Sermon Tone Analysis

Intro

God’s promise declared.

v. 1-4

These opening verses show us three themes that continue throughout the book.

The first being Joshua’s leadership.

Second is the fulfillment of God’s promise of land.

The third is that God will be with Joshua just as he was with Moses.

Joshua told to lead the people.

We have two characters but one of them does all of the talking.

There is a purpose for this.

Joshua’s leadership role is brought to the forefront, but he is ultimately a conduit.

At the end of Deuteronomy we have Moses death recorded and Joshua’s commission to lead restated.

from 31:23

Joshua, like Moses was now in a position of leadership, he was the intermediary between God and the people.

The true leader, was the Lord.

Joshua, as Moses before him, received his direction from The Lord.

God reiterates the promise He has made now to Joshua.

God has commissioned a new leader and now reminds Joshua of the promise that He made.

The promise that God will fulfill in part, now through Joshua’s leadership.

Promise goes back to Abraham

God is restating the promise that me made to Abraham, which we see recorded in Gen. 15.

God told Abram that his offspring would be sojourners in a land that is not theirs, they would be servants there for 400 years.

But that He would bring judgment and that they would come out with great possessions.

This was the original promise, Land - and descendants.

Land and a legacy.

When Abram first crossed the land, God appeared to Abram and said “To your offspring I will give this land.

Gen 12:7

Then later in Gen 15

Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.”

Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.

Gen 15:5

Why does this matter to us?

Why does a promise, from a time so long ago that we can’t imagine matter?

While God is reminding us Joshua of the promise for his chosen people to inherit the land.

It should cause us to remember God’s promise to Abraham

Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.

3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.

All the families of the earth were not immediately blessed by the people of Israel taking possession of the land.

This matters to us because this is God’s story of bringing His Son Jesus into the world.

This matters to us because it shows us God’s care, not just for Abraham’s direct descendents, but for the whole world.

The blessing to the whole world was yet to come in Joshua’s time, but came through the work God was doing.

The promise given to Abraham, that all the earth shall be blessed is greater than his direct descendents entering into the promised land.

It is men and women today entering into the kingdom of God.

We saw in Col. 1

Jesus teaches about the kingdom in the gospels.

But as well that believers enjoy the benefits of the kingdom now.

It is a kingdom which is to come, yes.

But it is also a kingdom which has come.

‘The kingdom of God is among you’ and ‘within you’; the kingdom of God is in every true Christian.

He reigns in the Church when she acknowledges Him truly.

The kingdom has come, the kingdom is coming, the kingdom is yet to come.

Now we must always bear that in mind.

Whenever Christ is enthroned as King, the kingdom of God is come, so that, while we cannot say that He is ruling over all in the world at the present time, He is certainly ruling in that way in the hearts and lives of all His people.

We can find a similar attitude as the 2 1/2 tribes that already had their land.

The nation was there but not yet full.

This is the tension that Paul describes in Romans 7. The there but not yet.

The battle we all have with our sinful flesh each and every day.

We stand at the edge and wait, much like the people of Israel, for Christ to return and fully usher in His kingdom.

As we know from Luke

God shows his care for his children through his promise.

God shows his care in that for every moment that he waits, there are more opportunities for people to repent.

God’s presence declared.

v. 5

Verse 5 is where the promise to Joshua comes in.

This is a specific promise from God, to Joshua, for the position that God has called him to.

No man shall stand face to face with Joshua.

This promise bids us to remember where Joshua has already been.

No man will stand before Joshua, because it is the Lord God who fights for him.

The Lord goes before him because Joshua has been commissioned by God to do God’s will.

God didn’t tell Joshua exactly how all of the things He just spoke of would be accomplished.

But he does make the promise that “just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you.

I will not leave you or forsake you.”

God will not leave or forsake.

Joshua was told to step forward in faith.

To be sure that God would give him all the direction needed to accomplish the tasks set before him.

Jesus continued this promise.

We like Joshua are often called to do the same, to step out in faith.

To be bold and open begin a conversation about God with someone.

To do the work of the Christ’s great commission, to teach others to obey the commands Jesus gave.

While part of, and important to us, God’s leading is much greater than directing out steps.

When you trust God’s promises and step out by faith (v.

3), you can be sure that the Lord will give you the directions you need when you need them

This promise that was given to Joshua is continued now, with us, through the Holy Spirit.

God showed his care for Joshua through his presence, his protection, his leading, his guidance.

God shows his care for his children through his presence.

God shows his care for you and me, through the Holy Spirit.

Through His Spirit, we are shaped, molded, formed into the image of Christ.

But like the people, we also must do the work.

We must take those steps, to confront the evil in our own lives.

The sin that raises its ugly head all too often.

The lesson for God’s people today is clear: God has given us “all spiritual blessings … in Christ” (Eph.

1:3), and we must step out by faith and claim them.

He has set before His church an open door that nobody can close (Rev.

3:8), and we must walk through that door by faith and claim new territory for the Lord.

It is impossible to stand still in Christian life and service; for when you stand still, you immediately start going backward.

“Let us go on!” is God’s challenge to His church (Heb.

6:1), and that means moving ahead into new territory.

God’s provision declared.

v. 6

It is because of God’s presence and provision that Joshua is commanded to be strong and courageous.