Latest / Topeka Bible Church Audio Archive / January 12, 2025 | Joshua - Strong and Courageous

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January 12, 2025 | Joshua - Strong and Courageous · Topeka Bible Church Audio Archive

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: So we are starting a new uh series this morning in Joshua.
• 0:04
  SPEAKER_00: And um each spring here at TBC, we are working through an Old Testament book of the Bible and we're going in order.
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_00: And so Joshua um has followed Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy over the last few years.
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_00: And uh those books sort of form a story.
• 0:21
  SPEAKER_00: And if you are new or not familiar with the Bible, it's totally okay.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_00: We're not gonna leave you in the dust.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_00: I want to kind of give a quick summary of where we're at because Joshua does pick up kind of in the actually near the end of a particular story that we've been working on for about four years here.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_00: So in the book of Exodus, Israel is rescued from slavery in Egypt.
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_00: God raises up Moses.
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_00: This is where you hear the stories about the ten plagues and the parting of the Red Sea, and God redeems his people, rescues them from 400 years of slavery, and sends them on towards the Promised Land.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_00: While they're sort of on that journey to the Promised Land, they receive the law from God.
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_00: This is the kind of Ten Commandments moment, and they also learn about what it will mean to follow this holy God.
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_00: Leviticus is Israel learning how to follow that law.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_00: Most of you, if you are, especially if you've um uh started like a read the Bible in a year plan in 2025, you're gonna be pretty close to hitting Leviticus, and there's gonna be the temptation to not read the Bible in a year once you get to Leviticus.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_00: Um but it is a wonderful, rich book that talks about, um, tells us so much about the character of God and and his love for his people.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_00: It's for the first place in the Bible where um we hear that you are to love your neighbor as yourself and other great things like that.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: But anyhow, um Israel struggles to follow God's law.
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_00: And in fact, they um grow so frustrated with the Lord that they begin to worship other gods, they are disobedient, they uh instead of rejoicing that they're no longer slaves, they grumble and say things like, God wants to kill us.
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_00: And so, as a part of that disobedience, um, they are judged to wander the desert for 40 years.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_00: That's what happens in the book of Numbers.
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_00: And an entire generation, everybody who is an adult, when they left Egypt, they die.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, their children, everybody who is under the age of 20 when they left Egypt, that is the new generation that carries forward.
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_00: That's going to be the adults when we're reading the book of Joshua.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_00: So it's the kids of those, or many of the people who are in uh the book of Joshua.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_00: They were children when they left Egypt.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: So they still have these memories, but they also understand God's holiness.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_00: And then finally, Deuteronomy is Israel has walked for 40 years.
• 2:43
  SPEAKER_00: They've wandered, they've come up right up to the edge of the promised land, which is signified by the Jordan River, and right before entering Moses, who because of his disobedience cannot lead them into the promised land fully.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_00: He can look over into it.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_00: Um, he gives Deuteronomy is like his last messages.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_00: He's reminding Israel of all of these lessons about who God is and what he's done, and not just his expectations, but his character and his love and his generosity, his patience, all of these things.
• 3:13
  SPEAKER_00: And he's preparing them for this next generation to finally receive the promise of the land that they have been waiting so long for.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_00: This is a big, big deal.
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_00: And so when we get to the book of Joshua, Joshua is a man who is going to be the next leader of Israel.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_00: He's been Moses' assistant for 40 years.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_00: So he has learned a thing or two.
• 3:38
  SPEAKER_00: He has walked with him, he is a great military leader, he is humble.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, he is probably one of the oldest people there because he was one of the very few adults who was able to last those 40 years because of his faithfulness.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: Anyhow, as we get into the book of Joshua, we're going to learn so much more about him as the great leader.
• 3:59
  SPEAKER_00: But in terms of the book of Joshua, we just need to understand that we're kind of coming on the heels of Moses has passed away.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_00: Now we're getting ready to head into the promised land.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_00: This is a big deal.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_00: And even just personally, as a having preached through a number of these books, this is fun for me.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_00: This is part of, I think these kinds of things are fun.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_00: It's fun for me to have been working on this for a couple years, and now we get to, as a church, go into the promised land with Israel.
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_00: So without further ado, let's go ahead and jump into chapter 1, verse 1.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_00: We're going to learn a couple things here.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_00: After the death of Moses, the Lord's servant, the Lord spoke to Joshua, son of Nun, Moses' assistant.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_00: Moses, my servant, is dead.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: Now you and all the people prepare to cross over the Jordan to the land I am giving the Israelites.
• 4:48
  SPEAKER_00: I have given you every place where the sole of your foot treads, just as I promised Moses.
• 4:53
  SPEAKER_00: Your territory will be from the wilderness and Lebanon to the great river, the Euphrates River, all the land of the Hittites, and west to the Mediterranean Sea.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_00: No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_00: He's talking to Joshua there.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_00: I will be with you just as I was with Moses.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_00: I will not leave you or abandon you.
• 5:14
  SPEAKER_00: So the book of Joshua picks up where Deuteronomy ends, which is the death of Moses.
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_00: And you're like, well, that's kind of an odd place to start.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: But the death of Moses is a huge event in Israel's history.
• 5:27
  SPEAKER_00: Moses, for two big reasons.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_00: One is Moses is kind of like on the Mount Rushmore of biblical leaders, right?
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, his death is such a significant event for the nation.
• 5:37
  SPEAKER_00: He has led them for four books of the Bible.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_00: Like, there are so many things that Moses has done.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_00: And even in the New Testament, you look back and the authors will talk about how great Moses was.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus lifts him up as this great leader.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_00: And so the death of Moses is just a time of mourning for the nation.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_00: And also it brings up kind of this great question of, like, okay, well then who is next?
• 6:01
  SPEAKER_00: And so Joshua is introduced here.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_00: But the death of Moses is also important because back in Deuteronomy, both Moses and Joshua and the entire nation of Israel were told when Moses dies is when Joshua is going to take over.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_00: They were prepared for this event.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_00: In fact, Moses even knew when he was going to die.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_00: This is something they have planned for.
• 6:25
  SPEAKER_00: So all of this has come together, and Joshua begins with the death of Moses because now Joshua is the new leader of Israel.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_00: And you can see in this passage that this is not, some people might look at this and they go, well, Moses kind of loosened the jar, right?
• 6:40
  SPEAKER_00: You know, Joshua gets to lead them over the Jordan River into the promised land.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: He gets to sort of get all the credit for heading into this space and the victories and things like that.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_00: You're like, well, isn't he standing on the shoulders of Moses?
• 6:54
  SPEAKER_00: Not really.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_00: You have to understand that Joshua was specifically chosen for this moment.
• 7:00
  SPEAKER_00: We can't look at him as some kind of like also ran, lame duck sort of guy.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_00: He is a fantastic leader.
• 7:07
  SPEAKER_00: We'll see that over this book.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_00: But at the beginning of Joshua, there's going to be a lot of that, where I'm talking about the person and the book, and it's going to be confusing at times.
• 7:17
  SPEAKER_00: But at the beginning of the book of Joshua, we see that he does not yet, Joshua does not yet have the title, the prestige that Moses has.
• 7:28
  SPEAKER_00: There's still a lot that he needs to prove being God's leader.
• 7:32
  SPEAKER_00: And so you can see at the very beginning, after the death of Moses, the Lord's servant, that phrase, the Lord servant, is a very rare title.
• 7:42
  SPEAKER_00: Not everybody gets that.
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_00: This is different than like the well done, good and faithful servant kind of thing.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_00: Being the Lord's servant is this like joint chiefs of staff, four-star general kind of designation that Moses gets.
• 7:56
  SPEAKER_00: And you'll notice that Joshua, he is just his assistant, Moses' assistant at this point.
• 8:03
  SPEAKER_00: By the end of the book of Joshua, he is also referred to as the Lord's servant.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_00: So we have a lot of great things to expect there.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_00: But as we move on, I'm going to kind of take three big points from this passage, because what we're covering here in verses 1 through 5 is really like an outline for the first half of the book of Joshua.
• 8:24
  SPEAKER_00: They're going to cross the Jordan River, they're going to begin to engage in military battles, and then they're going to start dividing up the land that is currently occupied by heaven's enemies.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_00: And so as all of these things are, we're going to look at them more in future weeks.
• 8:41
  SPEAKER_00: The first thing I want you to see is that crossing the Jordan is the end of their journey and mimics the beginning.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_00: It sort of forms a neat little picture if you think of it this way.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_00: So they were in Egypt, right?
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_00: And then they went into the desert, and now they're heading into the promised land.
• 9:00
  SPEAKER_00: But in order to go from Egypt to the desert, they had to cross the Red Sea.
• 9:06
  SPEAKER_00: And in order to go from the desert into the Promised Land, they're going to have to cross the Jordan River.
• 9:12
  SPEAKER_00: And as those things sort of form this bookend, we also know, or can be reminded, that back in Exodus, when they crossed the Red Sea, the Lord parted the water and they walked through on dry land, right?
• 9:24
  SPEAKER_00: Spoiler alert, in chapter 3, that's the same way they're going to cross the Jordan River.
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_00: And so what God is telling them about really serves, and again, we will see this soon.
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_00: So much of God's plan for them is drawing back in their minds to this time when he had redeemed them out of slavery and sort of forms this fitting conclusion.
• 9:47
  SPEAKER_00: There's more to the story after that, but it ends their wandering, it ends this whole period, something that should have happened long ago.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_00: Second, is that the Promised Land is not just any land, it is holy ground.
• 10:01
  SPEAKER_00: We'll learn more about this in chapter six, but you can think of the Promised Land sort of like somebody who maybe has a large parcel of land, right?
• 10:11
  SPEAKER_00: And then somewhere in that huge plot of land, they have chosen a location to put their house, right?
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_00: And it's like all of it is their land, but this special location is where they're going to rest.
• 10:24
  SPEAKER_00: That is sort of how God views the promised land, in the fact that the whole world is his, he's created all of it, everything belongs to him.
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_00: But the way he talks about the promised land, and in fact, even the way he designates all of it as holy ground, like when uh he walks on it, that there are people who need to take off their sandals because they are standing on God's territory, this will play a huge role in understanding what it meant for Israel to retake the land from heaven's enemies and in fact how they're going to engage in battle.
• 10:58
  SPEAKER_00: Third and finally, the territory they will inhabit is already set, assuming that they do all the things that God has called them to do.
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_00: And so we'll get into maps another day.
• 11:11
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but there is uh the borders of the promised land that Israel should inhabit, God has already set for them.
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_00: In fact, God set this back in Genesis when he was talking to Abraham.
• 11:22
  SPEAKER_00: He told Abraham way back then, he's like, hey, it's gonna be from here to here and here to here.
• 11:26
  SPEAKER_00: And it's this massive, gigantic place over in the Middle East, far larger than the nation of Israel today.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_00: Um also notice, this is kind of the middle part of the book of Joshua, is that Israel does not really do all the things that God has asked them to do, and so inevitably they end up not filling the land the way that they were supposed to.
• 11:50
  SPEAKER_00: And there's a lot of language in Joshua that harkens back to this Genesis Garden of Eden, fill it and be at rest ideal that Israel is supposed to sort of revisit and live out that they struggled to do.
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_00: So, anyhow, uh one other thing to note here is probably what you picked up on the most when you heard this passage.
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_00: And it's the words of God to Joshua at the very end.
• 12:20
  SPEAKER_00: No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_00: I will be with you just as I was with Moses.
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_00: I will not leave you or abandon you.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_00: This is God's assurance to Joshua that he has everything that he needs to carry out the Lord's will to the best of his ability, right?
• 12:41
  SPEAKER_00: He gets the same security detail that Moses gets, right?
• 12:44
  SPEAKER_00: The heavenly secret service is going to be with him just as they were with Moses.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_00: And so Joshua is going to be protected, but also that he is going to have the power of God with him the entire journey.
• 12:57
  SPEAKER_00: There are a lot of really challenging things that Joshua is going to have to do.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, it just one quick example is the fact that the nations that they are about to fight against are far more established and strong and numerous than this little nation of Israel that's coming in.
• 13:14
  SPEAKER_00: They don't have the strength and numbers and military and technology, any of those things.
• 13:18
  SPEAKER_00: And God's like, you're going to push them all out.
• 13:20
  SPEAKER_00: There are a lot of things where Joshua could quake in fear, but God tells him, I will be with you, and I am not going to leave you, and I will not forsake you.
• 13:32
  SPEAKER_00: Just as he did with he didn't forsake Moses, he was with him till the end of his life, and he's going to do that same thing with Joshua.
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_00: Um and the last part of that, too, is we're also going to see that God does change his relationship a little bit with Joshua.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_00: God will not speak with Joshua the same way that he spoke with Moses.
• 13:51
  SPEAKER_00: Moses really was kind of on a different level.
• 13:53
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but nevertheless, God is not going to leave him.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_00: And so what that means for him and really for us is God is giving Joshua his spirit, the same thing that he has given to all of us who've trusted in Christ.
• 14:06
  SPEAKER_00: And even though there's going to be a number of times where Joshua is moving forward in faith and can't see God with him, like there's no more pillar of fire guiding them through the desert, even though he can't see God in every single circumstance, God is spirit, and he is with Joshua every step of the way.
• 14:26
  SPEAKER_00: So when Joshua is given this instruction from God, God tells him, You have all that you need to do all that I have called you to do.
• 14:37
  SPEAKER_00: There is another part, though, to this, which is that Joshua, empowered by the Lord as the new leader of Israel, to do all the great and wonderful things that God has called him to do, Joshua still has the responsibility to use that power to do the things, to carry out God's will.
• 14:56
  SPEAKER_00: This is what he says in verse 6.
• 14:59
  SPEAKER_00: Be strong and courageous, Joshua, for you will distribute the land I swore to their ancestors, to give them as an inheritance.
• 15:07
  SPEAKER_00: Above all, be strong and very courageous, to observe carefully the whole instruction my servant Moses commanded you.
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_00: Do not turn from it to the right or the left, so that you will have success wherever you go.
• 15:19
  SPEAKER_00: This book of instruction must not depart from your mouth.
• 15:23
  SPEAKER_00: You are to meditate on it day and night, so that you may carefully observe everything written in it.
• 15:28
  SPEAKER_00: For then you will prosper and succeed in whatever you do.
• 15:31
  SPEAKER_00: Haven't I commanded you?
• 15:33
  SPEAKER_00: Be strong and courageous.
• 15:35
  SPEAKER_00: Do not be afraid or discouraged, which you'll notice are the opposite of strong and courageous, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.
• 15:44
  SPEAKER_00: So if there is a phrase in that passage that God kept repeating, what was it?
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_00: Be strong and courageous.
• 15:52
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, as a church, I want us to say that, ready?
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_00: Be strong and courageous.
• 15:56
  SPEAKER_00: Be strong and courageous, Joshua.
• 15:58
  SPEAKER_00: You have everything that you need to do what God has called you to do, but be strong and courageous.
• 16:05
  SPEAKER_00: There is still some responsibility on you.
• 16:07
  SPEAKER_00: It's not your power, it's God's power.
• 16:09
  SPEAKER_00: But I still want you to be strong and courageous.
• 16:12
  SPEAKER_00: The first thing that God mentions is basically like you have a tall task ahead of you.
• 16:17
  SPEAKER_00: You are going to distribute the land I swore to their ancestors to give them as an inheritance.
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_00: This is the promise back to Abraham.
• 16:24
  SPEAKER_00: God says, I'm going to fulfill that promise.
• 16:27
  SPEAKER_00: I don't go back on my promises.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_00: You're going to do that.
• 16:29
  SPEAKER_00: But what is kind of wrapped up in distributing the land is kicking everybody out of it first.
• 16:34
  SPEAKER_00: And so be strong and courageous as you go into all these battles where you're clearly outnumbered.
• 16:40
  SPEAKER_00: But then notice that there's an even greater instruction given to Joshua.
• 16:45
  SPEAKER_00: Be strong and very courageous.
• 16:47
  SPEAKER_00: We move from, uh I'll point that out.
• 16:50
  SPEAKER_00: We move from courageous to very courageous to observe carefully the whole instruction that Moses gave to observe the law, right?
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_00: Joshua, be strong and courageous to observe the law that I have given to you.
• 17:05
  SPEAKER_00: This is back in Leviticus, but it is basically be obedient to God.
• 17:11
  SPEAKER_00: Joshua, as you go, the nation of Israel will go.
• 17:15
  SPEAKER_00: If you are faithful, they will be faithful.
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_00: And so Joshua has this amazing responsibility.
• 17:22
  SPEAKER_00: God has given him every power to do it.
• 17:24
  SPEAKER_00: But it is be strong and courageous as you go forth and carry out my will.
• 17:28
  SPEAKER_00: But be strong and courageous that as you do, you are going into a land where they do not know me, in fact, where they hate me.
• 17:34
  SPEAKER_00: You're going into a land where they worship false gods.
• 17:37
  SPEAKER_00: You're going into a land where they're going to try and kill you.
• 17:40
  SPEAKER_00: And as you do it, Joshua, if you want to be successful, what?
• 17:44
  SPEAKER_00: Meditate on my words day and night.
• 17:47
  SPEAKER_00: That is how God says He will have success.
• 17:50
  SPEAKER_00: It's wild that Joshua, who we find out from other places, was this military leader.
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_00: It's probably the great reason why the Lord picked him to head up Israel during this time of that, during that time in the nation.
• 18:04
  SPEAKER_00: But it is not, hey Joshua, if you want to be successful, here's the battle plan, here are the tactics, here's all the weaponry you need, here's, you know, all the people that you need.
• 18:12
  SPEAKER_00: It is Joshua.
• 18:14
  SPEAKER_00: Be faithful, be obedient, meditate on my word day and night, and then you will be successful.
• 18:21
  SPEAKER_00: How is Joshua supposed to be a leader for his people if he's not in the Word of God?
• 18:25
  SPEAKER_00: And want to take a quick detour here.
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_00: My other question is: how can Joshua truly follow God if he isn't reading the Bible?
• 18:33
  SPEAKER_00: I'm conflating a few terms there.
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_00: Joshua didn't have the whole Bible like we do today, he just had the law.
• 18:39
  SPEAKER_00: But nevertheless, the point that God is presenting to him is it's like, how do you expect to have this relationship and to lead these people if you're not meditating on what I have said?
• 18:51
  SPEAKER_00: There's, to make a long story short, a history of problems in the Bible when leaders do the things that God has technically asked them to do.
• 19:01
  SPEAKER_00: They sort of, you know, sacrifices or or lead people into battle, or there's a whole number of examples.
• 19:08
  SPEAKER_00: But if they don't have the heart behind it, if they don't have the desire to know God and to be with him and to meditate on his word, then God doesn't like their obedience.
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_00: That there is a desire that comes from the Lord who wants to have a relationship with us, that he says, I want you to know me as I know you.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_00: And the only way to do that is by reading and understanding my word.
• 19:32
  SPEAKER_00: And even look, even if you're not at the day and night meditation of Joshua, like that's a lot.
• 19:38
  SPEAKER_00: I get it.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_00: Even if you're not at that point, though, the question becomes like, how is it possible for us to have any sort of relationship with the Lord if we're not reading the Bible too?
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_00: Statistics would say that 50% of evangelical Christians, which would be our demographic, 50% of evangelical Christians read the Bible less than one time per week.
• 20:02
  SPEAKER_00: And 30% of evangelical Christians don't read the Bible at all in a year.
• 20:08
  SPEAKER_00: And so I'm not by any means coming down on you, but I know that this is a fantastic time, just because it's 2025 or whenever, to just begin getting into those rhythms and making this a priority and understanding that if you really desire to walk with the Lord, trying to do it without reading the Bible is a fool's errand.
• 20:27
  SPEAKER_00: So Joshua has given this instruction, keep this in mind as we move forward.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_00: The great success for Joshua is going to be will you be obedient to the Lord by reading his word.
• 20:39
  SPEAKER_00: But I want to point out one final thing here, because God once again tells him, right, do not turn, you must meditate on this.
• 20:49
  SPEAKER_00: But at the very end in verse 9, he reaffirms sort of Joshua's protection and reason for success.
• 21:00
  SPEAKER_00: Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.
• 21:06
  SPEAKER_00: This is a frequent reminder from the Lord to many of his leaders, and especially we find it in the New Testament when people are facing persecution for their faith.
• 21:16
  SPEAKER_00: There are a lot of things.
• 21:17
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, that really the details here, the things we can distill out of this story, are God empowering people to do his will.
• 21:25
  SPEAKER_00: And oftentimes what happens is that the will of God is not a very easy thing to carry out.
• 21:31
  SPEAKER_00: We live in a broken world, we're broken people, spiritual warfare is at hand, God's kingdom is moving forward against enemies, we are facing persecution.
• 21:41
  SPEAKER_00: There are a lot of factors, there are a lot of headwinds going against the idea of carrying out God's will to the best of our abilities.
• 21:48
  SPEAKER_00: And oftentimes, even if it's not that grand, we're not Joshua here, if it's something like, hey, we're trying to break an addiction, we are trying to be uh love our neighbor well, we are trying to Be humble in the workplace.
• 22:01
  SPEAKER_00: We are trying to be, you know, um people of generosity, like even these internal things that we're working through, we're just trying to be faithful in reading his word.
• 22:12
  SPEAKER_00: God has still given this sort of encouragement to Joshua.
• 22:16
  SPEAKER_00: He says, Hey, don't be afraid or discouraged.
• 22:18
  SPEAKER_00: There are a lot of those things that you're going to be walking through that, in fact, I have called you into, that you have the potential to be afraid and discouraged by.
• 22:27
  SPEAKER_00: God often draws his people through valleys, and his commitment to them is he says, I'm going to be with you as we walk through this valley.
• 22:35
  SPEAKER_00: It's good for you.
• 22:36
  SPEAKER_00: It's necessary.
• 22:37
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes we walk into the valley ourselves, and we're like, God, please be with me through this.
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_00: And he's like, I am, I am.
• 22:43
  SPEAKER_00: But whether God brings us into the valley or we walk there ourselves, oftentimes we need to have that same encouragement.
• 22:49
  SPEAKER_00: Don't be afraid or discouraged.
• 22:51
  SPEAKER_00: It's one of the greatest blessings of having God's Spirit with us is that we have this truth that we need not be afraid or discouraged, even though oftentimes we are.
• 23:03
  SPEAKER_00: Because He is with us, because He is not going to leave us, we don't need to have that anxiety.
• 23:10
  SPEAKER_00: So as we look at these two passages, right, kind of verses 1 through 5 and then 6 through 9, there are two broad things that I've already pointed out that I want to talk about kind of as we wrap up here.
• 23:21
  SPEAKER_00: The first in verses 1 through 5 is God communicates to Joshua, you have everything you need to do the task set before you.
• 23:29
  SPEAKER_00: I am with you.
• 23:30
  SPEAKER_00: You've same deal with Moses, like you have walked with him, I'm walking with you, you can do this.
• 23:38
  SPEAKER_00: And then verses 6 through 9, it says, You can do this because I've empowered you, but you still have a responsibility to be bold and courageous with the power that I have given you to carry out my will to the best of your ability.
• 23:50
  SPEAKER_00: And Joshua, that's on you.
• 23:53
  SPEAKER_00: If you want to be successful in this upcoming campaign, those two things are going to need to work together here.
• 24:01
  SPEAKER_00: I am reminded of the Apostle Peter, who we actually talked about last week in our final picture perfect message, a man who, as a great leader in the church, oftentimes dealt with fear.
• 24:14
  SPEAKER_00: And one of the things that he said later in his letters in the New Testament was that God's divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of him who has called us by his own glory and goodness.
• 24:30
  SPEAKER_00: God has called Joshua by his own glory and goodness to lead Israel into this next chapter.
• 24:36
  SPEAKER_00: And God has called you by his own glory and goodness to do great things for the kingdom of God.
• 24:44
  SPEAKER_00: There are certain parts of that calling that are the same for every single one of us, right?
• 24:51
  SPEAKER_00: The Great Commission is for us to preach the good news and to teach people his word and to disciple them and to lead them to life in Christ.
• 25:01
  SPEAKER_00: Like these are all things that every one of us has a responsibility to do.
• 25:05
  SPEAKER_00: But then individually, man, God is working in each of our lives in special and unique ways based upon how he has gifted us.
• 25:14
  SPEAKER_00: And what I want you to understand is that you have all you need to do all that God has called you to do.
• 25:21
  SPEAKER_00: You have all you need to do all that God has called you to do.
• 25:33
  SPEAKER_00: And oftentimes we, there's that um, what I would say kind of like a coffee mug verse, right?
• 25:41
  SPEAKER_00: That, you know, the Lord is not even really a verse, but like the Lord is not going to give you more than you can handle.
• 25:46
  SPEAKER_00: The Lord always gives you more than you can handle.
• 25:49
  SPEAKER_00: It's just that he is with you in all of those moments.
• 25:52
  SPEAKER_00: You can't do it on your own.
• 25:54
  SPEAKER_00: That's the whole thing here.
• 25:55
  SPEAKER_00: And so you have all that you need to do all that God has called you to do, is not, hey, you're awesome or I'm awesome.
• 26:02
  SPEAKER_00: That's not what this is.
• 26:04
  SPEAKER_00: This is, hey, you have the Spirit of God which has empowered you to do all that God has called you to do.
• 26:09
  SPEAKER_00: Same with Joshua, same with you.
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_00: The same spirit that rested on Joshua is the same spirit that you have, the Holy Spirit, because you've trusted in Christ.
• 26:18
  SPEAKER_00: And so when we think about the call of God upon our life, whatever it is, even those most difficult circumstances, we need to understand that there is nothing that He has called us to do that we cannot do because of His power within us.
• 26:33
  SPEAKER_00: I think some people need to hear that part of the message more than anything else.
• 26:38
  SPEAKER_00: We feel weak, we feel timid, we don't feel bold and courageous, and we go, like, whatever it is, whatever that line is sort of in front of us, we go, I don't think I have it within me to do this, right?
• 26:51
  SPEAKER_00: I can't, maybe you're exhausted, you've been in the valley for a really long time, and it just doesn't feel like you see the end.
• 26:57
  SPEAKER_00: And I want you to be reminded that God is with you the entire way, and that he has empowered you to do it all.
• 27:05
  SPEAKER_00: But there's the other side of the coin, which I think the other half of us, I guess, need to hear, which is that we have all the empowering grace of God in our lives, and yet, like Joshua, we still need to go and do the thing.
• 27:20
  SPEAKER_00: Peter says this as well, as each has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God's varied grace.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_00: God's varied grace there is saying, like, God does not give to every person in the exact same way.
• 27:34
  SPEAKER_00: God has given uh more to some and less to others.
• 27:38
  SPEAKER_00: It is still far more, even in that, far more than we deserve.
• 27:42
  SPEAKER_00: But that in his varied grace, he has uh given different spiritual gifts, he's given different circumstances, he's given different challenges and abilities to each one of us.
• 27:52
  SPEAKER_00: And what Peter is saying is that in that varied grace, wherever you find yourself, you're to be a good steward of that power.
• 28:00
  SPEAKER_00: You're to be a good steward of those responsibilities and giftings and opportunities and all of those things, because as you've heard me say now, we have all that we need to do, all that God has called us to do, and so now what is left is for us to do it, right?
• 28:17
  SPEAKER_00: Be bold and courageous by using God's strength to follow his will.
• 28:22
  SPEAKER_00: I think this is where many of us can get hung up at times because we know that we have God's power.
• 28:30
  SPEAKER_00: Or maybe we we, yeah, it's maybe a head thing, not a heart thing.
• 28:35
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe we don't feel it.
• 28:36
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe we don't, like we see a lot of people in the Bible, you know, they they know that God is there with them, but when push comes to shove, they don't know if he's gonna pull through.
• 28:47
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 28:48
  SPEAKER_00: Is has he really walked with me through this whole way?
• 28:51
  SPEAKER_00: Has he really given me all that I need?
• 28:54
  SPEAKER_00: Am I really strong enough by his spirit to do this task?
• 28:58
  SPEAKER_00: The answer is yes.
• 29:00
  SPEAKER_00: But like Joshua, he needed to be reminded: hey, be bold and courageous.
• 29:06
  SPEAKER_00: Be bold and courageous.
• 29:07
  SPEAKER_00: If you want to find success, and we need to be careful, success is does not necessarily mean you, you know, you can sell your business for seven million dollars, or that everybody gets healed, or that you never struggle.
• 29:21
  SPEAKER_00: Success when it comes to God's kingdom, right?
• 29:25
  SPEAKER_00: That is what Joshua was promised.
• 29:28
  SPEAKER_00: That if he was faithful, that he would carry out God's will, and that it would be good for him, it would be good for God's kingdom, the world would benefit from it, Joshua would find purpose, um, and ultimately more people would know about the Lord because of what he had done.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_00: Be bold and courageous by using God's strength to follow his will.
• 29:49
  SPEAKER_00: So that's my encouragement to you today.
• 29:52
  SPEAKER_00: And I want you to hear both sides of that as I kind of finish, right?
• 29:56
  SPEAKER_00: Is that God does not give just one side of this uh equation without the other.
• 30:03
  SPEAKER_00: As he delivers this encouragement to Joshua, he says, I am with you and go forth and do, right?
• 30:10
  SPEAKER_00: And then even at the end, in verse 9, remember, he kind of does the sandwich deal, right?
• 30:14
  SPEAKER_00: It's like, I am with you, you have everything you need, do this, and then remember that I am with you every step of the way.
• 30:22
  SPEAKER_00: And so it's it's far beyond me to try and give every single example for all of you about what it is that God has you in right now.
• 30:31
  SPEAKER_00: But I just want you to have this, I don't know if mantra is the right word, but phrase in your head that he told Joshua.
• 30:38
  SPEAKER_00: He's like, don't be afraid or discouraged.
• 30:40
  SPEAKER_00: You can do it because I am with you.
• 30:44
  SPEAKER_00: Would you bow your heads and pray with me?
• 30:47
  SPEAKER_00: Heavenly Father, we come before you, the Lord who has given us all the power and strength that we need to do all that you have asked us to do.
• 30:59
  SPEAKER_00: God, we thank you for that.
• 31:01
  SPEAKER_00: I thank you that you have not sent us on a fruitless task.
• 31:04
  SPEAKER_00: You've not sent us on a goose chase, Lord.
• 31:06
  SPEAKER_00: You have only asked us to do the things that you know already that we can do.
• 31:11
  SPEAKER_00: And Father, I pray that in our humility we might understand that it's not because we're fantastic, it's because you have empowered us to do it.
• 31:20
  SPEAKER_00: Every ability that we have, Lord, to do the good and beautiful things that you've set before us is because of your good and beautiful purpose.
• 31:28
  SPEAKER_00: It's because of your good and beautiful power.
• 31:31
  SPEAKER_00: Lord, help us to know that and hear that, whether we need to be reminded that we have all the power to conquer the sin, the evil, the hard things in our life, to go and do the hard things, to share your word, to be the best neighbor that we can, to live generously, to um walk in humility, Lord, to do all of the things that your word tells us to do.
• 31:57
  SPEAKER_00: Lord, might we be reminded that we have the power to do it?
• 32:00
  SPEAKER_00: And then finally, Lord, that that would not just remain in our heads, but would move into our hands, and that we would carry out your will to the best of our abilities.
• 32:08
  SPEAKER_00: God, as you have given each of us with varied grace a different call upon our life, Lord, filled with purpose, may we do it to the best of our ability, knowing that you are with us every step of the way.
• 32:21
  SPEAKER_00: In Jesus' name we pray.
• 32:22
  SPEAKER_00: Amen.