Joshua 3:15-17
Put Your Best Foot Forward
Woodlawn Baptist Church
December 31, 2006
Introduction
Read Joshua 3:15-17,
It is a great day to be in the Lord’s house – a day of celebration, perhaps some contemplation, and even the end of some holiday frustration! With a new year come new resolutions, and probably more than we’d care to admit a new resolve to keep old resolutions. Several of you probably don’t even bother with resolutions. Most who don’t make them stopped somewhere along the way simply because they didn’t keep the ones they used to make!
For the last several days news stations, web-sites and a host of other sources have been listing for us the top three to ten things people want to change, goals they want to accomplish, habits they want to begin or end, men and women they’d like to date or marry, and commitments they want to keep in the upcoming year. I found lists naming the top 5 resolutions for your websites, for your email, for your pets, for your job, health, finances, and for your looks, among others. One survey I liked gave the top 3 things women wanted from their men in 2007. They were for their men to…1) be more romantic, 2) lose some weight, and 3) stop smoking. Other popular answers were that women wanted their men to stop snoring, to stop being a liar, to get a job, to grow up and finally to go away!
I believe if we were to ask Him this morning, we would find that God also has a list of things He would like for us to do or change or be in 2007. If we were to search His Word we’d find that God wants for us to experience more of Him...that He would like for us to lose some weight – that spiritual flab we’ve put on from too much lying around…that He would like for us to get more exercise as we run the race, fight the good fight, flee the Devil and walk in the Spirit…and that He’d love for us to begin eating right as we feast on the Word of God – sweeter than honey and the honeycomb according to the psalmist.
The Old Testament paints for us an amazing picture of the life God desires for us to have and of the life God desires for us to leave. He had saved Israel from their bondage in Egypt to give to them a land of abundance and delight – but in a moment they refused to trust and obey God and landed themselves in 40 years of wilderness wandering – not going back, but not going forward either. For 40 years the people slowly died, half wishing they had obeyed, half wishing God would have left them in Egypt. We find a people who, because of their choices spent 40 years grumbling, unsatisfied, discontent, and restless: always knowing what they could have had, but never being able to have it.
Imagine with me as we stand today in 2006 looking forward to 2007 that we are standing on Jordan’s edge looking across into Canaan. Standing on the wrong side of the Jordan Israel could easily have talked about how blessed they were. Every morning when they got up there was food enough for the day just lying on the ground. The Bible says their clothes and their shoes never wore out. They need water? Just smack a rock and it gushes out. Can cross the sea? God parts if for them. Not sure which way to go? God gives them a cloud by day and a pillar of fire to follow by night – who needs a TomTom when you’ve got God giving you directions? For the most part God removed their enemies from their path, and not even a man like Balaam could curse them. But in spite of all the blessings they knew there was something far greater on the other side of the river. Canaan would forever be better than the wilderness.
It is too easy to look back and talk about what a blessed people we are. God has provided for us. He has protected us. We look around and count our blessings and know that God has blessed us much more than we deserve, but still we want the abundant life we know He wants for us. We want…
• To live in homes where husbands and wives love one another
• To be in families where mothers and fathers are honored and respected
• To see children loved and cared for with tenderness
• Better job situations
• To know that our time here means something
• To know God like we read about in Scripture
• Friendships that are real and meaningful
• Relationships that are open and genuine
You see, whether we would actually say it or not, we all want Canaan. We all want abundant life. And the good news is that God wants to give it to us! Even more than we want better marriages and friendships and all that other stuff God wants all of it for us. In the verses we read Israel stepped over into Canaan, but not before making a series of choices – the same choices you and I must make in our journey to the Canaan God intends for us.
Recognize That Canaan Always Lies Ahead
The people of Israel suffered from a debilitating problem – they spent too much time looking back, having forgotten who they were! “Oh, I wish we were back in Egypt where the good food was and where we had nice homes over our heads and didn’t have to do all this wandering around.” “You want us to fight who? We didn’t used to have to fight anyone!” Never mind that they were slaves in an idolatrous land. Never mind that they had not yet arrived at the place God wanted them – it was comfortable and easy compared to this.
Even three of the twelve tribes had decided that the east side of Jordan wasn’t so bad. They appealed to Moses to let them settle on this side of the river when they were supposed to be on the other. God allowed it, but Canaan was on the other side.
These were not problems that Israel alone suffered. You’ve heard it said before that good is the enemy of the best. God wants for us the very best, but we’ll too quickly settle for good. God delivered us from the bondage of sin and our slavery to the devil, but on our journey to the abundant life we discovered that it is much easier to live in the land of the good: an in-between kind of place that isn’t the slavery of yesterday, but won’t demand the battles necessary ahead of us. In other words, we too quickly become content somewhere between salvation and following God all the way.
Why? Why do we choose to stop short of Canaan? Why do we look back at what we wished we could still have instead of looking ahead? Why do we wish our church could be what it used to be when God wants us to press forward to what it still can become? Why do we spend our days wanting yesterday’s friendships and relationships when there are new and exciting ones still ahead? Why do we look back when abundant life can only lie ahead? There are several reasons, but let me quickly give you just three.
1. Lack of vision – if we can’t envision what lies ahead then this looks pretty good. The wilderness is the place where we quit dreaming of what could be and settle for what we have and what used to be. Remember, “where there is no vision the people perish.”
2. Comfort in numbers – Israel could have already been in Canaan, but when only 2 out of 12 people say let’s go, maybe we ought to go with the 10. When God begins to move in your heart to leave this place and be daring enough to storm Canaan you’ll find yourself in small company. Who wants to strive for sexual purity when it’s acceptable not to? Who wants to risk openness in relationships when we settle for the superficial? Abundant living is the way of the narrow gate.
3. Fear – more often than we care to admit most of us are stuck where we are simply because we’re afraid to take another step.
a. Guys, do you know why our wives have trouble with biblical submission? Because they’re afraid that we’ll abuse our headship, and many do.
b. Why is it that men aren’t as affectionate as they ought to be? Because while they’d not admit it, most are afraid of the intimacy.
c. Why do we not make ourselves transparent and open in our friendships? Because we’re afraid someone is going to hurt us, again.
We could go on and on. The point is simply this: the life God wants for us isn’t somewhere behind us and for most people it isn’t the one we’re living now. Abundant life lies ahead.
Be Prepared To Move When God Says
Let me move quickly now – Joshua gave the people of Israel three days notice that they would be marching. They had been camped out here for many weeks, and had been walking all around the place for 40 years. God wasn’t going to let them stop until they were in Canaan, and not even then until they had driven out their enemies and their idolatrous practices.
When God begins to move in our lives – when He impresses on us to do a thing or to make a move for Him we’ve got to already be ready to move. The only way we can live in this constant state of preparedness is to remember that no matter where you are in life this world is not your home. We’ve got to quit living like it is. Don’t get so settled into today that you can’t obey God.
Debt is a good example of this: some of you are so settled into debt that if God moved on your heart to give something to Him you’d have to disobey Him. You’d have to disobey either because you couldn’t give, or if you did give you’d be robbing someone else to do it.
I heard about a church that started a Monday night Bible study. God moved on this man in the church to join in that Bible study, but he couldn’t because Monday night was his night to watch wrestling. That’s a goofy example I know – but it illustrates what I mean. When God says its time to do a thing – regardless of how fixed you are in your routines, in your habits, in your thinking, in your beliefs, job, community, or any other thing…when God says its time to do it then be ready to do it.
Revisit The Promises Of God
Joshua sent spies back in into the land to search it out. After God had told him to get the people ready and to be strong and of good courage he sent spies back into the land to do what the spies had done 40 years ago. Did he think the report would be any different? Did he think they’d come back and say that he misunderstood? I don’t think so – I believe it was a great affirmation of what they already knew. It was a great place, it was filled with blessings, and yes it was filled with many enemies who would not make their travel easy; but God had given them the land and it was time to go in with great victory!
I have found it to be a comforting and inspiring thing to revisit God’s promises to me and to His people when I am in times of transition and doubt. When God leads me to do a thing I’ve never done before, I can know that He will never leave me nor forsake me. When I don’t understand what’s happening in my life and I have to follow God where I’ve never been before I can remember that He has already walked where I must walk. If following God were to put my life in danger I can rest assured that “to live is Christ, but to die is gain!” Revisit the promises of God.
Make Sure God Is Out Front
God required before the people marched through the Jordan that the Ark of the Covenant, that symbol of His presence and authority had to be out in front of them and that they were following at a distance that would not only show respect and reverence, but also that He was in the lead and they were following. There’s no Ark of the Covenant to look at for us – but God has given us His Spirit and His Word so we might know whether He is leading.
The Leaders Had To Step Into The Water
Now we finally come to the text we have read, and finally we come to the place where what we know has to get us on the go. You see, all the choices I’ve shown you so far are all mental. In other words, you can choose to do everything up to this point and never make a move. You can recognize that abundant life lies ahead of you. You can prepare yourself to move. You can revisit God’s promises to you and see that He is definitely out front and is leading you to make the move, but if you never step into the water then none of it makes any difference.
Not that stepping into the water is an easy choice to make. The Bible indicates that God waited until the river was in its annual flood stage before having them cross over. There was going to be no doubt whatsoever that this was all about the supremacy of Israel’s God. The Canaanites had all their gods: the gods over the sun, the moon, nature, and even water. But all those gods put together couldn’t have done what God was asking Israel to do.
And what was God asking Israel to do? He was asking them to march forward into a hostile land in a most unusual and demanding way. The priests bearing the Ark walked toward the river as it rushed by. With every step they must have wondered whether Joshua had heard the Lord correctly. With every step they had to wonder what the catch was. Twenty feet and still a flooded river…ten feet and no changes…five feet…two feet and now they are standing as close as possible and still nothing has happened. Not until they stepped out and put their feet into the water did God dam up the river and allow Israel to cross over on dry land. Not until faith was exercised did God make the way known.
It is so easy to know everything we need to know, but taking that step of faith into an uncertain future is a whole other matter. You say you have faith? So what – anyone can say they have faith. Will you put your feet into the water? Will you step out when you can’t see how God can possibly make it work? “We walk by faith, not by sight.” Will you dare to follow Jesus when most others will watch from a safe distance? “The narrow way leads to life.” Will you trust God when your fears and doubts scream for your attention? “Without faith it is impossible to please God…” There’s no other way into your Canaan: into your abundant life than to trust God, put your foot right on out there and take that step of faith.
Conclusion
God wants abundant life for us. The reality though is that many will never know it. Most people have become to attached to wilderness living to have the heart to cross over into Jordan. Most will never know real abundant living because they simply do not want it.
But for those with the vision to see, the courage to try and the faith to follow it is there for the taking, but be warned – it didn’t come easy. Jesus didn’t just say that “narrow is the way,” He also said that it was hard – and only a few ever find it. Canaan isn’t heaven. Canaan is the abundant life – the land that God has claimed as His own; a land where you must confront the enemies of God and drive them out.
Some of you are really in an unfortunate situation – you do have the courage, vision and faith it takes to step out there – but you still may never know what real abundant life is; not because of your choices. Truth be told you’re doing all God asks of you, but because of the sinful choices of others in your life you bear grief that others don’t know. Some of you are faithful and obedient in every way you know to, but your life is characterized more by mourning and sorrow, guilt and shame than by joy simply because you live with people unconcerned about living for God. Is it a husband? A wife? A wayward child?
In those situations I am reminded of Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount. “Blessed are they that mourn, those filled with sorrow, those who hurt and grieve.” Why? Because even if they never know it in this life God has great abundance, perhaps even more abundance to give to you who in this life will never see it.
Are you ready for a new year with the Lord? Will you prepare your hearts even now to make the move into Canaan? Will you step into the water with me? As we close, consider the wonderful word of God from 1 Corinthians 2:9,
“But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.”
The verses I have read are just a small part of a fascinating and exciting time in Israel’s life. In the time leading up to this Israel has been in a time of transition. Moses has only been dead a short while, but God had chosen Joshua to take the reigns as the leader of the nation. We might wonder and God has commanded them to finally march over into the promised land.
