Joshua 18:1

Joshua 18:1 says, And the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled together at Shiloh, and set up the tabernacle of the congregation there. And the land was subdued before them.  All the people of Israel gathered at Shiloh, where they set up the tabernacle.  The promised land had been subdued, and now they were gathered to worship God.  We need to make sure that we remember and worship God when we have success in the world and not just enjoy the rewards of our success.  Verse two states,  And there remained among the children of Israel seven tribes, which had not yet received their inheritance.  So far, only five of the tribes had received the land that was to be their inheritance.  Still, they were all gathered together before the tabernacle.  It may seem that some Christians are more blessed than others today, but we cannot allow that to keep us form worshipping God together.  Of course, we will not be together physically, but we must be together spiritually, and need to remember that this world will never be our inheritance.  Verse three asks,  And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, How long are ye slack to go to possess the land, which the LORD God of your fathers hath given you?  Evidently the people of the other tribes were in no hurry to claim the land, and Joshua asked them how long were they going to wait to possess it.  I believe that today that it is important to gather to worship God, but it is even more important that we go into the world to share the gospel, so that others might possess the promise of salvation through faith in Christ.  God may be asking how long we are going to wait.  Verse four states, Give out from among you three men for each tribe: and I will send them, and they shall rise, and go through the land, and describe it according to the inheritance of them; and they shall come again to me.  Joshua told the remaining tribes to supply three men each to go into the rest of the land and to describe it according to the inheritance to them, and then come back and report to him what they found.  Joshua did not send all the people of the tribes, just as we don't all go to the same place today to spread the gospel.  Sometimes, a few, like the missionaries, may go alone, physically, but they should never go alone spiritually.  They represent all of God's people.  Verse five adds, And they shall divide it into seven parts: Judah shall abide in their coast on the south, and the house of Joseph shall abide in their coasts on the north.  These men were to divide the rest of the land into seven parts, acknowledging the land that was already given to others.  Verse six continues, Ye shall therefore describe the land into seven parts, and bring the description hither to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the LORD our God.  They were not to claim certain areas for their particular tribe, but were to come back to Joshua and he would cast lots before the LORD to divide the land.  We need to be content with allowing God to bless us according to His will and should not attempt to claim what He has blessed others with nor be jealous of what they have.  Verse seven declares, But the Levites have no part among you; for the priesthood of the LORD is their inheritance: and Gad, and Reuben, and half the tribe of Manasseh, have received their inheritance beyond Jordan on the east, which Moses the servant of the LORD gave them.  Once more, Joshua said that the tribe of Levi were to receive no land because being priests of God was their inheritance.  As followers of Christ today, this is also our inheritance.  Anything we gain in this world is going to one day be left behind, but our relationship with Christ is everlasting.  Verse eight says, And the men arose, and went away: and Joshua charged them that went to describe the land, saying, Go and walk through the land, and describe it, and come again to me, that I may here cast lots for you before the LORD in Shiloh.  The men arose and went to do as Joshua had commanded them to do.  We today as Christians need to arise each day and do what God instructs us to do.  Verse nine adds, And the men went and passed through the land, and described it by cities into seven parts in a book, and came again to Joshua to the host at Shiloh.  This concludes that the men went and described the land in seven parts which were written in a book.  Again, they made no claims on any particular part, but were just united in describing it.  Verse ten concludes, And Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the LORD: and there Joshua divided the land unto the children of Israel according to their divisions.  Joshua cast lots before the LORD to divide the land after they returned with the descriptions of the seven divisions of the land.  We today need to bring all our cares and concerns before God and allow Him to bless us as He so desires.  Once more, I don't believe that we can simply decide what we want and then ask God to give it to us.  We must be content with what God blesses us with.