“WHEN GOD SPEAKS – JOSHUA”
Joshua 1:1-9
CWBC – 2/17/19
Jon Daniels
INTRO – Lots of people live w/ the false notion that they will never do anything great. They let their failures or their weaknesses dictate the course of their life, instead of working to overcome those failures & weaknesses. Reminds me of a story of a young, 16 yr-old girl named Eliza who married a 20 yr-old man who was a tailor by trade. He had never been to school &, while others might have written him off as a lost cause, his young wife didn’t. She began to teach him to read & write & spell. Those days were difficult, but he proved to be a fast learner. In fact, he learned so well that, years later he was elected president of the United States! When he ran for a second term he lost, but refused to give up. Instead, he won a seat in the U.S. Senate. Who was this man? Our 17th president, Andrew Johnson.
Are you & I living up to the full potential that we have in our relationship w/ God? Charles Schultz, writer of the Peanuts comics that made Charlie Brown & Snoopy famous, once said, “There is no heavier burden than an unfulfilled potential.” That’s especially true for those of us who are Christ-followers, b/c we KNOW that God has created us & given us the power to do great things for Him & for His glory. To live a life in which we choose not to strive to live up to the potential that He has given each of His children is truly a tragic thing.
We all have the potential to do great things for God. William Carey, the father of modern missions, preached a sermon in 1792 that contained this challenge: “Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God!”
Today, as we continue the series, “When God Speaks,” we are going to look at a man who did great things for God. We are going to look at Joshua & the moment when God spoke to him at the beginning of his ministry w/ God’s people.
EXPLANATION – Open your Bibles or Bible app to Joshua 1:1-6 (page 178 in pew Bible).
The book of Joshua gives an overview of the military campaigns to conquer the land area that God had promised to Moses & the children of Israel. Remember that Moses was not able to go into the Promised Land due to his disobedience to God’s commands in Numbers 20. Moses got to see the Promised Land, but did not get to enter it – Deut. 34:1-4.
After Moses died, Joshua moved into the place of leadership among the people & led them forth in the conquest of the Promised Land. He led them for approximately 20 years until he died. Joshua 24:29-31 says this about him: “After these things, the Lord’s servant, Joshua, son of Nun, died at the age of 110. They buried him in his allotted territory at Timnath-serah, in the hill country of Ephraim north of Mount Gaash. Israel worshiped the Lord throughout Joshua’s lifetime & during the lifetimes of the elders who outlived Joshua & who had experienced all the works the Lord had done for Israel.”
What a legacy! What a powerful testimony to a life of greatness! Joshua could have just stayed in the shadow of his predecessor, the great leader, Moses, but he didn’t. He accepted God’s assignment for his life, to be Moses’ assistant, until his time came to step up & become one of the greatest military leaders in the Bible. His life is held up as a model in leadership & as a source of practical application on how to be an effective leader. His courage was strong! His faith was solid! His obedience was steady! And all of this b/c he listened when God spoke.
What about us? Will we listen when God speaks? He speaks by His Spirit in us through His Word, through prayer, through circumstances, & through others. Will we listen when He speaks to us today? Will we respond to Him w/ no excuses when He speaks to us today?
APPLICATION – Let’s look at our passage & find the points of application for our lives.
Joshua 1:1 – One verse of introduction, then God begins to speak. He speaks of:
- The past – v. 2a
- The present – v. 2b-3
- The future – v. 4-5
Then, we find the heart of God’s message to Joshua & its application to our lives today:
God speaks to give us His commands – v. 6-8
Last week, I put John 14:15 on list of memory verses. Simple verse – easy to memorize – hard to put into practice sometimes – Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”
Not always easy to do what God tells us to do, but He speaks His commands to us in very clear ways. And until you & I hear His commands & respond to them appropriately, we will never be happy or satisfied in our relationship w/ the Lord. Reminds me of the old hymn by John Sammis that says, “Trust & obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust & obey.”
God gave clear commands to Joshua –
- “Be strong & courageous” – v. 6, 7, 9
- Do what the Law of God says to do – v. 7
- Don’t turn from God’s Law to the right or to the left – v. 7
- Don’t let God’s Law be moved or removed from your mouth – study it & talk about it constantly – v. 8
- Meditate on God’s Law constantly – v. 8
- Don’t be frightened – v. 9
- Don’t be dismayed – v. 9
Main emphasis was on the Law of God that had been given to them – their Scriptures. Same commands given to us about the Word of God b/c this is God’s primary way of speaking to us.
- Heb. 4:12 – “The word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword. It cuts all the way through, to where soul and spirit meet, to where joints and marrow come together. It judges the desires and thoughts of the heart.” (GNT)
- 2 Tim. 3:16 – “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.” (NLT)
God speaks to provide His encouragement – v. 9
God doesn’t just issue commands when He speaks. He also provides His encouragement to us in our times of difficulty & trouble. Certainly, Joshua was in need of some strong encouragement at this time in the history of the children of Israel. They were about to go into battle against strong enemies. Their lives were going to be on the line. These were serious times, & as their leader, Joshua needed to know that God was going to be there for him, providing for him, protecting him, & promising him victory over his enemies.
“…the Lord your God is w/ you wherever you go.”
God said this to Jacob – Gen. 28:15 – “Behold, I am w/ you & will keep you wherever you go…”
God said this to Moses – Ex. 33:4 – “And He said, ‘My presence will go w/ you, & I will give you rest.’”
God said this to David – Psalm 23:4 – “Yea, though I walk through the valley of death, I will fear no evil for Thou at w/ me; thy rod & thy staff, they comfort me.”
Jesus said this to His disciples – Matt. 28:20 – “…be sure of this: I am w/ you always, even to the end of the world.”
God says this to all of His children – Rev. 21:3 – “And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Now God’s presence is with people, and he will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them and will be their God.”
Is there any greater encouragement that we can hear from God than to hear Him say to us that He will be w/ us all the time, wherever we go? Heb. 13:5-6 – God speaks to us & says, “’I will never leave you nor forsake you.’ So we can confidently say, ‘The Lord is my Helper; I will not fear. What can mere man do to me?’”
God speaks & expects that we will obey – v. 10-15
When God speaks & give us a command, behind that command is the full expectation from God that we will obey Him.
What does God say is a result of obedience? Look back at v. 7-8 – “good success”… “make your way prosperous…” – NLT says in v. 8, “…Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.”
One of Satan’s main strategies against us is to try to convince us that we really don’t have to obey God, that God will wink at & ignore our sins, & that our lives will go on uninterrupted even as we continue to sin. WRONG!
Joshua 7 – Achan’s sin
E. Stanley Jones – “We cannot break physical laws & not get hurt, nor can we break spiritual laws & not get hurt…The moment sin enters, death enters, too – as substance & shadow, inseparable. It is the death of inner peace, of influence, of power to help others, of self-respect, & of your relationship w/ God.”
CONCLUSION – Remember William Carey’s quote: “Expect great things from God! Attempt great things for God!” That means hearing God speak & living a life of obedience to His commands. Step up today & be strong & courageous! DO RIGHT NOW what God is telling you to do! No excuses!
