Jesus: Our Promised Land

The angel said to Joseph: [Mary] will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21)

Scripture Says
Jesus means 'the Lord Saves' in Greek, and corresponds to the Hebrew name Joshua. Joshua led the Israelite conquest of the Promised Land, and Jesus gave His life as a ransom for sinners, to lead them into the Promised Land of their souls. And as Joshua saved the Hebrews by God's mighty power and outstretched arm, Jesus, in the Gentile language of the day, came to save us all.

Jesus has a Promised Land for all of us. Salvation is part of it, and the promise of eternal life in heaven. But He has a plan for your life and your heart, and to the degree that you claim that plan you claim your Promised Land.

Taking the Promised Land wasn't an easy chore, nor was their guaranteed success outside of faith. Joshua led the people in many wars, struggling to take over the land God had granted them as their inheritance. Eventually the Israelites did take it - except where they settled for less than God's best for them, and did a halfway job, co-existing with the original inhabitants. And, correspondingly, we get our Promised Land to the degree that we choose to obey, pray and trust Jesus.

The tribe of Reuben, with two others, saw opportunity where they were and pleaded to stay on the far side of the Jordan River, outside the Promised Land. (Num 32) Moses finally said to them, in essence, your families can stay here, but your men must fight for the other tribes, to conquer the Promised Land. Then you can return and settle east of the Jordan, with no inheritance of your own in the Promised Land and no further obligation to the Lord or Israel.

The tribe agreed, which I find heartbreaking and a poignant lesson in watching our agreements and decisions. The probably figured they would keep serving the Lord their own way - and they probably did for awhile.

They were given the tableland east of the Dead Sea and north of the Arnon Gorge, bordered on the south by the pagan Moabites, on the east by desert tribes and on the west by the Dead Sea. Only to the north did they have a brotherhood, the tribe of Gad. Left as easy prey, they quickly lost their inheritance.

A Personal Note
As a band of predators will seek to isolate their prey from the herd before attacking, so Satan seeks to isolate you and I. Where you leave yourself vulnerable to outside influence, he will take advantage and you will lose your Promised Land. You need to be aware of his tactics and set up guards on those vulnerable borders. For example, the body of Christ is Jesus' hands and feet, and participating in the family of God protects us from Satan's lies and exposes his tactics.

Do Satan attack you with self-esteem? Depression? Anger? Keep close to Christian friends that will build up your self-esteem. Get rid of what's getting you depressed, where possible. Forgive whoever you need to forgive, and peace will fill a fresh part of your heart. Jesus gave us His peace; it is part of your Promised Land, but you must claim it by forgiving. And that is work. But then, they didn't conquer the land without a fight, and we fight with weapons of prayer, obedience and faith. Without those, your Promised Land is going to land in Satan's hands.

Study Questions
1. Where does Satan attack you?
2. How can you make that more difficult for him?
3. What plan does God have for your heart (e.g., peace) or your life (e.g., a ministry) that Satan is stealing via a busy calendar, fear, etc.?