Introduction

The title of this chapter is: Follow God Wholeheartedly, and You Will Acquire the Promises. How nice is it? If I wrote a book on the bible studies of Joshua called "Possess the Promised Land," it would sell well because who doesn’t want to possess the Promised Land? As long as it is a beneficial thing, everyone wants it.

Wholeheartedness is Important

I thought hard and discovered that there aren’t many wholehearted people. People want to go to a good university, but when they open the math textbook, they are thinking about English, and when they have their English textbook, they are thinking about physics. This is not wholeheartedness!

If people are not wholeheartedly, don’t even think about earning money, applying to universities, or getting the promises of God. That is why when we inspect people, we look to see if they are wholehearted. A person who has wholeheartedness is great. They deliver different results than those who don’t have wholeheartedness.

We have to know what wholeheartedness is. If you are a Buddhist, you concentrate on loving your Bodhisattva; if you are a Christian, you follow God wholeheartedly. The key is whether we are wholehearted or not. Since we are all Christians and we are talking about the Bible, let's talk about the promise that those who follow God wholeheartedly will receive!

Joshua led Caleb to attack the city and plunder the land! Do you know what kind of people were attacking and plundering the city? 85-year-old men It is good enough not to have Alzheimer's disease, but they can use weapons and followed Joshua to conquer the land, until the day of the division. Joshua was already a bit old, and then he divided the land, although there is still a lot of unearned land, but it does not matter, let's first divide the land.

Caleb and Joshua are actually good friends. They were both almost stoned to death by the Israelites, but thanks to God's protection, they were saved! Joshua later succeeded Moses as the boss of Israel, and then Caleb came to Joshua. Let me tell you, people who are wholeheartedly remembers different things than those who are not. Having said that, I have done things wholeheartedly since I was a child. In our family, my mother and father were very hospitable, and we had many guests coming in and out of the house. A packet of melon seeds on the middle of the table, and then eat melon seeds, drinking tea and gossiping. People are talking and laughing in a lively manner.

I just sit in the corner of our house to read. Then people think this child is very interesting. They joked and gossiped, but it had no effect on me. I should read and study, practice my calligraphy, and do what I should do. As a result, our neighbors said, "Don't look at this kid; he doesn't say anything, but he knows everything in his heart."

As I get older, I basically forget all the bad things my eyes see; I remember all the good things that happened, and that’s what people who are wholehearted are like. I’ll tell you, either you repent and follow God wholeheartedly, or you walk on the path of the world half-heartedly. People who are not wholehearted don't think that you will receive the promises of God and don't think that you will live well in this life.

What does Caleb remember? He went to Joshua and said:

Now the people of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, "You know what the LORD said to Moses the man of God at Kadesh Barnea about you and me. I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh Barnea to explore the land. And I brought him back a report according to my convictions, but my fellow Israelites who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt in fear. I, however, followed the LORD my God wholeheartedly. So on that day Moses swore to me, ‘The land on which your feet have walked will be your inheritance and that of your children forever, because you have followed the LORD my God wholeheartedly.’ (Joshua 14:6-9)

Look at Caleb; he followed God wholeheartedly, and Moses was happy. Then Moses swore to Caleb, "The land on which your feet have walked will be your inheritance and that of your children forever, because you have followed the LORD, my God, wholeheartedly."

Caleb followed God wholeheartedly for forty-five years, and forty-five years went by in a blink. Do you know what watching in hope for God means? It means forty-five years is not a big deal. Actually, Caleb was wronged. He could have gone in, he was wholehearted! But he had to be punished with the Israelites! But a wholehearted person like Caleb has the characteristic that he does not like to complain. So, all of us, brothers and sisters, who like to complain, must change this problem!

But because I follow God wholeheartedly, I can't see any of these things. Even though sometimes are hard, because I follow God wholeheartedly, I know that one day I will stand in the presence of God and receive the rewards He has prepared for me in eternity. This is my hope! This is my hope of following God with all my heart! I want to go back to God every day, and some people say, "Do you want to die?" This is not a desire to die; this is a desire to return to God; this is called eternal life. Please don't mistake me; I am not complaining.

I look forward every day to the fulfilment of God's greater promises among us. My greatest hope is that every brother and sister is able to stand in front of God and say, "I will love God wholeheartedly, and I will possess the Promised Land.

I’d love for all my brothers and sisters to be like this. However, some brothers and sisters have broken my heart. But no matter how many times they broke my heart, I still want to bless them, and I still want to train them. No matter what kind of person he is, in my heart, I believe that they are people who are willing to follow God, and I am determined to bless them with the strength God gives me because I follow God wholeheartedly.

I recently had a sister come to me for training, and the most important thing I did was train her to be wholehearted! Because she has never been able to overcome that fear of challenges in the past years. When challenges come up, she is ready to go around and jump over them, just does not want to face that challenge. But how far can she move on if she continues like this? Not far! In fact, I can't wait to pull out the idea inside me to show her. Whether she believes or not, it's not my concern, but my God knows my heart, and He will remember me.

I have been thinking about this for the past few weeks, and I thank my God for allowing me to have such faith in Him.

Follow God Wholeheartedly and Get the Promises

The words that Moses told Caleb were not fulfilled forty-five years later! But this Caleb came to Joshua and said, "The place where I stood is Hebron, and Hebron is a holy place! The book of Genesis records that the first place where Abraham lived was Hebron.

Later on, although they moved, they travelled across the land, built altars everywhere, and finally, in this place in Hebron, still called the oak of Mantle, also called the cave of Mebila, they bought that cave of Mebila, and Abraham, Sarah, and Jacob were also buried in that place.

In other words, that place is the place where Abraham once walked, and it is also the place where Caleb walked when he was a spy. In fact, this place was not only walked by Caleb; Joshua also walked with him, so what happened? Caleb said to Joshua, "You must give me Hebron, where my feet are, and don't think I've forgotten this place."

For forty-five years, he dreamed of getting this land every day! Brothers and sisters, let me say something from the bottom of my heart: I want to experience all the promises in the Bible, no matter how many there are! Am I too greedy? But this greed is good! Greed for the Promised Land of God! Every time I read these words about promises, I feel so good! I say that the promise is mine.

On Sunday, we talked about Psalm 19.

I will say of the LORD , “He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”

Surely he will save you
from the fowler’s snare
and from the deadly pestilence.
He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
You will not fear the terror of night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
nor the plague that destroys at midday.
A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
You will only observe with your eyes
and see the punishment of the wicked.

If you say, “The LORD is my refuge,”
and you make the Most High your dwelling,
no harm will overtake you,
no disaster will come near your tent.
For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;
(Psalm 91:2-11 NIV)

The key is that Caleb wants Caleb has lived with this hope for forty-five years. Caleb doesn’t care if it’s forty or eighty years; he follows God wholeheartedly, and no matter if he’s eighty or a hundred years old, he wants to get the Promised Land. As a result, he did!
Caleb has this heart and hopes every day, and he’s a person with character. Caleb fights and wins. Caleb is an 85-year-old man, and he fights against the Achaemen. All the Achaemen were big men, but they were all defeated by Caleb. It’s God who gave Caleb victory, and God put enemies in his hands. No matter how big or strong your enemies are, if God wants them to die, they will die. No one can resist God. **If God wants to give us the land, if we follow God wholeheartedly, don't be afraid or panic; go in and possess the land as your property; you will get it."

God is Our Strong Backing

What does Caleb mean when he says, "Give me Hebron?" It means to give me the hardest place to fight. The Adamic tribesmen were giants, and  in the age of cold weapons, it was the bigger one that won. But this does not work well with God because, among the laws of God, the miracles of God are more powerful than the physical natural laws. The physical laws of nature don't work, but miracles do, because our God is a miracle-working God.

Once, an evil spirit was on my mom, and that spirit wanted to kill my sister through my mom. The amazing thing is that when my sister grabbed my mom’s arm, my mom was like being shocked by electricity. Her whole body doesn’t have any energy. My mom often wants to choke my sister to death at night, and there’s a knife or scissors under her pillow, but later she told me that she is unable to get close to my sister. She just can’t. It’s like an invisible power that resists her. Later, when the spirit is cast out, she’s back to normal.

I have also experienced this kind of thing. Why? We are people who follow God wholeheartedly, and there aren’t any people who can stand in front of people who follow God wholeheartedly. Once, a sumo athlete approached me for a minister. During the minister he opened his two big hands and wanted to chock me. But he stopped 20 cm away from me. When I cast out the devil, I asked what he was doing. He said the devil inside him wants to choke me but can’t. I said, "God! You are so amazing! If it’s not you, ten of me wouldn't even be enough for him to choke!"

Caleb concentrated on following God; he knocked out the most powerful people in the Adian tribe, and they are all giants. In these forty-five years of time, Caleb followed God wholeheartedly, constantly practicing, relying on God, and developing very high-level military skills. Even though he has good military skill, he still trusts God wholeheartedly, for man cannot win by his own strength. Caleb did not complain but continued to work hard and prepare.

He said:

Now give me this hill country that the LORD promised me that day. You yourself heard then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large and fortified, but, the LORD helping me, I will drive them out just as he said." (Joshua14:12 )

You should know, brothers and sisters, that the places that are hard to fight, are where people like to live. Why were there giants of the tribe of Achaia living in the place where Caleb fought? That was a good place! We brothers and sisters should start to know that **every time we face the devil, the harder it is to cast out the demons, the more precious it will be! Therefore, those who follow God wholeheartedly will not be afraid of any difficulties, because there is only God in front of our eyes.

Everything will bow before us and be trampled under our feet. God will lead us, and nothing will be a problem. This Caleb is great, it's called faith! There is no complaining, only preparation and hope, looking to God to accomplish a good plan in us; this is called wholeheartedness.

I encourage you to be a wholehearted person and never get ahead of yourself by thinking you are wholehearted. And desire to be Joshua and Caleb.

Desire to a Person Who Loves Wholeheartedly

Whether you are wholehearted or not, you can see from the things you have done. If you complain, talk about bad situations, and speak of difficulties whenever you speak, and think that the world is sorry for you and you have a bad life, this is not wholehearted. How can you have a good life if you are not wholehearted?

A couple to whom I ministered a couple years ago They cast demons with me, but then they came to me and said, "We will never grow at here." I was sad for a long time because they were my favourite disciples. They left, but after a few years, did they grow? No. because they love the world wholeheartedly, but not God; they love their work wholeheartedly but do not follow God wholeheartedly.

Be sure to be a wholehearted person. Maybe you are a wholehearted person, but you are wholehearted in the wrong places: wholehearted to loving the world, wholehearted in making money, wholehearted in loving yourself, wholehearted in carnality, wholehearted in selfishness—all of these are useless. Only those who are wholeheartedly to following God will possess the Promised Land.

What do you live for today? Your work or God? I don’t rely on my ability; I only rely on God. I am shocked when I see people who don’t have much ability but still rely on them.

Follow God wholeheartedly and possess the Promised Land. This is how amazing things are accomplished. When we set our minds to follow God and lean on Him, even the giants of the tribe of Achaia or difficulties as big as mountains will not be able to stand before God and those who are dedicated to following Him. This is last sentence says：

(Hebron used to be called Kiriath Arba after Arba, who was the greatest man among the Anakites.)
Then the land had rest from war. (Joshua 14:15)

There is only one way for you to have peace in your country and no warfare, and that is to defeat your enemies and gain the Promised Land. Like Joshua and Caleb, they were dedicated to following the LORD, their God! Even at the age of eighty-five, they are still strong!

There are some Christian brothers and sisters, and some pastors' friends, who don't like me very much. Why? It hurts to stand with me, "God! Look how good you are to him, when he prays, you listen, when I pray, you don't, and there are even more problems." Let me tell you, the quality of wholeheartedness is the key! With the quality of wholeheartedness, anyone can receive the promises of God!

Me and my mom were so happy the two days because there is someone who follows God wholeheartedly. Who do you think that person is? That man is me. I ask you, brothers and sisters, is it good to be like the son of Jephunneh? Yes! Then, if I summarise all our problems, it's inattentiveness. **All the problems are because of not following the LORD your God wholeheartedly! **!

mouth full of complaints and bitterness, not keeping and obeying God's words, not believing in God's promises, creating many problems, and blaming God. "O God! Why are there so many problems?" God says, "I was going to ask you!" Aren't you the creator of these questions? The Bible has a very good point. There are some who do not receive an inheritance and some who receive twice as much.

Look how good does the Bible says:

Increase the days of the king’s life,
his years for many generations.
May he be enthroned in God’s presence forever;
appoint your love and faithfulness to protect him.

Then I will ever sing in praise of your name
and fulfill my vows day after day.
(Psalm 61:6-8 NIV)

What could be better than serving God and being the priests of God? Nothing! Is it not doubly good for us to be priests of the LORD God, to follow Him wholeheartedly, and to serve Him wholeheartedly? You have to be smart; do you know that following God is a good thing? If it's a good thing, why is it so hard to follow?

We must know to serve God wholeheartedly and follow Him closely! I tell you, even if someone keeps us from the Promised Land—even if the ten spies keep us for 45 years—God's plan for us will be fulfilled! Time flies.  Forty-five years are nothing if we follow God wholeheartedly. One day we will be able to stand on the land where we set our feet, and it will be mine and my descendants' forever, amen!

May God bless you!