Have You Set Foot: Guest Post by Vance Havner

Vance Havner (1901-1986) began preaching when he was 11, and by all accounts preached all of seventy years. He was a graduate of the Moody Bible Institute and in SBC circles was one of the most respected preachers of the 20th century. He also was the mentor of Michael Catt, pastor of Sherwood Baptist Church, the home of Sherwood Pictures, producers of FireProof, Courageous, and Facing the Giants.

In the following reading, Havner corrects some misunderstandings about the Promised Land. I hope it blesses you as much as it did me.

You can hear more about Havner from his own heart here:

http://vancehavner.com/?page_id=78

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Every place whereon the soles of your feet shall tread shall be yours... Deut 11:24

You will observe that the Israelites were not assured as much land as they merely looked at or wished for, but as much as they set foot upon. Plenty of Christians "stand on Jordan's stormy banks and cast a wishful eye to Canaan's fair and happy land where their possessions lie." If singing about it were equivalent to possession, we should have had it long ago. It is not our be wishful longing.
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When these dear souls sing of Jordan and Canaan they confuse the one with death and the other with heaven and so postpone possession until the hereafter. But God brought us out to bring us in, and we enter into that rest in this present life. But we enter when we believe it enough and trust out Joshua resolutely enough to march into it and tread upon it with our feet.

There will be battles to fight. It is not a Sunday School picnic. There may be some defeats. There will be walled cities and giants of Anak. One generation of Israelites failed to possess the land and wandered in the wilderness. Many Christians encamp around Kadesh-barnea all their days and live on a few samples that braver souls bring back from the land. They read books about and revel in an occasional prospectus explained by victorious life teachers. But they never "set foot". We are now fascinated by those who would explore space. Most of the church still lives on the edge of a realm far greater, busy with lesser enterprises, singing about but never setting foot upon the Promised Land.