Let’s continue to learn about our God through His people the Israelites. Please open your Bibles to Joshua 11………
God promised Israel a land of their own. Israel, under the leadership of Joshua, were to claim the whole region of Canaan. Read along with me now Joshua 11………
Let us summarize the story…
v4-5: A huge army went to war with Israel.
How big was the army that was going to war against Israel??
as numerous as the sand on the seashore = too many to count!
And did the Israelites fight back??
v6-9: God told the Israelites to fight with a promised victory!
v12-23: Joshua and Israel took the promised land!
We noted in Joshua 10 that Joshua and Israel took at least 5 cities and kings in one campaign. How long did it take Joshua and Israel to conquer the entire Promised Land??
v18…… How long is a long time?? - a long time! – could have been years!
Of course as we apply this principle to our lives today, sometimes God will call us to battle something for a long, long time; as a matter of fact, as we will note later, the spiritual battle within us is a lifetime until we reach our eternal promised land! Some of you may be struggling with battles right now, take heart, trust and obey, learn how the Israelites handled their battle!
And so, the final question: How did Joshua knew what to do??
v15 & 23: God instructed Moses; Moses instructed Joshua; then instructed God’s people!
One last note from the story…. Look again at the end of Joshua 11….
v23: After a long time of battle, God gave Israel rest!
The story can be summarized in 4 simple truths:
1. God commanded the Israelites to conquer Canaan!
The battle was God ordained, for the glory of God!
2. God’s instructions were passed on from generation to generation.
Let us note that God’s message did not change as it was passed on from one generation to the next! The Word of God must never be altered! Joshua and the 3 million Israelites could have ignored what God said to Moses, who they never met, but they did not; they trusted and obeyed!
3. As the Israelites obeyed God, victory was given by God!
4. God gave rest to His people.
Do these truths apply to us today?
1. God’s instructions are passed on to us through the Bible!
We are to listen to God’s Word everyday! Matthew 4:4…….
And again let us never alter the Word of God!
And do Christians today have God ordained battles?
2. 1 Timothy 6:11-12 applies to all Christians….
11 But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.
12 Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
Christians today are called to fight the good fight of faith!
What does this mean? There are actually 2 applications:
a. Christians are to fight with their sinful selves which pull them away from the faith in Jesus Christ – Say no to sin and say no to the devil! There is an internal battle within a Christian which God says to fight! God’s Word tells us to be transformed with the renewing of our minds! Christians, although saved from eternal judgment, have lost the battle within when we allow the devil in. Be careful little eyes what you see; be careful little brains what you put in.
b. Christians are to stand firm in their faith in Christ as confronted by the world!
3. Christians are to see victories in their lives.
Regularly look back to see if you are growing in your faith!
If you are not growing in the Lord, ask God why and obey Him!
4. Take rests which God calls you to take. Weekly worship is a must but find times of devotions with God on a daily basis!
