Caleb: A Testament to Faith-Filled Courage
Numbers 14:24 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.
Wow! Has God ever given you a shout-out like that? “But my servant Caleb…” First, that God would distinguish Caleb from the rest as His servant, implying that all others who were of doubtful disposition were NOT His servants, is worthy of noting in and of itself! But He did not stop there. He goes on and tells us more about this choice servant of His, “…because he had another spirit with him…” Hmmm, another spirit? YES! A faith-filled spirit! Caleb REFUSED to adopt this foul-spirited, pessimistic, doubtful attitude that had infested most of the camp.
He stood out above and beyond the crowd, so much so that in verse ten they wanted to stone him, along with Joshua, for being of this different spirit. Isn’t it amazing how so many people will join the bandwagon of stoning anyone that dares to be boldly and courageously different in their attitude? ESPECIALLY those who are of the true household of FAITH! If you want the most enemies both in the natural and spiritual realm, just DARE to believe God, stay positive, and maintain a pioneering spirit with a courage that will not back down to the giants of normalcy and status quo.
You see, Caleb was a mover and shaker. Just because things were as they were, did not mean they had to stay that way. Caleb chose to trust that obedience and faith in God would shift things around to where the things that were in the way, such as the giants, would be quickly removed and a new order would come into play. Caleb did not take the passive approach that things should just remain as they are. No, but instead, he insisted on effecting positive change in the right direction, even at the high cost of effort and advancement.
You see, the truth is, we want our faith to do all the work for us after we are saved, but honestly, “serving faith” is different than “saving faith” in that “serving faith” requires you to put some effort into that for which you trust God to help you accomplish. Israel, up to this point, experienced “saving faith”; that is, salvation by God and not of their own works. But now, after their deliverance, God wants to teach them how to implement work into their “serving faith” in order for that faith to be fully activated, functional, & fruitful.
Caleb was now willing to illustrate his faith through his efforts, believing God to help him win the battle. He no longer expected God to just spoon-feed him anymore. It was time to WORK that faith! May God help US to be of this same spirit!
~ Pastor Gary Caudill
Wow! Has God ever given you a shout-out like that? “But my servant Caleb…” First, that God would distinguish Caleb from the rest as His servant, implying that all others who were of doubtful disposition were NOT His servants, is worthy of noting in and of itself! But He did not stop there. He goes on and tells us more about this choice servant of His, “…because he had another spirit with him…” Hmmm, another spirit? YES! A faith-filled spirit! Caleb REFUSED to adopt this foul-spirited, pessimistic, doubtful attitude that had infested most of the camp.
He stood out above and beyond the crowd, so much so that in verse ten they wanted to stone him, along with Joshua, for being of this different spirit. Isn’t it amazing how so many people will join the bandwagon of stoning anyone that dares to be boldly and courageously different in their attitude? ESPECIALLY those who are of the true household of FAITH! If you want the most enemies both in the natural and spiritual realm, just DARE to believe God, stay positive, and maintain a pioneering spirit with a courage that will not back down to the giants of normalcy and status quo.
You see, Caleb was a mover and shaker. Just because things were as they were, did not mean they had to stay that way. Caleb chose to trust that obedience and faith in God would shift things around to where the things that were in the way, such as the giants, would be quickly removed and a new order would come into play. Caleb did not take the passive approach that things should just remain as they are. No, but instead, he insisted on effecting positive change in the right direction, even at the high cost of effort and advancement.
You see, the truth is, we want our faith to do all the work for us after we are saved, but honestly, “serving faith” is different than “saving faith” in that “serving faith” requires you to put some effort into that for which you trust God to help you accomplish. Israel, up to this point, experienced “saving faith”; that is, salvation by God and not of their own works. But now, after their deliverance, God wants to teach them how to implement work into their “serving faith” in order for that faith to be fully activated, functional, & fruitful.
Caleb was now willing to illustrate his faith through his efforts, believing God to help him win the battle. He no longer expected God to just spoon-feed him anymore. It was time to WORK that faith! May God help US to be of this same spirit!
~ Pastor Gary Caudill