{"id":14141,"date":"2026-04-17T05:53:45","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T09:53:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/?post_type=oyb&p=14141"},"modified":"2026-04-17T05:53:46","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T09:53:46","slug":"incomplete-obedience-leaves-enduring-strongholds","status":"publish","type":"oyb","link":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/oyb\/incomplete-obedience-leaves-enduring-strongholds","title":{"rendered":"INCOMPLETE OBEDIENCE LEAVES ENDURING STRONGHOLDS"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\u201cBut the Jebusites, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the people of Judah could not drive out, so the Jebusites dwell with the people of Judah at Jerusalem to this day\u201d (Joshua 15:63 ESV).<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Joshua recorded that Judah received a rich inheritance, yet they did not fully drive out the Jebusites from Jerusalem. Even within the promised land, the people of God experienced unfinished conquest and unresolved conflict. Jerusalem remained occupied by the Jebusites, revealing that the land inheritance, even in Judah, was incomplete and contested. This pointed forward to the reality that Israel had not yet entered a full and lasting rest. Joshua\u2019s narrative therefore revealed a tension between promise and possession. The land was truly given by God, yet not fully secured by His people. In this way, Joshua pointed forward to a greater King and a greater rest, where Jerusalem would eventually become the city of David and ultimately the setting where God would accomplish redemption in Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We see in this passage that incomplete obedience leaves enduring strongholds. Like Judah, we can receive God\u2019s promises yet still fail to fully remove what God has called us to drive out. What we tolerate spiritually today often becomes what troubles us tomorrow. We may settle for partial obedience, but those unresolved areas of sin and compromise can remain with us and shape our future. Therefore, we must take sin seriously and pursue wholehearted obedience, refusing to make peace with what God calls us to remove. At the same time, we rest in the truth that our ultimate hope is not in our own effort, but in Christ’s work in us. For we trust that He who began a good work in us will bring it to completion at the day of Christ’s return (cf. Phil. 1:6).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PRAYER<\/strong>: Dear Father, help us to walk in full obedience to You and not settle for partial surrender. Reveal the areas where we have tolerated what You have called us to crucify, and give us strength to deal with sin decisively. Keep us from the long-term damage of spiritual compromise. Strengthen us to depend on Christ, who has accomplished the complete victory and secured our true rest. In Jesus\u2019 name, amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cBut the Jebusites, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the people of Judah could not drive out, so the Jebusites dwell with the people of Judah at Jerusalem to this day\u201d (Joshua 15:63 ESV). Joshua recorded that Judah received a rich inheritance, yet they did not fully drive out the Jebusites from Jerusalem. Even within the promised<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","meta":[],"categories":[],"tags":[],"scripture-book":[1273],"scripture-chapter":[1348],"oyb_day":[1634],"location":[],"class_list":["post-14141","oyb","type-oyb","status-publish","hentry","scripture-book-joshua","scripture-chapter-1348","oyb_day-april-17"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/oyb\/14141","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/oyb"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/oyb"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14141"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14141"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14141"},{"taxonomy":"scripture-book","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/scripture-book?post=14141"},{"taxonomy":"scripture-chapter","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/scripture-chapter?post=14141"},{"taxonomy":"oyb_day","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/oyb_day?post=14141"},{"taxonomy":"location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/location?post=14141"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}