Joshua 14:6-11 (ESV Strong's)
Caleb's Request and Inheritance
Then the people of Judah came to Joshua at Gilgal. And Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what the Lord said to Moses the man of God in Kadesh-barnea concerning you and me. I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land, and I brought him word again as it was in my heart. But my brothers who went up with me made the heart of the people melt; yet I wholly followed the Lord my God. And Moses swore on that day, saying, ‘Surely the land on which your foot has trodden shall be an inheritance for you and your children forever, because you have wholly followed the Lord my God.’ And now, behold, the Lord has kept me alive, just as he said, these forty-five years since the time that the Lord spoke this word to Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness. And now, behold, I am this day eighty-five years old. I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; my strength now is as my strength was then, for war and for going and coming.
I am STILL Strong
In the society we live in we are all being impressed to save our money and get ready for retirement. When we think of retirement, as it is painted by or marketing gurus, we see shuffle board, bicycling, and relaxation. In the above passage we read the story of Caleb. We have to remember that Caleb was one of the men who originally spied out the promise land, 45 years earlier. Moses sent out twelve spies and ten came back with negative reports. Two, Joshua and Caleb, came back, ready to take the promises land by storm through faith. As a result of the ten the entire nation was punished with 40 years of walking in the wilderness. NOW, finally, Caleb was able to “conquer” his piece of the promise land. When Joshua begins to hand out the portions of the land, Caleb wants a big piece. He didn’t think he was “entitled” to this, as a retirement bonus. He thought he had more work to do to “conquer” this in his later life. He was ready to take on the mountain of the Anakim (the giants of the land). Caleb, at 85, was not ready to retire. He did not think he was entitled to anything. Caleb, at 85, thought his strength was the “same as I was in the day that Moses sent me.” At 85 he thought he was as strong as he was 40. That is the way to face “retirement” if you are believer in Christ. You might have a different location, but your occupation is the same: Conquering for God. That is the way to end your life. Caleb found another mountain to conquer. He was not going to let the years of his life hinder the growth and purpose of his life.
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