Courage To Rise Above Series

Joshua 1:1-9. [1:1] After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' assistant, [2]"Moses my servant is dead. Now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel. [3] Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, just as I promised to Moses. [4] From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun shall be your territory. [5] 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. [6] Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. [7] Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all 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. [8] 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. [9] Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go." (ESV)

Today is the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church. Right now, 360 million believers worldwide are facing high levels of persecution and discrimination because of their faith in Jesus. To put that in perspective - the number of people persecuted for their faith is 9 times the population of Canada. According to one report, an average of 13 Christians die for their faith every day. (https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/global-crisis-religious-persecution/)

In Joshua 1, Israel was about to undertake a great enterprise as they entered the land of Canaan. This land had been promised for centuries, and the Pentateuch points repeatedly to it. Now the time had come for the nation to enter the land and take possession of their inheritance. But before they could do this, they needed to undertake several steps of preparation. That preparation meant internalizing the promises of God, realizing the one who had made the promises and having the fruit of that digested word flow through their hearts, minds and actions. Before battling the Canaanites, the Lord was preparing His people to face the difficulties that were before them.

In the sovereign plan of God, He allows difficulties to strengthen the saints of God and testify to His greatness and power. Exemplified ultimately in the Cross of Jesus Christ, suffering and death are not the victory of evil but the triumph of God. When evil seems to be prevailing, God is working in an unexpected way to show His power and Glory. Faithfulness through persecution and suffering is the ultimate present earthly display of courage. Through faith in Christ, believers can exemplify the Courage to Rise Above difficulty. Such extraordinary faithfulness is no momentary action but sustained spiritual striving in the power of God using His divine resources. For both the believers suffering and the church at large, we are called by God to intercede in prayer and fellowship in the Spirit.

Joshua 1 shows us how to obtain the Courage to Rise Above difficulty. God has given us His word through the power of His spirit to join together in prayer and fellowship to find victory in Christ. Joshua 1:1-9 shows how to obtain this victory in three ways. First, we see how to obtain 1) Courage from God’s Commission (Joshua 1:1–2). 2) Courage from God’s Promises (Joshua 1:3–6), and 3) Courage from God’s Written Word (Joshua 1:7–9).

In order to achieve the Courage to Rise Above difficulty we can obtain:

1) Courage from God’s Commission (Joshua 1:1–2).

Joshua 1:1-2. [1:1] After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' assistant, [2]"Moses my servant is dead. Now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel. (ESV)

The Book of Joshua begins as though it were a continuation of something written previously, which, of course, it is. The phrase “the death of Moses” ties this material in with an earlier event (which is recounted in the preceding chapter in the Bible: Deut 34:1–8). The death of Moses occurred c. 1405 B.C. (Criswell, W. A., Patterson, P., Clendenen, E. R., Akin, D. L., Chamberlin, M., Patterson, D. K., & Pogue, J. (Eds.). (1991). Believer’s Study Bible (electronic ed., Jos 1:1). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.)