Reformation
Cultural Transformation
“When the Lord brings you into the Promised Land, as he soon will, he will destroy the following seven nations, all greater and mightier than you are: the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, the Jebusites. Deut 7:1 (TLB)
How many times have you read passages about the “ites” and just skimmed over them because you can’t imagine what they have to do with us today. In fact, even reading about crossing into the Promised Land can seem very vague. Some may think of this as going to heaven, others may think it just means getting to a place in life that is good, better than what we have known. Truth is, this passage alone holds the keys to so many things that are extremely important to Kingdom life.
The entire story of the Old Testament and the Israelites coming into their Promised Land is a prophetic picture for every generation and a summary of God’s story from the beginning till the time of Jesus’ second coming. The ultimate Promised Land will be meeting Jesus face-to-face and living under His divine leadership in the New Jerusalem. That is our goal, but now we are preparing for this day and learning how to participate in God’s government, learning how to rule and reign with Him. The scripture above clearly tells us that the Lord will bring us into the Promised Land, but the “ites” will still be there. He says He will destroy them, but He will do this in partnership with us.