Latest / A Chapter a Day Bible Reading / May 18 - Joshua 24

Transcript

May 18 - Joshua 24 · A Chapter a Day Bible Reading

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  Hello, friends. It's Sean here.
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  It's Monday. It's the 18th of May.
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  Who knew? That sounds very close to the
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  middle of the year, doesn't it? It feels like, oh man, just a
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  month ago that we were just starting out the year and here
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  we are coming toward the end of the fifth month.
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  And the other thing we're coming toward the end of, in fact, we
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  have reached the end of, is today we will be reading the
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  very last chapter of the book of Joshua.
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  And I know some of you had said, oh, Sean, this is hard going.
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  When do we get into the end? Well, friends, we've made it
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  through. It's a very different kind of
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  book, isn't it? It's certainly not the dynamic,
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  easily transferable into our lives, Bible reading that we
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  often enjoy from the New Testament.
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  But it is still part of the story of God journeying with his
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  people. But then from tomorrow, we will
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  dive into the New Testament and begin reading through the
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  incredible story from the book of Acts, just in time for
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  Pentecost Sunday that's coming up.
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  So Are you ready? We are going to read the very
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  last chapter today where God's people renew their covenant with
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  God. And then it is the end of a
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  generation with the death of some significant people from
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  this part of their story as things get beautifully wrapped
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  up in Joshua chapter 24. Then Joshua summoned all the
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  tribes of Israel to Shechem, including their elders, leaders,
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  judges and officers. So they came and presented
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  themselves to God. Joshua said to the people, This
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  is what the Lord, the God of Israel says.
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  Long ago your ancestors, including Terror, the father of
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  Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the Euphrates River, and they
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  worshipped other gods. But I took your ancestor Abraham
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  from the land beyond the Euphrates and led him into the
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  land of Canaan. I gave him many descendants
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  through his son Isaac. To Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau,
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  To Esau I gave the mountains of Seya, while Jacob and his
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  children went down into Egypt. Then I sent Moses an Aaron, and
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  I brought terrible plagues on Egypt.
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  And afterwards I brought you out as a free people.
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  But when your ancestors arrived at the Red Sea, the Egyptians
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  chased after you with Chariots and charioteers.
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  When your ancestors cried out to the Lord, I put darkness between
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  you and the Egyptians. I brought the sea crashing down
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  on the Egyptians, drowning them with your very own eyes.
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  You saw what I did then You lived in the wilderness for many
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  years. Finally I brought you into the
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  land of the Amorites on the east side of the Jordan.
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  They fought against you, but I destroyed them before you.
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  I gave you victory over them, and you took possession of their
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  land. Then Balak, son of Zippor, king
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  of Moab, started a war against Israel.
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  He summoned Balaam, son of Bior, to curse you, but I would not
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  listen to him. Instead, I made Balaam bless
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  you, and so I rescued you from Balak.
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  When you crossed the Jordan River and came to Jericho, the
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  men of Jericho fought against you, as did the Amorites, the
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  Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the
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  Hivites, and the Jebusites. But I gave you victory over
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  them, and I sent terror ahead of you to drive out the 2 kings of
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  the Amorites. It was not your swords or bows
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  that brought you victory. I gave you the land you had not
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  worked on. I gave you towns you did not
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  build, the towns where you are now living.
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  I gave you vineyards and olive Groves for food, though you did
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  not plant them. So fear the Lord and serve him
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  wholeheartedly. Put away forever the idols your
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  ancestors worshipped when they lived beyond the Euphrates River
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  and in Egypt. Serve the Lord alone.
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  But if you refuse to serve the Lord, then choose today whom you
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  will serve. Would you prefer the gods your
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  ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or will it be the
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  gods of the Amorites in whose lands you now live?
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  But As for me and my family, we will serve the Lord, the people
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  replied. We would never abandoned the
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  Lord and serve other gods, for the Lord our God is the one who
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  rescued us and our ancestors from slavery in the land of
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  Egypt. He performed mighty miracles
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  before our very eyes as we travelled through the wilderness
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  among our enemies. He preserved us.
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  It was the Lord who drove out the Amorites and the other
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  nations living here in the land. So we too will serve the Lord,
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  for He alone is our God. Then Joshua warned the people,
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  You are not able to serve the Lord, for he is a holy and
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  jealous God. He will not forgive your
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  rebellion and your sins. If you abandon the Lord and
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  serve other gods, he will turn against you and destroy you,
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  even though he has been so good to you.
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  But the people answered Joshua, No, we will serve the Lord.
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  You are a witness to your own decision, Joshua said.
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  You have chosen to serve the Lord.
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  Yes, they replied, We are witnesses to what we have said.
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  All right then, Joshua said, destroy the idols among you and
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  turn your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.
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  The people said to Joshua, We will serve the Lord our God.
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  We will obey him alone. Sir Joshua made a covenant with
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  the people that day at Shechem, committing them to follow the
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  decrees and regulations of the Lord.
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  Joshua recorded these things in the book of God's instructions.
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  As a reminder of their agreement.
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  He took a huge stone and rolled it beneath the terebinth tree
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  beside the Tabernacle of the Lord.
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  Joshua said to all the people, This stone has heard everything
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  the Lord said to us. It will be a witness to testify
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  against you if you go back on your word to God.
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  Then Joshua sent all the people away to their own homelands.
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  After this, Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at
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  the age of 110. They buried him in the land he
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  had been allocated at Timnath Serra, in the Hill Country of
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  Ephraim, north of Mount Gash. The people of Israel served the
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  Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders who
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  outlived him, those who had personally experienced all that
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  the Lord had done for Israel. The bones of Joseph, which the
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  Israelites had brought along with them when they left Egypt,
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  were buried at Shechem in the plot of land Jacob had bought
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  from the sons of Hama for 100 pieces of silver.
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  This land was located in the territory allotted to the
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  descendants of Joseph. Eliezar, son of Aaron, also
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  died. He was buried in the Hill
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  Country of Ephraim in the town of Gibeah, which had been given
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  to his son Phineas. My Lord, you are a gracious and
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  dependable God. Thank you that you provide for
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  us. You provided this land that you
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  had promised your people so long ago, and you provide for us our
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  daily needs. You provide us with families,
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  with communities, with a Saviour who loves us and who has done
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  everything that was needed to restore us back to you.
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  You hold us in your hand and you care for us in big and small
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  ways every hour of every day. Thank you that you are our
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  loving Father, that we are your blessed children.
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  We just stand before you in awe and wonder and love.
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  And we pray all of these things in the saving name of Jesus.
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  Amen.