Month 2:4, Week 1:3 (Shleshi/Bikkurim), Year:Day 5949:34 AM
2Exodus 6/40
Gregorian Calendar: Tuesday 9 April 2019
Jericho March 2019 IV
What Type of Miracle Do You Need?
Continued from Part 3
Not a Generation of Unbelief
"Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief" (Matt.13:58, NKJV).
Whatever you may think of the second Israelite generation under Joshua, you cannot fault them for unbelief. I may have hinted in some of my other talks about the Jericho March these last three days that some of the people might have thought Joshua a little crazy when he told them Yahweh's plan for taking the city. Really, though, I had us more in mind than them. For you see, these people had already witnessed the parting of the waters of the Jordan River when the cohenim (priests) crossed with the Ark of the Covenant and they had already witnessed the conquest of the East Bank of the Jordan. Some might have remembered the later miracles in the wilderness under Moses including the most recent when he struck the rock and water came gushing out. And they for sure will have remembered the stories told them by their parents of the Red Sea crossing and the ten plagues of Egypt before that. The second generation of Exodus Israelites were saturated with the notion or miracles. But are we?
Last of the Spectacular Miracles
I doubt they were much perturbed by Joshua's strange instructions for the taking of Jericho. True, he was new to the job and as yet untried but they knew he had had Moses approbation and blessing to be that navi's (prophet's) successor. They had no reason to suppose that he would be unlike his predecessor even if Jericho was the last of the really spectacular 'miracles' for a while. After the Jordan crossing the manna ceased as also did the supernatural protection of their clothes and shoes against wear-and-tear. They were being prepared for a much more 'regular' kind of life now - the bedouin would soon be farmers and hersmen. Perhaps their parents had 'needed' spectacular miracles because they were carnal and lacked emunah (faith).
More Blessed are Those Who Have Not Seen
There are lots of other kinds or miracles to be sure but they tend not to be as 'showy'. As the resurrected Yah'shua (Jesus) informed doubting Thomas:
"Because you have seen Me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed" (John 20:29, NIV).
What Kind of Miracle Would You Prefer?
So I guess it sometimes boils down to this: do you want to have a dramatic show and be 'wowed' for a short while or would you rather be blessed long-term? What is going to develop your emunah (faith) and character the most? And what will be the most useful gain to you in terms of the eternities?
The Spectacular or the Mundane
I don't deny that I haven't had twinges of envy because of the spectacular things the Israelites were shown. On the one hand I don't want to have my carnal nature fed but on the other I don't want to get so casual and indifferent that I stop believing in miracles altogether. Some spectacular ones would certainly be 'nice'! There's a healthty balance somewhere between the two. I don't buy into the 'name it and claim it' neo-occultism of the charismatics because none of us has the right to dictate anything to, or demand anything as a 'right' from, the Almighty; but at the same time I want to believe in greater things than I already do. Didn't Yah'shua (Jesus) mention we could uproot trees and relocate mountains given sufficient emunah (faith)? (Mt.17:20; Lk.17:6) Yes...if that's in His plan otherwise we could either become the instruments of pointless chaos and destruction or examples of plain egotism.
Jericho Wasn't 'Name It and Claim It'
Jericho had to be removed not because the Promised Land was a 'name it and and claim it' whim of some homeless Israelites who happened to be passing Canaan and took a fancy to it. Jericho had to be demolished because Yahweh had ordered them into the land and it was blocking their way. Otherwise I am pretty sure they would have stayed well clear of the place just as their parents had been intimidated by the gaints after the 12 spies returned laded with giant agricultural produce and stories to make them quake in their boots. Yahweh's miracles are always needful, they are rarely granted to satisfy fleshy whims; and when they are granted out of His will, it is usually to rebuke, as with the quail which the complaining Israelites insisted be added to their manna burgers. In the end they got sick of them (Num.11:4,18-23) so we do need to be careful what we ask for.
The Miracles We Need Now
I am sure we could all of us draw up a list of immediate miracles we need and I'll admit some of our needs are indeed great. There are lots of obstacles currently in the way of our doing the things we feel we need to do. This is a good time of the year to consider these in the light of what happened at Jericho. Health, finances and relationships seem to be the perennial ones that vex us. Yahweh for sure wants us to have good relationships, adequate financial means and health but we too must do our parts. The Israelites were wholly incapable of conquering that Canaanite city, their hands were completely tied. Their little swords and spears were useless. We can for sure approach Yahweh about those things we are genuinely powerless to fix and leave them with Him. The best thing we can do is ask Him what He wants us to do each day and then ask Him for the means to accomplish it. And if miracles are genuinely needed, I'm sure He'll more often than not grant them.
Continued in Part 5
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