"Taking Territories"

 

 *TOPIC* : Taking Territories

 *Fire Scripture* 

Joshua 1:1 – 4

 *Memory verse* 

Joshua 1:3 – _Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, just as I promised to Moses._ 

 *The Message* 

Taking territories has several meanings. It is breaking into new frontiers, taking your environment for Christ, growing spiritually and advancing from one level to another level. It also means taking new initiatives and developing new opportunities.

 

Whatever we read in the Bible, whether an event that happened, an instruction that God gave, or something that God did, we can always find in them principles informing and directing what we do today. God promised Joshua that wherever the sole of his foot touched He had given to him. In other words, wherever Joshua could walk was potential property for him.

If you had that promise in these days, I am sure you will intentionally walk large portions of land and claim all for yourself and your family after you. That promise God made to Joshua still stands today. This time the context is different, however. I am sure you have lived in different places at this point in your life.

The question to ask is this: Did you possess all those places that you lived? To interpret this more accurately, how many people in those areas did you “possess” for the kingdom? We should be Kingdom-conscious wherever the Lord, secular assignments and so on might take us.

I believe that one thing we can add to our profile is how many came to know the Lord because of your presence in those communities. How has been your Christian witnessing so far? Moses identified seven territories that the Israelites were to possess in order to inherit their promised land: the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites.

Just as Israel of Moses’ and Joshua’s days had territories to conquer, in our day, we too have “territories” that must be brought under the Lordship of Christ. The Great Commission instructs us to make disciples of all nations, not just converts. When our Lord gave the Great Commission, His focus was on nations being discipled for Him and not just individuals.

Yet today, most of what we preach across the Body of Christ is individual salvation and not a message with a view of societal change and transformation.