Welcome to this Come to Jesus Daily devotional where we are in our Summer Inspiration series. This week we’ve been considering the example of Jonathan and his armour bearer. Today, we look at Caleb, a character who was also faithful and courageous because, we are told, he had a ‘different spirit’.
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‘“But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it.”’ (Numbers 14:24)
As we’ve heard in Sunday’s message and yesterday’s devotional, Jonathan and his armour bearer (1 Samuel 14:1-14) are held up as examples of remaining faithful to God. Likewise, Caleb is also an example of heroic faith. Unlike the unfaithful spies, Caleb believed God’s promise to give them the Land. A heart for God will show itself in faith - it believes for hard things when others may balk, give up or even attack you for having faith.
God had made great promises to His people. He had done great things for them. They had a rich heritage from which to be inspired, and He was promising them the land of Canaan:
‘The Lord said to Moses, “Send some men to explore the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites. From each ancestral tribe send one of its leaders.” So at the Lord’s command Moses sent them out from the Desert of Paran. All of them were leaders of the Israelites.’ (Numbers 13:1-3)
However, rather than believe the proven character and power of God, they choose to believe the lies that the spies spread:
‘But the men who had gone up with him said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.” And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored. They said, “The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.”’ (Numbers 13:31-33)
Caleb chose to remember God’s faithfulness in the past and he chose to remember His promises. To have ‘a different spirit’ is summed up in the word, faith. Caleb chose to believe God rather than the spies. He believed truth rather than lies and doubters.
If we are going to achieve anything for God, we must seek to be like Caleb. Whilst the world, the flesh and the devil - and too often other Christians - shoot the ‘fiery darts’ of doubt and fear at us, will must use the ‘shield of faith’ and ‘Follow [Him] wholeheartedly’. Our communities and our world need more Calebs. We’ve got plenty of cynical spies who can tell us the statistics and reasons why things can’t work. Will you and I seek to be a Caleb - a person with a ‘different spirit’?
Community group notes and study
1. Notices
It might be good to begin with notices. Please share from this week’s Church News.
2. Icebreaker
How has God been speaking to you from His Word this week and how has this helped you?
3. Worship together
Let’s begin our time together by lifting our eyes and hearts to worship our great God. Perhaps you have readings and songs that you would like to use together. Let’s be open to the gifts that the Spirit wants to give in order to encourage one another.
4. Study and pray together
Our message on Sunday reflected on the faith of Jonathan and his young armour bearer. Against the odds, and in contrast to the passivity of his father and others, they are revealed as faithful and willing to serve God against the odds. Together, they ‘go over’ because they believe in the power and promises of God.
Please read 1 Samuel 14:1-14
Did God speak to you about anything specifically from Sunday’s message?
What would you say are the main teaching points of this passage?
14:6 - What truths inspired the faith of Jonathan and his young armour bearer?
14:6-7 - Why is partnership or community vital for this kind of faith? What does Hebrews 10:24 to 25 have to say on this subject?
Are there any specific ways that you need to ‘go over’ - take new steps of faith?
SIV - What does this story teach us about successful mission?
SIV - Do we have any stories of how we have ‘Served, Invested, and inVited’ recently?
SIV - Spend some time together talking and praying about who and how you are seeking to bring your community to Jesus.
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