Possessing The Promised Land
Joshua 1:1-11 and 16 & 17
1 After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ assistant: 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. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."
10 So Joshua ordered the officers of the people: 11 “Go through the camp and tell the people, ‘Get your supplies ready. Three days from now you will cross the Jordan here to go in and take possession of the land the LORD your God is giving you for your own.’"
16 Then they answered Joshua, "Whatever you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go. 17 Just as we fully obeyed Moses, so we will obey you. Only may the LORD your God be with you as he was with Moses.
Genesis 12:7
The LORD appeared to Abram and said, "To your offspring I will give this land." So he built an altar there to the LORD, who had appeared to him.
Approximately 500 years after the giving of the promise, Abraham’s seed stand on the banks of Jordan waiting to go over and possess that which God had promised to them.
The remembered that their Fathers had received the same opportunity 40 years earlier, and because of a majority vote they had wandered around in the wilderness wasting precious time. Now they were again being offered the land that God had promised would be theirs. Before they went into the Promised Land, a tremendous event took place - God spoke to Joshua! Let us constantly bear in mind that it is always an event of great importance when God speaks to us!
Joshua was a new leader for the people, and before he could lead the people into the Promised Land there were certain conditions to be met.
There are certain similarities with in the life of the Christian. I would not suggest that many years have been wasted in wandering around in a wilderness experience, but there is always much ahead of every one of us still to be possessed.
The points I wish to draw to your attention are these;
I. There Must Be A Call
v.1 “The LORD said to Joshua son of Nun”
God spoke directly to Joshua.
Joshua had previously learned to recognise the voice of the Lord; for he had he worked closely with Moses. Now he had a personal call.
There are many ‘general calls’ in God’s Word that we may all apply to our own lives, but in this instance a definite personal call was required. Trading on God’s call to Moses would not do.
We must personally know God’s call in our own lives, for it is only then, when we have heard from the Lord for ourselves, that we can stand the great pressures that can come upon us, as we seek to fulfil that call.
Disciples: - Mark 16:15 Then he said to them, "You must go out to the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature. [JBP]
Philip: - Acts 8:26 Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, "Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza."
Paul: - Acts 9:5 & 6"I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied. 6 “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do."
II. There Must Be A Commencement
v. 2 “get ready to cross the Jordan River”
We can hold committee meetings, have ministerial seminars, and lectures on Evangelism, but nothing will be accomplished unless we rise up and go forward. We can know it all, and still do nothing. The task must be started, or it will never be finished.
Jordan was a barrier to the blessing of the Lord in their lives, they needed to take positive action and cross the river. That was the only way they could know the full blessing of the Lord.
Eph 6:11 Put on the full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.
1Th 5:8 But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet.
III. There Must Be Concord
v. 2 “you and all these people”
Joshua could not accomplish the task on his own, not even with the help of his old friend Caleb, who was so full of faith. It needed the unity of the people. Things happen when God’s people unite together. The Mighty Holy Spirit came and filled the waiting disciples when they were with one accord! The land could only be possessed by a united people.
Eph 4:3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
John 17:23 I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them.
IV. There Must Be A Conviction
I use the word ‘conviction’ in the sense that we must have a conviction of the absolute truthfulness of God’s Word.
v. 2 “into the land I am about to give to them”
Before they started, there needed to be a conviction in their hearts that God meant what He said! I wonder do we really believe that God means what He says in His Word?
James 2:17 it isn’t enough just to have faith. Faith that doesn’t show itself by good deeds is no faith at all—it is dead and useless. [NLT]
But believing was not enough, for there must be a claiming,
V. There Must Be A Claiming
v. 3 “I will give you every place where you set your foot”
They needed to start placing their feet on the land, saying, ‘This is ours, because God promised it’! God’s promises are fulfilled to us as we are willing to step out, and stand on them in faith!
VI. There Must Be A Calculating
v. 4 “I’m giving you every square inch of the land you set your foot on”. [The Message]
God had made clear what was to be theirs. Israel has not yet possessed the Promised Land to the fullest extent, but they will see the fulfilment of the promise.
Have we possessed all that God has in store for us? Let us press on and claim what is still to be possessed.
VII. There Must Be A Confidence
v. 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”
Our confidence must be correctly placed, not in our strength, or our own ability, but in the Lord, and in the sure fulfilment of His Word.
VIII. There Must Be Courage
v. 6 “Be strong and courageous”
Joshua was very aware that there were giants in the land – he had seen them! He knew the enemy was strong – he had seen the fortified cities! He had been there! He would need courage! But didn’t he have the promise of the Lord that he would divide the land to the people? That was good enough for him – God’s Word is sure – the promises will be fulfilled.
But there must be compliance,
IX. There Must Be A Compliance
v. 7 “Be careful to obey all the law”
If we expect God to bless us, them we must comply with His Divine requirements. It is no use gong our own way, and then complaining that God is not blessing us! There must be obedience to the revealed Word of God. That way ensures us of His blessing. God takes us forward step by step. When we are obedient to what He has shown us, then He will show us the next step to take. This is a basic principle in the path of blessing.
This kind of response requires a commitment.
X. There Must Be A Commitment
v. 7 “do not turn from it to the right or to the left”
If we really want all that God has for us, then we must give all we have to Him! Total abandonment of self to God’s revealed will for our lives. Going God’s way when He shows us the way forward, and obeying God’s voice when He speaks to us; without any reservation at all!
The thrill about such a life is that it leads to inter-relationship between us and the Almighty God! It brings us into a new kind of relationship where we are able to commune with each other.
XI. There Must Be A Communion
v. 8 “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night”
We must allow God to speak to us, and actively listen for His voice. Then we must apply what He says to our hearts and also to our lives. We need to store the Word in our hearts, and live out the Word in our lives – daily!
Do we regularly commune with the Lord? Are we so busy that we have no time for prayer? – if so then we are too busy. When we pray do we do all the talking? Or do we give the Lord time to talk to us?
If we fulfil these conditions our lives will be greatly enriched, and there will be victory in out lives.
XII. There Will Be A Conquest
v. 8 “Then you will be prosperous and successful”
then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. [NKJV]
I want you to take particular note of the words in the New King James Version ‘you will make your way prosperous’ God has laid down certain principles for spiritual prosperity. It is in our own power to be spiritually prosperous! God has already shown us the way. It is the way of obedience to His voice. It is the way of total commitment to His will.
Here they were on the banks of the river Jordan, and they could not possess the Promised Land unless they crossed Jordan!
They were faced with a big choice
XIII. There Must Be A Choice
v. 16 “Then they answered Joshua, "Whatever you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go”
Forty years earlier the same opportunity had been presented to their fathers, and had been rejected. I believe the main reason for rejecting the opportunity to possess the Promised Land at that time was fear of what they could see with their eyes, and this took a priority over the promise given to them by the Lord! Now they had to make up their own minds – not rely on the past – and determine in their own hearts that they would believe God for themselves, and so possess the Promised Land.
Paul reminds us in Philippians 3:13&14
One thing I do, letting go those things which are past, and stretching out to the things which are before, 14 I go forward to the mark, even the reward of the high purpose of God in Christ Jesus. [BBE]
Joshua had previously seen the land. He had seen the giants – but he remembered the grapes! He took into account that the people were mighty – but he remembered the milk and honey! He knew their defences were very strong – but he had already earmarked his inheritance! He knew he would find difficulties – but he had begun to know his God!
He recognised the problems and remembered the promises!
There will always be difficulties this side of heaven, but God has the answer.
The giants can be conquered – remember David?
The enemy can be defeated – remember Gideon?
The problems can be solved – remember God?
The difficulties can be overcome for the Lord is on our side! The victory is already ours!
Let us determine in our hearts that we are going to go in and posses the land that the Lord has given to us.
Philippians 3:13 & 14 [NLT]
Dear brothers and sisters, I am not all I should be, but I am focusing all my energies on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, 14 I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us from heaven.
POSSESSING THE PROMISED LAND
Do you want to possess all your land?
The land the Lord has for you?
Are you willing to pay the full price?
Or do you just want to view?
To claim the land there’s a price to pay
To have what God has in store
So hear the call and begin today
And you’ll discover much more
God means what He says, so claim the prize
Eyes firmly fixed on the goal
Let courage be deep within your heart
Claim not a part but the whole
There must be communion with the Lord
As in the land you proceed
Talk with Him and listen for His voice
Ensure you take great heed
Follow with care the way that He leads
And victory will ensue
The promise He made is yours to possess
The decision lies with you
