30 April

The people of Israel had been given ownership of Canaan, the Promised Land. Now Joshua says to the Israelites, ‘How long will you wait before you begin to take possession of the land…?’ (Joshua 18:3). The New Testament presents the ‘land’ as a picture of the Christian life (Hebrews 4). You need to understand what is already yours in Christ and then take possession of it.

No one is totally righteous except Jesus. Righteousness means right relationships, both with God and with other people. We receive thisrighteousness from God as a gift by faith (Romans 3:22; Philippians 3:9) but we have to take possession of it. We have to live it out.

In this passage we see some examples of what this means.

• Wisdom
  ‘A good person’s mouth is a clear fountain of wisdom; a foul mouth is a stagnant swamp. The speech of a good person clears the air; the words of the wicked pollute it’ (Proverbs 10:31a,32a, MSG).
• Humility
  ‘The stuck-up fall flat on their faces, but down-to-earth people stand firm’ (11:2, MSG).
• Integrity
  ‘The integrity of the honest keeps them on track... a principled life can stand up to the worst’ (v.3a,4b, MSG).
• Character
  ‘Moral character makes for smooth travelling... Good character is the best insurance’ (v.5a,6a, MSG).

Claim, trust, believe in the forgiveness bought for you. Actively reject feelings of guilt, shame or unworthiness. It is a proactive, practical, daily choice to take possession of the forgiveness that Jesus has made possible for you.

The former Archbishop of Canterbury, William Temple, wrote a commentary on John’s Gospel. When he came to the words ‘and he [Andrew] brought him [Simon Peter] to Jesus’ (v.42a), Temple wrote a short but momentous sentence: ‘The greatest service that one man can render another.’

You may have given your life to Jesus, but have you allowed him to possess every aspect of how you live – your finances, work, prayer life, friends and family. In my experience this is a lifetime task.

St Paul writes that you need to take every thought captive to obey Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). In some areas the victory may be immediate. In others it may be more gradual. You have to drive out even the little pockets of resistance.

As Israel received the land as a gift from the Lord (Joshua 18:3), so you and I have received, in Jesus, every spiritual blessing (Ephesians 1:3). The question is, ‘How long will you wait before you begin to take possession’ of these gifts? (Joshua 18:3).