Moses goes down in the pages of history as one of the greatest men who ever walked on this earth. Once the death of this great man of God took place, many probably felt like everything was coming to an end.
But I am convinced that one of the reasons that God removes great men from the earth, such as Moses, is so mankind can see that when GREAT MEN DISAPPEAR from the face of the earth, the plan of God continues on.
HOW DOES THE WORK OF GOD CONTINUE?
God finds someone else to take their place to continue His work. God did that then, and God still does that now.
You see, many times we are guilty of exalting man when we should be exalting the Lord Jesus. The success of God’s work does not depend on man, but on God.
Illus: Today, many people enjoy watching car racing. And when the race is completed, the winning car is driven into the winner’s circle, and everyone in the winner’s circle may point to that particular car and say, “That car won!”
Well, there is some truth to that, but that is not the whole truth.
• The fact is, that car may be equipped with some of the best mechanical parts available, but that car did not win!
• That car may be designed and engineered by some of the best mechanics that ever existed, but that car did not win!
In all reality it was not the car that won the race. It was the driver who took that car and used it to win the race.
And the same can be said today about us. Often people point to us and give us the praise, but the fact is, it is God above who deserves the praise. He may take our talents and abilities and use them to bring about a victory, but without Him we could not have done anything. As the Scripture says, in John 15:5, “…For without me ye can do nothing.”
It was a dark day indeed when Moses passed from this life, but God went on to use Joshua to take his place, and lead the people to victory!
HOW DID GOD DO THIS? Let’s look at:
I. THE PURPOSE OF GOD
Psychologically, Joshua’s temperament would appear to be Sanguine (confident). He was optimistic, and believed God could do anything. These are the kind of people God can use!
It seems that Joshua was always optimistic when he faced a crisis.
Illus: Remember when Moses sent the spies into the promise land to spy the land out? The majority of them came back and said that they could not do it, because they were like grasshoppers in the land.
But the Bible says Joshua and Caleb spoke up and said that they were well able to possess the land.
All of the spies saw the same thing:
• But Joshua and Caleb saw it through the eyes of God and the victory depended on God.
• The other ten spies saw it through the eyes of man, and they knew they were no match for those giants they had to face.
People that are Sanguine, like Joshua, can be a little intimidating. God raises up such people to do His work.
Look how God introduced this Book of Joshua!
Look at verses 1-2, we read, " 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, 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."
WHAT IS GOD SAYING TO JOSHUA? He was saying that just because Moses was dead, that did not mean that His plans were dead!
Do you see the point? If the plan of God is to continue, God must raise up other great men to take their place.
For example:
• For a family to continue to be a godly family, when the godly members of that family die, someone has to step up and say, “Lord, here am I, use me.”
• For a nation to continue to be a godly nation, when the godly citizens of that nation die, someone has to step up and say, “Lord, here am I, use me.”
• For a church to continue to be a godly church, when the godly members die, someone has to step up and say, “Lord, here am I, use me.”
Moses had died, the nation of Israel would no longer be able to be led by this godly man. SOMEONE WOULD HAVE TO TAKE HIS PLACE!
This was indeed a dark day in the nation of Israel when the news began to spread that Moses had died. Some no doubt were saying, “What are we going to do?”
Every time a great servant of the Lord dies, this is the question that is on the lips of everyone.
But we must not forget that the work of God does not depend on man, but on God.
• That’s not to say that man is unimportant.
• That’s not to say that man is insignificant
It is to say that in the end, the kingdom of God does not ultimately depend on us.
We can see that clearly in verses 2-3, we read, “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. Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, THAT HAVE I GIVEN UNTO YOU, as I said unto Moses.”
This was no doubt a very dark day in the lives of God’s people, but it is always this way when great men die.
• Do you ever wonder what it was like for the early church in Asia minor when the Apostle Paul died, and the news of his death traveled from church to church by word of mouth, before the days of the internet and email?
• Can you imagine what the churches in North Africa felt in the fourth or fifth century when the great St. Augustine finally died?
• Can you imagine what the people of God must have felt in the middle of the sixteenth century, when Calvin died?
• Can you imagine what the people of God must have felt when the news began to spread that C.H. Spurgeon had died?
Moses, was dead, and now THE PURPOSE OF GOD was to allow Joshua to take up where Moses left off.
We have looked at THE PURPOSE OF GOD, but let’s look at-
II. THE PROMISE OF GOD
WHAT IS THE PROMISE? After the death of Moses, the promise to Joshua was that AS GOD HAD BEEN WITH MOSES SO HE WOULD BE WITH JOSHUA!
Look at verses 3-5, we read, "Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses. 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. 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.”
God promised that if he was willing to obey Him, he would be able to achieve what God had called him to do.
When God calls a man to do a job, God also equips him to do the job. We often hear people say:
• God called me to preach
• God called me to teach
• God called me to sing
• God called me to be an usher
• God called me to drive a church van
Listen, if God called you to do it, God will equip you to do it.
The problem today is that many are saying God called them or told them to do something, when He did not!
Illus: This reminds us of the fellow who stood up one evening in church, and told the congregation that the Lord had called him to be a missionary. He said that in his sleep one night, there appeared a vision with the large letters ,“PC”, in the sky. He understood that to mean, “PREACH CHRIST”. He was on the mission field for several years, and came back a complete failure. He said to that same congregation, “Remember a few years ago when I told you that God gave me a vision of “PC” in the sky, and it meant ‘PREACH CHRIST’?” He said, “I was wrong, it meant ‘PLANT CORN’!”
Illus: They remind me of the man who came to D.L. Moody and said, “God told me to give you this pair of shoes. What size do you wear?” Mr. Moody said, “If God told you to give them to me they will fit because God knows what size I wear!”
And if God has truly called you to do something, you will be able to do it. HE WILL EQUIP YOU TO DO THE JOB HE HAS CALLED YOU TO DO!
God promised Joshua that he would be able to do the job God had called him to do.
We have looked at THE PURPOSE OF GOD AND THE PROMISE OF GOD. Now let’s look also at -
III. THE PRECEPTS OF GOD
After God called Joshua to take Moses’ place, God gave him some very specific instructions.
(1) Look at verse 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"
God told him that “There shall not any man be able” to stop him.
There were many who tried, but as Joshua placed his trust in God, God’s Word proved to be true.
(2) Look at verses 6-7, we read, “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. 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 whithersoever thou goest.”
That is exactly what happened. God gave him victory after victory wherever he placed his feet, and the land was divided for an inheritance.
But notice, God told him in verse 7, “Turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest.”
The secret to victory is not getting sidetracked by the devil.
(3) Look at verse 8, we read, “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.”
When God says to “meditate” on something, He means that we are to think it through.
Illus: (Humor) Have you noticed there are:
• Italian restaurants
• Mexican restaurants
• Chinese restaurants
• Greek restaurants
• German restaurants
• French restaurants
• Japanese restaurants
But you can not find a British restaurant. Think about that. Why is there not a British restaurant? As you think about it, you can only conclude that these people do not know how to cook! That has to be the reason there are no British restaurants!
When you start to meditate on God’s Word, you are going to start discovering some things you have never discovered.
The Bible tells us not to ignore the Word of God, but to meditate on it, THINK ON IT! This is something we do not do enough. It is something the Bible tells us we should do day and night.
Look at Joshua 1:8, we read, “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.”
(4) Look at verse 9, we read, “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.”
God had given His Word to Joshua, and now Joshua had to decide if he believed that God would keep His promise.
We have looked at THE PURPOSE OF GOD, THE PROMISE OF GOD and THE PRECEPTS OF GOD. Now let’s look at-
IV. THE PRESENCE OF GOD
In verse 5 and again in verse 9, God said that as He had been with Moses, He would also be with Joshua.
Now this is a specific promise to Joshua. Sometime folks will take a specific promise God has made to someone in the Scriptures, and take it out of context, and apply that promise to themselves.
This is not how we interpret Scripture. But even though this promise in verses 5 and 9 was not specifically made to us, there are other verses of Scripture in the Bible that are similar, that do apply to us.
For example, we read in Hebrews 13:5, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”
One of the comforting things we, the children of God, have as we face the things we have to face is the fact that GOD HAS PROMISED TO BE WITH US!
Illus: A woman had two little boys who were driving her to the edge of despair. They were into everything, non-stop. And they were mischievous as well.
One day she decided to take them to her pastor. Maybe he could succeed where she had failed. The pastor wanted to see the older boy first. The younger one sat outside.
The older boy was frightened. The minister looked so austere in his black robe each Sunday. What would he be like one-on-one?
The minister, a kindly man, looked at the young fellow somberly, then asked:
• "Young man, where is God?" The boy had no idea what to say, so he sat in silence.
• The minister repeated the question, "Young man, where is God?" The boy still said nothing.
• The pastor thundered one last time, "Young man, I said, Where is God?"
The boy jumped out of the chair, ran from the room, grabbed his little brother and raced from the church. He shouted, "Bobby, they've lost God and they're trying to pin it on us."
Aren’t you glad that no one can take God’s presence from us? There are a lot of things they can take, but they can never take God’s presence, because the Lord has promised us HE WOULD NEVER LEAVE US OR FORSAKE US!
Conclusion:
I. THE PURPOSE OF GOD
II. THE PROMISE OF GOD
III. THE PRECEPTS OF GOD
IV. THE PRESENCE OF GOD
