It is important for us as God's people to observe God's set and allotted boundaries, which we have in our promised land, and to expand within them.

If, however, we do not accept the set time of God and His boundary, we get into trouble with adversaries, that we could have otherwise avoided (see Numbers 14:35-45).

 

35 I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will surely do these things to this whole wicked community, which has banded together against me. They will meet their end in this wilderness; here they will die.”

36 So the men Moses had sent to explore the land, who returned and made the whole community grumble against him by spreading a bad report about it – 37 these men who were responsible for spreading the bad report about the land were struck down and died of a plague before the LORD.

38 Of the men who went to explore the land, only Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh survived.

39 When Moses reported this to all the Israelites, they mourned bitterly.

40 Early the next morning they set out for the highest point in the hill country, saying, “Now we are ready to go up to the land the LORD promised. Surely we have sinned!

41 But Moses said, “Why are you disobeying the LORD’S command (note.: boundaries)? This will not succeed!

42 Do not go up, because the LORD is not with you. You will be defeated by your enemies, 43 for the Amalekites and the Canaanites will face you there. Because you have turned away from the LORD, he will not be with you and you will fall by the sword.”

44 Nevertheless, in their presumption they went up toward the highest point in the hill country, though neither Moses nor the ark of the LORD’S covenant moved from the camp.

45 Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that hill country came down and attacked them and beat them down all the way to Hormah.

 

It is of major importance to know our field of responsibility at the right time in order to exercise the authority God has given us.

 

 

The people of Israel were allocated their promised land by God, which the LORD clearly named, so that a boundary was established (see Genesis 15:18-21; Deuteronomy 11:24-25; Deuteronomy 34:1-5).

 

18 On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram and said, “To your descendants I give this land, from the Wadi of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates – 19 the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, 20 Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, 21 Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.”

 

24 Every place where you set your foot will be yours: Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the Euphrates River to the Mediterranean Sea.

25 No one will be able to stand against you. The LORD your God, as he promised you, will put the terror and fear of you on the whole land, wherever you go.

 

1 Then Moses climbed Mount Nebo from the plains of Moab to the top of Pisgah, across from Jericho. There the LORD showed him the whole land – from Gilead to Dan, 2 all of Naphtali, the territory of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Mediterranean Sea, 3 the Negev and the whole region from the Valley of Jericho, the City of Palms, as far as Zoar.

4 Then the LORD said to him, “This is the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob when I said, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’ I have let you see it with your eyes, but you will not cross over into it.”

5 And Moses the servant of the LORD died there in Moab, as the Lord had said.

 

 

Through Joshua every one of the 12 tribes of Israel (note: apart from the tribe of Levi; see Joshua 13:14) received a piece of land by lot. These territories were also divided by borders, so that every tribe knew which region belonged to whom (see Joshua 13:8 – Joshua 21).

It means that we, the saints, need to know, which area of responsibility has been allocated to us by God in His kingdom, for it is only there we have authority and can wield it effectively.

Choosing to deliberately cross this border set by God, is rebellion against the order of God.

 

 

Living in obedience to God is crucial to walk in His promise for our lives (see Deuteronomy 11:13-17; Jeremiah 18:10).

 

13 So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today – to love the Lord your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul – 14 then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and olive oil. 15 I will provide grass in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied.

16 Be careful, or you will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods and bow down to them. 17Then the LORD'S anger will burn against you, and he will shut up the heavens so that it will not rain and the ground will yield no produce, and you will soon perish from the good land the LORD is giving you.

 

… 10 and if it does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it.

 

The scripture from Jeremiah 18:10 clearly reveals that a prophetic word (note: promise), which God released over a person through a prophet or believer, can only be implemented, if there is the measure of obedience in the heart of that person.

 

 

Some believers do not grasp the importance of the boundaries of God among His people or they are not aware of the significance of this border, because they lack knowledge. This lack of knowledge results in wildness, which expresses itself through an independent mindset and a lack of authority (see Proverbs 29:18; Isaiah 5:12-13; Hosea 4:6a).

 

18 Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom’s instruction.

 

12 They have harps and lyres at their banquets, pipes and timbrels and wine, but they have no regard for the deeds of the LORD, no respect for the work of his hands.

13 Therefore my people will go into exile for lack of understanding; those of high rank will die of hunger and the common people will be parched with thirst.

 

...6a my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge.

 

 

Every saint should take care of his promised land allocated to him by God, and should not move the boundaries set by God (see Deuteronomy 19:14; Deuteronomy 27:17; Proverbs 22:28, Proverbs 23:10).

 

14 Do not move your neighbour’s boundary stone set up by your predecessors in the inheritance you receive in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess.

 

17 “Cursed is anyone who moves their neighbour’s boundary stone.” Then all the people shall say, “Amen!”

 

28 Do not move an ancient boundary stone set up by your ancestors.

 

10 Do not move an ancient boundary stone or encroach on the fields of the fatherless, …

 

 

To enlarge ones territory correctly in Christ Jesus before the eyes of the LORD, it first has to be decided with God and has to be enlarged by Him (see Exodus 34:24 i.c.w. Deuteronomy 12:20).

 

24 I will drive out nations before you and enlarge your territory, and no one will covet your land when you go up three times each year to appear before the LORD your God.

 

20 When the Lord your God has enlarged your territory as he promised you, and you crave meat and say, “I would like some meat,” then you may eat as much of it as you want.

 

 

Even Jesus and the Apostle Paul lived according to this principle and were mindful of their boundaries (see Matthew 15:22-24; 2 Corinthians 10:13).

 

22 A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.”

23 Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.”

24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.”

 

13 We, however, will not boast beyond proper limits, but will confine our boasting to the sphere of service God himself has assigned to us, a sphere that also includes you.

 

 

To live under divine protection, we, the church of Christ, need to comprehend the order of God in His kingdom regarding leadership and authority. For in healthy submission lies protection, granted to us through the wings of God (see Psalm 91:1-2). Not every Christian is called to be a leader; this is something we need to accept and understand. If we fail to do that, we encroach a field of authority, and this leads to an imbalance in the church of Christ, causing many unnecessary difficulties and dangers.

 

 

To walk in ones assigned area of accountability in the mandate of God, one needs to know what authority is and when it is effective. In God's kingdom, authority is a result of accountability. Generally speaking, we only have as much authority for an area in the church as we carry responsibility for this area; this applies to all areas of the church. If we do not carry responsibility for an area, then we do not have the authority for it.

To gain a greater measure of authority, one has to be under brethren who carry more authority than oneself! This principle is seen, for instance, in Moses' and Aaron's leadership of the people of Israel, in the succession of Elisha to Elijah, and in the discipleship of Jesus' disciples.

 

 

The reason for rivalry in the kingdom of God is that some believers are not satisfied with their part of the promise given to them by God. Because of a feeling of inferiority, they want more in order to receive recognition from others in an unhealthy way.

Rivalry becomes noticeable when saints, who have been given greater responsibility by God, are attacked by those with a smaller measure of responsibility by undercutting the authority of those servants of God.

We need to remember that from the one who has been entrusted with much by God, much will be demanded (see Luke 12:48).

 

48 But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

 

 

To free oneself from rivalry, it is vital to ask Christ's forgiveness, where one has rejected God's appointed authority over ones life.

It is also necessary to free oneself from the “mindset” of darkness and to cut the ties that have led to independence in ones heart.

Moreover, it is important to make the decision to humble oneself under the mighty hand of God to be lifted up in due time (see 1 Peter 5:5-6 i.c.w. Ephesians 4:11-14; Proverbs 3:34).

 

11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming.

 

5 In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud but shows favour to the humble.”

6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.

 

34 He mocks proud mockers but shows favour to the humble and oppressed.

 

Amen and Amen.

 

In His Wisdom,

 

Daniel Glimm

Selfishness and self-righteousness diminishes faith and expectation of a believer so that he/she is not hungry and thirsty enough for the presence of God. As a result ignorant behavior appears and this can be the reason why God leads persons into the desert so that they may get hungry and thirsty (again) for more of Him and His presence.

 

It was in the wilderness where the people of Israel received the deep water from the twelve springs at Elim and the fresh manna from heaven at the desert of 'Sin' (see Exodus 15:27; Exodus 16:1.4).

 

27 Then they came to Elim (note: means trees; see Isaiah 61:3), where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, and they camped there near the water (note: the sphere of true apostolic discipleship and prophetic preparation; see Luke 6:13 i.c.w. Luke 9:1-2; Luke 10:1).

 

1 The whole Israelite community set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had come out of Egypt. …

4 Then the Lord said to Moses, 'I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions.'

 

 

Selfish and self-righteous behavior is closely linked to ignorance, let us take a look at this word.

The word 'ignorance' can be defined, among other things, as an influence of resistance towards the Lord who would like to come into the person's life or being present, but is not recognized because of disregard (note: other things someone is more focused on than God; see Luke 19:41-42).

 

Apostle Chuck D. Pierce wrote the following in his book "Interpreting The Times" referring to the term 'ignorance':

 

 

 

The most dangerous area of ignorance is not to have enlightenment. In this state the word of the Lord becomes rare. This is because of disobedience, so that the Lord no longer speaks on a daily basis to the believer. This can lead to a long period of silence from God's side. This state is very dangerous, because without vision the people perish (see Proverbs 29:18a). (note: part excerpt from the book "Interpreting The Times" by Chuck D. Pierce, pages 107 and 108).

 

18a Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; …

 

 

A holy lifestyle and respect for His presence should be the highest priority for any believer in order to reach a higher level with God in life (see Matthew 22:37-38).

 

Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’

This is the first and greatest commandment.

 

 

This becomes even more clear taking a look at the disciple John whom Jesus loved. John lived in captivity on the island of Patmos (means “my killing”; see Galatians 2:20) in isolation.

 

20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

 

During this time, John had been drawn to a higher spiritual level by the Lord Jesus Christ (see Revelation 1:9-10; Revelation 4:1-2).

 

9 I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.

10 On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, …

 

1 After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.”

2 At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it.

 

 

Raising up to the higher spiritual level is usually connected with a wake-up call (note: the sound of the trumpet => reveals the right times and what has to be done in them; see Numbers 10:1-10) that pulls someone out from a state of slumber in order to get awake so that he/she can see or recognize the things God reveals.

 

This sound of the trumpet is a familiar sound for the friends of God and can be a shattering sound for those who do not want to get closer to Him (see Exodus 19:16-19 i.c.w. Hebrew 10:29-31).

 

16 On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled.

17 Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.

18 Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the Lord descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, and the whole mountain trembled violently.

19 As the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and the voice of God answered him.

 

29 How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?

30 For we know him who said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” and again, “The Lord will judge his people.” 31 It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

 

Because of lacking a close relationship to God and His righteous being, saints can tend to be wrong in their thoughts and mindset concerning grace. As a consequence, they can fall into the trap of self-righteousness and therefore represent the righteousness of God in an inappropriate manner.

 

For making a personal check, if you are trapped in any slumbering state or state of being unteachable, it is required to reflect yourself on the Word of God as well as reflecting on the way of expressing your gratitude towards the instructions therein (see 2 Timothy 3:16-17 i.c.w. Proverbs 26:12).

 

16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

 

12 Do you see a person wise in their own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for them.

 

So, for the case believers consider themselves to be wise, they should constantly watch out for their spiritual hunger and take care of their thirsty hearts. Because only if you can find the strong desire (hunger) and longing (thirst) for more of Him, you will find an appropriate lifestyle according to the life as saints by being equipped for every good work.

 

Amen and Amen.

 

In His Wisdom,

 

Daniel Glimm