Original Conviction
From Eden to Eternity, we are all part of God's plan of redemption that is built through the church founded on Jesus Christ.
“When they had finished dividing the land into its allotted portions, the Israelites gave Joshua son of Nun an inheritance among them, as the Lord had commanded. They gave him the town he asked for—Timnath Serah in the hill country of Ephraim. And he built up the town and settled there."
Joshua 19:7-9, 49-51
After following God's call to lead the people to the promised land, which involved far more perseverance and courage than Joshua could have known, he received his inheritance. Then the text says that he built up the town and settled there.
Wouldn't you like to know more? Wouldn't it be nice if Joshua had kept a daily journal of the vision God gave him for what to build, all that God provided for how to build it, and the stories along the way? The Hebrew word for built is banah, and it means much more than constructing buildings. The word is the same word used for building altars, building cities, building houses, and building the family line. Within this word there is a sense of restoring or fortifying, establishing your legacy, and building something that will last.
We all have an inheritance that we receive from God. The Holy Spirit. We have gifts and strengths that can be used to bring and build the kingdom. What is God building through you? What will your legacy be? Before you can build anything you have to have a vision. A design. A plan. What does that look like for you? If you do not have one, want clarity, or something bigger, consider taking time today to pray, seek God, and ask for vision.
“Be merciful to me, my God, for my enemies are in hot pursuit; all day long they press their attack. When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God, whose word I praise in God I trust and am not afraid. What can mere mortals do to me? In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise in God I trust and am not afraid. What can man do to me? I am under vows to you, my God; I will present my thank offerings to you. For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.”
Psalms 56:1, 3-4, 10-13
David was a king and the builder of the City of David. He is known for the family line that was built through him that led to Jesus and for how having a heart devoted to God produced fruit that continues to feed people spiritually. Consider all of the psalms he wrote and the ways we have learned from David. Consider how his guidance helped shape Solomon who wrote Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. Every song you sing from the psalms and wisdom you quote from Proverbs came from a heart that surrendered control to the Creator.
As you build, there will be blowback. You will face headwinds. There is an enemy to your life and people who will take offense at your decision to surrender your life to Christ. David said his enemies were in hot pursuit, he was afraid, and he faced death. Sounds like he might have gone through a lot more than we typically go through. You might have someone who offends you at home, in the community, or at the office, but you are not facing open assault by an opposing army. David's process back then for how he kept moving forward in spite of the fears can help us face our fears today.
What did he do? He turned to God and chose to trust God would protect him. He chose to proclaim God's power over his everyday problems or the strength of his persecutors. Trust is a decision. Turning to God is a decision. What decision will you make when you have times of trouble? How can you trust God with something you face today?
“My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding indeed, if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. He holds success in store for the upright, he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless, for he guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones. Then you will understand what is right and just and fair every good path. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you. Thus you will walk in the ways of the good and keep to the paths of the righteous. For the upright will live in the land, and the blameless will remain in it; but the wicked will be cut off from the land, and the unfaithful will be torn from it.”
Proverbs 2:1-11, 20-22
David wrote in Psalms 127 unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. You can almost picture how David held Solomon on his knees from a young age and spoke to him about how to trust God with each decision. Part of the beauty of doing life together in community, as a family, or with close friends is seeing how God is faithful through our most challenging times.
Solomon saw how his dad's default was to get down on his knees and seek God's guidance. Solomon saw his dad raised a hallelujah when all hell was breaking loose. Solomon saw how his dad danced with joy and was full of gladness because he saw everything as a gift from God. Solomon saw his father's heart and it was a heart that reflected the love of the Father. How do you build a legacy? Bring those around you closer and share the stories of how you experience God's hand at work in your life.
How did that shape Solomon's understanding of how to build a life of meaning? Solomon learned to seek the Lord above everything. When asked by God what he would like, Solomon chose wisdom because he wanted to build a life that honored God. Solomon understood the responsibility he had as a leader of God's people and steward of his blessings so he asked for wisdom to do his job well. Solomon lets us in on the secret. He says it is better to spend time listening to God and leaning on your own ways of thinking. He says it is better to do things right than to do them fast. He said see how wisdom, knowledge, understanding, and insights can help you build the kingdom life. How much time do you spend seeking wisdom? What would happen if you devoted more time to seeking understanding before you swing a hammer or set out to doing your work?
We live in a world where with a keystroke on the internet or using AI we can gain the collective wisdom of the world. This is good, but one word from God is better than a billion words that are good. Seek the wisdom that only God can give.
“Woe to you who are complacent in Zion, and to you who feel secure...You lie on beds adorned with ivory and lounge on your couches. You dine on choice lambs and fattened calves. You drink wine by the bowlful and use the finest lotions, but you do not grieve over the ruin of Joseph...I abhor the pride of Jacob...you have turned justice into poison and the fruit of righteousness into bitterness”
Amos 6:1-2, 4, 6-8, 12
Pastor Mark Batterson has said his job as pastor is to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. Is that not a great way to keep the right perspective on how to stay close to Jesus and live wisely? How often do we allow complacency, security, and comfort to get in the way of stepping out in faith according to our calling? Two of the best tools of the enemy is procrastination and complacency. There is nothing wrong with blessings, comfort, or abundance. These are all gifts from God. There is everything wrong with hearts that crave those things above the call to serve, give, move, and build the kingdom.
Complacency says go ahead and stay home from church. Complacency says let someone else serve and give. Complacency questions one's one ability and puts off until tomorrow what can be done today. The truth is complacency kills our joy and steals our peace. No one ever thanked God for complacency on their death bed.
God calls out the people not because He wants to condemn them. He is trying to call them by name so that they will get out of their comfort zone and get back to bringing the kingdom. Conviction is one of the most beautiful ways in which God loves us. Conviction tells us that God has something better for us because of how much He loves us. God loves us too much to leave us where we are or allow us to waste our lives. God knows we need meaning in our lives and that we were made for connection. Conviction reminds us not to allow complacency or comfort to come between you and Jesus. Are there any areas in your life where you have gotten too comfortable? Any places of complacency where you feel conviction?
“Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest. Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself. For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are his house, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope in which we glory. So, as the Holy Spirit says: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the wilderness, where your ancestors tested and tried me, though for forty years they saw what I did. That is why I was angry with that generation; I said, ‘Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways.’ So I declared on oath in my anger, ‘They shall never enter my rest.’ ” See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end.”
Hebrews 3:1, 3-4, 6-14
You have a heavenly calling. Do you understand that truth? What is your heavenly calling? How were you uniquely made to bring love, hope, and peace into the world? Your heavenly calling will always be connected to the things in your life that energize you most, where you are most passionate, and what makes you feel alive. Many of us can have days where we sleep walk through life. We do the same things and get the same results. God wants to wake us up and put a hallelujah in our hearts to pursue our heavenly calling.
Paul says fix your thoughts on Jesus. Why? Why is this so important? Because Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith. He is the Alpha and the Omega. The Beginning and the End. He is the architect and the engineer. He knew we needed a Shepherd, a Savior, and a Lord. He knows we need help with what to do and how to do it so He stepped into our reality to help. He came to us. He lives in us. The most amazing part of God's plan is that He uses us to build the church and bring the kingdom. This is plan A and there is no plan B. You have a part to play, I have a part to play, we all have a part to play in building. What is your part? How will you participate? Is your focus on Jesus or on other things?
Do you notice in the text how Paul describes uses the very senses that God gave us physically to help us spiritually? He says see and hear. He says that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, but he warns us about how we can get off track if we don't awaken our senses. Paul says make sure your head and your heart are in alignment. Hear God's voice, listen to His plan for how He is building you and using you to build up others. How much time will you spend listening today? Consider sitting in silence for 2-3 minutes and see how He speaks. Write down any thoughts that come into your heart or in your mind related to the life He is building. If you feel afraid or anxious, those thoughts are not from God. If you feel alive, at peace, or energized those are from God.
Paul says hold on to the original conviction. Paul is saying you have to have a firm foundation for your life. If you build your life on pleasures, comforts, or temporary things of the earth then your life will crumble in hard times. The word for original is the same word used in John 1 where the text says that in the beginning was the Word and the Word was God and the Word was with God. Paul points all things back to fixing our minds and building our lives on the foundation of Jesus Christ.
Joshua got his inheritance. He built a city and a legacy. What will you do with yours? What will you choose as the foundation of your life and what will your legacy be? God has great plans for you. Plans of abundance, a hope, and a future. He wants to use your life to do something special that lasts long past when you breathe your last breathe. Turn to Him and listen. Seek wisdom and His guidance. Follow Jesus closely and allow Him to help you find meaning in all you build with what you have been given.