“So Joshua said to the people of Israel, ‘How long will you put off going in to take possession of the land, which the Lord, the God of your fathers, has given you?’” – Joshua 18:3
That’s certainly a very blunt question, isn’t it? Joshua challenged the remaining tribes of Israel to stop making excuses, stop sitting around passively, and move forward into the good future God had already prepared for them. Have you ever been like that? Have you ever preferred the familiar status quo to moving into an uncertain future to which God is calling you? Have you ever made excuses rather than live out the glorious life that already belongs to you in Christ?
Let’s consider a few of the ways followers of Jesus can put themselves in exactly the same position as those reluctant tribes of Israel. Stuck… passive… missing out on God’s goodness and provision… One way is to fail to experience the transforming work of the Holy Spirit. If Jesus is your Lord, then God’s Holy Spirit already lives in you. He not only marks you as belonging to God, He lives in you to challenge you, convict you of sin, empower you for service, and transform you to become more and more like Jesus.
Jesus meets every person where they are, saves us from our sins when we believe in Him, then calls each of us to live a new life in Him. A radically transformed life full of joy in imitation of Jesus Himself. Nonetheless, Christians often fail to live that transformed life God has prepared for them. Usually that’s because we remain stuck in our old habits, patterns, and sins from before we met Jesus. Continuing to live and act as we did when we weren’t believers quenches the power of the Spirit within us. It prevents the Spirit’s fruit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control – from forming in us. If you’re a Christian but aren’t living a transformed, Spirit-filled life, how long are you going to put off going in to experience what God has given you in Him?
Another way is when we fail to do the good works God specifically prepared for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). Every believer has good works prepared for them to do in the name of Jesus. As you do them, you experience purpose, joy, satisfaction, and God’s pleasure. You change lives and your life is changed. Are you doing those good works? Or are you making excuses about time, energy, money, busyness, ability, convenience, comfort, safety, or anything else? Don’t let excuses keep you from experiencing what God made you to do! If you’ve been playing it safe with the work Jesus is calling you to do, stop! How long are you going to put off going in to experience what God has given you in Him? #FollowJesus