A Community Of Calebs, by Mike Crowe

Like the nation of Israel in Numbers 13-14 we too falter, fall, and shrink back from the life to which God has called us, a life of trust in His power, presence, and promises.

Poised to overtake the pagan peoples that inhabited the land promised to them by God, the nation of Israel had every reason to believe that God would give them victory over their enemies.  They had seen with their own eyes and had personally experienced God’s great power over the nations only a year before.  God miraculously delivered them from the oppressive chains of slavery under Pharaoh.

Egypt was the most powerful nation on the planet at the time.  Yet, with one fell swoop, the God who redeemed Israel crushed the mighty army of Egypt’s king under the weight of the waters of the Red Sea.  How now, on the brink of entering the land long ago promised to their ancestors, could Israel ever distrust that this same God would give them victory over their enemies, no matter how fearsome they seemed or how fortified their cities might have been?

How could they now shrink back in unbelief, longing to return to the very slavery from which God had freed them rather than enter the lush and prosperous land that He had already promised them?  They had witnessed God’s power, known His holy presence in their midst, and received all the promises made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  How could they have been so blind?

Truth is, we know all too well the answer to that question.  We can easily wallow in unbelief as individuals and as a family.  We fail to believe what God has shown us about himself through the person and work of Jesus Christ, and we fail to believe what God has said about us, as His children.  We have been rescued from the domain of darkness, made brothers and sisters together in God’s family, and we have been set free from the reign of sin.  No longer must we live as orphans and slaves.

The very Spirit who raised our Lord Jesus from the grave dwells in and among us, and he empowers us to live lives of increasing faith, repentance, and love.  Our Lord has decisively crushed our enemies – sin, death, and hell – underfoot.  He has called us into relationship with Himself, and He has promised us that He will never leave us or forsake us.  How often we forget and thus fail to live in these gospel realities in the midst of life’s trials.

And just like the unbelieving nation of Israel we encounter in Numbers 13-14, we too need Calebs in our lives, brothers and sisters whom God places around us to boldly speak gospel truth into our lives.  We need Calebs like the one who stood in faith before the entire nation of Israel, in Numbers 14:6-9, and implored the people to remember God’s power and trust in Him anew.  We need Calebs who will courageously remind us of God’s greatness displayed for us through the death and resurrection of Jesus, and we need Calebs who will clearly communicate God’s promises to us in the midst of the darkness, even as we face crises of faith both large and small everyday.

We will probably never be faced with the prospect of going to war against powerful, intimidating enemies who occupy a physical piece of land promised to us by our God.  But it is certain that every one of us will face situations each and every day that require us to move forward in faith or shrink back in unbelief.  And oftentimes, we need Calebs around us in those moments to challenge, encourage, warn, and remind us of God’s faithfulness and the ultimate consequences of unbelief.

As a family, we ultimately need to be a community of Calebs, brothers and sisters who courageously speak gospel truth to one another, boldly reminding one another of gospel realities – God’s power, His presence, and His promises – in the midst of our all too often characteristic unbelief.

Consider this week how you might need a brother or sister in this family to speak gospel truth to you, and approach that person.  Allow them the opportunity to bless you with gospel hope and encouragement.  And consider too how you might need to boldly step forward in faith and speak courageously into the current situation of an unbelieving brother or sister.  As we move toward one another is these ways, we will cultivate a community of Calebs.