It was good have Robert Chapman back in the pulpit this week at Tabernacle after allowing a brother in Christ to speak last week. This week's sermon grabbed my attention from the start, as I figure it would many people. What do we view as success? But the question dug deeper. What do you see as a success in your Christian life? How successful are you in your spiritual life? The fist part of the question was easy, the fruits of the spirit can help us determine what success is in our Christian lives. But when asked how successful we are being, that brings a reality check, a measurement to determine if we are WORKING to be successful, or WISHING to be successful.
As a bit of background info for anyone not familiar with this passage, the Israelites who were God's chosen people, were headed towards the promised land. God had promised it to them many years before but they turned from him and to their own wicked ways and were forced to wander in the desert for 40 years. Joshua was now being called by the Lord to lead the people after the death of Moses. In Joshua, they have finally made it back around to where they would finally enter the land promised to them by God.
The Lord has a plan for spiritual success in our life, and if we study this passage we can find three keys to success to better equip us in moving forward with faith in God.
1. Assurance of God's Presence: V.5 reads "No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you." How encouraging is that! Here Joshua is, become the leader of a group of people who have been wandering in the wilderness for 40 years. Wives, how mad would you be at your husband if he got lost for 40 mins? So you can imagine there was some tension and dissension going on among the Israelites as Joshua takes command. But here God gives Joshua the promise of his divine power for the task he has before him. In the last part of v.9, God promises "for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go" giving Joshua assurance that God won't just be here for now, but for always.
The Israelites were not coming to simply "take" the promised land, it had already been destined to them by God. Deuteronomy 9:4-5 tells us that the land was being given to them, "not because of your righteousness", but because of the "wickedness of these nations". So we can see here that one, they did not steal the land from anyone. Two, that God is a both a God of love and a god of judgment. The Canaanites had turned from God and now their land would be handed over to another nation as punishment. Um, if that doesn't sound like the USA today I don't know what does. If we continue to turn from God on moral policy, then the foreign policy our next president has will not matter. The war that was awaiting for the Israelites was as much a spiritual war as it was a physical war. We all take up for our little sister or brother if someone says something about them, how much more so should we take up for our heavenly father God when people question Him?! Are we preparing ourselves as spiritual warriors?
2. Having the Courage for God's Challenge: Vs.6-7 say "Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous..." V.9 even says this again "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed..." In three verses God tells Joshua over and over again to be strong and courageous. Why did he need courage? Well, Joshua was standing there facing a daunting task of capturing the land of the Canaanites who were not planning to just hand it over to the Israelites regardless of what God's plan was. He also had to convince the people that the land was worth pursuing. In Numbers 13, some spies for the Israelites came back and gave a bad report of the land and told of how big and strong the people living there were in an effort to dissuade the movement. They were now at the entrance to the land but the people were afraid to go because of fear.
Just like the Israelites needed encouragement from God then, we Christians need it today to stand up for God. We need to stand up for what He called us to do in Matthew 28 and "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations."
3. Obedience in God's Word: Vs.7-8 say "...being careful to do according to the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. This Book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success."
God reminds Joshua to observe the Law of Moses. He orders Joshua not to turn from the law to the right or to the left. Some translations say to "keep this Book of the Law always on your lips." We are commanded to speak and share the Word of God with others. Meditate on the Word, study it day and night. How can we follow the Law if we don't know yet? And it ends with a promise, that if we obey God's word, He will make our ways prosperous and successful.
I don't know about you, but I've found that when I'm in God's Word more I have a better sense of joy and peace about the things in my life. The stresses of work and a baby, and the million other things that fight for my attention seem to become easier to deal with when I seek Him first and keep Him as my top priority. I doubt that everything I do on this earth will be a success, but I rest assured knowing that if I pursue after God that when I'm able to seek and find His will, I will be successful in my spiritual life.
#MondayMorningPreacher #Courage
As a bit of background info for anyone not familiar with this passage, the Israelites who were God's chosen people, were headed towards the promised land. God had promised it to them many years before but they turned from him and to their own wicked ways and were forced to wander in the desert for 40 years. Joshua was now being called by the Lord to lead the people after the death of Moses. In Joshua, they have finally made it back around to where they would finally enter the land promised to them by God.
The Lord has a plan for spiritual success in our life, and if we study this passage we can find three keys to success to better equip us in moving forward with faith in God.
1. Assurance of God's Presence: V.5 reads "No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you." How encouraging is that! Here Joshua is, become the leader of a group of people who have been wandering in the wilderness for 40 years. Wives, how mad would you be at your husband if he got lost for 40 mins? So you can imagine there was some tension and dissension going on among the Israelites as Joshua takes command. But here God gives Joshua the promise of his divine power for the task he has before him. In the last part of v.9, God promises "for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go" giving Joshua assurance that God won't just be here for now, but for always.
The Israelites were not coming to simply "take" the promised land, it had already been destined to them by God. Deuteronomy 9:4-5 tells us that the land was being given to them, "not because of your righteousness", but because of the "wickedness of these nations". So we can see here that one, they did not steal the land from anyone. Two, that God is a both a God of love and a god of judgment. The Canaanites had turned from God and now their land would be handed over to another nation as punishment. Um, if that doesn't sound like the USA today I don't know what does. If we continue to turn from God on moral policy, then the foreign policy our next president has will not matter. The war that was awaiting for the Israelites was as much a spiritual war as it was a physical war. We all take up for our little sister or brother if someone says something about them, how much more so should we take up for our heavenly father God when people question Him?! Are we preparing ourselves as spiritual warriors?
2. Having the Courage for God's Challenge: Vs.6-7 say "Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous..." V.9 even says this again "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed..." In three verses God tells Joshua over and over again to be strong and courageous. Why did he need courage? Well, Joshua was standing there facing a daunting task of capturing the land of the Canaanites who were not planning to just hand it over to the Israelites regardless of what God's plan was. He also had to convince the people that the land was worth pursuing. In Numbers 13, some spies for the Israelites came back and gave a bad report of the land and told of how big and strong the people living there were in an effort to dissuade the movement. They were now at the entrance to the land but the people were afraid to go because of fear.
Just like the Israelites needed encouragement from God then, we Christians need it today to stand up for God. We need to stand up for what He called us to do in Matthew 28 and "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations."
3. Obedience in God's Word: Vs.7-8 say "...being careful to do according to the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. This Book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success."
God reminds Joshua to observe the Law of Moses. He orders Joshua not to turn from the law to the right or to the left. Some translations say to "keep this Book of the Law always on your lips." We are commanded to speak and share the Word of God with others. Meditate on the Word, study it day and night. How can we follow the Law if we don't know yet? And it ends with a promise, that if we obey God's word, He will make our ways prosperous and successful.
I don't know about you, but I've found that when I'm in God's Word more I have a better sense of joy and peace about the things in my life. The stresses of work and a baby, and the million other things that fight for my attention seem to become easier to deal with when I seek Him first and keep Him as my top priority. I doubt that everything I do on this earth will be a success, but I rest assured knowing that if I pursue after God that when I'm able to seek and find His will, I will be successful in my spiritual life.
#MondayMorningPreacher #Courage
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