The Daily Word of Righteousness

The Inheritance

Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them. (Joshua 1:6)

The inheritance of the people of Israel was Canaan, the land of promise. As soon as the Israelites came out of Egypt they were pointed toward their inheritance, their goal—the "land of milk and honey." The geographical boundaries of the land of promise were set forth clearly.

From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast. (Joshua 1:4)

Many times in the Old Testament, Canaan is referred to as the inheritance of Israel.

What is the inheritance of Christ and His coheirs? What is the goal, the land of promise, of the saints? Toward what are we pressing? Are the boundaries of our inheritance also set forth clearly?

We understand that Egypt represents the world system of spiritual slavery. We know that God judged the gods of the world on the cross of Calvary and if we will sprinkle the blood of the Passover Lamb, Christ, on our households the destroyer will pass over us and we will be saved during periods of Divine wrath and judgment.

We are aware also that the "wilderness" through which we are plodding is a place of instruction. We are learning many lessons as the Lord God humbles us and allows us to be deprived of what we so fervently desire. Although the wilderness is a series of testings and troubles we are coming to know the Lord and His ways.

Every test of our faith becomes a stepping stone toward the Glory of God. But if we resist the Lord's dealings in this wilderness, insisting on grasping the "pleasures" of the world, then we are failing in the school of the wilderness. We will not be promoted to the glory that would have been ours had we placed all our trust in the Lord Jesus.

Salvation from "Egypt" we understand, and now we are experiencing the trials of the wilderness. But toward what land of promise are we journeying? What is the promise of Christ to us? What is our inheritance?

In order to find out, let us turn to the second Psalm.

In the beginning verses God describes the rebellious attitude of the nations of the earth. Then the Spirit speaks to us of the coming Kingdom of God:

Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. (Psalms 2:6)

The following verse sets forth an epoch in the history of the Kingdom of God:

I will declare the decree: the Lord hath said unto me, Thou art my son; this day have I begotten thee. (Psalms 2:7)

Prior to this statement, Christ was the Word of God. But then an eternal transformation occurred: "This day have I begotten thee." "Today I became Your Father."

God so loved the world He gave His only begotten Son. We know from the Scriptures that Christ, the Word, was "in the beginning with God." We understand that the Word was with God and indeed was God. We know too that "all things were made by Him." Nothing was made that Christ, the eternal Word, did not make.

To be continued.