ESOCS Devotional 27 June 2024 – The Action of Faith
MEMORY VERSE: “Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.” Numbers 13:30
TEXT: NUMBERS 13:17-33
Then Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go up this way into the South, and go up to the mountains, 18 and see what the land is like: whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, few or many; 19 whether the land they dwell in is good or bad; whether the cities they inhabit are like camps or strongholds; 20 whether the land is rich or poor; and whether there are forests there or not. Be of good courage. And bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes.
21 So they went up and spied out the land from the Wilderness of Zin as far as Rehob, near the entrance of Hamath. 22 And they went up through the South and came to Hebron; Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 Then they came to the Valley of Eshcol, and there cut down a branch with one cluster of grapes; they carried it between two of them on a pole. They also brought some of the pomegranates and figs. 24 The place was called the Valley of [Ehcol, because of the cluster which the men of Israel cut down there. 25 And they returned from spying out the land after forty days.
26 Now they departed and came back to Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh; they brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 Then they told him, and said: “We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 Nevertheless the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.”
30 Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.”
31 But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.” 32 And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. 33 There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”
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Faith is an important part of our relationship with God. In fact, as far as Christianity is concerned faith is the fulcrum or central point of our walk with God. Faith is our anchor and lifeline. No one can do anything with God without faith (Hebrew 11:6). Faith is following God based on His word and promises. Trusting Him to keep His word concerning the need we believe Him for.
This was the position of Caleb, one of the spies Moses sent to spy out the land of Canaan. After their report concerning the land, he calmed the people down in the midst of conflicting conclusions about the might of the people they found in the land, and the fear it generated in the congregation. He no doubt focused on the promises of God more than the giants they saw in the land. God told them told them that the land is flowing with milk and honey and He had promised the land to their fathers; and that He would give it to them.
Caleb believed in this promise and trusted God to fulfil it. So, when the spies saw the land, they all agreed that it was indeed a good land flowing with milk and honey. However, the conclusion on the action to be taken concerning the land differed among the spies; and that was based on their individual faith perspective. Caleb quietened the people and said they should go up at once and possess the land. He was trying to move the people to take an action of faith – an action not based on the circumstances or feelings but based on the promises and faithfulness of God.
To be able to take an action of faith, one must have a living relationship with God. As for Christians, that would be possible if one is born again and is Holy Spirit-filled. Without salvation in Christ Jesus, there is no real relationship with God. The heart must be filled with the word of God. The word of God is filled with the promises, guidance and admonitions of God. The word of God in our hearts will affect our mentality positively. It takes our action of faith to receive from God and experience the fulfilment of His promises. If your word content is low, your faith actions will be low too.
We must deal with fear, doubt, impatience and anxiety in our hearts if we must take a successful action of faith. Meditation on the word of God would keep our hearts active for the faith actions. To help our faith life, our prayer life must be active.
- Make every effort to increase the word of God in you.
- Father, inspire my faith to be active and alive, trusting you in all circumstances, in Jesus name. Amen.
Further Reading: Ezekiel 2:1-7; Mark 11:12-19; Acts 1:1-14
ESOCS Devotional 27 June 2024
