Costly Grace 1

As we enter into our season of Lent, that 40-day period where we prepare ourselves for the gift of the resurrection, we are reminded that we are to take a journey of faith. In these weeks before Easter we need to examine ourselves, examine our spiritual state, to see if we are ready to accept the salvation Jesus gives.
We are to take this time to build our faith. And this year we will follow the events of Holy Week, using Jesus as our guide. But first we must know what grace and Lent are all about.

Numbers 13:30-31

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Lutheran pastor and theologian who died for opposing Adolf Hitler, talked about “costly grace.” The idea is that grace, which is free to us, cost God His Son. In response we should be willing to give of ourselves, risking and committing all to serve the Lord.

In Numbers we have the story of Moses leading the Israelites to the very border of the Promised Land, that wonderful place God had pledged to them. Before they enter, however, spies are sent in to see what the land is like. When they return they tell of the incredible bounty that awaits them, but they also warn of the people living there. They are very powerful.

What does Caleb want to do? What confidence does he have? What do the other men say?

God had promised the Israelites a home filled with abundance, a land flowing with milk and honey. And the spies who entered Canaan found incredible abundance waiting for them. But they were frightened and did not trust in God.

Caleb had confidence in God. He knew that if God had made the promise that Canaan was to belong to the Israelites then indeed it would. They simply needed to move ahead with God’s plans and receive what He had promised.

But others did not have that strength in their faith. They doubted. In fact they were so afraid they threatened to stone Moses if he led them into the Promised Land. The result was that God cursed them, His anger burning against them. All of the Israelites at that time were cursed to wander the wilderness until they had all died.

The days of Lent are often compared to the wilderness of wandering. As we enter into this season we must remember the incredible bounty that awaits us on Easter Sunday. It is a gift from God for each of us as sinners. But we must prepare ourselves to receive this wonderful gift.

To prepare ourselves we must move forward in our faith, pushing ahead with the confidence of Caleb, and not the self-doubting weakness seen in the other spies. In the coming weeks you should examine your faith and how it compares to the perfect example of holiness found in Jesus.

DAILY CHALLENGE: Honestly evaluate your faith. Does it have the confidence seen in Caleb, or are you often timid like the other spies?

Perform Consistently 3

Numbers 13:30-32

Before arriving at our current appointment the superintendent for our church district held a funeral. It wasn’t for any particular person. The funeral – including a donated casket and headstone – was for “I Can’t.” He was urging everyone in this symbolic gesture to say good-bye to an attitude of negativity and to embrace an attitude of consistent performance.

Before entering the Promised Land Moses sent spies into the land to get a good look at what was awaiting the Israelites. The spies returned with samples of the abundance of the land, yet they did not move forward. What did Caleb want to do? What did the other spies do to prevent it?

There are many ways to interpret what went on in Numbers 13. Some point out Caleb’s attitude of relying on God while others relied on themselves and failed to act. The fruits the spies brought back were incredibly abundant and of enormous size. They said the land flowed with milk and honey.

And yet they did not want to act. They allowed their own fears to overtake them. Their own doubts caused them to “spread a bad report” to the people. An interpretation can be that these spies told lies and fostered negative rumors about the land. Because of that the people failed to perform.

And because of their failure the Promised Land was withheld from them. God made certain that those who doubted would wander the wilderness until they died. The promise of a land of abundance was then passed on to the next generation.

We are given God’s promises for a bright future, a future of hope and success. But to reach that wonderful future, to receive the promise from God we are called to act. We are called to perform our ministries with faith, trusting that god will be with us as we go.

If we will perform our ministries, as we are called to do, then we must say farewell to the “I can’t” attitude. We must refuse to listen to those who choose not to perform and go forward with our prayers and plans to serve God’s kingdom.

DAILY CHALLENGE: What will it take for you to say “I can?”