Get Ready to Move!!
Joshua Ch1Vv1-11
1 Now after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord it came to pass, that the Lord spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' minister, saying, 2 Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. 3 Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses. 4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast. 5 There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. 6 Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them. 7 Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper withersoever thou goest. 8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. 9 Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest. 10 Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying, 11 Pass through the host, and command the people, saying, Prepare you victuals; for within three days ye shall pass over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land, which the Lord your God giveth you to possess it.
This morning as I take an assessment on life, there is one truth about all of us in here and that is we are all at some place in our lives. No matter the situation we are in or going through, we are at some place in our lives. I just stop by this morning to tell each one of us it is time to MOVE! Tell your neighbor to GET READY TO MOVE!
There is one thing I need us to know this morning, as a Christian we cannot become complacent in our walk with God. God is a God of vision and movement! For there is too much work in God’s kingdom to be done. Matthew chapter 9 verses 37 through 38 says, “Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest”.
Although we all may be at different places in our lives or going through different situations. Jesus is looking for people who are ready to completely give their lives to Him! In order to do that, we must be ready to MOVE! The harvest is ripe but so many of us have become comfortable and content at the place we are in our lives. The trouble with that is, if we become satisfied with being in such a place we will never want to move. Tell your neighbor to GET READY TO MOVE!
What is a laborer? It is a person who does unskilled physical work for wages. But let me direct your attention to the fact that God is looking for unskilled people who are ready to fully depend on Him. Faith and obedience is what you need to get ready to MOVE!
Ask your neighbor are you ready to move!
Before some of us can move, we have to decide if we are ready to leave where we are. To go where God wants us to be!
Some of us are hung up on…
The place of, worries.
The place of, anxiety.
The place of, depression.
The place of, self-pity.
The place of, brokenness.
The place of, sickness.
The place of, pride.
The place of, selfishness.
The place of, finances.
The place of, hatred.
The place of, lust.
The place of, sin.
The place of, all about me. (Do what I wanna do in life)
The place of, familiar.
The place of, contentment.
The place of, satisfaction. (Meaning we are satisfied where we are!)
The place of, laziness.
The place of, disobedience.
Tell somebody Lord have mercy we’ve got to MOVE!
God is intent on completing his plan in the lives of his children, and nowhere is this intentional leading more evident than in the account of Joshua and the children of Israel entering the Promised Land. Many important parallels may be applied to churches and individual believers alike as we embrace God’s plan for our lives. As the Lord desires to move the church and those of us who are true believers forward, he will begin to reveal important information, information that is vital to our successful start, continuance, and completion of his plan. As God begins to move, we must get ready. We must begin immediately to pay attention and be prepared to follow. We must faithfully follow his leading because the best is yet to come!
I believe before we can move forward from the place we are that three things we must understand,
1. WE MUST UNDERSTAND THE PLAN. (1-4)
After Moses died, God wanted Joshua to know that his plan for Israel had not changed and that the time had come for Israel to get ready to move. It is important to note that while much had transpired since Israel’s failure to believe in God, his plan was still waiting to be accomplished. Certainly, the following their departure from Egypt, Israel had attempted their own plans, but God’s plan remained his will for his children.
In the light of this, we need to remember that there are many plans about success, fulfillment, finances, and destinations, but these are frequently based on our incomplete knowledge and understanding of God’s plan and our needs.
God always has the plan, based on his complete knowledge and understanding. For the children of Israel, it was to get out of Egypt, crossed the wilderness, and of the Promised Land, and live there experiencing his blessings. The plan that God has for us today, is the plan to leave the former life, enter a new life, live a fruitful life, and live experiencing his blessings. All this must happen by being faithful and obedient to God’s word. We need to understand totally, God always has the plan for us!
As somebody now that you know God’s plan are you ready to move!
I tell you this morning, we need to get ready to move!
2. We need to understand the power.(1:5-9)
Along with his plan, God always supplies the means, or the power, and as we pursue his plans, it must be with the right power!
There are two things Gods plan cannot be manipulated or powered by:
(A). Not the power of personal opinions. God’s plans do not work with the power of personal opinions. Remember the tragedy of Numbers chapter 14 verses 1-5, “And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.
2 And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!
3 And wherefore hath the Lord brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?
4 And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.
5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel”.
God’s plan has nothing to do with what we think, is not about us but all about God!
(B). Not the power of group determination. God’s plans do not work with the power of group determinations remember the tragedy of numbers Chapter 14Vv40-43, “40 And they rose up early in the morning, and gat them up into the top of the mountain, saying, Lo, we be here, and will go up unto the place which the Lord hath promised: for we have sinned.41 And Moses said, Wherefore now do ye transgress the commandment of the Lord? but it shall not prosper.42 Go not up, for the Lord is not among you; that ye be not smitten before your enemies.43 For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and ye shall fall by the sword: because ye are turned away from the Lord, therefore the Lord will not be with you”. God’s plans work only in the simplicity of his own power. When God gives you a promise, His power will perform that which He has spoken! His power nor His promises is regulated by group determination!
3. We must understand the prize. (1:10-11)
As God moves the church and the believers forward in accomplishing his plan, it is important to understand His goal. In our text for this morning, God wanted Israel to take possession of the land he had promised to them. In order for Israel to accomplish this prize, God issued one order: “PREPARE!”
*They had to prepare provisions for the final portion of the trip.
*They had to prepare their hearts to see God work in a miraculous way- by helping them crossed the Jordan.
*They had to prepare themselves to receive what God wanted them to have.
Tell somebody you ought to be ready to move now!
GET READY TO MOVE!
Can you hear Joshua giving the order to move in the 10TH and 11th verse, “10 Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying, 11 Pass through the host, and command the people, saying, Prepare you victuals; for within three days ye shall pass over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land, which the Lord your God giveth you to possess it”.
So likewise I have come to tell you this morning, God is ready for us to posse a new territory in our church and in our Christian walk with Him! I come to tell you this morning it is time to GET READY TO MOVE! God has something great in store for us! All we have to do is walk in faith and obedience to His holy word!
God wants to see us embrace His plan, His power, and the prize He is directing us toward. In order to do this we must get ready to move! He has a particular goal He wants us to accomplish, and He will provide the power for the process.
Tell somebody GET READY TO MOVE!!!!
