Be strong and courageous.
It well could be the anthem of the book of Joshua in the Old Testament as God calls and commissions Joshua to lead His people into the Promised Land. It’s spoken into his life in chapter 1 and it’s something that Joshua reminds the people as the book comes to a close in chapter 24.
As a church, we spent a few weeks looking through this ‘old book’ for some fresh principles and take-aways for us today. You can watch all the sermons here or in our app – download our free app.
The following is a list of the take-aways we discussed throughout the sermons in Joshua.
From beginning to end, the book of Joshua identifies ‘Yahweh’s’ commitment to fulfill his promises to Israel as the driving force behind its narratives. In this journey through Joshua we’ve seen:
-God called & commissions Joshua and he still calls and commissions each of us. (ch. 1)
-WE’RE TO FOLLOW FORWARD FAITHFULLY; we can’t follow perfectly, but it’s all about faithful progress in following God forward in the adventure He’s leading us on. (ch.1)
-God’s always looking – always at work drawing people toward Himself. Always active behind the scenes. (ch.2)
-God’s always in the business of providing “life-lines” for people looking toward him. Jesus is our ultimate “life-line” of hope. (ch.2)
-Making Memory Markers helps us remember God’s activity in our past and His promise to continue now and into the future. (ch.3&4)
-You never know what God will set in motion with one small step of obedience. This Jericho story reminds us to live by faith, to TRUST in God’s ways over our own cleverness. (ch.6)
-Story of Achin (ch. 7) reminds us that a regular rhythm of repentance keeps us relational right with God. We don’t minimize sin, but we maximize Jesus!
-Joshua challenges the people then and us today to CHOOSE God. Our Decisions drive the Direction we take in life and ultimately determine our Destination and Destiny. (ch.23)
-Culture and crowd influences will seek to get us to ‘turn’ its way & orient our lives around its values, rather than getting our bearings from God and following His lead. Commitment is a necessity of worship. Worship requires more than a superficial decision, it calls for our intentional allegiance – a willful decision. (ch.24:14-15). Jesus desires and deserves absolute love, not optional love. He gave his absolute best for us and now he deserves our best in return. We’re to choose Him – this day and the next day, and the next day…(repeat)…
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