Not settling for less: Dt 3:18-20

“Then I commanded you at that time, saying, ‘The Lord your God has given you this land to possess it; all you valiant men shall cross over armed before your brothers, the sons of Israel. But your wives and your little ones and your livestock (I know that you have much livestock) shall remain in your cities which I have given you, until the Lord gives rest to your fellow countrymen as to you, and they also possess the land which the Lord your God will give them beyond the Jordan. Then you may return every man to his possession which I have given you.’” (Deuteronomy 3:18-20)

After wandering in the wilderness for forty years, the Israelites once again stood on the east bank of the river Jordan. At that time the sons of Gad, the sons of Reuben, and the half tribe of Manasseh approached Moses and asked that the land they conquered on the east side of the Jordan be given to them as an inheritance. Their request raised Moses’ anger. “But Moses said to the sons of Gad and to the sons of Reuben, ‘Shall your brothers go to war while you yourselves sit here? Now why are you discouraging the sons of Israel from crossing over into the land which the Lord has given them? This is what your fathers did when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to see the land. For when they went up to the valley of Eshcol and saw the land, they discouraged the sons of Israel so that they did not go into the land which the Lord had given them.” (Numbers 32:6-9) Moses’ concern was that their willingness to settle for less than all that God had for them might discourage the other tribes from pursuing the promises of God and from fighting to possess the Promised Land. In the face of Moses’ objections, they offered a compromise. “Then they came near to him and said, ‘We will build here sheepfolds for our livestock and cities for our little ones; but we ourselves will be armed ready to go before the sons of Israel, until we have brought them to their place, while our little ones live in the fortified cities because of the inhabitants of the land. We will not return to our homes until every one of the sons of Israel has possessed his inheritance.’” (Numbers 32:16-18) They agreed to go before the rest of the army of Israel and to fight with their brethren until they had possessed their land. Only then would they return to the east side of the Jordan to take possession of their inheritance.

The longer we journey with the Lord, the more we are tempted to settle for what we have already receive and to cease striving for the rest of what God has for us. We can find our lives comfortable and, while our lives may not be perfect, they’re not bad either. In light of the challenges and difficulties that lie ahead of us in the Promised Land, it is tempting to surrender our future inheritance and settle for what we currently have. If we were to be concerned for our own lives only, then settling would be a tempting option, but others are watching our lives. They are watching to see what we do. Do we press on, or do we settle for less? Do we fight to gain the victory that is in Christ, or do we settle for walking in brokenness and defeat? Do we believe God when He says that the Promise Land is for us, or do we draw back in fear and unbelief?

Others are watching, so let us leave them a good example to follow. Let us live in a way so that we too can say to others as Paul said to us, “Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 11:1 KJV) Let us not settle for less than all that God has for us. Let us be those who are willing to run with God at the head of the pack; going first so that others might follow. Let us have the same heart as Paul had when he said, “Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:12) Let us be the kind of people others can follow.

David Robison

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