Give Me This Mountain!
“Now then, just as the Lord promised, he has kept me alive for forty-five years since the time he said this to Moses, while Israel moved about in the wilderness. So here I am today, eighty-five years old! I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I’m just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then. Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me that day. (Joshua 14:10-12, NIV)
This article has been sitting in my drafts folder for about ten months now. I never had the inspiration to come back to it. I didn't have the words to say, and I never want to force an article. But now I think I've found my mojo to knock this one out. So, let's get it!
I think Caleb and his story is massively overlooked. During Caleb's time, most of the attention fell on Moses and Joshua. I mean, I get it. Moses and Joshua were the leaders. They were the called men of God. They were the ones God spoke to directly. Moses was the one called onto Mount Sinai to receive the 10 commandments. He was the one whose face shone with the glory of God. Joshua was the one who led the children of Israel to the Promised Land. He was the one who had the pleasure of removing his shoes from his feet to stand before God.
They were the men. So Caleb often gets overlooked in all the glory given to Joshua and Moses. But Caleb is worth mentioning because Caleb was not like the others. He was cut from a different fabric. He was built differently. The Bible says:
But My servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit in him and has followed Me fully, I will bring into the land where he went, and his descendants shall inherit it.
(Numbers 14:24, NKJV)
You know you're indeed different when God says you are. Many people like to brag and say that they are different, but are they really? Because in my opinion, you're only different if God says you are. But what made Caleb different? What set him apart from the crowd?
Caleb was different because he had faith in God when no one else did.
When the time came for the children of Israel to take the land of Canaan, they refused to go. The battle appeared to be too hard to win due to the strong army, the walled city, and the giants. But Caleb said, "Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it." (Numbers 13:31, KJV)
Aside from Moses and Joshua, Caleb was the only one who believed God would give them the victory. He was the only one who knew to not look at their own strength but to look at God's.
Please understand that it was easier for Moses and Joshua to believe because they were face-to-face with God. I would imagine it would've been quite difficult to deny the power and glory of God after literally standing in His presence. But Caleb... well, he didn't have that luxury.
Caleb's belief in God was solely off of faith. Caleb believed because God said that He would give them the land that flowed with milk and honey. That's all he needed to know. He stood on God's promise even when God's promise looked difficult to receive.
Moses, Aaron, Joshua, and Caleb all tried to reason with the children of Israel to take the land, but they refused to go. So, instead of taking the land, God told them to go to the wilderness for 40 years. And you know the crazy thing about it? Caleb and Joshua had to go to the wilderness too.
This isn't directly related to the article but please believe the company you keep matters! The children of Israel's unbelief caused everyone in the camp to suffer. Don't allow someone in your camp to cause you to suffer or delay your entrance into your promised land.
Okay, so after 40 years lapsed and the unbelieving generation died out, Joshua, Caleb and the new generation took the land of Canaan just as God promised. The referenced text says that Caleb was 45 when the promise was made to take the land. He was 85 when they were settled in the land. But there was still more ground to take.
So, Caleb in his old age said, "Give me this mountain." Caleb at that good ol' retirement age, said he was still ready to fight! He still had that different spirit within him. I think I'm drawn to Caleb because he's more relatable to believers today.
You and I have never had God talk to us face-to-face. We haven't had God's glory shine on our faces. God hasn't and likely will not again hold the sun and moon in place for a man or woman like He did for Joshua.
But we can all relate to Caleb. All Caleb had was the Promise of God and his faith. All Caleb saw was how unlikely it was to receive the promise. But he believed anyhow. In the New Testament, Thomas was someone who struggled to believe without seeing. But Jesus said the following:
Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.
When we choose to believe without seeing, we are walking in faith. When we believe, even when it looks like the promises of God are unfeasible, we are possessing that different spirit. That Caleb spirit. As stated before, all Caleb had was faith and God's word. But faith is enough!
Faith is literally just as concrete as the ground we stand on. Hebrews 11:1 states, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." The evidence of things not seen. Evidence is proof. Evidence is real. No one ever argues against evidence.
Evidence solidifies cases in the courtroom, so it should solidify our confidence in God. We don't have to see how, all we need to have is our evidence, which is our faith. But it takes a different type of person to use faith as their evidence. Many people will fold when it comes to using faith alone to fight.
But Caleb never lost his fight. He was always down to go forth and take what was rightfully his. If God promised it, Caleb would fight for it. No questions asked. My people, God has promised us great things! We are the seeds of Abraham, and those promises still apply to us today (Galatians 3:29).
Honey, when I read some of those promises made to Abraham back then and understand that it still applies to me today... Oh, I just get overwhelmed with joy! I can't believe that God took away The Law that we couldn't uphold, but let us keep the promises given under The Law. He took away the bad and let us keep the good. What a merciful, loving God we serve!
Caleb was ready to fight in his youth and his old age because he believed the promises of God. We have to know that the promises of God will come with a fight. We may have to fight attacks from others, attacks from Satan, and even attacks from our own flesh. But with God at our side, we will win. I heard more than one person say it's a fixed fight. When we go in the ring, the battle is already ours. We just have to endure the rounds to get the promise.
Alright you guys, that's a wrap! But one more point, recall that at age 85 Caleb was still ready to fight. But instead of going back out to war, Joshua gave him his inheritance. Always stand ready to fight for what is rightfully yours, but understand that one day you won't have to fight. One day, when you're willing to keep fighting, instead of giving you another battle, God will give you a glorious blessing.
Stand firm y'all, keep fighting for the promises of God! Believe that they will come, and you will be in your promised land in no time. Have a blessed week!