those that easily make us feel defeated, worthless and ineffective.
When there are no boundaries on our life, no protections, no walls, the defeats turn to moral decay. Like our teeth which have a strong enamel, after years of acids and no protection, decay begins to erode the enamel, exposing the teeth to harm and in some cases, irreparable damage.
Interestingly, when we begin to make poor moral decisions, when decay begins, we protect ourselves from exposure and cover our sin with pride. Pride works against humility.
The final stage of the decay is polluted, which started simply by comparison. We are worth nothing except to be thrown out and trodden underfoot. Matt. 5:3
Which ‘people’ has God allowed in your life to teach you to fight? What hinders you?
No comments:
Post a Comment