A lesson learned in the life of a great man of God. A man that was human, and made his mistakes, but a man that learned from those mistakes and gave control over to God.
Each of our campuses are full of men and women that have the potential to do great and powerful things with the help of God.
God’s power, wisdom and guidance is right here with us, available every step of our journey through life. Through the good times and the bad. As much as we try to remember God, we often forget that it is God who gives us the strength to do all things.
We just forget! I don’t think Joshua was being blatantly defiant towards God. He just got caught up in a moment. Perhaps he was so busy ‘fighting’ for God, he neglected to talk to God? You just overlook it.
ILL – Other day looking for my wallet
-When you’re not completely focused, when something else is on your mind, it’s easy to overlook the obvious.
This mistake of Joshua with the Gibeonites could have cost him and the nation everything. But he handled it right. 9:16-22 Joshua confessed that he was deceived. The human lesson here is that our lives are filled with battles, not always physical ones, but spiritual. How do we respond? Do we have the courage to let God control our actions?
It’s a dangerous place to be when your spiritual life is a Kodak moment…’overexposed’ to sin and negative influences, and ‘underdeveloped’ spiritually and emotionally. In fact, consulting Gods plan and will for your life through His word and prayer, are signature marks of a developing relationship with Him.
We all sin, we all fall short. That’s part of the deal. You are going to sin, You are going to leave God out of the equation. At some point you are going to feel like you can’t move forward. Sin ruins people when left on their own. Mistakes rack up and overburden us. Even the very best of Christians.
Sins and mistakes don’t have to ruin us. This story tells me that. It tells me that God listens to our cries…I love that!
When you commit a sin or make a mistake, admit to it. Give it up to God and let Him forgive, let Him guide, let Him heal. We have our own plans, our own pursuits, our own desires….it’s not easy to give that control over to God.
We’ve all got things in the closet. We all trip and fall. We all make the mistake of trying to pick ourselves up occasionally. Proverbs 28:13 says that whoever conceals his sins, will not prosper…but whoever confesses them and forsakes them will obtain mercy.
Forsake ( Hebrew - Azab) to abandon, leave behind, to release. This word can signify a trust, to allow to continue. Get it???
The times in my life when I feel the most weighed down, the most distant from God, the most hopeless about my situation, the most reliant on myself…I realize I am not letting go of so any things!
Everyone has sin they need to let go of. It’s not just the person who looks like they’re struggling. Everyone has something they struggle with, even those are courageous and mighty as Joshua.
There will come times in your life when the Lord will supernaturally intervene in your life and fight the battles for you. There will be other times where you may be allowed to struggle for a while with a situation so God can teach you character.
Never give up! Never Quit! Embrace Jesus and Expect A Miracle!
God wants to develop you! To mold you into something great for Him. You don’t know what that is or what that is going to look like. But you need to have courage like Joshua to allow God to clear out the space inside of you that He needs to work, to reshape you. It’s not always going to be easy!!!!!
The Christian life is about being holy, not happy.
--Rick Warren in his book the Purpose Driven Life says:
"Many Christians misinterpret Jesus’ promise of the "abundant life" to mean perfect health, a comfortable lifestyle, constant happiness, full realization of your dreams, and instant relief from problems through faith and prayer. In a word, they expect the Christ life to be easy. They expect heaven on earth....Why would God provide heaven on earth when he’s planned the real thing for you in eternity?"
God wants to develop your character and intimacy with him while you live on this earth.
The thing we learn from this story in the life of Joshua is that when we make mistakes or sin and respond positively to God, he is willing to use our effort to fulfill his purposes and bless us in the process.
Do you have the courage to give it ALL to God?
What is stopping you from giving it all to God?
Pride? Self Reliance?
Fear? That God might not handle it in the way you would?
Shame? That you’re embarrassed?
Perhaps like Joshua, you are too busy doing ‘Gods work’ that you forget to let God work in you? It’s easy to be a pastor and believe that because you’re doing ministry…because you’re putting forth effort to help others…that you are walking hand in hand with God! Not so!
We can live Christian lives without consulting God…for a while. But in the end it always shows up, it always catches you.
Maybe you’re listening to others around you. Maybe you’re buying into what they say…you’re not good enough, you’re not worth it.
Maybe you have let yourself believe that all the good things you’ve been blessed with in your life were obtained on your own power, your own strength, your own abilities?
Maybe you’re so lost in your sin that you feel it’s hopeless.
God knows the heart. God leads the change.
Do you have the courage to give it all to Him?
Like Joshua, do you own up to your shortcomings, your sins, your mistakes? Are you willing to let the almighty God, take control of your life….
Turn it upside down….
Turn it inside out….and use you…in a way you could have never imagined? Do you have that kind of faith, that kind of courage?
