Your Faith Will Be Tested

Devotional Reading: none except Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua the son of Nun, for they have wholly followed the Lord.’ Numbers 32:12 ESV

Moses sent twelve spies to spy out Canaan. Ten of them brought bad news about the land that discouraged the Israelites. The other two, Joshua and Caleb, chose to be different. They did not deny the facts about Canaan, but they also believed in God who promised to give the land to Israel. They were confident that the Lord who had promised would certainly enable the nation to face whatever difficulties that may come their way. However, the Israelites did not want to believe it. As the result, God declared his wrath and the people had to receive the punishment again.

Uniquely, Joshua and Caleb also shared the consequences of the hardened hearts of the Israelites. They were not blessed by God by being allowed to enter Canaan earlier. They must also wander with their stubborn nation. This means that they also had to defend their faith daily among their unbelieving countrymen. They had to stand as the minority group for forty years! It was not an easy thing, was it?

Their struggles were not easy. Pressure from their people for a long time is certainly not an easy thing to deal with. However, they managed to get through those stressful days while still believing in God’s promises to them. They finally entered Canaan with the new generation of Israelites. Yes, everyone from the old generation, along with the ten spies who discouraged them 40 years ago, died in the wilderness. This shows that they kept God’s promises in their hearts. The wandering they had to get through was not a punishment for them but a period of faith purification.

Our faith in the Lord does not always bring immediate results. The faith must be tested through unfavorable circumstances and situations to prove its purity. The experiences of Joshua and Caleb show that faith is strengthened and refined through challenges. Their example inspires us not to become discouraged in the face of the day after day’s test of faith. Yes, our faith is tested every day when we are wandering on this earth.

Prayer and Confession
God is the strength of my heart, I am not discouraged, my faith is strengthened. Amen

Further Reading: Proverbs 30:5, Psalm 18:30