INTRODUCTION
• SLIDE #1
• I believe one of the biggest frustrations that many Christians endure is feeling like they are not growing spiritually. They do not seem to FEEL God working in their lives.
• They always feel that something is missing. This is one of the reasons we have started the Equip series. The Equip series is designed to help give you the essential tools you need for living a spiritual life, to be able to grow in Christ.
• I want everyone to be able to enjoy growing in Christ, I want to see everyone feel and KNOW that God is working in their lives!
• In our time together today, we are going to examine the issue of tightening our grip on God’s Word.
• Many if not most of our faith struggles come because we do not have a tight grip n God’s Word. The Word of God is something we need to know, love and apply in our lives. I do not believe many of us understand just how important it is for us to know God’s Word.
• As we examine the concept of holding strong during the storms of life last week, we need to know that have a good grip on God’s word and allowing God’s word to have a tight grip on you will help you to be able to achieve the message from last week.
• We will be in the Old Testament book of Joshua today.
• SET UP- Moses died, Joshua getting ready to take folks into the Promised Land. God tells Joshua it is time to man up and get ready to lead the people.
• SLIDE #2
• Joshua 1:6-7(ESV) 6Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. 7Only 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.
• The Israelites were no easy group to deal with. In verse 17 after Joshua told the people to prepare to go, they told him as we obeyed Moses we will obey you. OH BOY! Encouragement?? Of course they did say they would execute whoever disobeyed Joshua.
• Joshua is going to have a BIG job ahead of Him. God is giving Joshua insight as to how he will be able to accomplish the job in verse 8.
• Let us look at verse 8 together.
• SLIDE #3
• Joshua 1:8(ESV) 8This 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.
• SLIDE 4
SERMON
In order to tighten our grip on God’s Word we need to:
I. Allow God’s Word to become the central part of what we are.
• We are going to break verse eight into four phrases so that we can get an in depth look at what God was telling Joshua, and what He is still telling us today.
• The first phrase of verse is is…
• SLIDE #5
• This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth…
• This statement was a command given from God to Joshua who in turn was to share it with the people.
• This statement simply means that the Book of the Law is to be constantly in our mouth, not only when we are preaching it to others, but also when we study it intelligently for ourselves.
• In order for this to happen, we need to allow God’s word to become the central part of what we are.
• We need to allow God’s word to transform us.
• I know we talk a lot about Romans 12:2.
• SLIDE #6
• Romans 12:1-2(ESV) 1I appeal to you therefore, brothers,£ by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.£ 2Do not be conformed to this world,£ but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.£
• How are we to have that renewed mind? What are we to use to “retrain” our minds, our patterns of life and thought?
• This comes down to what we feed our minds. We cannot get a grip on what we do not put into or minds.
• Have you noticed that what you have in your mouth (the words) come from what is in your mind?
• Also what is in your mind directs what you do.
• WE can use scripture after scripture that tells us this.
• Not allowing the Word to depart from our mouth tells us that the Word needs to be in the center of who we are and what we do.
• God wants His word to be constantly flowing from us.
• On our next statement in verse 8 we see that…
• SLIDE #7
In order to tighten our grip on God’s Word we need to:
II. Develop an intimate knowledge of the Word.
• The phrase we are going to latch to for this thought is…
• SLIDE #8
• but you shall meditate on it day and night…
• Meditation on the Word does not mean that we make theoretical speculations ABOUT the Law as the religious leaders of Jesus day were famous for, but rather it means to have a practical study with the purpose of observing it in thought and action.
• To meditate on the Word means that we put a focus on the word and how we can apply in life, how we can display it to others and how we can exemplify it in our life.
• SLIDE #9
• Psalms 1:1-2(ESV) 1Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 2but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.
• It is one thing to study the word but we also need to KNOW the Word and that will never happen unless we dedicate this precious thing called TIME to it.
• Learning the Word does not happen by accident or by divine action, it happens by putting time and effort into getting to know it.
• SLIDE #10
• Deuteronomy 11:18-21(ESV) 18“You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 19You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house, and when you are walking by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. 20You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, 21that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers to give them, as long as the heavens are above the earth.
• I know that people know more about TV stuff than they do the Word of God. Why?
• Knowledge of the Word is great but we need something more…
• SLIDE #11
In order to tighten our grip on God’s Word we need to:
III. Have the conviction to follow the Word.
• The phrase we will focus on here is…
• SLIDE #12
• so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it.
• I know folks who “know” ABOUT the word, who know ABOUT Jesus, who know a lot of FACTS that could win them a bible trivia game, but we need to go deeper.
• WE need to allow the Word to impact us to the point that we are convicted that we MUST follow what it says.
• WE must be convicted that the Word of God will give us the best path to follow for life.
• SLIDE #13
• Psalms 119:105(ESV) 105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
• In order for the Word to light our path, we must follow it. Our faith is not only about accumulating facts; it is about doing, following and loving.
• WE can fully trust the Word as reliable in our life.
• SLIDE #14
• 2 Timothy 3:16-17(ESV) 16All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.
• What more can you ask for? You can try to go through life on your own or you can listen to and follow God’s wisdom and path for your life!
• SLIDE #15
• Let’s conclude our thoughts this morning with…
When we tighten our grip on God’s Word we get to:
IV. Enjoy the blessings obedience brings.
• The phrase we see inverse 8 for this thought is…
• SLIDE #16
• For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
• I see a promise here!
• Notice is says that YOU will make your way prosperous and YOU will have good success.
• This tells us that IF we do what God is asking we will be successful, our way will be prosperous!
• The emphasis on YOU is not meant to mean WE did, it denotes that WE were obedient to the command therefore we have some responsibility in our success.
• Our obedience opened the door for God to make us successful.
• Without YOU following God’s command, God will not make your path successful.
• SLIDE #17
• Proverbs 3:5-6(ESV) 5Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. 6In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
• When we trust God we will be blessed, we will prosper and we will be successful.
• This does not mean we will never face difficulties and setbacks but it means that we will prosper spiritually always.
• When we follow God’s principles, we will be successful.
CONCLUSION
• SLIDE #18
• Joshua and the people had a choice, trust God or trust themselves. If we trust God, we will obey Him and we will be blessed as a result.
• If we lack trust, we will not follow Him and we will be on our own.
• If we are going to succeed in our Spiritual growth we must learn to tighten our grip on God’s word!
