The apostle Paul lets us know how we’re to interpret the Old Testament. In Romans 15:4 he writes, “For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”
One thing we learn from the ancient writings is that things don’t always happen at once. For sure, there are suddenlies. In fact, there are a lot of suddenlies. But not when it comes to nation-building. Or character.
In Exodus 23 God is speaking to Moses, telling him what he’s to say to the children of Israel. He’s telling them what they can expect when they enter the land promised them. He’ll give them victory, He’ll drive out the inhabitants of the land–that’s something to get excited about. But wait, He says something else. It’ll be little by little; it’s not going to happen all at the same time.
“I will send My terror ahead of you, and throw into confusion all the people among whom you come, and I will make all your enemies turn their backs to you. I will send hornets ahead of you so that they will drive out the Hivites, the Canaanites, and the Hittites before you. I will not drive them out before you in a single year, that the land may not become desolate and the beasts of the field become too numerous for you. I will drive them out before you little by little, until you become fruitful and take possession of the land” (Exodus 23:27-30).
For the zealous believer this can be annoying. We want everything God has for us, and we want it now. The problem with that is that we can’t handle everything God has right now. Like the beasts of the field, we’d get eaten alive or otherwise ruined of God gave us everything we wanted, right now.
Graham Cooke tells us God is a God of process, He loves process. You could say He is all about incrementalism; what He does, what He is, comes to us incrementally. He knows what we can and can’t handle. Before promises are realized, He’s work to do.
The one thing that builds muscle is resistance. Imagine God giving Israel the promised land without a fight; Israel would remain the bunch of weak grippers and complainers they were in the wilderness. Imagine if everything were free; there would be nothing then of value. Think of an army without and training whatsoever; they’d be a pushover.
Personal examples come to mind.
I deal with physical things almost constantly and I have to on my game to resist them. I remember the day when I didn’t have any; the idea of healing rarely entered my thinking. I didn’t memorize healing Scriptures. I didn’t make healing declarations over myself. Now, my faith is being built in this area, my thinking is changing; there is resolve on my part. Little by little I am overcoming these things. I have to, lest I be overcome.
I thing too of years ago, when week after week I heard the voice of a God calling me. The words and the visions were so grand, so big I couldn’t bear them; I almost felt crushed under the weight of them. I didn’t reject them; no, I just couldn’t handle them. That 30-35 years ago, and I have grown in faith and in character. Now the words come back. Now I’m getting assurance from God that these will be full-filled.
Nothing that comes quick and easy is of lasting value. We learn war by having to fight. We grow in faith by having it challenged. The promises come little by little so that we appreciate them when they’re realized.
There is another passage in the Bible that brings home these principles. In Judges 3:1-2 it is written, “Now these are the nations which the Lord left, to test Israel by them (that is, all who had not experienced any of the wars of Canaan; only in order that the generations of the sons of Israel might be taught war, those who had not experienced it formerly).” God left some of the people groups in the land of Canaan in order for the Israelites to have to fight them. In other words, God allowed enemies for a reason.
The thing is, everything God does has a purpose. What we’ve to grasp as Christians is that what God is doing in each one of us is conforming us to the image of Jesus. We don’t get there all at once, and it doesn’t come easy. There are steps to be taken, hurdles to overcome, and enemies to fight. We make our way little by little, and once we gain ground we’ve got to have the wherewithal to keep it. It’s one thing to win a battle, another to win a war. It’s one thing to get a breakthrough, another to hang onto it.
Little by little is the way of God–at least it is ‘a’ way. We shouldn’t be surprised that there are still enemies in the way of the promises God has made. They are there for a reason.