When God Speaks - Joshua Series

“WHEN GOD SPEAKS – JOSHUA”

Joshua 1:1-9

CWBC – 2/17/19

Jon Daniels

INTRO – Lots of people live w/ the false notion that they will never do anything great. They let their failures or their weaknesses dictate the course of their life, instead of working to overcome those failures & weaknesses. Reminds me of a story of a young, 16 yr-old girl named Eliza who married a 20 yr-old man who was a tailor by trade. He had never been to school &, while others might have written him off as a lost cause, his young wife didn’t. She began to teach him to read & write & spell. Those days were difficult, but he proved to be a fast learner. In fact, he learned so well that, years later he was elected president of the United States! When he ran for a second term he lost, but refused to give up. Instead, he won a seat in the U.S. Senate. Who was this man? Our 17th president, Andrew Johnson.

Are you & I living up to the full potential that we have in our relationship w/ God? Charles Schultz, writer of the Peanuts comics that made Charlie Brown & Snoopy famous, once said, “There is no heavier burden than an unfulfilled potential.” That’s especially true for those of us who are Christ-followers, b/c we KNOW that God has created us & given us the power to do great things for Him & for His glory. To live a life in which we choose not to strive to live up to the potential that He has given each of His children is truly a tragic thing.

We all have the potential to do great things for God. William Carey, the father of modern missions, preached a sermon in 1792 that contained this challenge: “Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God!”

Today, as we continue the series, “When God Speaks,” we are going to look at a man who did great things for God. We are going to look at Joshua & the moment when God spoke to him at the beginning of his ministry w/ God’s people.

EXPLANATION – Open your Bibles or Bible app to Joshua 1:1-6 (page 178 in pew Bible).

The book of Joshua gives an overview of the military campaigns to conquer the land area that God had promised to Moses & the children of Israel. Remember that Moses was not able to go into the Promised Land due to his disobedience to God’s commands in Numbers 20. Moses got to see the Promised Land, but did not get to enter it – Deut. 34:1-4.

After Moses died, Joshua moved into the place of leadership among the people & led them forth in the conquest of the Promised Land. He led them for approximately 20 years until he died. Joshua 24:29-31 says this about him: “After these things, the Lord’s servant, Joshua, son of Nun, died at the age of 110. They buried him in his allotted territory at Timnath-serah, in the hill country of Ephraim north of Mount Gaash. Israel worshiped the Lord throughout Joshua’s lifetime & during the lifetimes of the elders who outlived Joshua & who had experienced all the works the Lord had done for Israel.”

What a legacy! What a powerful testimony to a life of greatness! Joshua could have just stayed in the shadow of his predecessor, the great leader, Moses, but he didn’t. He accepted God’s assignment for his life, to be Moses’ assistant, until his time came to step up & become one of the greatest military leaders in the Bible. His life is held up as a model in leadership & as a source of practical application on how to be an effective leader. His courage was strong! His faith was solid! His obedience was steady! And all of this b/c he listened when God spoke.

What about us? Will we listen when God speaks? He speaks by His Spirit in us through His Word, through prayer, through circumstances, & through others. Will we listen when He speaks to us today? Will we respond to Him w/ no excuses when He speaks to us today?

APPLICATION – Let’s look at our passage & find the points of application for our lives.

Joshua 1:1 – One verse of introduction, then God begins to speak. He speaks of:

- The past – v. 2a

- The present – v. 2b-3

- The future – v. 4-5

Then, we find the heart of God’s message to Joshua & its application to our lives today:

God speaks to give us His commands – v. 6-8

Last week, I put John 14:15 on list of memory verses. Simple verse – easy to memorize – hard to put into practice sometimes – Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”