jump start

Posted on October 4, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

Joshua - 1

jump start

Joshua 18:1-10 (JDV)

Joshua 18:1 The whole Israelite congregation assembled at Shiloh and set up the tent of meeting there. The land had been subdued before them,
Joshua 18:2 but seven tribes among the Israelites were left who had not divided up their inheritance.
Joshua 18:3 So Joshua asked the Israelites, “How long will you be lax about taking possession of the land that Yahveh, the God of your fathers, gave you?
Joshua 18:4 Appoint for yourselves three men from each tribe, and I will send them out. They are to go and survey the land, write a description of it for the purpose of their inheritance, and return to me.
Joshua 18:5 Then they are to divide it into seven portions. Judah is to remain in its territory in the south and Joseph’s family in their territory in the north.
Joshua 18:6 When you have written a description of the seven portions of land and brought it to me, I will cast lots for you here in front of Yahveh our God.
Joshua 18:7 But the Levites among you do not get a portion, because their inheritance is the priesthood of Yahveh. Gad, Reuben, and half the tribe of Manasseh have taken their inheritance beyond the Jordan to the east, which Moses Yahveh’s servant gave them.”
Joshua 18:8 As the men prepared to go, Joshua commanded them to write down a description of the land, saying, “Go and survey the land, write a description of it, and return to me. I will then cast lots for you here in Shiloh in front of Yahveh.”
Joshua 18:9 So the men left, went through the land, and described it by towns in a document of seven sections. They returned to Joshua at the camp in Shiloh.
Joshua 18:10 Joshua cast lots for them at Shiloh in front of Yahveh where he distributed the land to the Israelites according to their divisions.

jump start

There were seven tribes that had not yet started occupying their land. Joshua had to jump start their work, because they seem to be just waiting for somebody else to do something.

Our witnessing for Christ can be like that also. We can wait for the people to come to us, or we can divide up the territory and begin occupying the land. We get nowhere by just waiting for someone else to do something.

Coming King, jump start our hearts. Lead us to the territory you wish to reclaim.

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keep trying

Posted on October 3, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

Joshua - 1

keep trying

Joshua 17:14-18 (JDV)

Joshua 17:14 Joseph’s descendants said to Joshua, “Why did you give us only one tribal allotment as an inheritance? We have many people, because Yahveh has been blessing us greatly.”
Joshua 17:15 “If you have so many people,” Joshua replied to them, “go to the forest and clear an area for yourselves there in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim, because Ephraim’s hill country is too small for you.”
Joshua 17:16 But the descendants of Joseph said, “The hill country is not enough for us, and all the Canaanites who inhabit the valley area have iron chariots, both at Beth-shean with its surrounding villages and in the Jezreel Valley.”
Joshua 17:17 So Joshua replied to Joseph’s family (that is, Ephraim and Manasseh), “You have many people and great strength. You will not have just one allotment,
Joshua 17:18 because the hill country will be yours also. It is a forest; clear it and its outlying areas will be yours. You can also drive out the Canaanites, even though they have iron chariots and are strong.”

keep trying

Perhaps the descendants of Joseph were expecting Joshua to reallocate land already allotted to one of the other tribes. Joshua was not going to do that. Instead, he encouraged them to use their strength and numbers to clear the land in the hill country, and to drive out the Canaanites. He assures them that even though the Canaanites have iron chariots, God would give them the victory. But they had to make the effort.

As I read this, Jesus seems to be telling me that I need to try harder, and not just expect victory to be handed to me because I ask for it. The same God who answers prayer because of his love will sometimes say no because he wants me to keep trying, and trust that the things I need are already within my reach.

Coming King, give me the wisdom to pray hard, and to keep trying.

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a fair allotment

Posted on October 2, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

Joshua - 1

a fair allotment

Joshua 17:1-13 (JDV)

Joshua 17:1 This was the allotment for the tribe of Manasseh as Joseph’s firstborn. Gilead and Bashan were given to Machir, the firstborn of Manasseh and the father of Gilead, because he was a man of war.
Joshua 17:2 So the allotment was for the rest of Manasseh’s descendants by their clans, for the sons of Abiezer, Helek, Asriel, Shechem, Hepher, and Shemida. These are the male descendants of Manasseh son of Joseph, by their clans.
Joshua 17:3 Now Zelophehad son of Hepher, son of Gilead, son of Machir, son of Manasseh, had no sons, only daughters. These are the names of his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.
Joshua 17:4 They came in front of the priest Eleazar, Joshua son of Nun, and the leaders, saying, “Yahveh commanded Moses to give us an inheritance along with our male relatives.” So they gave them an inheritance among their father’s brothers, in keeping with Yahveh’s instruction.
Joshua 17:5 As a result, ten tracts fell to Manasseh, besides the land of Gilead and Bashan, which are beyond the Jordan,
Joshua 17:6 because Manasseh’s daughters received an inheritance among his sons. The land of Gilead belonged to the rest of Manasseh’s sons.
Joshua 17:7 The border of Manasseh went from Asher to Michmethath near Shechem. It then went southward toward the inhabitants of En-tappuah.
Joshua 17:8 The region of Tappuah belonged to Manasseh, but Tappuah itself on Manasseh’s border belonged to the descendants of Ephraim.
Joshua 17:9 From there the border went down to the Brook of Kanah; south of the brook, cities belonged to Ephraim among Manasseh’s cities. Manasseh’s border was on the north side of the brook and ended at the Mediterranean Sea.
Joshua 17:10 Ephraim’s territory was to the south and Manasseh’s to the north, with the Sea as its border. They reached Asher on the north and Issachar on the east.
Joshua 17:11 Beth-shean, Ibleam, and the inhabitants of Dor with their surrounding villages; the inhabitants of En-dor, Taanach, and Megiddo – the three cities of Naphath – with their surrounding villages.
Joshua 17:12 The descendants of Manasseh were not able to possess these cities, because the Canaanites were determined to stay in this land.
Joshua 17:13 However, when the Israelites grew stronger, they imposed forced labor on the Canaanites but did not drive them out completely.

a fair allotment

Two groups pled for a fair allotment among the lands divvied out after the conquest. The daughters of Zelophehad sought the land promised by the LORD during the time of Moses. The sons of Joseph needed more land because of their number. Behind these requests was more than a mere collective selfishness. Possession and protection of the land was a divine responsibility and mission.

As the church of the living God, we each have been gifted with special abilities which enable us to carry out our responsibilities. It is only fair that those gifted with certain gifts should have more responsibilities, and those gifted in other areas should have less. In some churches, leadership and responsibility is passed along on another basis. Popularity and doctrinal agreement are two criteria often used to bypass fair allotment.

LORD, help us to keep your mission in mind when choosing those who lead us.

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did not drive out

Posted on October 1, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

did not drive out

Joshua 16:1-10 (JDV)

Joshua 16:1 The allotment for the descendants of Joseph went from the Jordan at Jericho to the Waters of Jericho on the east, through the open country ascending from Jericho into the hill country of Bethel.
Joshua 16:2 From Bethel it went to Luz and proceeded to the border of the Archites by Ataroth.
Joshua 16:3 It then went down westward to the border of the Japhletites as far as the border of lower Beth-horon, then to Gezer, and ended at the Mediterranean Sea.
Joshua 16:4 So Ephraim and Manasseh, the sons of Joseph, received their inheritance.
Joshua 16:5 This was the territory of the descendants of Ephraim by their clans: The border of their inheritance went from Ataroth-addar on the east to Upper Beth-horon.
Joshua 16:6 In the north the border went westward from Michmethath; it turned eastward from Taanath-shiloh and passed it east of Janoah.
Joshua 16:7 From Janoah it went down to Ataroth and Naarah, and then reached Jericho and went to the Jordan.
Joshua 16:8 From Tappuah the border went westward along the Brook of Kanah and ended at the Mediterranean Sea. This was the inheritance of the tribe of the descendants of Ephraim by their clans, together with
Joshua 16:9 the cities set apart for the descendants of Ephraim within the inheritance of the descendants of Manasseh – all these cities with their settlements.
Joshua 16:10 However, they did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer. So the Canaanites still live in Ephraim today, but they are forced laborers.

did not drive out

Those words “did not drive out” keep ringing in our ears. They are a reminder of a failure to completely follow God. It is not about the Canaanites in Gezer as much as it is about integrity. The sons of Joseph should have been more diligent.

Thankfully, under the new covenant with Christ we are not tasked with conquering a land and dispossessing its inhabitants. But we are tasked with reaching all lands and all nations with the gospel. Let it not be said that we failed in that task.

Lord, make us gospel proclaimers with integrity, who get the job done.

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Judah could not

Posted on September 30, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

Joshua - 1

Judah could not

Joshua 15:20-63 (JDV)

Joshua 15:20 This was the inheritance of the tribe of the descendants of Judah by their clans.
Joshua 15:21 These were the outermost cities of the tribe of the descendants of Judah toward the border of Edom in the Negev: Kabzeel, Eder, Jagur,
Joshua 15:22 Kinah, Dimonah, Adadah,
Joshua 15:23 Kedesh, Hazor, Ithnan,
Joshua 15:24 Ziph, Telem, Bealoth,
Joshua 15:25 Hazor-hadattah, Kerioth-hezron (that is, Hazor),
Joshua 15:26 Amam, Shema, Moladah,
Joshua 15:27 Hazar-gaddah, Heshmon, Beth-pelet,
Joshua 15:28 Hazar-shual, Beer-sheba, Biziothiah,
Joshua 15:29 Baalah, Iim, Ezem,
Joshua 15:30 Eltolad, Chesil, Hormah,
Joshua 15:31 Ziklag, Madmannah, Sansannah,
Joshua 15:32 Lebaoth, Shilhim, Ain, and Rimmon– twenty-nine cities in all, with their settlements.
Joshua 15:33 In the Judean foothills: Eshtaol, Zorah, Ashnah,
Joshua 15:34 Zanoah, En-gannim, Tappuah, Enam,
Joshua 15:35 Jarmuth, Adullam, Socoh, Azekah,
Joshua 15:36 Shaaraim, Adithaim, Gederah, and Gederothaim– fourteen cities, with their settlements;
Joshua 15:37 Zenan, Hadashah, Migdal-gad,
Joshua 15:38 Dilan, Mizpeh, Jokthe-el,
Joshua 15:39 Lachish, Bozkath, Eglon,
Joshua 15:40 Cabbon, Lahmam, Chitlish,
Joshua 15:41 Gederoth, Beth-dagon, Naamah, and Makkedah– sixteen cities, with their settlements;
Joshua 15:42 Libnah, Ether, Ashan,
Joshua 15:43 Iphtah, Ashnah, Nezib,
Joshua 15:44 Keilah, Achzib, and Mareshah– nine cities, with their settlements;
Joshua 15:45 Ekron, with its surrounding villages and settlements;
Joshua 15:46 from Ekron to the sea, all the cities near Ashdod, with their settlements;
Joshua 15:47 Ashdod, with its surrounding villages and settlements; Gaza, with its surrounding villages and settlements, to the Brook of Egypt and the coastline of the Mediterranean Sea.
Joshua 15:48 In the hill country: Shamir, Jattir, Socoh,
Joshua 15:49 Dannah, Kiriath-sannah (that is, Debir),
Joshua 15:50 Anab, Eshtemoh, Anim,
Joshua 15:51 Goshen, Holon, and Giloh – eleven cities, with their settlements;
Joshua 15:52 Arab, Dumah, Eshan,
Joshua 15:53 Janim, Beth-tappuah, Aphekah,
Joshua 15:54 Humtah, Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), and Zior– nine cities, with their settlements;
Joshua 15:55 Maon, Carmel, Ziph, Juttah,
Joshua 15:56 Jezreel, Jokdeam, Zanoah,
Joshua 15:57 Kain, Gibeah, and Timnah– ten cities, with their settlements;
Joshua 15:58 Halhul, Beth-zur, Gedor,
Joshua 15:59 Maarath, Beth-anoth, and Eltekon– six cities, with their settlements;
Joshua 15:60 Kiriath-baal (that is, Kiriath-jearim), and Rabbah– two cities, with their settlements.
Joshua 15:61 In the wilderness: Beth-arabah, Middin, Secacah,
Joshua 15:62 Nibshan, the City of Salt, and En-gedi – six cities, with their settlements.
Joshua 15:63 But the descendants of Judah could not drive out the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem. So the Jebusites still live in Jerusalem among the descendants of Judah today.

Judah could not

The final verse of today’s text is evidence of the integrity of the historians who compiled Joshua’s story, and the scribes who kept the record free from edits in the centuries that followed. It was an embarrassing truth that the most prominent tribe of Israel could not rid itself of those pesky Jebusites. But that fact is recorded in holy Scripture as evidence that truth is more important than image.

Lord, thank you for the integrity of your word.

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Achsah’s blessing

Posted on September 29, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

Joshua - 1

Achsah’s blessing

Joshua 15:13-19 (JDV)

Joshua 15:13 He gave Caleb son of Jephunneh the following portion among the descendants of Judah based on Yahveh’s instruction to Joshua: Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron; Arba was the father of Anak).
Joshua 15:14 Caleb drove out from there the three sons of Anak: Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai, descendants of Anak.
Joshua 15:15 From there he marched against the inhabitants of Debir, which used to be called Kiriath-sepher,
Joshua 15:16 and Caleb had said, “Whoever attacks and captures Kiriath-sepher, I will give my daughter Achsah to him as a wife.”
Joshua 15:17 So Othniel son of Caleb’s brother, Kenaz, captured it, and Caleb gave his daughter Achsah to him as a wife.
Joshua 15:18 When she arrived, she persuaded Othniel to ask her father for a field. As she got off her donkey, Caleb asked her, “What can I do for you?”
Joshua 15:19 She replied, “Give me a blessing. Since you have given me land in the Negev, give me the springs also.” So he gave her the upper and lower springs.

Achsah’s blessing

Achsah was not going to sit back and let her husband lose out on the blessing. She spoke up and asked not only for the land, but also for the springs to water it.

Thank you, Lord, for wise wives, who are not only a blessing themselves, but pursue blessings by their wisdom.

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hell and the holy city

Posted on September 28, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

Joshua - 1

hell and the holy city

Joshua 15:1-12 (JDV)

Joshua 15:1 Now the allotment for the tribe of the descendants of Judah by their clans was in the southernmost region, south to the Wilderness of Zin and over to the border of Edom.
Joshua 15:2 Their southern border began at the tip of the Dead Sea on the south bay
Joshua 15:3 and went south of the Scorpions’ Ascent, proceeded to Zin, ascended to the south of Kadesh-barnea, passed Hezron, ascended to Addar, and turned to Karka.
Joshua 15:4 It proceeded to Azmon and to the Brook of Egypt and so the border ended at the Mediterranean Sea. This is your southern border.
Joshua 15:5 Now the eastern border was along the Dead Sea to the mouth of the Jordan. The border on the north side was from the bay of the sea at the mouth of the Jordan.
Joshua 15:6 It ascended to Beth-hoglah, proceeded north of Beth-arabah, and ascended to the Stone of Bohan son of Reuben.
Joshua 15:7 Then the border went up to Debir from the Valley of Achor, turning north to the Gilgal that is opposite the Ascent of Adummim, which is south of the ravine. The border proceeded to the Waters of En-shemesh and ended at En-rogel.
Joshua 15:8 From there the border went up Ben Hinnom Valley to the southern Jebusite slope (that is, Jerusalem) and ascended to the top of the hill that faces Hinnom Valley on the west, at the northern end of Rephaim Valley.
Joshua 15:9 From the top of the hill the border curved to the spring of the Waters of Nephtoah, went to the cities of Mount Ephron, and then curved to Baalah (that is, Kiriath-jearim).
Joshua 15:10 The border turned westward from Baalah to Mount Seir, went to the northern slope of Mount Jearim (that is, Chesalon), went down to Beth-shemesh, and proceeded to Timnah.
Joshua 15:11 Then the border reached to the slope north of Ekron, curved to Shikkeron, proceeded to Mount Baalah, went to Jabneel, and ended at the Mediterranean Sea.
Joshua 15:12 Now the western border was the coastline of the Mediterranean Sea. This was the boundary of the descendants of Judah around their clans.

hell and the holy city

Verse 8 mentions, in passing, two places that would become very significant spiritually and eschatologically. The Ben Hinnom valley would become so attached to the idea of destruction and mortality that the Greek translation (Gehenna) would become one of the New Testament words for final punishment. Then, there is “the southern Jebusite slope” which would become the place for the holy city, Jerusalem.

I think it is significant that these two places are so close to each other that they can be mentioned in the same sentence.

We look forward to the holy city — New Jerusalem, which will come down from the sky after all things defiled and destructible will have been destroyed in Gehenna.

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honoring his promise

Posted on September 27, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

Joshua - 1

honoring his promise

Joshua 14:6-15 (JDV)

Joshua 14:6 The descendants of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what Yahveh promised Moses the man of God at Kadesh-barnea about you and me.
Joshua 14:7 I was forty years old when Moses Yahveh’s servant sent me from Kadesh-barnea to scout the land, and I brought back an honest report.
Joshua 14:8 My brothers who went with me caused the people to lose heart, but I followed Yahveh my God completely.
Joshua 14:9 On that day Moses swore to me: ‘The land where you have set foot will be an inheritance for you and your descendants forever, because you have followed Yahveh my God completely.’
Joshua 14:10 “As you see, Yahveh has kept me alive these forty-five years as he promised, since Yahveh spoke this word to Moses while Israel was journeying in the wilderness. Here I am today, eighty-five years old.
Joshua 14:11 I am still as strong today as I was the day Moses sent me out. My strength for battle and for daily tasks is now as it was then.
Joshua 14:12 Now give me this hill country Yahveh promised me on that day, because you heard then that the Anakim are there, as well as large fortified cities. Maybe Yahveh will be with me and I will drive them out as Yahveh promised.”
Joshua 14:13 Then Joshua blessed Caleb son of Jephunneh and gave him Hebron as an inheritance.
Joshua 14:14 Therefore, Hebron still belongs to Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite as an inheritance today because he followed Yahveh, the God of Israel, completely.
Joshua 14:15 Hebron’s name had been Kiriath-arba; Arba was the greatest man among the Anakim. After this, the land had rest from war.

honoring his promise

Caleb’s strength continued as long as God’s promise remained unfulfilled. He expected God to honor his promise, and Joshua was given the honor of seeing it done.

Our God has promised hope and renewal and forgiveness to the nations of the planet. It is our honor to see to that these blessed with the promise have an opportunity to receive what has been promised to them. That is why he sends us to them.

Lord, help us to reach the nations you have determined to bless.

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preparing for the coming kingdom

Posted on September 26, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

Joshua - 1

preparing for the coming kingdom

Joshua 14:1-5 (JDV)

Joshua 14:1 The Israelites took possession of these portions that the priest Eleazar, Joshua son of Nun, and the family heads of the Israelite tribes gave them in the land of Canaan.
Joshua 14:2 Their inheritance was by lot as Yahveh commanded through Moses for the nine and a half tribes,
Joshua 14:3 because Moses had given the inheritance to the two and a half tribes beyond the Jordan. But he gave no inheritance among them to the Levites.
Joshua 14:4 The descendants of Joseph became two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim. No portion of the land was given to the Levites except cities to live in, along with pasture-lands for their cattle and livestock.
Joshua 14:5 So the Israelites did as Yahveh commanded Moses, and they divided the land.

preparing for the coming kingdom

The land had been granted to the the twelve tribes as a gift, with it accompanying responsibility to make it a fruitful representation of the God who had given it by his grace. The kingdom would come later. By taking possession of the land, they were preparing for the coming kingdom.

Later, our Lord would tell his apostles that he had been given all authority over all the nations, and that they were commissioned to make those nations fruitful representatives of the coming kingdom.

This story is a rehearsal for us — a reminder of our present mission that comes with our status as citizens of Christ’s coming kingdom.

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our present inheritance

Posted on September 25, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

Joshua - 1

our present inheritance

Joshua 13:33 (JDV)

Joshua 13:33 But Moses did not give a portion to the tribe of Levi. Yahveh, the God of Israel, was their inheritance, just like he had promised them.

our present inheritance

Did the Levites get short-changed? No, not at all. In fact, they are a foretaste of you and me. You see, we are born into a dominion that has not yet taken hold of its domain. Until our King comes, not one inch of land really belongs to any of us. We may be fortunate enough to “have” property, but even that possession is only temporary. We will soon lose anything that we have because our lives are temporary. We are mortal. Don’t let anyone convince you otherwise.

But the good news is that we can access our true inheritance today, just like the Levites did. Our God is our inheritance. Serving him and serving others are ways that we access that inheritance.

Lord, thank you for the rich abundance of our present inheritance.

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