Blessings of Faith

“Nevertheless my brethren that went up with me made the heart of the people melt: but I wholly followed the LORD my God.” (Jos 14:8 AV)

The words above are spoken by Caleb after they entered Canaan and received most of their inheritance.  Caleb is responding to his daughter and her new husband as they seek water sources for the land which Caleb won.  While granting his daughter’s request, he reminds them both of the cost of this blessing they were now to receive.  Had Caleb joined the faithless spies, he would have died in the wilderness with his generation and his daughter would have never received her request.  Either she would not exist, or her father would have passed away and she would have been left without an inheritance.  I give you all the background to say something very simple.  Our attitude toward what God I capable of doing affects more than just us.  If we are positive and faith-filled, it matters not if others follow.  God will bless us for our hope in Him.  However, if we doubt the LORD and are habitual nay-sayers, then it will cause others to fear.  Everyone who does not possess the faith that could be had loses out on what God can and will do.

There is a question, however, that arises.  Note here that Caleb uses a tense that begs a question.  When he states that he wholly followed the LORD, the tense might suggest he is only referencing that one event.  However, the tense can also suggest this was a pattern of life.  Wholly following the LORD was not limited to spying on the land and reporting back that God was able to give them the land.  Caleb wholly following the LORD was not a one-time act on his part.  Add to that, if he is referring solely to the attainment of Canaan, and following the LORD was limited to that event only, we would assume he went into Canaan with him and Joshua in an attempt to conquer it all by themselves.  No, the ‘wholly following the LORD’ claim was one of a lifetime not limited to something that happened over forty years ago.  Remember, even though he and Joshua were confident God could win the battles for them, they were limited by what the nation chose to do as a whole.  They could not invade themselves.  This opportunity was to Israel as a nation and not twelve spies alone.  They were blocked in their faith because of the unbelief of their colleagues. 

All of the above is something very simple.  It really doesn’t matter what others choose or do not choose to do.  The faith, or faithlessness, of others, should not confine us to what we can do for the LORD.  It may limit us.  But it cannot stop us from wholly following the LORD.  Second, we had better be careful of our doubts.  They can be contagious.  We may very well be robbing others of the blessing of faith because our example is what they follow.  Caleb had to wait 40 years before the LORD allowed him to live out his faith to the fullest.  That didn’t mean he did nothing.  For forty years, he followed the LORD even if that meant he could not accomplish what he deeply wanted.  God understood.  What did happen is God blessed Caleb in the next generation.  Caleb finally got his mountain.  In return for his faithfulness, Caleb left to his daughter not only a legacy of faith but also the blessings derived from it.  In short, in the end, Caleb left more to his daughter despite a lack of opportunity than he may have if he had the opportunity to begin with.