The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1895-09-07
THE REWARD OF CALEB.
INTERNATIONAL sUSDAf-sCHOOL
LESSON.
DIR. PeII Tells Of Caleb, ana tho MODEST
Way In which the Old MAN bore the
Favor. bestowed Upon Him.

To the casual reader the displays OF
Divine mower which marked the war
Of conquest I'm Canaan are quite over
Swallowed By the instances OF human
cruelty which darken almost every chap
ter of It's history. But uie "'"H ~"'
sits In his nineteenth century easy CHAIR
and criticises the moral IDEAS OF peope
who lived milIenniums ago caiis a,'eH-
ton TO the beam that is III hls o"h .le
rather than to the mote thal IL III ms
ancient brothers eye. We nave no NOR
right TO Judge the acts OF tne Vn'iu'en VI
Israel without knowing their cifcui,'s'a
ces than the children OF lsrnei WOMB nav
90 ,ud-e our conduct without knowing
our circumstances.
THAT these people were not the inhuinah
crean,res which their modern critics
would have us believe is soon apparent
when we turn from the tale OF piood
and begin to examine she character
sketches with which the history OF the
war is spiced. our lesson snail be
study of one Of these sketches
OF the two brave spies who brought
hack a favorable report from canaan
Joshua alcuc remained in the public eye.
caleb having completed his task. with
draws into obscurity, and the gliInI@es
we have of his sturdy form ana honest
face are few and far between. But nus
Is one Of those faces we never gee WIN
out desiring a closer acqualh lance, anu
we can afford to study well the Few
fragments OF his history which have
been preserved.
II Is an inspiring picture We have Of
the old nero as he appears before Joshua
I'm Gilgal TO claim the inheritance which
God through Moses, had promised him
fully forty-hvc years before. lie Is
now cighty-hve years old, but as was
said Of Moses. his eye is not dim nor
his natural force abatod.' From his
own lips we have the assurance that he
is as strong az he was the day Moses
sent him 10 search out the land. And
IN speaking Of his physical sti ength he
uaconsciously reveals the fact that he Is
as strong IN spirit as he is III body. lie
ras been kept alive and I'm health accord
ing 10 the promise OF God he tells us.
lie has not kept himself alive and he
does not plume himself upon his wisdom
and fa!thfulncss in looking after his
health. No doubt he has taken proper
care OF his body: he has not tempted
Providence: but he Is not the man To
say that he owes his long life 10 his
own wisdom and cafefnlness TO his faith
fulncss i'm taking "A certain Kind OF eNer-
else or i'm abstaining from a certain
kind of diet. Caleb believes i'm GOd-an
overriding. all-poworful, all-tho oshtful
God. lie locks upon the lord as his
immediate. direct proYder and protector.
God keeps him, God cares FOR him. God
does everything for him. lie talks like
a giant. but his faith is the faith OF a lit
Tie child-the faith of which the man In
his nineteenth century easy chair aas
never dreamed.
Caleb comes TO Joshua with an old
promise, which to most men would have
been regarded as AT least forty years
out Of date. and presents IL for pay
ment. God promised him through Mo-
SEES, he says. some f0rty-hve years ago.
that the land wherein hts feet had
trodden in Canaan should be his in
hcrltance forever. FOrty-hve years he
has kept that due-hill, as it were, I'm his
pocket and now be- comes TO present
IT, perfectly confident that IL viii Doe
Acknowledged ana taken up. Caleb's
faith ia God is something more than
the faith one man has ia another. II
man makes us a promise. the longer
it's fu4.-.mcnt is delayed. the less certain
we feel that IL will Ice kept. But IL we
have faith In G0d-the faith that comes
from knowing God-We do not feel like
discOunting his promises because the
time of payment may seem 10 be put
of. The fact that We have been look
ing for an answer TO q prayer for a
thousand years does not in the least
discount the promise OF Him with whom
one day is as a thousand years and a
thousand years as one day
We have another glimpse Of the child
like spirit in the ertiess confident way
in which Caleb tells his story. with
out boastfulness without conccit. he re-
m In N..H ~ no. al B.
duty faithfully. II wholly followed the
Lord, my God. he declares. II there Is
any vanity In that remark. nobody will
object to it. coming from Caleb. Ger
tainly there Is not a particle of con-
ceit I'm it, He does not parade himself
~ superior brother who has wholly
followed the Lord in all things: ne only
declares that lac followed the Lord I'm
! that particular thing he does not gro.
fess to have lived a sinless life: he only
claims that as a SPY he did his duty.
But If he is child On faith he H.
a man in courage; and when he claims
his inheritance inc does not make his
faith in God claim for Indulgence.
Old as he Is, he does not ask for land
that has been already conquered. nor
does he propose % trade with Joshua
for land that is easy 20 conquer; ne
clings 10 the promise. and asks that the
mountainous region. inhabited by the
giants. be given him. He is the Lord
servant; he expects TO get his inheritance
from the Lord and he IL content 10
accept the terms of the promise He
does not say. as We might expect him
TO say. 81 am an old man now, and
would like 10 spend the rest Of my
days i'm peace" but II am as strong as
ever: give me that giant-infested land
and let me go clear IT,"
Not that he relied upon his own
strength. He refers TO his strength
simply as an evidence that God hal thus
far kept his word lie does not be-
lieve that by his own strength he can
overcome the giants. III so be-. the Lord
viii be with me. l will drive them out.
as the Lord sad" Here is the secret
Of his courage: God has spoken. and
ne believes that when God speaks. il
Is a good as done.
The promise is kept. "as the Lord
said" and with the blessing or Joshua
a handful Of followers and a heart fun
Of faith. old caleb starts ont 10 meet
the giants. al the mention OF whom the
hearts Of all Israel were won't 10 melt.
4.