A VOW TO KEEP – PART ONE
A NEW YEAR, A NEW DAY, A NEW YOU
JOSHUA 1:1-8
©LARRY L. THOMPSON (2002)
“After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ aide: [2] "Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them--to the Israelites. [3] I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. [4] Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates--all the Hittite country--to the Great Sea on the west. [5] No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. [6] "Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. [7] Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go.
[8] Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.”
Introduction
It was July 8, 1998 that I made my vow to the Lord. On that day I vowed that I would honor Him in the daily study of His word. I would honor Him by committing to personal application and obedience of my quiet times alone with Him. I vowed that I would honor Him by giving Him the “firstfruits” of each new day. Before I read the paper, before I get a shower, before I fix a bagel…yes, my vow was to seek Him first in each new day. My vow was to first take in HIS WORD and allow HIS SPIRIT to direct my life before anything else entered my body, soul or mind in each new day. My vow was to honor Him by keeping a journal of our walk together. It is a vow that has made the greatest impact in my life because it is the one vow that will directly effect every other commitment in my life. My daily quiet time is my lifeline in my walk through this world. I would rather die than to walk without the instruction of my Lord and Savior. I would rather die than not honor Him with this vow. My daily time with Christ is THAT IMPORTANT TO MY LIFE. I encourage you as the reader to make your vow today and allow tomorrow to be the first day of the greatest joy and journey you will ever receive this side of eternity!
Not long ago in our nation, families would gather together and the father would take out the family Bible, read a passage of scripture and the family would spend time reflecting and commenting on these verses and how they could apply them to each of their lives. Some called it the “Family Alter Time.”
Many of us, when be became a Christian, were encouraged by others to begin our day reading and studying Scripture. Some began that practice and to this day continue while others began and then stopped only to begin again.
Daily Quiet Time Defined:
A quiet time is a daily appointment with God and His Word that involves prayer, the reading of scripture, and listening and obeying God through the leadership of His Holy Spirit as He speaks to our heart for the purpose to develop our spiritual maturity so that we might glorify Christ. Tragically, many of us we have slowed down or possibly stopped that much-needed time. And because of this we have stopped growing and maybe stopped listening and sadly stopped obeying God.
This morning, as we look to the New Year, I want to ask a question, much like I ask frequently on Sunday morning; “Do you have a daily quiet time and are you spending time in God’s Word each day?”
If your answer was yes then I applaud your spiritual discipline and encourage you to continue in obedience to His call. If your answer was no then I encourage you to listen carefully to this message for it may be the most important message you will ever hear in your spiritual life.
Open your bibles to Joshua chapter 1 verse 1-8, I will be using verse 8 as my main text
Please stand with me today for the reading of God’s Word: TEXT
Joshua was a man that was about to take on a great burden and responsibility. He was following in the footsteps of a great leader, Moses. God’s plan was to use Joshua to lead the Israelites into the Promised Land. God reveals this plan and also encourages him. But He also gives Joshua instruction. God tells Joshua to meditate on the Word of God.
What does it mean to meditate? Meditate is defined by Webster’s as “to think deeply.” The application is to read with thoughtfulness, to linger over God’s Word. In the Hebrew language this word means to chew, digest and allow it to become a part of your very being.
Have you ever gotten a song in your head you can’t stop thinking about? It keeps coming back over & over again. That is the idea. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have if God’s Word got stuck in our heads the same way?
God tells Joshua “you shall meditate”…
NOTICE: This doesn’t sound like Joshua has a choice in the matter.
Let’s look this morning at verse 8 and see the RESOURCE, the RETAINMENT, the REFLECTION, the REASON, and the RESULT of meditating on the Word of God and developing a new you through a daily commitment to study the Bible.
I. THE RESOURCE OF OUR DAILY QUIET TIME
“Do not let this Book of the Law…”
This is referring to Scripture, specifically the first five books, Genesis through Deuteronomy or as it is called the Pentateuch. Whatever you want to call it, this is a clear and obvious reference to the resource of the WORD OF GOD to His People.
This is all Joshua had for his resource; however we have Genesis through Revelation. The Bible is great book written by a great God who has commanded His people.
2 Timothy 3:16-17:
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, [17] so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
Romans 15:4:
“For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”
If Joshua could accomplish all he did with the first 5 books of the Bible what can we who are committed to all we are given do for the kingdom of God?
II. THE RETAINMENT OF OUR DAILY QUIET TIME
“Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth.”
The best translation for this verse is that Joshua has so absorbed the Word of God that it has become a part of his very being and he can not stop speaking the truth of God’s Word.
The application for us should be as Jeremiah 20:9: “But if I say, "I will not mention him or speak any more in his name," his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.”
It is the daily retaining of God’s Word in our life that enables us to meet the challenges of each new day by living in the obedient truth of the instruction we have received from our time alone with Him in His word.
III. THE REFLECTION OF OUR DAILY QUIET TIME
“Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night…”
• We are commanded to study God’s Word.
2 Tim. 2:15:
“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”
Psalms 119:103:
“How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!”
• We are assured that believers will understand God’s Word.
1 Corinthians 2:14:
“The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.”
• When trials & temptation come to our lives we respond with TRUTH, NOT TRASH! A computer term that is used Garbage in- Garbage out.
IV. THE REASON FOR OUR DAILY QUIET TIME
“Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it.”
The benefit of a vow to a daily devotion and meditation on God’s Word is it helps us to be obedient to God’s Word which also means that we live in His peace and His victory.
Psalm 119:9
“How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word.”
Psalm 119:15-16
“I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. [16] I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word.”
• Keeping God’s Word hidden in your heart is a good deterrent to sin.
Psalm 119:11 (NIV)
“I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.”
V. THE RESULTS OF OUR DAILY QUIET TIME
“Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.”
• Meditation and consistent study of the Bible brings blessings from God.
• Those who know & obey the Word of God will be prosperous & successful in that they possess the wisdom to live righteously & to achieve God’s goal for their lives.
For Joshua to live in victory and success God told him that he MUST BE DEPENDANT UPON HIS WORD and he must do three things with absolute resolve:
I. Study the Word of God Daily
II. Talk about the Word of God Daily
III. Obey the Word of God Daily
CONCLUSION:
What was the result of Joshua’s life in regard to the instruction that the Lord had provided for him? At the end of his life as the Leader of God’s people listen very carefully to the instruction that this man of God will pass on to the next generation:
Joshua 23:6 (NIV)
"Be very strong; be careful to obey all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, without turning aside to the right or to the left.”
Tragically they heeded this charge from Joshua for only a short time. In succeeding generations the people of Israel refused to be guided by God’s authoritative revelation, and they all did what they chose (Judges 21:25).
“In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.”
Rejecting an objective standard of righteousness, the very WORD OF GOD, they chose a subjective standard and followed their own desires, characterized by moral and spiritual relativism. This action and attitude plunged the nation into centuries of religious apostasy, one defeat after another and moral anarchy.
WHAT IS INVOLVED IN MAKING A VOW TODAY IN WHICH YOU COMMIT YOUR LIFE TO A DAILY QUIET TIME
I. MAKE A VOW TO THE LORD TO DAILY SPEND ALONE WITH HIM
Ecc. 5:5 (NIV)
“It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it.”
Deut. 23:21 (NIV)
“If you make a vow to the Lord your God, do not be slow to pay it, for the Lord your God will certainly demand it of you and you will be guilty of sin.”
II. YOUR DAILY APPOINTMENT MUST BE PREDETERMINED
a. If you don’t set aside a time you won’t have the time.
b. Jesus predetermined the time.
1) Jesus did so before the day began.
2. Your time must be planned.
3. It needs to be unhurried.
III. SET ASIDE A PARTICULAR PLACE FOR YOUR DAILY QUIET TIME
1. It needs to be somewhere that you can be quiet and uninterrupted. Remember that Jesus went to a “solitary place.” Let that place become your altar, the place where you KNOW YOU ARE MEETING WITH THE LORD ON A DAILY BASIS. It is the place that calls to you each time you pass by.
IV. SECURE THE COPY OF GOD’S WORD.
Preferably, the Bible we use as a church family and leave it at the assigned place of your daily quiet time. You may purchase this at our Family Book Store
God’s Word (the Bible) is and must always be the primary tool that God uses to speak to us. (Refer to: 2 Tim. 3:16; Rom 15:4; Heb. 4:12)
V. BEGIN YOUR DAILY QUIET TIME IN PRAYER.
Ask the Holy Spirit to lead you and guide you through your study of His word. Take the time to honor the Lord and speak heart to heart with Him in prayer.
Pray with purpose and direction. Use the outline you learned in Community Orientation for your prayer time:
a. Consistency: Meeting With God Daily
b. Adoration: Who God Is!
c. Confession: Acknowledge Your Sin
d. Thanksgiving: Praise Him for His Provisions in Your Life
e. Petition: Make Your Requests Known to Him
VI. DEVELOP YOUR OWN KEY SYSTEM TO USE AS YOUR STUDY GOD’S WORD.
This will aid you in your spiritual growth and help with developing a journal. Below is the KEY code I use for my personal devotional life.
P = Prayer to pray
= A specific word for me; journal
C = A sin to confess
! = An action to take immediately
W = Word to share
@ = Write an email, letter or make phone call
? = Do further research on the portion of scripture
VII. KEEP A JOURNAL OF YOUR DAILY WALK.
This will serve as an excellent memory marker in the days ahead as you look back at how God provided and it will serve as a testimony to the future generations that will follow you as to how God met you and how you met the Lord in your daily walk.
Tragically many people think that prosperity and success come from having power, influential personal contacts, and a relentless desire to get ahead. But the strategy for gaining prosperity that God taught Joshua goes against such worldly wisdom. He said that to succeed Joshua must (1) be strong and courageous because the task ahead would not be easy, (2) obey the WORD OF GOD, and (3) constantly read and study God’s Word. To be successful, to enjoy a NEW YEAR, A NEW DAY and a NEW YOU, YOU MUST follow God’s words to Joshua.
[8] Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.”
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