A Call To The Remnant

The first chapter of Deuteronomy is one of the most tragic chapters in the Old Testament. We see in this chapter a people redeemed from the world by the mighty arm of God. He has supernaturally led them out of Egypt and opened the very sea before them and destroyed the mightiest army in the world on their behalf. He has fed them with food from heaven, He has caused water to flow from rock to quench their thirst and He has led them directly Himself by the Holy Spirit in the form of a cloud by day and a fire by night. That fire and cloud has led them to the promised land and now God has told them to cross over and go in and possess the land. Here comes the tragedy and it mirrors the tragedy that we are living out today. They ignore the voice of God, they ignore the direction of the fire and the cloud and they form a delegation of twelve. It was not good enough that God Himself had commanded them to go in and possess the land, they now want the opinion of men. Moses, tragically, goes along with this. He picks a representative from each of the tribes of Israel and sends in twelve spies. They majority come back with a fearful report. They tell the people about how fearful the land is and how it is full of giants. So, they decide to ignore the direction of the Holy Spirit and the very word of God and follow the word and the direction of men. Only a remnant, a minority of the twelve believe and trust God and want to go in and possess the Land. Two of them to be precise. Joshua and Caleb. Now, out of that whole generation, including Moses, only two would enter into the promised land.

Today, for the most part, Christendom follows the advice and the direction of men, like the ten fearful spies. We have abandoned the fire by night and the cloud by day. We have ceased to heed Gods word and we directly violate it choosing rather to follow the traditions and directions of men. Now what happened to that generation that rejected the Word of God and the direction of the Holy Spirit in Deuteronomy chapter one? Rather than being led into the promised land by the fire and the cloud of God, they were led into the wilderness by fearful men who had allowed their fears to usurp the preeminence of God in their midst. Can I say that this is exactly the position we find ourselves in today? Christendom, for the most part, languishes in the wilderness and is led of men and not the Holy Spirit. Yet, just as in those days, God has a witness. He has a remnant of Joshua’s and Caleb’s who at some point, will lead God’s people in the last great war to possess the things that God has promised. In the latter days of this world, rather than possessing land the remnant saints will be led by the fire by night and the cloud by day into a place that the Lord has prepared for us. He will lead us to a place where we shall stand against the powers of darkness. He will lead us as a light that will shine brightly in the midst of gross darkness. He will lead His army against the giants of the principalities and powers. This mighty army will march upon its knees illuminated and guided by the fire of the Holy Spirit. This army, who loved not their lives unto death, covered by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony will be victorious over all the powers of hell and darkness and Christ will come in the very midst of it all and destroy all His enemies and rule and reign forever.