The Caleb Spirit

"But My servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit in him and has followed Me fully, I will bring into the land where he went, and his descendants shall inherit it." ~Numbers 14:24

We can't talk about Caleb without looking at the leadership of Moses, who was called to "free the slaves". 

"Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh supply cities. But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were in dread of the children of Israel. So the Egyptians made the children of Israel serve with rigor. And they made their lives bitter with hard bondage—in mortar, in brick, and in all manner of service in the field" (Exodus 1:8) 

Moses had a tremendous call on his life. He was chosen to lead Israel out of 400 years of bondage! That was a really big deal.

"Then the children of Israel groaned because of the bondage, and they cried out; and their cry came up to God because of the bondage. So God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob" (Exodus 2:23).

Moses was anointed to lead God's people to freedom, but they were stubborn to leave. The first thing they did was murmur against him. Even after witnessing numerous miracles, when they came to the Red Sea, instead of trusting in the God who led Moses, they saw a "road block." 


Moses had quite a feat. On one hand he had to deal with Pharaoh, and on the other he had to deal with a faithless, fearful generation.  

Every time God performed yet another miracle, still, they did not increase in faith. They actually wanted to go back to the 'land of bondage' because they were trained in slavery for so long. They didn't know how to live free. Their minds were stuck in Egypt. 

Forty years they wandered around the desert, never reaching the promise land. This was not God's will for them. God gave them that land. He created it for His people but they were cowardly and stubborn to obey. 

As they got close to the land of Canaan, they saw it afar. They sent twelve spies to check it out. When they returned ten of them had a negative report. They were afraid of the people there. "There we saw the giants and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight” 
(Numbers 13:33).

In order to have a "Caleb spirit" we must eliminate all fear, become strong in faith, while envisioning our victory in Christ. 



But Joshua and Caleb,who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes; and they spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying:

 “The land we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land.  If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land which flows with milk and honey.’ Only do not rebel against the Lord, nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread; their protection has departed from them, and the Lord is with us. Do not fear them.” Numbers 14:6

"And all the congregation said to stone them with stones. Now the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of meeting before all the children of Israel."  

Can you believe this? Two men step up to the plate with courage and faith to go where God already said they could go and they want to stone them?? Why is it when someone speaks faith and wants to act on it, it upsets those who don't believe?

Caleb and Joshua were the only ones to go in and dwell in the land of Canaan. 

"But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh remained alive, of the men who went to spy out the land" (Numbers 14:38).

Where are the Caleb's & Joshua's? I believe that spirit is still alive, perhaps only in a few. Let it be us. Jesus has conquered our enemies so that we may go in and enjoy this land of plenty.