My Inheritance on Earth

Today I was working on my Bible study in the book of Joshua, Chapter 23. Verses 12 – 13 says,

But if you turn away and ally yourselves with the survivors of these nations that remain among you and if you intermarry with them and associate with them, then you may be sure that the Lord your God will no longer drive out these nations before you. Instead, they will become snares and traps for you, whips on your backs and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from this good land, which the Lord your God has given you.

The good land was the promised inheritance for the Israelites, the culmination of all that the book of Joshua was about. It was their inheritance on earth. The study guide asked the questions, “Will you lose your inheritance on earth if you ally with the “nations” or serve their gods?” and “Will you lose your eternal inheritance if you do this?”

I had to ask myself the question, what is my inheritance on this earth? I know what my eternal inheritance is. It is salvation, eternal life, redemption, heaven, being with Jesus in heaven forever. And, no, I cannot lose this eternal inheritance under any circumstances. If I sin, I sin. Jesus paid the price for that sin the moment I believed in Him. He actually paid for my sin while I was still a sinner. It’s not dependent upon my condition. If I’ve been saved by Jesus, I’m saved.

But what is my earthly inheritance and can I lose that? I struggled with trying to figure out what my earthly inheritance was until a friend drew me back to the context of Joshua 23. The Israelites would lose the good land, the best God had for them, if they allied themselves with the ungodly nations around them. I think I also would lose the best God has for me here on this earth if I ally myself to ungodly people.

There are various views on what it means to be allied with the ungodly in our world today. I take my cue from the New Testament, from 2 Corinthians 6:14 and following:

Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and the Devil? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said, “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.”

To me, to be “yoked” means to have any relationship that could end in a commitment whether it’s marriage or business. So if I ally myself with unbelievers, now that I’m a believer, I’m in danger of losing my earthly inheritance. I would lose out on the best God has for me. This may mean I lose out on the peace, joy, serenity, and love that come from being in right relationship with God. My willful alliance with unbelievers would most likely prevent me from getting the best God wants for me while on earth.

But this would also happen if I chose to be out of right relationship with God whatever the issue. I will lose out on the best God has for me. I don’t want to be missing out on God’s best for me. So, I need to be evaluating where my relationships with God and others need to be changed, so I can enjoy my inheritance on earth.