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God Keeps His Promises · Stornoway Free Church of Scotland - Sermons

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  Well, can we turn back to our reading in Joshua chapter 23.
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  Looking at this chapter this evening, we're going to think of the theme of how God keeps
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  his promises and how we see that with Joshua here in this chapter.
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  When you read through the scriptures, you constantly encounter the promises of God.
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  And if you were to have a wee challenge this evening, how many of the promises of God can
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  you think of in scripture?
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  If you were to start writing them down, you would probably come across a number of ones
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  that just spring to mind instantly.
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  But the more you go on and the more you go through scripture, the more you begin to see
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  just how many promises there are.
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  You think of the promises that maybe stand out in the early parts of the scriptures, the
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  covenant with Abraham, how God promised that he would have descendants as numerous as the
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  stars in the sky or the sand on the seashore.
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  You have God's promise to Noah after the flood when he gave the sign of the rainbow, how never
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  again he would destroy the world in that way.
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  You have promises that a word of God to many of his people down through the generations promises
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  that he says, I will never leave you or forsake you.
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  Promise he gave to Joshua, as we'll see.
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  He promises to lead his people.
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  He promises us a savior.
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  He promises us the day of the resurrection.
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  He promises us that the Lord Jesus Christ will come again.
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  And it goes on.
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  So you start listing the promises of God and you see just how many they are.
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  And people have estimated by looking at scripture just how many thousands of promises they have.
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  If you start writing them on a little bit of paper, you would soon run out.
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  Even if you had an A4 jotter, you would run out of paper when you start noting down just
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  how many promises there are.
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  So we're constantly hearing the promises of God as we are reading through the scriptures.
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  And in 2 Corinthians 1, verse 20, we are told this, all the promises of God find their yes in him.
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  That is, in Christ Jesus.
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  All the promises of God find their yes in him.
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  They're all fulfilled in him.
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  So when you think of the promises of God and how many they are, it's good to remind ourselves
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  of how faithful God is to us through all of his promises.
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  And it's good to remind ourselves, whether it's in our own experiences of how we have known God's
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  promises to us, or in the experiences of others, how we hear or see of God's promises,
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  helping and keeping people through so many different situations.
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  We think of even congregational fellowships like we have, and times when we meet together,
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  we speak together of the things of God and what he has done for us, and how encouraged we are to hear
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  of God's promises shown to others and then remind ourselves he's been faithful to us too.
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  But in some ways, here we are meeting with Joshua in this chapter.
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  And here he is, and he's speaking to the people of Israel, especially speaking to the leaders of Israel
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  at this point, but a message that would go out to all the people.
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  And it's a message of God's faithfulness to him.
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  And how, as he is looking back, he is able to see every promise of God has been kept.
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  Never has the Lord failed him.
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  We see it here in verse 14, where it says there,
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  God keeps his promises.
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  And some of the promises he has given have been already fulfilled.
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  Some of his promises are still ongoing, and some of his promises are still to come.
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  But whether it takes a short time or a long time, God keeps every one of the promises he makes.
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  And we see here Joshua is speaking as an old man.
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  His time on earth is coming to a conclusion.
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  But having led the children of Israel through so much, having brought them in to the promised land,
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  having seen the rewards of coming into the promised land,
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  his longing now, as he looks at the people around him, is that they will go on in the faith,
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  go on leaning and looking to the promises of God.
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  And that's his concern, as we see in this chapter.
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  He is speaking to the people here, warning them against complacency.
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  He's saying, don't forget the promises of God.
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  Don't forget how faithful God has been.
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  Don't forget what he has said in his word.
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  Neither forget the blessings that he has spoken about,
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  and neither forget the judgments which he has spoken about as well.
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  Because all of these things, they put demands on you.
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  And so it is with ourselves today as well.
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  That as we hear the promises of God, we have the promises of his blessings,
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  but the warning too of the promise of his judgment when we disobey his word.
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  Fear the Lord, he's saying.
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  Keep looking to him.
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  But if you turn away, you will suffer the consequences.
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  We often speak today in terms of a generation lost to the church.
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  And there is truth in that statement.
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  We look around and what we see around ourselves is there are people,
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  and especially maybe we see it in a certain generation,
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  are people who do not fear the Lord,
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  who have been turned away or who have turned away from God
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  through the appeal of this world.
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  And we think to ourselves how quickly things change.
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  And when you look at the experience of Joshua,
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  there's a reminder to us of this very thing.
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  Because as we're reading here,
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  we're reading of a generation who were trusting the Lord
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  and who were committed and looking to him and leaning on him.
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  And here as Joshua speaks, he is speaking into that situation.
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  But all you have to do is turn forward into the book of Judges,
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  in chapter 2.
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  We're going to read some verses from there.
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  Just the next book, the book of Judges, chapter 2.
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  And you read there of the death of Joshua at verse 6.
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  And listen to what it says.
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  When Joshua dismissed the people,
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  the people of Israel went each to his inheritance
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  to take possession of the land.
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  And the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua
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  and all the days of the elders who outlived.
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  Joshua, who had seen all the great work that the Lord had done for Israel.
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  And Joshua, the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord,
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  died at the age of 110 years.
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  And they buried him within the boundaries of his inheritance in Timnath-Heres,
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  in the hill country of Ephraim, north of the mountain of Gash.
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  And all that generation also were gathered to their fathers.
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  And there arose another generation after them,
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  who did not know the Lord or the work that he had done for Israel.
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  You see just how quickly it changed.
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  Joshua there in chapter 23,
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  speaking to a people who were trusting in the Lord.
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  And then another generation,
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  and they arise,
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  and they've got no word for what the Lord has done for them.
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  And in such a short space of time,
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  you see how quickly it changed.
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  When we look in our own history,
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  and we see our own nation,
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  even our own islands,
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  and we think of it like that,
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  how quickly things have changed.
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  And in many ways,
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  that can leave us feeling dismayed.
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  But it should also leave us feeling a bit of hope.
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  That just as things can change so quickly downwards,
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  so the Lord can so quickly change things
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  in the opposite direction as well.
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  And that is what Joshua is getting at here in this chapter.
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  Even as he's warning them of what is to come,
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  he is warning them to keep their focus on the Lord.
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  And so I want us to take these two things from this passage
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  this evening.
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  That the way that we see how God keeps his promises,
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  it's to think of keeping looking to God
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  and keeping leaning on God.
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  So looking to God first.
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  What was the situation at the time
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  that Joshua speaks to the people here?
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  Well, verse one makes it clear for us
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  the kind of situation it was.
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  A long time afterwards,
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  when the Lord had given rest,
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  to Israel from all their surrounding enemies,
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  they had been given rest.
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  God had given them rest.
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  It was a time of peace.
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  Joshua and the children of Israel
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  here were enjoying a time of peace.
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  God had given them rest
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  from all the enemies around them.
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  And they had come in to the promised land.
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  They were enjoying all that this land had to offer them.
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  They had been blessed in seeing God's promise of this land fulfilled.
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  But is this a good thing when it comes to going on in faith?
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  Is the best environment to grow in your faith?
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  Is the best environment to grow in your faith days of peace?
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  In some ways, we would say yes.
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  Because here we see they're enjoying this peace.
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  They're enjoying the promises of God,
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  reward of this land to them.
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  But there's also a danger.
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  And that is what Joshua is seeing here in his old age.
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  You read that just as he was rest in the land,
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  Joshua was old and well advanced in years.
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  Joshua had seen so much to this point.
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  He had seen so much through his life.
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  And now he's looking around and he's seeing the people around him.
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  And there's a sense here that he's sensing the danger
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  of what is beginning to happen in their lives.
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  He sees some things beginning to happen in their lives
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  and he doesn't like it.
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  So like a good leader, he sees and he feels his duty
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  as a leader of the people to point this out to them.
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  He's warning the leaders of Israel here to be on their guard for this
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  so they can warn the people who they are in charge of.
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  And this is him before he departs.
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  He wants to make sure that he leaves them on a good footing.
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  And what is the danger that he sees?
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  Well, as they have come in to the promised land,
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  there is still the remnant of nations around them.
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  Nations who have their people there
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  and nations who have their gods there.
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  And the danger that Joshua is seeing
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  is that the people are starting to look.
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  They are starting to look at what is around them.
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  It's so similar to the Garden of Eden once again almost.
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  They're in the promised land.
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  They've been given everything they need for provided by God.
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  Everything they need is there.
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  But they look beyond that.
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  And they look to what God has told them not to do.
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  Not to go and mix with the other nations.
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  Not to marry into the other nations
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  because this is going to bring a judgment on you.
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  But they begin to look.
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  It's in our nature, through our fallen nature,
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  through our sin,
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  to start looking at what we can't have
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  or what we shouldn't have.
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  A danger that still exists to this day.
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  So Joshua is afraid the people
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  are maybe taking God's word for granted.
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  Taking his blessings for granted.
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  And they're beginning to let their eyes wander
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  in different directions.
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  And they're becoming this kind of complacent people.
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  A little like what we looked at last week
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  with the church in Laodicea.
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  They were lukewarm.
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  They weren't hot.
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  They weren't cold.
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  They were lukewarm.
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  They're just stale.
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  And it's in that kind of situation
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  that things begin to go wrong.
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  So here are the people of Joshua's day.
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  They're becoming lukewarm.
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  They're starting to look elsewhere.
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  And this time of peace is not being good to them.
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  They're losing their edge.
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  You think of it in this way.
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  What happens to an army in a time of peace?
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  They can become fat and lazy, ill-equipped.
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  They lose their edge.
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  They're not ready for when a conflict,
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  for when a war arises,
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  unless they've kept themselves in shape,
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  unless they've kept themselves constantly in training.
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  And think of it in a Christian perspective.
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  How do we use our times of peace
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  that we have enjoyed
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  or maybe even are enjoying just now in some ways?
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  Do we become lacy?
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  Do we become lukewarm?
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  Do we lose our edge?
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  Do we lose our focus
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  and start looking in the wrong places
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  instead of looking to and trusting in God?
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  Well, Joshua here is warning the people
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  to keep themselves in training,
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  to keep themselves in shape,
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  looking to God and his promises
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  and trusting in him.
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  He says in verse six,
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  be very strong to keep and to do
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  all that is written in the book of Moses,
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  or the law of Moses,
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  turning aside from it,
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  neither to the right hand nor to the left.
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  Don't start looking in different directions.
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  He's saying, keep your focus on God.
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  How often in the Bible
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  do you read a verse that says,
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  blessed are you in peace
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  for your faith will grow.
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  Can you find that verse
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  in the Bible that says that?
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  It's the opposite, isn't it?
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  It's the very opposite
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  that's true in the scriptures.
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  It's not blessed are you
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  in times of peace
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  for your faith grows,
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  but blessed are you
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  in times of persecution.
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  Blessed are you in adversity,
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  then your faith grows.
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  Matthew 5, verse 11,
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  blessed are you
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  when others revile you
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  and persecute you.
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  And other all kinds of evil
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  against you falsely on my account.
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  Rejoice and be glad
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  for your reward is great in heaven.
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  Blessed are you
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  when you're persecuted.
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  James 1, verse 2,
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  counted all joy, my brothers,
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  when you meet trials
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  of various kinds.
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  For you know that the testing
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  of your faith
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  produces steadfastness.
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  Again, it's not in peace,
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  it's in trials.
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  1 Peter 1,
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  which we've been looking at recently,
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  says there,
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  in this you rejoice,
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  though now for a little while,
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  if necessary,
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  you have been grieved
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  by various trials.
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  So the tested genuineness
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  of your faith.
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  So it goes on,
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  more precious than gold.
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  It's in the testing
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  of your faith.
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  That's what keeps us
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  looking to Jesus.
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  So a time of peace
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  is a time
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  to keep ourselves
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  well trained,
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  on our guard,
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  not complacent,
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  and making sure
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  we're not looking beyond
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  what we should be,
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  but looking always
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  to the Lord.
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  We do this by looking
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  to the promises
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  of God,
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  to his word,
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  and how he faithfully
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  keeps,
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  and will keep each one,
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  the blessings
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  and the curses.
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  We should be standing
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  convinced
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  and challenged
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  by them.
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  So we look
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  to God.
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  The next thing we see,
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  the second thing we see here
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  is this leaning
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  on God.
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  So you think
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  of the situation
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  here of Joshua
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  when the people there
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  have been devoted
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  to God.
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  Well, think
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  of our own islands
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  here.
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  If everyone
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  in our islands
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  became a Christian,
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  the work
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  of the church
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  is done,
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  would there still
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  be a need
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  for the church?
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  I don't mean
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  in the sense
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  of the church
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  as the people
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  or the bride
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  of Christ,
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  but the church
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  in the sense
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  as it functions.
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  Would we still
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  need the church?
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  Can we not just
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  close the doors
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  of our churches?
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  If everyone's
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  a Christian,
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  why do we need it?
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  Well, if we think
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  the sole purpose
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  of the church
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  is evangelism
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  or reaching out
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  to the lost,
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  then we would say,
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  yes, that could be true.
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  But we would be wrong
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  because that is not
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  the case.
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  Part of our work
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  is reaching out
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  to the lost.
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  In many ways,
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  it's not the main part
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  because the main
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  part of the church
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  is to worship
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  God
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  and to praise
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  his name.
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  When you look
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  at verse 1
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  to verse 5
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  here,
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  Joshua speaks
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  of the peace
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  they have
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  and the blessings
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  that God
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  has given them
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  and the protection
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  he will show them.
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  But he doesn't say
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  job done.
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  He doesn't say
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  that's it.
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  We're complete.
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  We're finished.
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  What he says
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  in verse 6,
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  therefore,
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  be very strong
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  to keep
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  and do
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  all that is written
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  in the book
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  of the law
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  of Moses.
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  The people
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  are still
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  leaning
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  upon God.
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  The main purpose
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  of the church,
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  the people of God,
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  is to be together
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  worshipping him,
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  acknowledging
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  our dependence
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  upon him.
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  Just like
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  the shorter
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  catechism says,
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  man's chief end,
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  our first
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  great end,
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  is to glorify
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  God
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  and to enjoy
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  him
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  forever.
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  Joshua could have
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  looked around
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  and seen a people
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  who had peace
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  and were enjoying
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  the blessings
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  of God
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  and may be happy
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  to leave it at that.
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  But he sees
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  coming to faith
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  is not the end point.
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  It's just
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  the beginning.
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  We need to go on
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  in the strength
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  of the Lord.
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  And as Joshua
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  looks around,
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  he's concerned
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  that people
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  are starting
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  to lose sight
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  of this.
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  No faith
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  can be strong
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  if it's not
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  growing.
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  Just as Jesus
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  makes clear
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  for us
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  in John 15,
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  he says,
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  I am the vine,
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  you are the branches.
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  We only bear
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  fruit
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  through him.
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  So we are
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  starting to
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  come away
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  from him
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  we will
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  fade.
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  We will
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  lose
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  our fruit
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  bearing
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  capacity.
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  We are
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  always
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  leaning
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  on him.
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  So Joshua
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  here
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  is speaking
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  through
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  experience.
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  And once
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  again you see
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  in the history
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  of the nation
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  of Israel
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  that Joshua
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  was right
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  to be concerned.
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  And you see
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  that they didn't
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  heed the warnings.
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  They drifted
• 21:28
  away
• 21:28
  from God.
• 21:30
  And is that
• 21:31
  a concern
• 21:32
  for the church
• 21:33
  today?
• 21:34
  Of course
• 21:35
  it is.
• 21:36
  And it
• 21:36
  always has
• 21:37
  to be a
• 21:38
  concern.
• 21:39
  We always
• 21:40
  have to ask
• 21:40
  is our
• 21:41
  commitment
• 21:41
  what it
• 21:42
  should be?
• 21:43
  And what
• 21:44
  does our
• 21:44
  commitment
• 21:45
  look like
• 21:46
  in the light
• 21:47
  of God's
• 21:47
  promises?
• 21:48
  The promises
• 21:49
  of blessing
• 21:50
  and the promises
• 21:50
  of judgment.
• 21:51
  commitment.
• 21:53
  Well what
• 21:53
  does the
• 21:53
  idea of
• 21:54
  commitment
• 21:55
  look like
• 21:56
  to the
• 21:57
  Lord Jesus
• 21:57
  Christ?
• 21:58
  How does
• 21:58
  he describe
• 21:59
  how our
• 22:00
  commitment
• 22:00
  should be?
• 22:02
  Again there's
• 22:03
  maybe many
• 22:03
  places we
• 22:04
  could look
• 22:04
  but in
• 22:05
  Matthew 10
• 22:05
  verse 37
• 22:06
  he says
• 22:07
  whoever
• 22:08
  loves father
• 22:09
  or mother
• 22:09
  more than
• 22:10
  me is not
• 22:10
  worthy of
• 22:11
  me.
• 22:11
  And whoever
• 22:12
  loves son
• 22:13
  or daughter
• 22:13
  more than
• 22:14
  me is not
• 22:15
  worthy of
• 22:16
  me.
• 22:16
  And whoever
• 22:17
  does not
• 22:17
  take his
• 22:18
  cross and
• 22:19
  follow me
• 22:19
  is not
• 22:20
  worthy.
• 22:21
  of me.
• 22:23
  What kind
• 22:23
  of commitment
• 22:24
  is the
• 22:25
  Lord looking
• 22:25
  for there?
• 22:26
  He's telling
• 22:26
  us so
• 22:27
  clearly that
• 22:28
  if he's
• 22:29
  not our
• 22:30
  main purpose
• 22:31
  in life is
• 22:32
  to worship
• 22:32
  him then we
• 22:34
  are losing
• 22:34
  focus.
• 22:35
  We are not
• 22:36
  leaning on
• 22:37
  him.
• 22:37
  We are not
• 22:37
  worthy of
• 22:39
  him.
• 22:41
  He speaks
• 22:42
  of the
• 22:42
  ultimate
• 22:43
  expression of
• 22:44
  love and
• 22:44
  his willingness
• 22:45
  to bear
• 22:46
  his cross
• 22:47
  and he
• 22:49
  asks of
• 22:49
  us to
• 22:50
  take up
• 22:51
  our cross
• 22:52
  and follow
• 22:53
  him.
• 22:54
  Again it
• 22:55
  speaks of
• 22:55
  this burden
• 22:57
  this weight
• 22:58
  this persecution
• 22:59
  this suffering
• 23:00
  whatever it
• 23:01
  is but that
• 23:02
  we are to
• 23:02
  take it up
• 23:03
  and follow
• 23:04
  him.
• 23:05
  So how do
• 23:06
  we describe
• 23:07
  our commitment
• 23:08
  to him?
• 23:10
  Are we all
• 23:11
  in?
• 23:12
  Is our
• 23:12
  heart fully
• 23:13
  committed to
• 23:14
  him?
• 23:16
  What does
• 23:16
  Joshua leave
• 23:18
  them with as
• 23:19
  he is about
• 23:19
  to depart?
• 23:21
  While he
• 23:21
  leaves with
• 23:22
  them the
• 23:22
  very thing
• 23:23
  that has
• 23:24
  kept them
• 23:25
  going.
• 23:26
  He has
• 23:27
  known every
• 23:28
  promise of
• 23:29
  God fulfilled.
• 23:32
  Verse 14
• 23:33
  that's what he
• 23:33
  is saying.
• 23:34
  And now I
• 23:35
  am about to
• 23:35
  go the way
• 23:36
  of all the
• 23:36
  earth and
• 23:37
  you know in
• 23:37
  your hearts
• 23:38
  and souls
• 23:38
  all of you
• 23:40
  that not one
• 23:41
  word has
• 23:42
  failed of all
• 23:43
  the good
• 23:43
  things that
• 23:44
  the Lord your
• 23:45
  God promised
• 23:46
  concerning
• 23:47
  you.
• 23:49
  Not one
• 23:50
  thing of
• 23:51
  God has
• 23:52
  failed.
• 23:54
  Isn't it
• 23:54
  encouraging to
• 23:55
  hear Joshua
• 23:56
  speak in this
• 23:58
  way?
• 23:58
  It's like we're
• 23:59
  entering into
• 24:00
  him sharing a
• 24:01
  word of
• 24:01
  testimony, a
• 24:02
  word of
• 24:02
  encouragement to
• 24:04
  us as God's
• 24:05
  people.
• 24:06
  And he's
• 24:06
  encouraging just
• 24:07
  as he was the
• 24:08
  people then
• 24:08
  ourselves today
• 24:10
  to remind
• 24:11
  ourselves again
• 24:12
  and again that
• 24:13
  every promise
• 24:15
  of God is
• 24:16
  yes in
• 24:17
  Christ Jesus.
• 24:19
  And to keep
• 24:20
  our focus on
• 24:21
  leaning on
• 24:22
  these promises.
• 24:24
  Verse 6
• 24:25
  sums up the
• 24:26
  way he has
• 24:27
  lived his
• 24:28
  life.
• 24:28
  Therefore be
• 24:29
  very strong
• 24:30
  to keep and
• 24:31
  do all that
• 24:32
  is written in
• 24:32
  the book of
• 24:33
  the law of
• 24:34
  Moses.
• 24:35
  Where have
• 24:36
  you heard
• 24:36
  this before?
• 24:38
  At the very
• 24:39
  outset of
• 24:41
  Joshua in
• 24:42
  chapter 1 when
• 24:43
  Joshua was
• 24:44
  called to
• 24:45
  lead the
• 24:45
  children of
• 24:46
  Israel.
• 24:47
  What was he
• 24:47
  told?
• 24:49
  In chapter 1
• 24:50
  verse 7 it
• 24:51
  says only be
• 24:52
  strong and
• 24:53
  very courageous
• 24:54
  being careful
• 24:55
  to do according
• 24:56
  to all that
• 24:57
  all the law
• 24:58
  that Moses my
• 24:59
  servant commanded
• 25:00
  you.
• 25:01
  Do not turn
• 25:01
  from it to the
• 25:02
  right hand or
• 25:03
  to the left
• 25:04
  that you may
• 25:05
  have good
• 25:06
  success wherever
• 25:07
  you go.
• 25:10
  His experience
• 25:12
  means at the
• 25:12
  start that he
• 25:14
  has enjoyed
• 25:14
  through all
• 25:15
  his years.
• 25:16
  It's a very
• 25:17
  testimony that
• 25:18
  he is giving
• 25:18
  to his people
• 25:19
  as his time
• 25:20
  on earth
• 25:21
  comes to
• 25:22
  an end.
• 25:22
  The words
• 25:23
  are almost
• 25:24
  identical.
• 25:26
  And we can
• 25:27
  take these
• 25:28
  words for
• 25:29
  ourselves today
• 25:30
  as well.
• 25:31
  Joshua is
• 25:32
  saying I
• 25:33
  am about to
• 25:33
  go but what
• 25:35
  he says is
• 25:36
  not one word
• 25:37
  has failed
• 25:38
  of all the
• 25:39
  good things
• 25:40
  that the
• 25:40
  Lord your
• 25:41
  God has
• 25:42
  promised
• 25:43
  concerning
• 25:45
  you.
• 25:47
  Therefore
• 25:48
  he says
• 25:49
  in verse 6
• 25:50
  be very
• 25:51
  strong to
• 25:52
  keep and
• 25:53
  do all
• 25:54
  that is
• 25:54
  written in
• 25:55
  the book
• 25:55
  of the
• 25:55
  law of
• 25:56
  Moses
• 25:56
  turning aside
• 25:57
  from it
• 25:57
  neither to
• 25:59
  the right
• 25:59
  hand nor
• 26:00
  to the
• 26:01
  left.
• 26:02
  Don't stop
• 26:03
  looking to
• 26:05
  God and
• 26:06
  don't stop
• 26:07
  leaning on
• 26:09
  God.
• 26:10
  So that is
• 26:11
  what he is
• 26:11
  saying to
• 26:13
  us too.
• 26:14
  To look at
• 26:15
  the promises
• 26:15
  of God.
• 26:17
  To see how
• 26:17
  faithful he
• 26:18
  is in
• 26:19
  having kept
• 26:20
  them, keeping
• 26:21
  them and he
• 26:22
  will keep
• 26:24
  them.
• 26:25
  They bring
• 26:26
  us protection.
• 26:28
  They bring
• 26:29
  us closer
• 26:30
  to him
• 26:31
  because they
• 26:32
  are all
• 26:32
  secure in
• 26:34
  Christ.
• 26:36
  Joshua
• 26:36
  speaks as
• 26:37
  one who
• 26:37
  has known
• 26:38
  it throughout
• 26:39
  all his
• 26:40
  days and
• 26:41
  may we be
• 26:42
  enabled to
• 26:43
  hold fast
• 26:44
  to the same
• 26:45
  promises with
• 26:47
  that same
• 26:47
  attitude, being
• 26:48
  strong, keeping
• 26:50
  all that the
• 26:51
  word of God
• 26:52
  has commanded,
• 26:53
  not turning
• 26:54
  to the left
• 26:55
  nor to
• 26:57
  the right,
• 26:58
  looking to
• 26:59
  and leaning
• 27:00
  upon our
• 27:02
  Lord Jesus
• 27:03
  Christ.
• 27:03
  May God
• 27:04
  bless these
• 27:05
  thoughts to
• 27:06
  us.
• 27:07
  We're going
• 27:08
  to conclude
• 27:09
  by singing
• 27:09
  theppone.