Day 9 – Canaanites

“These are the nations: the Philistines (those living under the five Philistine rulers), all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and Hivites living in the mountains of Lebanon from Mount Baal-hermon to Lebo-hamath.” Judges 3:3 NLT

When reading Exodus through to Judges, I’ve often wondered why God chose the land of the Canaanites? It could have been any neighboring country or even any place in the world. But He chose Canaan as the Promised Land for His beloved nation. Canaan (or the term Canaanite) means one who exists in and for material things; a merchant; a pirate; trafficker in materiality. When we take it through to the spiritual meaning, Canaan is the representation of worldly things: which is the strategy the enemy uses to ensnare us in chasing earthly possessions instead of pursuing eternal treasures. Even then, with the invasion of Canaan, God showed the importance to forgo of materiality.

God’s strategy was given clearly through Jesus in Mark 10:21-22: “Looking at the man, Jesus felt genuine love for him. “There is still one thing you haven’t done,” he told him. “Go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” At this, the man’s face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.” Note that the scripture specifically says ‘possessions’, not wealth. Jesus was talking about physical things (materiality) making you feel rich and satisfied with your accomplishments. And yes, possessions are the manifestation of wealth. The difference is, possessions are something you obtain for yourself instead of using your wealth to help others around you.

“Then he said, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.” Luke 12:15. Giving all you have and all you own to God, we move into the counter-strategy of satan trying to lure us to possess: Seeking the kingdom of God in all things. Suddenly possessions are redundant in the view of our eternal treasure.

Prayer: Father, more than often we cling to the materiality this world offers. We become greedy and fall into the trap of “I want more” or “I must own”. Forgive us, Father. Thank You for teaching us that Our Promised Land is so much more than materiality and worldly needs. As Jesus said, man does not live by bread alone, but by every Word of God. Thank You for the daily bread of Jesus. Amen.

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