5. Our Canaan
• 1 Cor 10:1 FOR I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, that our forefathers were all under {and} protected by the cloud [in which God's Presence went before them], and every one of them passed safely through the [Red] Sea, 1 Cor 10:2 And each one of them [allowed himself also] to be baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea [they were thus brought under obligation to the Law, to Moses, and to the covenant, consecrated and set apart to the service of God]; 1 Cor 10:3 And all [of them] ate the same spiritual (supernaturally given) food, 1 Cor 10:4 And they all drank the same spiritual (supernaturally given) drink. For they drank from a spiritual Rock which followed them [produced by the sole power of God Himself without natural instrumentality], and the Rock was Christ. 1 Cor 10:5 Nevertheless, God was not pleased with the great majority of them, for they were overthrown {and} strewn down along [the ground] in the wilderness. 1 Cor 10:6 Now these things are examples (warnings and admonitions) for us not to desire {or} crave {or} covet {or} lust after evil {and} carnal things as they did. 1 Cor 10:7 Do not be worshipers of false gods as some of them were, as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink [the sacrifices offered to the golden calf at Horeb] and rose to sport (to dance and give way to jesting and hilarity). 1 Cor 10:8 We must not gratify evil desire {and} indulge in immorality as some of them did--and twenty-three thousand [suddenly] fell {dead} in a single day! 1 Cor 10:9 We should not tempt the Lord [try His patience, become a trial to Him, critically appraise Him, and exploit His goodness] as some of them did--and were killed by poisonous serpents; 1 Cor 10:10 Nor discontentedly complain as some of them did--and were put out of the way entirely by the destroyer (death). 1 Cor 10:11 Now these things befell them by way of a figure [as an example and warning to us]; they were written to admonish {and} fit us for right action by good instruction, we in whose days the ages have reached their climax (their consummation and concluding period). 1 Cor 10:12 Therefore let anyone who thinks he stands [who feels sure that he has a steadfast mind and is standing firm], take heed lest he fall [into sin].
• Deut 11:21 That your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers to give them, as long as the heavens are above the earth.
• I believe Canaan is not a type of heaven as some think
• In Canaan, there was war and fighting, there were giants & enemies, etc, that will not be there in heaven!
• ` Even today, Israel is still fighting to possess and defend their land!
• In our Canaan, we need to defend or stand against habits, sicknesses, failure, poverty, etc
• Canaan, I believe is the kind of life that God wants us to enjoy in this life before heaven.
• I believe Canaan is the life where there is success, prosperity, healthy, abundance, the best life where we live in His perfect will and our relationship is alright with God.
• A life of victory, Rom 5:17 For if because of one man's trespass (lapse, offense) death reigned through that one, much more surely will those who receive [God's] overflowing grace (unmerited favor) and the free gift of righteousness [putting them into right standing with Himself] reign as kings in life through the one Man Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).
• Example, the process that Israel went through:
Bondage > Freedom > Wilderness > Possession
• Finally, they got the freedom with some riches but they still needed to get into their own land (Ex 12 v32-41)
• The process to Canaan took forty years, many could not make it there, but died in the wilderness
• What kept them long in the wilderness and what eventually lead to some dying was their attitude
• The enemy could not physically hold them in Egypt/ bondage but their minds were still bound (Num 11 v4-8)
• When things got tough, they remembered Egypt! (Num 14 v1-4)
• The process of the wilderness was basically to help them in change of mentality from slavery to freedom and then to possession
• They had to rely on God and lived on manna and water miracles, this among other things was meant to teach them dependence on God
• The bible says their clothes did not grow old; they were under supernatural provision and did not necessarily work for it! (Neh 9v5-21)
• The bible says what happened to Israel was for our learning/ example. (1Cor 10v1-13)
• In every area of our lives, we go through the above processes, whether in our spiritual lives, financial, health, etc
• The above processes cannot not be avoided, when one is missed, it will affect us in another level
• Wilderness process is difficult and takes a lot of mentality shift but easier that possession because it’s all under supernatural provision
• When we get to possession, we start the process of fighting, possessing and working
• Manna stopped coming when they got into Canaan, no more water from the rock, now they have to till the land! (Josh 5 v1-12)
• In Canaan they needed to fight to posses the land
• Their provision was now dependant on their working and obeying God.
6. We need to posses the land
• Josh 1:1 AFTER THE death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses' minister, Josh 1:2 Moses My servant is dead. So now arise [take his place], go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land which I am giving to them, the Israelites. Josh 1:3 Every place upon which the sole of your foot shall tread, that have I given to you, as I promised Moses. Josh 1:4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon to the great river Euphrates--all the land of the Hittites [Canaan]--and to the Great [Mediterranean] Sea on the west shall be your territory. Josh 1:5 No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you. Josh 1:6 Be strong (confident) and of good courage, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. Josh 1:7 Only you be strong and very courageous, that you may do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you. Turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. Josh 1:8 This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe {and} do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall deal wisely {and} have good success. Josh 1:9 Have not I commanded you? Be strong, vigorous, and very courageous. Be not afraid, neither be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Josh 1:10 Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying, Josh 1:11 Pass through the camp and command the people, Prepare your provisions, for within three days you shall pass over this Jordan to go in to take possession of the land which the Lord your God is giving you to possess.
• Josh 18:3 Joshua asked the Israelites, How long will you be slack to go in and possess the land which the Lord, the God of your fathers, has given you?
• Josh 17:18 But the hill country shall be yours; though it is a forest, you shall clear and possess it to its farthest borders; for you shall drive out the Canaanites, though they have iron chariots and are strong.
• Judg 2:6 And when Joshua had let the people go, the Israelites went every man to his inheritance to possess the land.
• Josh 14:6 Then the people of Judah came to Joshua in Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, You know what the Lord said to Moses the man of God concerning me and you in Kadesh-barnea. 7 Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh-barnea to scout out the land. And I brought him a report as it was in my heart. 8 But my brethren who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt; yet I wholly followed the Lord my God. 9 And Moses swore on that day, Surely the land on which your feet have walked shall be an inheritance to you and your children always, because you have wholly followed the Lord my God.10 And now, behold, the Lord has kept me alive, as He said, these forty-five years since the Lord spoke this word to Moses, while the Israelites wandered in the wilderness; and now, behold, I am this day eighty-five years old. 11 Yet I am as strong today as I was the day Moses sent me; as my strength was then, so is my strength now for war and to go out and to come in.12 So now give me this hill country of which the Lord spoke that day. For you heard then how the [giantlike] Anakim were there and that the cities were great and fortified; if the Lord will be with me, I shall drive them out just as the Lord said.13 Then Joshua blessed him and gave Hebron to Caleb son of Jephunneh for an inheritance. 14 So Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this day, because he wholly followed the Lord, the God of Israel.
• Caleb was one of the only two people from the old generation to enter Canaan, but after almost five years, he had not received his promised inheritance, he had to go to Joshua and ask / demand his inheritance. At times we need to rise up and claim what is rightfully ours or else we will not possess it!
• Caleb said he had the same strength he had when he was 40, he says, “…give me this mountain, I will drive them out…” this is the language of a man of war!
• If you do not rise up to do something, nothing will happen, you will keep on crying and complaining.
7. Danger of weakness / laziness (as warriors)
• Prov 24:30 I went by the field of the lazy man, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding; Prov 24:31 And, behold, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles were covering its face, and its stone wall was broken down. Prov 24:32 Then I beheld {and} considered it well; I looked {and} received instruction.
•
8. We need to keep the land / our possession
• 2 Sam 23:12 But he stood in the midst of the ground and defended it and slew the Philistines; and the Lord wrought a great victory.
• Stand your ground, stand in the promises or Word of God, and refuse to budge.
• To enjoy your Canaan, it is up to you, God have already given you the capacity.
• Example is:
David versus Goliath, 1Samuel 17v45-51
The woman with the issue of blood, Mark 5v25-34
Moses also at the Red sea, Exodus 14v13-30.
Paul in the sea on the way to Rome, Acts 27v24-27.
• In the above examples, they realized that they could do something themselves and the power of God will manifest, they did even pray!
i) Declare / Say it (promise)
ii) Do it, act. Do a corresponding action, move towards it, do something.
iii) Receive it / possess it.
iv) Tell it/ declare what you receives
To keep the land / your possession, you need a resistant attitude / mentality
Jer 12:5 [But the Lord rebukes Jeremiah's impatience, saying] If you have raced with men on foot and they have tired you out, then how can you compete with horses? And if [you take to flight] in a land of peace where you feel secure, then what will you do [when you tread the tangled maze of jungle haunted by lions] in the swelling {and} flooding of the Jordan?
Jer 12:6 For even your brethren and the house of your father--even they have dealt treacherously with you; yes, even they are [like a pack of hounds] in full cry after you. Believe them not, though they speak fair words {and} promise good things to you.
• In the above scripture, God implies that we need to develop some muscle
• He is saying we need to be resistant and be able to endure challenges
• There is nothing good or great in life that will come easily
• Those that are believing for an easy life are mislead
• In other words, we need to grow in our resistant or fighting spirit
• We need to race with man, last year(s) we were racing with man, we had small challenges and victories
• The years ahead, we need to expect more, the higher you want to go, the more challenges you must expect
• We believe we are moving higher this year, the stake of challenges will be higher, we will now race with horses and not footman!
• We are moving from the secure land to the jungle of the Jordan.
• If you will move higher, there is more sacrifice, more battles, more resistance, more challenges!
• More reading, more studying, more discipline, more praying, more investing, more giving, more risks
• Invest more in line with your land, when you want to be a doctor, pursue medicine studies, have doctor friends / mentors, buy medicine books/ material, read more along those lines, prepare yourself even before you get the opportunity to actual go to college.
• Let opportunity find you ready and already in motion.
• Develop excellence and skill in your area.
• The higher the return, the higher the risks.
• This race is not for the weak or feeble, it is for the strong, so, train yourselves.
MLB 1 Corinthians 16:13 Be alert; stand firm in the faith; play the man; be strong.
ASV 1 Corinthians 16:13 Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.
KJV-R (Webster) 1 Corinthians 16:13 Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.
Young's Literal 1 Corinthians 16:13 Watch ye, stand in the faith; be men, be strong;
Amplified 1 Cor 16:13 Be alert {and} on your guard; stand firm in your faith (your conviction respecting man's relationship to God and divine things, keeping the trust and holy fervor born of faith and a part of it). Act like men {and} be courageous; grow in strength!
The Message 1Cor 16:13 Keep your eyes open, hold tight to your convictions, give it all you've got, be resolute,
• In our quest for success, growth, development, progress, etc, we need to: be alert, be on guard, watch, stand firm, play the man, act like man, be courageous, be strong, grow in strength.
• In cannot be business as usual, if you expect an extraordinary life, do the extra ordinary
• Your dreams will not come or be fulfilled easy, you will not move higher easily, take action, put more effort.
• We have realized to move higher, we need to take action and line up with that thinking, act like people who are moving higher, we cannot continue like everything in normal and expect a change!
Prov 24:16 For a righteous man falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked are overthrown by calamity.
• Do not just be weak, do not like quitting, be resistant
• Life situations, sin, the devil, failure, etc may knock you down seven times, but wake up, do not lie down!
• I did not say you will not face failure at times, but, do not stop there, rise up and continue.
1 Cor 9:26 Therefore I do not run uncertainly (without definite aim). I do not box like one beating the air {and} striking without an adversary.
• Paul says I run, I box!
• There are times when your muscles will be sore, you will be bleeding, your face swollen, will be down and the enemy standing over you so to speak, but that is not the end, fight on!
2 Chr 15:7 Be strong, therefore, and let not your hands be weak {and} slack, for your work shall be rewarded.
Ezra 4:4 Then [the Samaritans] the people of the land [continually] weakened the hands of the people of Judah and troubled {and} terrified them in building
Neh 6:9 For they all wanted to frighten us, thinking, Their hands will be so weak that the work will not be done. But now strengthen my hands!
Job 4:3 Behold, you have instructed many, and you have strengthened the weak hands.
Is 35:3 Strengthen the weak hands and make firm the feeble {and} tottering knees.
Heb 12:12 So then, brace up {and} reinvigorate {and} set right your slackened {and} weakened {and} drooping hands and strengthen your feeble {and} palsied {and} tottering knees,
