God's Gifts

I'm sure the battle of Merom looked more like modern day Fallujah that a Sunday School Flannelgraph scene. It was considered to be the third campaign of the children of Israel led by Joshua to inhabit the "promised land".

We just don't think of gifts the same way as God. We've been taught differently. Emerson told us that a gift should be given with a favorite portion of poetry or prose, and that the gift should reflect the giver and the recipient. Macy's just recommends a gift receipt to allow for an easy exchange. God requires blood, sweat, tears...

I wonder if the Israelites were as fat and sassy as I. Imagining the gift of God's promise land would come by some divine eradication of all people; leaving decadent homes and great walled cities, doors open wide, ready for inhabiting... not quite.

Wouldn't it just be great if upon the infilling of His spirit God would fill our minds with a complete gamut of Biblical knowledge and understanding; if upon being buried with Him in baptism we would come out of the water with a thirst and longing desire to spend endless hours before Him in prayer; wonderful to upon repentance be emboldened to share the gospel with reckless abandon.

Oh how hollow that would be. Solomon so wisely reminds us that He is more interested in our character than our comfort (Ecc 7:1). He has instead called us to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling (Phil 2:12). And His gifts truly are perfect because they work about the perfecting of us (Matt 5:48, James 1:17).

"Look, the Lord you God as set the land before you; go up and possess it, as the Lord God of your fathers has spoken to you do not fear or be discouraged.
Deuteronomy 1:21