Sermon Tone Analysis

Intro:

Object Lesson:

2 Big Mac Meals/Blender

Pull out 1 meal - pick first 3 volunteers

B

Display meal items

Place in blender and blend

Pour into 3 cups

“Stop” what is the perception?

They are about to receive something horrible BUT I have something good planned for them.

I’m certain you’ve heard the statement “The enemy of great is good.”

Often times people settle for things that are not good in their lives, some of those things may even be considered horrible things (hold up cup of blended meal) and some people - including Christian people - settle for good things when they could experience GREAT

I want to challenge you with this thought tonight:

Every person in this room will leave a legacy.

The question is what KIND of legacy will you leave?

According to

God has GREAT plans for you that will cause you to prosper AND will cause you to leave not just a legacy but a GREAT legacy.

I want to look at a man who left a Great legacy - a man by the name of Caleb.

We find his legacy in

Joshua 34:11

Joshua 14

Caleb was able to leave a great portion of land to his descendants.

At this time when a man was able to leave land to his descendants, it was good.

But the land portion Caleb and his descendants received from God was a great piece of land and he was able to pass this legacy - a great one to his descendants.

How did he do this?

The answer is in vs 14 (wait for answer)

Lets look at how Caleb left this legacy

Early and late.

We see Caleb as one of the heroes at the beginning of the exodus from Egypt, and decades later we see his courage and tenacity even when he is an old man.

Even in his old age, he still tells Joshua, “Give me that mountain!”

He wanted to fight for his share of the land!

As a matter of fact, he asked Joshua to let him conquer the acreage guarded by the most powerful enemy warriors.The story of Caleb begins as Moses led God’s people out of Egypt into the desert.

Moses sent twelve spies into Canaan to scout out the Promised Land.When they arrived back at the Israelite camp, all of the spies agreed the land was good … really good.

But ten of them were worried about the giants that lived there— warriors that were too strong for former slaves to defeat.

The crowd reacted with a mixture of excitement and fear, but their fear was taking over.

Caleb stepped up and told them all, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it” ().The debate intensified.

Joshua and Caleb pleaded with the people to have faith in God and move forward to conquer the land.

But the ten doubting spies poisoned the hearts of the people, and they were so scared they were ready to elect a new leader to take them back to Egypt.Moses pleaded with God to forgive the unbelief of the people.

God forgave them, but the consequence of their fear was that none of them would live to see the Promised Land— none but the two faith-filled men, Joshua and Caleb.

​ ESVBut my servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed me fully, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it.

God noted that Caleb had “a different spirit.”

What was different about him?

What gave him courage when others doubted?Caleb experienced the blessings of God and believed what God said.

​ ESVOh, taste and see that the Lord is good!

Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!

A genuine experience of the goodness and greatness of God is essential to a vibrant faith.Too often, people see God as a waiter who exists only to give them what they want.

When God uses delays and difficulties (like forty years in the desert) to deepen their dependence on Him, they complain just like the children of Israel complained.Caleb stood in the gap when he and Joshua brought back “the minority report” and recommended immediately conquering the Promised Land.We should align our hearts with God’s so we delight in the things that please Him.

Then, with humility and courage, we can remind God of His promises to us.Caleb was one who “wholly followed the Lord” (, ).

Only three people in the entire Old Testament are described that way: Joseph, Caleb, and Daniel.

Others certainly were people who demonstrated great faith, but those three are singled out for their deep dependence on God and their tenacity to trust Him in the most difficult circumstances.

Those three claimed God’s promises— no matter how bad it looked for them during times of heartache, discouragement, and fear.Many people are fighting their own giants in difficult terrain.

Single parents are under tremendous stress to manage time and resources to provide a stable, loving home for their kids, as they also try to resolve the pain of a broken relationship.

Parents are standing in the gap for prodigal children.

Many people are addicted to harmful substances and behaviors.

We often think first of drugs, alcohol, sex, pornography, and gambling, but other addictions include food, shopping, television, and work— anything to self-medicate pain.

Other giants in our land today include passivity, loneliness, and hopelessness.

Those conditions often seem so entrenched that people can’t imagine defeating them.A few people, though, have “a different spirit” and trust God to conquer giants in the rough terrain of their lives.Trust God to conquer giants in the rough terrain of your life.No matter how old you are, and no matter how big your giants may be, you can have “a different spirit” like Caleb’s.

You can fight your enemies with humility, determination, and persistence.

Like him, you need to taste the goodness of the Lord.

Then you will have courage to face the difficulties of the present and the uncertainties of the future.Too often, people make one of two opposite errors in response to the gaps around them.

Some assume the problems are too big, too hard, and too complex, so they focus on the promise of heaven as an escape from all the turmoil and pain.

Certainly, heaven is a wonderful hope, but in the meantime God calls us to help the hurting and to stand up for truth and justice.

​ ESVHe has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?