There is a common desire inside everyone to want to succeed
• Because we measure our worth on the basis of how successful we are.
• How we measure that success is often based on a worldly standard rather than a godly standard.
• Success by the world’s standard often means luxury, wealth, and possessions, achievements, notoriety, and fame, beauty, brains and brawn.
• But the problem is if we measure our lives by the world’s standards
• We will have an inaccurate and incomplete view of whether or not we’re successful.
• God’s standard of measurement is nothing like the world’s standard.
If you have ever spent anytime in a book store you’ll know that there isn’t a shortage on books out there that claim they can make you successful.
• One of the books I have seen was by a man by the name of Ned Grossman,
• And it was called quite simply How to Succeed in Life.
• And as I looked through this book Ned claimed there were 6 steps
• 1. We become what we think about.
• 2. Decide exactly what you want.
• 3. Determine the price you have to pay.
• 4. Commit to pay the price.
• 5. Work hard, one day at a time.
• 6. Never give up.
After putting down Ned’s book I found another book on success nearby
• It had 3 formulas for success, similar to the first one.
• But What was really interesting is where I found these books:
• On the clearance table.
Today I want us to look at Joshua 1:6-9
• And what we see in these verses is God’s formula for success
• God’s principles for success is completely unlike the world’s formula.
• And the good news is that His formula works for every person, in every situation,
• It will work if you’re in school, It will work in our business,
• It will work in our families, And It will work in our church.
• The pathway to success can’t be traveled by anyone who does not practice God’s formula for success.
Jos 1:6 “Be strong and courageous, for you will lead my people to possess all the land I swore to give their ancestors. Jos 1:7 Be strong and very courageous. Obey all the laws Moses gave you. Do not turn away from them, and you will be successful in everything you do. Jos 1:8 Study this Book of the Law continually. Meditate on it day and night so you may be sure to obey all that is written in it. Only then will you succeed.
Jos 1:9 I command you—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”
There are 3 principles to God’s plan for success that we are going to look at today
Principle #1: BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS
• Notice the number of times God brings this command before Joshua. (v. 6, 7, 9).
• Before we go any further we have to ask ourselves the question
• What is courage?
Courage has several synonyms:
• Bravery, Valor, Fearlessness, Heroism, Confidence, Nerve.
• It also has several nicknames: guts, grit, backbone.
• But there’s one very important thing we need to notice about courage.
• You will never witness courage in someone who is at ease
• Courage is seen in the person who’s back is against the wall,
• When the odds are against them, when the pressure is on,
• When the flaming arrows are close,
• When the pain is intense, when the attack is at hand.
• We see courage in David when he walks into the Valley of Elah
• with his sling to take his stand against Goliath.
• We see courage when Moses stands eye to eye with Pharaoh.
• We see it in Elijah when he challenges the prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel.
• Courage can only be seen in the midst of conflict and struggle.
But Why did God tell Joshua that he needed to be courageous?
• What was Joshua about to face that was so difficult that he would need to be courageous?
• Well besides being the leader of the nation of Israel,
• God had asigned Joshua a project to complete.
• And His first task was to lead his army into Canaan and drive out the people who lived there.
• Now when we look at the overview of this it sounds like an easy job,
• But remember, 40 years before this under Moses’ leadership he had sent 12 spies into the land of Canaan.
• And these spies had came back with stories of giants living in the land who made them look like grasshoppers.
• When the people heard this they became afraid and they refused to enter the land.
• There were seven nations living in Canaan, all of them larger and stronger than Israel.
• By all human standards Joshua was facing an uphill battle.
• He had every reason to turn tail and run.
• That’s why God encourages him so many times: Be strong and courageous.
• A lot of times in our lives we feel like we are facing an uphill battle?
• We feel like the odds are against us
• If we were to be honest with ourselves there are hundreds of times in our lives
• When we’re faced with situations that, to our eyes, seem impossible!
• There are outward circumstances like illnesses and disabilities,
• Broken relationships, financial hardships, the loss of a job, etc.
• These’s also the inner conflicts that test our faith,
• Attacks on our personal integrity, remaining faithful when no one is looking,
• Enduring the sting of loneliness and separation, standing alone when you’re misunderstood.
• There are many times in our lives when we need to hear God’s command to
• “Be strong and courageous.”
• There’s something else that we can’t overlook.
• And that is even though Joshua and his nation were small in comparison to the enemy,
• They had somebody on their side that would tip the scales in their favor.
Look at Joshua 1:9 (read).
Jos 1:9 I command you—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”
Compare that with Deut. 7:17-19, 21 (read).
Dt 7:17 Perhaps you will think to yourselves, ‘How can we ever conquer these nations that are so much more powerful than we are?’
Dt 7:18 But don’t be afraid of them! Just remember what the LORD your God did to Pharaoh and to all the land of Egypt.
Dt 7:19 Remember the great terrors the LORD your God sent against them. You saw it all with your own eyes! And remember the miraculous signs and wonders, and the amazing power he used when he brought you out of Egypt. The LORD your God will use this same power against the people you fear.
Dt 7:21 “No, do not be afraid of those nations, for the LORD your God is among you, and he is a great and awesome God.
Just like Joshua and the nation of Israel,
• We may see ourselves as small in comparison to the enemy,
• But we have somebody on our side that is going to tip the scales in our favor.
• God’s formula for success begins with, “Be strong and courageous.”
• But there is an addendum I want to put on it that makes it complete.
• And that is “For the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
• Real success is not a matter of strength and courage alone,
• But strength and courage that comes from the knowledge that God is walking with us.
• Don’t miss the point!
• For Joshua to lead the people into the land of Canaan
• And claim God’s promise he had to be strong and courageous.
• They couldn’t be like their fathers had done a generation ago
• They couldn’t grumble and complain and refuse to enter the land because of their fear.
• Listen to Moses recount the story of their failure in Deut. 1:26-32 (read).
Dt 1:26 “But you rebelled against the command of the LORD your God and refused to go in. Dt 1:27 You murmured and complained in your tents and said, ‘The LORD must hate us, bringing us here from Egypt to be slaughtered by these Amorites. Dt 1:28 How can we go on? Our scouts have demoralized us with their report. They say that the people of the land are taller and more powerful than we are, and that the walls of their towns rise high into the sky! They have even seen giants there—the descendants of Anak!’
Dt 1:29 “But I said to you, ‘Don’t be afraid! Dt 1:30 The LORD your God is going before you. He will fight for you, just as you saw him do in Egypt.
The outcome of their fear and unbelief was…what?
• God became angry with them and took away His blessings for that generation
• These were the blessings that He had reserved especially for them.
• And now God doesn’t want Joshua and his generation to make the same mistake.
I think we need to apply this principle not only in our personal life,
• But also in our church life as well.
• It would be easy for us to look at our congregation with our human eyes and human understanding and say,
• “We’re just too small We’re to insignificant to have any influence on the Franklin.
• Let’s just do what little we can and be satisfied with that.”
• But statements like this are just weak excuses for a weak faith.
In God’s success formula
• The first thing we have to do is be strong and courageous,
• Because the Lord our God is with us wherever we go.
PRINCIPLE #2: OBEDIENCE TO GOD’S COMMANDS (v. 7)
• God instructs Joshua: to “Be careful to obey ALL the law….”
• Life would be so much easier if we could pick and choose which of God’s principles and laws we could follow
• And those that are just too demanding and too harsh.
• Illustration of looking for fruit in the grocery store, Apples, Oranges, Bannanas
• Only now we’re shopping for “principles.”
• “Let’s see I’ll take some joy.
• Here’s some love, I always like that.
• Patience…hmmm, that sometimes upsets my stomach.
• Forgiveness? I’m not in the mood for that today.)
• The law that Joshua was given was very detailed,
• And God expected him to learn it, meditate on it, and apply it.
• We’re not under that same law today, but we do live by the same principles.
• Jesus said that there are two commands that are most important.
1) Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.
2) Love your neighbor as yourself.
Paul called love the fulfillment of the law; James called it the royal law.
• Whatever you call it,
• God’s formula for success wouldn’t be complete without it.
PRINCIPLE #3: SATURATION IN GOD’S WORD (v. 8)
Have you ever bought something and tried to put it together without using the directions? (Wagon)
I could have saved myself hours of misery
• If I had simply read the instructions.
• Some of you wives have husbands like this, don’t you?
• Mistakes are made because we don’t read the instruction manual.
• This same principle is true when it comes to our Christian walk.
• Many of our mistakes could have been avoided
• If we simply had spent sometime reading and studying God’s word.
• But One thing that has occurred to me
• And that is ignorance is no excuse for acting stupid.
The mistakes that I made assembling that wagon
• Were made in ignorance,
• But that didn’t stop me from suffering the consequences for being stupid.
• My ignorance was a deliberate, voluntary ignorance.
• The information I needed was available.
So today as we get ready to close I feel we need to understand that
• When we try to live without consulting God’s word,
• It’s a deliberate, voluntary ignorance.
• But this ignorance won’t stop us from suffering the consequences for being stupid.
• The wisdom we need is available.
• It’s not just about reading it;
• It’s about meditating on it
• It’s about letting God’s word saturate our spirit.
• God’s Formula for Success works,
• But there are no shortcuts.
• It calls for us to be strong and courageous.
• It calls for us to be obedient to His commands.
• And It calls for us to saturate our spirit with His word.
