Joshua
Joshua 1:1-9
Every leader must first be a follower. Joshua learned to follow by assisting Moses.
In his apprenticeship under Moses, the Bible records that Joshua was given three tasks which he performed with great insight and ability:
• The first time is enters the Biblical stage, he is told to put together an army to fight and defeat the Amelikites; (Exodus 17)
• The next time he is mentioned Moses takes him as a traveling companion when He meets with God to receive the Tablets of Stone; (Exodus 24-32)
• Third great experience of his internship is when he is chosen to represent his tribe on the first exploration into the land of promise (Numbers 13) and it was then that God gave this testimony concerning Joshua, that he “followed the Lord wholeheartedly!” (Numbers 32:12)
God’s own testimony about this leader named Joshua was that “He had the Spirit!”
Pastor Josh has also learned to follow so that he might be effective as a leader. In my time of working with Pastor Josh, I have found him to be creative, caring, and co- operative…the qualities you desire in a leader. But there are some important dimensions a pastor must have. They are highlighted for us here in Joshua, chapter 1.
Joshua 1:1-9
1 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.
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."
(NIV)
My daughter Jessica is learning to drive. She is fifteen, going on twenty and Ronda and I are teaching her to drive. Yikes. She’s doing well; I’m the one that needs Prozac. For sixteen years Jessica has not paid attention (while in the car), because she hasn’t needed to. Ronda and I (and later her older sisters) have done all the driving. She is now learning a whole new world of what it means to be in the driver’s seat.
When you are driving, you have to pay attention to every detail: the road signs, the conditions of the road, the other vehicles, what is in front of you and what is behind. However, when you are the passenger in someone else’s car, you can relax, sleep, chatter, discuss, play with the radio and the temperature controls, etc. The road conditions, the map, directions, flow of traffic are meaningless to the passenger. Someone else is driving.
Today we are not just taking a Sunday afternoon joy ride. We are traveling a new section of highway as the East Park Church of God and Pastor Josh and Jonda Bowers. We’ve been riding along for a few months, doing some sightseeing along the way, taking a few new turns, and checking the map to see what lies ahead. God’s word to Joshua, son of Nun, has some instructions for a safe, satisfying, strengthening, and enjoyable trip.
So let’s go for a ride.
Driving requires you to have a plan. (Joshua 1:3-4)
Joshua 1:3 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.
When Pastor Josh asked me to come and preach this service, I had to make a plan. I had to decide how I would come (fly or drive), when I would come, who would cover for me at home, and which flight would work best for everyone’s schedule. On top of that a special sermon had to be prepared for this special service. Without a plan it would never happen. It would remain an idea and all talk.
Translating ideas from talk to reality requires a plan. It’s fun to do the dreaming, but you must take the time to put your pen to paper and write your plan down. The more complex the plan and the more people involved, the more detailed your plan must be.
I recently asked a pastor to tell me his dream and to put it in simple words. I didn’t want him to recite the church mission statement on the wall. He said: "I want to fill my church full of un-churched people and win them to Christ." Good answer. I then asked him what his plan was. He responded: "I don’t really have a plan." I leveled with him by saying I didn’t believe his dream would come true unless he made a plan, wrote it down, and stuck to it.
Driving places you in a position of Power (Joshua 1:5-6)
Joshua 1:5 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.
Not power in the sense of bullying people around. Power in the sense of confidence. Joshua, newly appointed pastor to the people of Israel, was to “Be strong and courageous”, not because he was older than the ones he would lead, nor because he was, taller, smarter, prettier, or more sophisticated. Joshua was to be strong and courageous because God was going to be with him! Having “Emmanuel” on your side is far better than even having a tiger in your tank! When God spoke these words to Joshua, I’m sure he remembered that Moses had said this to him earlier:
Deut 31:7-8
7 Then Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the presence of all Israel, "Be strong and courageous, for you must go with this people into the land that the LORD swore to their forefathers to give them, and you must divide it among them as their inheritance.
8 The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."
(NIV)
Driving requires you to take the responsibility of using proper procedures (Joshua 1:7)
Joshua 1:7 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.
There is only one person responsible for everything that happens in the car. The person behind the wheel. You can make all the excuses in the world, but the bottom line is that you are responsible.
Don’t be like these comments retrieved from actual insurance claim forms. I am not making this up…
"The other car collided with mine without giving warning of its intentions."
"I thought my window was down, but I found it was up when I put my hand through it."
"A truck backed through my windshield into my wife’s face."
"A pedestrian hit me and went under my car."
"The guy was all over the road; I had to swerve a number of times before I hit him."
"In my attempt, to kill a fly, I drove into a telephone pole."
"I had been driving for forty years when I fell asleep at the wheel and had an accident."
"My car was legally parked as it backed into the other vehicle."
"An invisible car came out of nowhere, struck my vehicle, and vanished."
"The pedestrian had no idea which direction to go, so I ran over him."
"I was sure the old fellow would never make it to the other side of the road with I struck him."
"I saw the slow-moving, sad-faced old gentleman as he bounced off the hood of my car."
"The indirect cause of this accident was a little guy in a small car with a big mouth."
If things aren’t going well, don’t look in the rear view mirror to see who messed up. Look in your own mirror. Ask yourself what your contribution was, own it, and then step up to do something about it.
Driving requires you to pay attention. (Joshua 1:8)
Joshua 1:8 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.
When you’re in the passenger’s seat, unless you are teaching your daughter to drive, you can literally close your eyes and take a nap. Leaders never have that privilege. You must be alert and watching a number of things simultaneously.
Jessica is learning how difficult this is. Looking forward, watching for kids, keeping her eyes on other cars, watching for anything in the road, keeping her eyes on street signs and traffic lights, operating brake and gas pedals, steering, making signals, looking before she turns, and of course getting the right song on the radio. Let’s be honest, driving is an experience in multitasking; there is a lot going on all at the same time.
The same is true in leadership. You don’t have the privilege of deep and undivided focus on one thing at a time. Leadership may not be quite as simultaneous as driving a car, but you get the idea. Even if you have leadership over one department, there are a number of things going on at all times. Focus is a good thing, but if you take your eyes off the big picture you can drive your church right over a cliff.
Driving requires you to ignore the "backseat chatter." (Joshua 1:9)
Joshua 1:9 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."
This last one is a little tongue-in-cheek, but it’s more true than not. I don’t think I need to explain the concept of a "backseat driver." This person is one of the most annoying of God’s creations. Though they may sincerely want to be helpful, they are not. In fact, they are just as likely to contribute to the cause of an accident as to help the driver get to the destination the quickest and safest way.
When you lead you will experience a lot of "backseat chatter." You must learn to ignore the vast majority of it. Everyone has an idea and a list of things "you should do." Ignore most of that stuff. Listen to God’s voice, seek wise counsel from your key leaders, and, like I mentioned, stick to the plan.
CONCLUSION:
Driving requires you to keep your eyes on the road. The Apostle Paul put it this way when giving driving instructions to young Timothy, pastoring the Church in East Park, I mean, Ephesus:
2 Timothy 4:1-5
1 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge:
2 Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-- with great patience and careful instruction.
3 For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.
4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.
5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
(NIV)
Above all else, PREACH THE WORD! Don’t preach your opinion, it will not be enough fuel to get this congregation home! Don’t preach someone else’s sermons, for the flock in this place needs shepherding from one who knows them and loves them. When you correct and rebuke and encourage, remember that the congregation will become what you have fed them and will become whom they follow. If they are to make it home safely, it will be because they have traveled with a pastor who has prayerfully, lovingly, faithfully preached the word!
Above all else, PREACH THE WORD!
