The
journey has been very demanding; it required a very clear vision,
determination, hard work, perseverance, and most importantly, trusting in the
Lord Jesus Christ, the Author and Finisher of our faith. This has been the
story of the last 14 years of Covenant Bible-Presbyterian Church, Bangalore. If
you are convinced of this, this morning I want to call you to come forward, and
be supportive of our vision and burden for the Lord Jesus Christ.
We
have completed 14 years of church building/establishing in Bangalore. It was in
June 2005 that Pastor George and family first came to Bangalore and started the
Covenant BP Church, India. Though 14 years is a short period of time for a
church ministry, for us at Covenant the Lord has led us through so many
milestones. Indeed, as the psalmist says in Psalms 126:3, “The LORD hath done
great things for us; whereof we are glad.” The Lord has magnified Himself and
His Word in the midst of His people. The psalmist again says, in Psalms
138:1-2, “I will praise thee with my whole heart: before the gods will I sing
praise unto thee. I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name
for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word
above all thy name.”
All
through these years the Lord has helped because of our dependence on Him, our
faith in Him, and the determination to carry on the work the Lord has called us
to do. The story of Caleb from the book of Joshua is a reminder to this effect.
He was a man committed to God’s cause by trusting in God’s power and
faithfulness alone. He was part of the company of spies, together with Joshua,
sent from Kadeshbarnea to spy the land in Canaan which Israel was preparing to
possess. Caleb was 40 years old when that happened. Caleb said in Numbers
13:30, to go up at once, and possess it; for they are well able to overcome it.
But, there were some who wanted to give up and, in order to discourage the people
from following the advice of Caleb and Joshua, they gave an evil report.
Numbers 13:31-33 states, "But the men that went up with him said, We be not
able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. And they
brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children
of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search
it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people
that we saw in it are men of a great stature. And there we saw the giants, the
sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as
grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight."
Against
such an evil report, Joshua and Caleb stood firm and said in Numbers 14:6-9, “And
Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that
searched the land, rent their clothes: And they spake unto all the company of
the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it,
is an exceeding good land. If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us
into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only
rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they
are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us:
fear them not.” This was an expression of Joshua and Caleb’s faith and
dependency upon God and His power available for His children to face the
challenges and struggles of life.
Joshua
chapter 14 further explains this faith and trust Caleb has in His God. Now
Caleb is 85 years of age and over the last 45 years so many things have
happened. Israelites have entered the Promised Land and defeated almost all
their enemies and captured almost all the promised land. When the time was come
for Joshua to divide the promised land and distribute to the various tribes and
people, Caleb wanted his portion as promised by Moses earlier (Numbers 14:24).
Caleb wanted Habron because it was there they saw the sons of Anak, the giants
when they came to spy it 45 years ago, and some of the remnants of the Anak
were still there. So Caleb said in Joshua 14:7-12, “Forty years old was I when
Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadeshbarnea to espy out the land;
and I brought him word again as it was in mine heart. Nevertheless my brethren
that went up with me made the heart of the people melt: but I wholly followed
the LORD my God. . . . Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the
LORD spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims were
there, and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the LORD will be
with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the LORD said.”
At
Covenant, we could conquer many mountains over the years, and still many more
mountains remain to be conquered. I want
to challenge the whole congregation to stand united to accomplish this task. If
you are convinced of our sincerity and faithfulness in the Lord, come forward,
and share the burden and vision we have. The Church in India, and the world at
large, goes through a very difficult time as personality cult and prosperity
theology are rampant everywhere. There is a reformation needed in the church
today, a 21st Century Reformation, and we need to play a crucial
role for this. Are you ready for this? Stand together with the Pastor, share
the vision and burden he has, support him, and work together with him, and we,
together build the church at Covenant. In order to accomplish this task, we
need to be, like Caleb, men of courage, faith, and confidence in God. We need
to be faithful to Him, and the Lord will definitely help us!
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