From Wandering to Conquering
Part 2: From Wandering to Conquering • Sermon • Submitted
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From Wandering to Conquering
A Journey through Joshua
Joshua 1:10-18
And Joshua commanded the officers of the people, “Pass through the midst of the camp and command the people, ‘Prepare your provisions, for within three days you are to pass over this Jordan to go in to take possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving you to possess.’ ” And to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh Joshua said, “Remember the word that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, saying, ‘The Lord your God is providing you a place of rest and will give you this land.’ Your wives, your little ones, and your livestock shall remain in the land that Moses gave you beyond the Jordan, but all the men of valor among you shall pass over armed before your brothers and shall help them, until the Lord gives rest to your brothers as he has to you, and they also take possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving them. Then you shall return to the land of your possession and shall possess it, the land that Moses the servant of the Lord gave you beyond the Jordan toward the sunrise.” And they answered Joshua, “All that you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go. Just as we obeyed Moses in all things, so we will obey you. Only may the Lord your God be with you, as he was with Moses! Whoever rebels against your commandment and disobeys your words, whatever you command him, shall be put to death. Only be strong and courageous.”
No two leaders are ever exactly alike even if one is the mentor to the other. Such could be said of Moses and Joshua. Joshua had years serving under the leadership of Moses, but when he became the leader for the nation of Israel his responsibilities would differ from that of his predecessor.
As we discovered last week in the opening of Joshua, four factors are critical in transitioning from wandering to conquering. God’s calling, God’s timing, God’s promise and God’s presence. Leave out any of the four and you will quickly find yourself in dire straits of following Christ. Joshua understood his role would be different from that of Moses but nonetheless just as demanding. For as the people had promised loyalty to Moses and failed to honor their commitment so too would they do the same to Joshua.
As we shall see, and so well put by theologian David Howard, “The people’s words may have been well intentioned, but their use of this word—and what follows—makes it very clear where Joshua needed to look for help: not their obedience to him, but to God.” Take your copy of God’s Word and join with me in Joshua 1 as we continue learning how to go from wandering to conquering.
Read Joshua 1:10-18.
In their book, How to Break Growth Barriers, Carl F. George and Warren Bird argue that, “Effective leaders accomplish the work through others.” They cite Peter Wagner who says, “Pastors of growing churches, whether they be large or small, know how to motivate their laypeople, how to create structures which permit them to be active and productive, and how to guide them into meaningful avenues of Christian service.” They also cite one of my favorite authors Gary McIntosh who says, “What got your church to where it is will not get it to where you want it to be. . . . Larger churches are not just bigger versions of smaller churches; in reality they are an entirely different entity that requires different operational procedures.”
I don’t care who you are, if you think small you’re going to be small. If you think big you’re going to be big.
God had used Moses in one manner and now he planned to use Joshua in another. However, what was relevant than is still relevant today. If you intend to be on the move with God’s people, whether as a high school graduate or as a retired senior adult, our text is rich in guidance. Recognizing he was not to do it all, Joshua delegates to the people a simple strategy for readying to enter the Promised Land.
*Prepare provisions for yourself. (10-11)
-A trip of any length requires preparation, but the greater the trip the more preparation is required. The Israelites were preparing to cross the Jordan River during flood season and go in to possess the Promised Land. Under any circumstances this would be a monumental task, but as Joshua commanded they would begin the journey within three days.
-Ill.- Some of you have a tendency to start packing weeks in advance for a three-day trip and others of you wait until the night before to start packing to be gone for weeks. Regardless of how you prepare for such trips, the manner for which you prepare for life’s journey ought to be treated in a different respect.
-They were to prepare to cross the Jordan River. If you are to ever enter into the Promised Land that is referred to as heaven, then one day you too will cross a great river. From this life to the next. There is an old gospel song called, At the Crossing. Its lyrics read—There’s a river somewhere that’s called Jordan, and they say that it’s deep and wide; and they say that the king and the beggar on that shore will stand side by side. At the crossing of the Jordan, why should I be afraid? There’ll be Someone there who loves me, to guide me ‘cross the river to endless joys above. Though the river is dark and stormy, it will pass like a dream in the night; and my soul will awake in the morning in regions of endless delight.
- The Israelites were to prepare provisions necessary to cross the river and go in and possess the land the LORD was giving them. The only way you or anyone else can possess eternal life is through a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. You must repent of your sins and believe on Jesus and live for Him.
You don’t become perfect when you become a christian. However, we do become “complete.”
You can’t become an effective witness for Christ until you’ve spent time with Christ.
-Practical preparations: 1) Daily- unrushed time with the Lord every day, in His Word and in prayer. Pray for witnessing opportunities and boldness 2) Sunday worship- study your SS lesson, prayer for the Holy Spirit to move in your life, bring your copy of God’s word and prepare offering in advance.
-Preparation with God shows Jesus is a priority in your life.
**Remember the Word. (v.12)
-When the Israelites came into the valley on the east side of the Jordan River, some of the Israelites liked it so much they wanted to settle there. That group included the Reubenites, the Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh. As described in Numbers 32, these Israelites found their livelihood in livestock and they found the land east of the Jordan to be perfect for raising and maintaining livestock. They approached Moses with a request to stay there, but Moses told them it would be unfair for them to settle while the remainder went and fought for the Promised Land. They in turn made a promise to go and fight with their brethren and not return until the rest of Israel had settled as well. We find the response of Moses in Numbers 32:20-27.
So Moses said to them, “If you will do this, if you will take up arms to go before the Lord for the war, and every armed man of you will pass over the Jordan before the Lord, until he has driven out his enemies from before him and the land is subdued before the Lord; then after that you shall return and be free of obligation to the Lord and to Israel, and this land shall be your possession before the Lord. But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out. Build cities for your little ones and folds for your sheep, and do what you have promised.” And the people of Gad and the people of Reuben said to Moses, “Your servants will do as my lord commands. Our little ones, our wives, our livestock, and all our cattle shall remain there in the cities of Gilead, but your servants will pass over, every man who is armed for war, before the Lord to battle, as my lord orders.”
-When a follower of Christ makes a commitment to anyone he ought to keep his word. A man’s reputation is only as good as his word. Anyone who claims to be a Christ-follower and does not keep his word not only hurts his own reputation but also that of Christ’s.
A man’s reputation is only as good as His word.
-Moses assured these tribes if they failed to keep their word their sin would find them out. Ill.- Story concerning Phil Robertson this week of him having a 45-year-old daughter. Phil is a Christian but he has not always been and his wife Kay used to tell him his choices would catch up with him one day.
-God’s grace redeems us from guilt but it does not always remove every circumstance. Joshua was reminding them of the word Moses had commanded them and of the commitment they had made.
-It’s one matter to forget your own word of commitment, it is entirely a whole other matter to forget the word of God. You cannot expect to learn the word of God if you are not in the word of God.
-Two-fold challenge concerning God’s word:
1) Start bringing your Bible to church every time you come. 2) Memorize one verse per month.
-When you remember the word you are more likely to do the word. Joshua helped them remember by reminding them. Appreciate their response in vv. 16-18. They said, “We will do and we will go.” The very response these Israelites gave to Joshua is the very response we ought to give to Christ.
-When you make a commitment to follow Christ you don’t have the right to put restrictions on it. A “Yes” to Christ means He gets to invade every aspect of your life.
-Ill. GPS needing updated. Uncertain of where it would take you before. I can’t say where life will take you but I can say with Christ in it, you will be prepared.