What do we know about Joshua?
• He was born in Egypt
• He was part of the entire 40 years of the wilderness time
• He was the commander of the army that defeated the Amalekites. That was the battle where Moses' hands were kept up, and as long as they were up, the Israelites were winning the battle.
• He was one of the 12 spies that were sent by Moses to go into Canaan and only Joshua and Caleb brought back a good report.
• He was given authority by Moses to take over after his death.
• His original name Jehoshua means "Jehovah is help."
Read Joshua 1:1-9
It had been 40 years since the Israelites crossed the Red Sea. They had been oppressed in Egypt, slaves sometimes not being able to meet the expectations of their Egyptian owners. They needed to leave. After over 400 years of this, God's timing was perfect. He raised up a man, a murderer to carry out God's plan of continuing to watch over his chosen people. 40 years earlier, Moses had killed an Egyptian because he was beating an Israelite, so he ran, ashamed. But God used Moses. Even with his lack of confidence, God displayed his own power and brought Pharaoh and Egypt to their knees, begging for the Israelites to leave. So they did. It is thought that there were 2 to 3 million people who walked out of Egypt through the miracle of the Red Sea, into the wilderness going to the promise land.
What was ahead of them? An 11-day journey to Canaan. 11 days is all it should have been, but because of their unbelief and disobedience, it took 40 years. And those who were the leaders along with Moses at the time of the Exodus, would never see the Promised Land.
So as you see in the first verse of Joshua chapter 1, Moses has died. And God has given the leadership over to Joshua. But not only that, God tells Joshua, it's time. It's time for his chosen people to take what God has promised them.
Look what God said to Moses in Joshua 1:3 (ESV)
3 Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, just as I promised to Moses.
God had cleared the path, he had made a way, and success was assured as long as they obeyed. And he gave them a formula for success in verse 6.
Focus: Joshua 1:6 (ESV)
6 Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them.
It was simple. Just do two things. Be Strong & Courageous. 40 years of wandering will be over. Just be strong and courageous. You will finally enter rest. Just be strong and courageous. I will show you that I have not forgotten you. Just be strong & courageous. You will finally have a home of your own. Just be strong and courageous.
These two words put together, 'be strong and courageous' and the idea of them are spoken quite
often in the Bible.
They were first used by Moses speaking to Joshua:
Dt 31:6-7 — Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.” 7 Then Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people into the land that the LORD has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall put them in possession of it.
Then we see Joshua say them for the first time in Joshua 1:6, then he says them two additional times in this same chapter:
Jos 1:9 — Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”
Jos 1:18 — Whoever rebels against your commandment and disobeys your words, whatever you command him, shall be put to death. Only be strong and courageous.”
Why do you think that Joshua says to be Strong & Courageous three time in the same conversation? Because it is important. It was important for God to reveal it to Moses. It was important for Moses to reveal it to Joshua. It was important for God to reveal it to Joshua. And it was important for Joshua to reveal it to the people in verse 18.
It was important. It needed to be said over and over, so they would understand and not forget.
As we look into this command to be strong and courageous, I want you to see a few things, because you and I are called to be strong and courageous today.
1. What is this strength and courage that Joshua is speaking of.
Is it how strong, trained, and confident they are in their own abilities? Is Joshua, saying that we need to run, work out with weights, train, so that we will have muscles, and with these muscles and our own strength that we have gathered, we can be confident that we will beat an enemy and they will fall to us? No.
2. What is the source of our strength and courage?
The best way to answer a question like this is to see other scripture that talks about being strong and having courage.
a. Source of our Strength: Jesus
Philippians 4:13 (ESV)
13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.
Paul is saying that the believer's strength is now their own, it is only by the power of Jesus that we have strength.
Psalm 73:26 (ESV)
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
The Psalmist says that even in my weakness, my strength is from God, it never changes.
Colossians 1:11 (ESV)
May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy,
Paul encourages the church in Colossus that their strength comes from his power and not their own.
The Israelites would go up against some very strong armies as they went into the promise land. But God was telling them, don't be fearful of your size, don't be fearful of their size. Keep your eyes and heart on me.
In 2 Chronicles 20, Jehoshaphat prayed to God because there were several armies coming against him. Listen to his prayer:
2 Chronicles 20:5-14 (ESV)
5 And Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the LORD, before the new court,
6 and said, O LORD, God of our fathers, are you not God in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. In your hand are power and might, so that none is able to withstand you.
7 Did you not, our God, drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel, and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend?
8 And they have lived in it and have built for you in it a sanctuary for your name, saying,
9 If disaster comes upon us, the sword, judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we will stand before this house and before you for your name is in this house and cry out to you in our affliction, and you will hear and save.
10 And now behold, the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir, whom you would not let Israel invade when they came from the land of Egypt, and whom they avoided and did not destroy
11 behold, they reward us by coming to drive us out of your possession, which you have given us to inherit.
12 O our God, will you not execute judgment on them? For we are powerless against this great horde that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.
then the Lord answers...
2 Chronicles 20:15 (ESV)
15 ...Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but Gods.
Any strength we have comes from God. We are not smart enough, strong enough, or wise enough defeat the enemies of our lives, but God is.
b. Source of Courage:
Hebrews 13:6 (ESV)
6 So we can confidently say, The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?
The writer of Hebrews puts everything into perspective. For the Christian, our hope is not of this world, we are simply here for a short time. While we are here we will encounter sin, disappointment, hunger, and even death. But we know when this world ends, there is none of that. No more death, no more sickness, no more corruption, no more sin. If we know this, we can have courage that man cannot hurt us, that we don't have to fear, because it only gets better after this life is over. I like what the writer of Hebrews says: "So we can confidently say..." In other words we have assurance in the words we say, we have confidence that he is our helper, and man cannot take away what Jesus has given to you.
The last thing I wanted to bring to you is this
3. How can you grow in your strength and courage in the Lord?
Look back at Joshua chapter 1, verse
Joshua 1:8 (ESV)
8 This 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.
At the time that the Lord spoke these words to the people, they only had the first 5 books of the Bible. Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, This five books together were known as the Book of the Law, because God had given them the Lord by which to live. The Lord was saying, don't take your eyes off of this! This is me! This is how you know that I am your strength and courage. See me here, follow me here, and I will go before you.
How will you know to follow God? How will you depend on his for your strength and courage in tough times? Mediate on it day and night, don't allow it to depart from your mouth, and be careful to follow it's instruction.
That is how you can be strong and courageous in your school, your work, and in your family.
