Joshua 1:18 "Whoever rebels against your command and does not heed your words, in all that you command him, shall be put to death.
Only be strong and of good courage.”
Only Be Strong and Courageous
*Strong= to strengthen, prevail, harden, be strong, become strong, be courageous, be firm, grow firm, be resolute, be sore
*Courageous= to be strong, alert, brave, stout, bold, solid, hard
secure (for oneself), harden (heart), make firm, make obstinate, assure
to be determined, to make oneself alert, confirm oneself, persist in, prove superior to exhibit strength, feel strong
Joshua is being exhorted by the LORD and now by the leaders of Israel. He was leading the nation into unchartered territory. Actually, it was God Who was leading them. The LORD leads us into unchartered territory in time. We have never passed this way before. While history does repeat itself and there is basically nothing new under the sun, it is new for us.
1. A Change In Attitude From Those Who Rebelled.
Rebellion in the wilderness was bad enough. Rebellion as they entered the land could not be tolerated. Unity was essential if they were to have conquest.
It always is.
Paul urged the Ephesians: Ephesians 4:3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
We have this in our church. Not all churches do. Guard this. It is most precious.
Continue to love one another deeply because love covers a multitude of sins. Forgive as the LORD forgave you. Keep short accounts.
Yet be wise. Don't let a guy be treasurer if he has a history of embezzlement. Using wisdom can be more loving even though it might not appear to be on the surface.
God was calling Joshua and Joshua was calling the people and the people were calling Joshua to be strong and courageous.
They needed as they left the wilderness. As difficult as it had been it God had fed them with manna, provided water from the rock and led them visibly with the Pillar of Cloud by day and the Pillar of Fire by night. This was all going to change. They were going to have to step up now and take on more responsibility. They would be at war for a while.
They needed it as they entered the land. The first thing they would face was the Jordan River then the city of Jericho.
The battle of Jericho featured one of the most astounding miracles in the Bible, proving that God stood with the Israelites.
Hebrews 11.30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven days.
Joshua 6:15
On the seventh day, they got up at daybreak and marched around the city seven times in the same manner, except that on that day they circled the city seven times.
Joshua 6:20
When the trumpets sounded, the army shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the men gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so everyone charged straight in, and they took the city.
Jericho stands for things that are huge obstacles in our lives for fulfilling God's will. Jericho stands for impossibilities. It stands for things that unless we follow God we will never fully enter into His Promises.
There are some Jerichos facing you today and us as a church. We can go in and conquer them in Jesus' Name if we look to Him. He makes walls fall!
They needed strength and courage for future conquests beyond Jericho.
Taking the land was work, God's work. Their work was to trust what He was saying and obey Him.
Obedience to God brings us in the center of His will and His provisions. It is the best place to be!
2. The Ability To Do This Because of The LORD.
God often calls us to things beyond ourselves, to overwhelming things.
The spies were overwhelmed by the power of the enemy.
Deuteronomy 1:26-28 But you were unwilling to go up; you rebelled against the command of the Lord your God. You grumbled in your tents and said, “The Lord hates us; so he brought us out of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us. Where can we go? Our brothers have made our hearts melt in fear. They say, ‘The people are stronger and taller than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the sky. We even saw the Anakites there.’”
We need to be overwhelmed with the power and faithfulness of God1
The faithless say, "You underestimate the power of your enemy."
The faithful reply, "You underestimate the power of my God!"
His power
Ephesians 6:10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the LORD and in the power of His might.
They would have all died out in the wilderness like their forefathers if it had not been for the LORD, His love, His power, His plan.
In your life it has been these things which have brought you this far. It is Him and His Love, power and plan which will bring you to heaven.
We have no idea what God may do in your life.
Habakkuk 1.5 If He told you, you would not believe it.
Bob Pierce and Franklin Graham... Samaritan's Purse and World Medical Mission
World Medical Mission was founded in 1977 when two surgeon brothers, Drs. Lowell and Richard Furman, approached Franklin Graham and expressed their desire to volunteer for a short-term assignment in a mission hospital during their vacation. Not wanting to duplicate efforts, Franklin researched the field for other organizations that might already be involved in this work. To his surprise, there were none. While stilll a student in college, Franklin accepted the challenge to lead this organization, and World Medical Mission was born.
He took on Samaritan's Purse from Bob Pierce, who was dying of leukemia a few years later and today the two organizations are together...
Dr. Aileen Coleman
Dr. Nelson Bell's book
Dr. Stevens
Today...
Dr. Kent Brantly
Dr. Kent Brantly, a U.S. medical missionary who contracted Ebola in July while working as a doctor in Liberia and survived the deadly disease after treatment at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, appeared at a joint Senate hearing September 16th examining the Ebola outbreak.
September 9th Boone, NC Samaritan's Purse HQ
One of the most powerful moments of the praise service occurred unnoticed by many, when Dr. Brantly turned, looked straight at his young son on Amber’s lap, and sang to him some of the opening words of Matt Redman’s anthem, “Ten Thousand Reasons.”
“Whatever may pass, and whatever lies before me/
Let me be singing when the evening comes.”
Franklin Graham prayed before Dr. Brantly spoke.
That moment summed up Dr. Brantly’s message to the staff, based on Deuteronomy 6. In this familiar passage, God urges the fathers of Israel to remind their children of all the LORd has done for them.
“I will never grow tired of talking of this,” Dr. Brantly said. “I’m going to keep telling my story, so I can remember what God has done in my life.”
Later in his address, Dr. Brantly encouraged all staff to reflect on their own lives, see what God has done, and tell others about it.
“I want to encourage and challenge each of you,” he said. “Never think you’re just a normal person. If you’re pursuing God’s calling in your life, He will use you. Even if it’s a challenging calling, even if you find yourself in difficult circumstances, He will give you what you need to be faithful to Him, even if it’s a whole army of people praying for you."
“Share your story over and over and over so you can remember we serve a mighty God.”
Habakkuk 1.5 If He told you what He was going to do in your days, you would not believe it.
If the LORD told me I would be going to Haiti once a few years back I would have wondered how... Adly and I were neighbors long before he came to church here. a year ago I would have said okay I can see. But if He told me I was going to go back a second time in a 5 month period I would not have believed it. If He told me I would personally have $1,225 given to me by friends and placed in the offering for the church there today I would not have believed it. If you told me a year ago the children of Good Shepherd would support little 5 year old Bettina in Haiti so she could attend Adly's brother's school I would not believe it, but I will be bring her tuition with me when I go. It started with my daughter when she first took over Good Shepherd. If I was told I would be going where Franklin Graham just visited and doing some of the same things he just did (Shoeboxes) I would not have believed it!
Going Into the Promised Land...
3. This Can Only Be Done By Keeping Your Eyes Fixed on Him.
Pray
Read the Word.
Do not look at circumstances.
Do not be distracted by the devil.
Do not be discouraged by the opposition.
Strength for the day
Deuteronomy 33:25b your strength will equal your days.
Keep your heart open, your ears open, your eyes on Jesus. He will lead you to do things in your life, in your prayer life, in your witnessing... Sow those seeds of kindness, pray, cry out to Him.
Isaiah 43:18-19 “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?I am making a way in the wildernessand streams in the wasteland.
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