1 Chronicles 4:5-5:17; Acts 25:1-27; Psalm 5:1-12; Proverbs 18:19
“There was a man named Jabez who was more honorable than any of his brothers. His mother named him Jabez because his birth had been so painful. He was the one who prayed to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and expand my territory! Please be with me in all that I do, and keep me from all trouble and pain!” And God granted him his request.”
“Lead me in the right path, O Lord, or my enemies will conquer me. Make your way plain for me to follow.”
What a marvelous opportunity we have to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with the world right now! This thought may strike a note of dissonance in the souls of the fainthearted, but that does not make it any the less true. It simply means we have to fight against the tendency to withdraw and contract at a time when the Spirit most needs us to spread His positive Word of hope and restoration. Battered and bruised, many of us have retreated to the sidelines – if we are not already headed to the locker room – just when our team needs us most. Called to move boldly forward with courage to bring others into the Kingdom, we substitute our own judgment about what “makes sense” in these troubled times and do not even extend to Christ the chance to prove Himself. We do not really believe He can or will help us with our very practical needs, so we bind ourselves to a self-fulfilling prophecy of weakness and passivity.
Oh, that there were more Jabezes among us! The Lord has issued a clarion call for bold men and women of faith to go into the world and expand His territory. The land is quite literally ours for the taking, as the world’s philosophies and policies have obviously failed miserably. However, if we remain bound to their limited perspectives and basic ideas, we will necessarily disqualify ourselves from being able to offer hope to anyone else, and least of all ourselves.
In times of trouble and turmoil (how else would one describe the history of the Old Testament as a whole?), Jabez looked for opportunities to expand his territories in accord with the Will of God. This makes two important points. First, Jabez had the courage to test God and act, even when it seemed illogically against the tide of public opinion and impression. He actually took advantage of the fact that others were choosing to retreat from risk and the adventure of living in faith. Secondly, he allowed – even requested – the Lord to lead him into any new territories He wanted Jabez to occupy. Jabez was willing to take what the Spirit offered and set his own fears and ideas aside.
Jesus stands ready to expand our territories, if we will but go where He leads. There’s the rub. There are several places on earth to which I would love to be called to expand my territory: Hawaii, the Rockies; the Carribbean… Italy is especially nice. But somehow, I don’t think that my kind of expansion is exactly what the Lord has in mind. Sitting on the beach in Cozumel has little to do with the work of the Kingdom, at least the way I do it. God isn’t talking about a vacation. The Spirit is offering us an opportunity to reclaim the Enemy’s occupied territories for the Kingdom. But we cannot take advantage of anything if we are still backing up ourselves. We need to retrench and begin the battle right where we are. The Lord is looking for individuals of purpose to sign on for another tour of duty. Now is the time! The fields are ready for a new fertilizer of hope and vision. The world needs those of us who sing a new song unto the Lord to get busy composing. The old is passing away. The new is coming. Now is the time to prepare and recruit for the future of the Kingdom of God.
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