Approximately sixteen months after God delivered Israel out of Egyptian bondage, He brought them to the border of the Promised Land. From where they were camped, the Israelites could see the beautiful hills, fields, and pastures of the land which God had promised them as an inheritance.
Can you imagine the excitement that filled the hearts and minds of the people of Israel as they gazed toward the land of Canaan? Behind them were the years of slavery in Egypt–the pain and sorrow, the cruel taskmasters, the bondage, anguish, discouragement, and defeat. Their difficult desert journey was over.
Before them was the land of promise with all of the blessings of the covenant--prosperity, provision, protection, and peace. The land belonged to them legally because of the mandate from God, but having the promise was not the same as possessing it. The land was theirs unconditionally, but the possession of it was conditional and based upon their obedience.
God told them: “...if you will obey My voice in truth and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own peculiar possession and treasure from among and above all peoples; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests, a holy nation (consecrated, set apart to the God)” (Exodus 19:5-6, AMP).
God had sent the Angel of the Covenant before them, warning them to:
...obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my name is in him. But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries. (Exodus 23:21-22).
There, poised at Kadeshbarnea on the border, Moses told the Israelites:
...Ye are come unto the mountain of the Amorites, which the Lord our God doth give unto us. Behold, the Lord thy God hath set the land before thee: go up and possess it, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged. (Deuteronomy 1:20-21)
God instructed Israel to advance and take possession of the land. Their destiny was in their own hands. They had a choice: To obey God and possess the land, or to disobey God, forfeit their inheritance, and reap the punishment for their disobedience. You have a similar choice. What will you do?
PRAYER:
My FATHER, My God, this year let my life reflect the blessing of the Lord, I shall not be static, I decree PROGRESS, FAVOR, HONOR, AND INFLUENCE are my portion. My life is SALTED, My speech is SALTED, My Home and Business are SALTED in the name of Jesus.