The Attitude of Possessing our Possessions
Notes
Transcript
Handout
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
Last week, we looked at how not to Possess your Possessions, Moses did not Sanctify or Glorify God in his life or the eyes of the people.
This week however, we will see one who did Possess his Possessions. We will examine the difference.
This week, we will look at a man by the name of Caleb that we actually met last week in Numbers 13.
1 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,
2 Send thou men, that they may search the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel: of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, every one a ruler among them.
3 And Moses by the commandment of the Lord sent them from the wilderness of Paran: all those men were heads of the children of Israel.
4 And these were their names: of the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur.
5 Of the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori.
6 Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh.
Caleb was one of the 12 spies sent to spy out the promised land of Canaan to see that it was all that God had promised it would be.
What set Caleb apart from the others was that Caleb
Watch Differently
Watch Differently
Numbers 13:25–30 (KJV 1900)
25 And they returned from searching of the land after forty days.
26 And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land.
27 And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.
28 Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there.
29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan.
30 And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.
Up to this point, everything is great but Caleb was noticing that instead of this spying adventure building their faith, it was beginning to break them down. Seeing their pessimistic attitudes, Caleb immediately speaks up. Let’s go get this. However, the Pessimists don’t remain quiet.
Numbers 13:31–33 (KJV 1900)
31 But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.
32 And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.
33 And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.
Possessing our Possessions begin with looking differently from the world or anyone who does not trust God. Notice, 10 were looking at theirselves and their enemies. Caleb was looking at God.
Notice his
Confidence in God
Confidence in God
His Character
His Character
God is truth, He cannot lie.
Abraham was promised this land.
15 For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.
16 And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.
17 Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee.
Moses delivered them for bondage to go to this land.
13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom thou swarest by thine own self, and saidst unto them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it for ever.
His Capacity
His Capacity
God is a great God.
God can do anything. God can give anything.
Commitment to God
Commitment to God
Numbers 14:1–9 (KJV 1900)
1 And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.
2 And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!
3 And wherefore hath the Lord brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?
4 And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.
5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel.
6 And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes:
7 And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land.
8 If the Lord delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey.
9 Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not.
Because of looking differently, all was punished to die but 2, Joshua and Caleb that looked at God and His Word rather than the giants, problems, and hardships.
What made the difference?
Numbers 14:20–24 (KJV 1900)
20 And the Lord said, I have pardoned according to thy word:
21 But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord.
22 Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice;
23 Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it:
24 But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.
Following the Lord isn't always easy, but it is always right. The Bible is filled with stories of courageous people who were willing to do God's will against all odds. Are you?
The difference between possession and powerless is all in our spirit.
Remember in Ephesians, the difference between spiritual blessings and failure is found in the filling of the Spirit.
Ephesians 5:18 (KJV 1900)
18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
Not with having the Spirit, all the Israelites were guided and comforted by the Spirit of God in the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night. Caleb was under the influence of the Spirit, and his faith and actions proved it.
Hebrews 11:6 (KJV 1900)
6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
When we have faith not only will we see things differently, but we will also
Walk Differently
Walk Differently
2 Corinthians 5:5–7 (KJV 1900)
5 Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit.
6 Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord:
7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)
Notice first of all Caleb
Claimed Faith
Claiming Faith
Claiming Faith
Joshua 14:6–9 (KJV 1900)
6 Then the children of Judah came unto Joshua in Gilgal: and Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite said unto him, Thou knowest the thing that the Lord said unto Moses the man of God concerning me and thee in Kadesh-barnea.
7 Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh-barnea to espy out the land; and I brought him word again as it was in mine heart.
8 Nevertheless my brethren that went up with me made the heart of the people melt: but I wholly followed the Lord my God.
9 And Moses sware on that day, saying, Surely the land whereon thy feet have trodden shall be thine inheritance, and thy children’s for ever, because thou hast wholly followed the Lord my God.
The first key to Caleb success was that God had all of Caleb that there was! Note the repeated phrase “Wholly followed the Lord.” This is said about Caleb at least five times in the Old Testament.
It is a phrase that means “To close the gap.” It is a phrase used by hunters to refer to “closing the gap between themselves and their prey.” It refers to the fact that Caleb was committed to keeping the distance between him self and the Lord at a minimum.
The word “wholly” literally means “to fill.” It carries the idea of “filling a sail with air.” It is the picture of sails filled to capacity with all the available air so that the ship can move across the water with maximum speed.
Every inch, every ounce, every nerve, every fiber of Caleb belonged to God.
You may think that because you are not a preacher or deacon or Sunday School teacher or whatever, God doesn’t expect to have all of you. That is wrong thinking! God deserves your all. If you’re holding back on the Lord you should to be ashamed of yourself! If you are saved, you are all His anyway; you belong to Him—1 Cor. 6:19–20!
19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.
After Claiming our Faith, we need to Confess it.
Confessing Faith
Confessing Faith
Joshua 14:10 (KJV 1900)
10 And now, behold, the Lord hath kept me alive, as he said, these forty and five years, even since the Lord spake this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old.
How do we confess or express faith?
Notice: Who is getting the glory? God!
Once we have claimed and confessed our faith, then and only then can we obtain a
Conquering Faith
Conquering Faith
Joshua 14:11 (KJV 1900)
11 As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in.
Conquering Faith gives us the Ability to
Overcome Grasshoppers
Overcome Grasshoppers
Numbers 13:33 (KJV 1900)
33 And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.
For Caleb to claim what God had promised he had to go against the majority.
(III. Jesus—He was usually alone in everything He did!)
III. The Cants and the Will nots will always surround the people of true faith.
(III. There will always be someone saying that it can’t be done, it’s never been done like that before, we can’t afford it, etc.
Sometimes you will stand alone, but if you are standing on the Word of God in the will of God, then you were never in better company!
Overcome Giants
Overcome Giants
Joshua 14:12 (KJV 1900)
12 Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the Lord spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims were there, and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the Lord will be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the Lord said.
All of us have giants in our lives.
Giants of discouragement, finances, sickness, family, distress, doubt and the truth is—we can’t defeat them ourselves.
We have 2 options.
1. We can say look how small we are compared to those giants. This is the outlook of fear! 2 Tim. 1:7
7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
2. Or look how small those giants are compared to God! This is the uplook of faith! (III. Phil. 4:13 ; Eph. 3:20; Matt. 28:18)
20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
Fighting giants is good for you!
Num. 14:9—Giants are bread)
Numbers 14:9 (KJV 1900)
9 Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not.
(III. Popeye and his spinach!)
Overcome Grey Hair
Overcome Grey Hair
Joshua 14:10 (KJV 1900)
10 And now, behold, the Lord hath kept me alive, as he said, these forty and five years, even since the Lord spake this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old.
What does this tell us? When God makes a promise, he will give us the strength to see its fulfillment!
Never count God, or yourself out.
True faith looks beyond the present circumstance and sees the provision of the Almighty!
Confidence of Faith
Confidence of Faith
Joshua 14:12 (KJV 1900)
12 Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the Lord spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims were there, and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the Lord will be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the Lord said.
He Heard God!
He Trusted God!
He Believed God!
I can see Caleb now climbing that mountain with a sword in one hand and a deed in the other while singing to the top of his lungs,
“I want that mountain! I want that mountain! Where the milk and honey flow, where the grapes of Eschol grow. I want mountain! I want that mountain! The mountain that the Lord has given me!”.
Caleb knew God had given it to him so he claimed it.
Faith is not positive thinking.
Faith is not “name it and claim it.”
Faith is not optimism.
Faith is not looking on the bright side.
Faith is simply acting on what God says.
Faith is simply taking God at His Word and believing that He will do everything He has promised to do!
Compensation of Faith
Compensation of Faith
Joshua 14:13–15 (KJV 1900)
13 And Joshua blessed him, and gave unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh Hebron for an inheritance.
14 Hebron therefore became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite unto this day, because that he wholly followed the Lord God of Israel.
15 And the name of Hebron before was Kirjath-arba; which Arba was a great man among the Anakims. And the land had rest from war.
Blessings
Blessings
Joshua 14:13 (KJV 1900)
13 And Joshua blessed him, and gave unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh Hebron for an inheritance.
Bounty
Bounty
Joshua 14:13–14 (KJV 1900)
13 And Joshua blessed him, and gave unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh Hebron for an inheritance.
14 Hebron therefore became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite unto this day, because that he wholly followed the Lord God of Israel.
Caleb experienced what God had promised!
He climbed the mountains and he defeated the giants—he claimed his possession.
The name of the place Caleb inherited was named “Hebron.” This means “Fellowship”.
Caleb refused to quit until he had obtained everything the Lord has for him!
He refused to stop until he had obtained that place of fellowship with God.
Hebron
After Abraham and Lot split ways, Lot taking the plains, Sodom and Gommarah, and Abraham the mountains, God showed Abraham his inheritance and in
Gen 13:18 Abraham built an altar there
Gen 23:2 Sarah died in Hebron and Abraham bought a family tomb where Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob, and Leah were buried there.
The historian Josephus also adds all the sons of Jacob except for Joseph.
In 2 Samuel 2 David was sent to Hebron by God where he was anointed King and reigned there for 7 1/2 years before moving his throne to Jerusalem.
Bliss
Bliss
15 And the name of Hebron before was Kirjath-arba; which Arba was a great man among the Anakims. And the land had rest from war.
Why did Caleb get Blessings, Bounty, and Bliss?
Numbers 14:24 (KJV 1900)
24 But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.
Ephesians 5:18 (KJV 1900)
18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
We must be filled with the Spirit and refuse to give up, back up, or shut up or be held up, until we have stood up, lined up, read up, prayed up, confessed up, stored up, spoke up, looked up, and filled up on everything the Lord wants to give His children! We ought to settle for nothing less than that place of perfect fellowship with the Lord our God!
What about you, have you entered your Canaan and claimed your possession?
Have you claimed your possessions?
Do you possess your possession?
It isn’t God’s will for you to wander around in the wilderness of defeat forever. It is His will that you walk in victory and in His power—
57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
14 Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.
37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
Listen, There will be trials and there will be giants? God had: a flood for Noah, a fire for the 3 Hebrews, a lion’s den for Daniel, a Goliath for David and a cross for Jesus, but there was victory in the midst of each trial for these and there will be victory for you as well!