Standing on the Promises: Faith and Obedience in the Journey from Moses to Joshua | Joshua 1

1st Baptist, baptist El Dorado, will you join me now in listening to our sermon from this week?

I am thrilled to be with you this morning.

Let's pray together and then I want to walk through Joshua 1, 1 through 9, as we begin a new series over the next few weeks.

Walking through Joshua, called Standing on the Promises of God, but first, verse 6 of our passage be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them.

Let me pray, lord Jesus, by your spirit, would you speak this morning.

We need a fresh word from you.

And so Lord, speak to us, teach us, transform us.

We ask In Christ's name, amen.

The three most haunting, frustrating, maybe powerful, words in TV history.

You know them, you've seen them the words to be continued.

You've seen these words before, to be continued.

Now, in an age of streaming, these words have somewhat lost their power because nowadays, when you see the words to be continued, a lot of times you can just press a button and you can continue right then.

But there was a day when you saw those words.

You had to wait minimum until the next week, oftentimes until the next season, six or eight months down the road to figure out what happens next.

And the greatest example of this slightly before my time, but many of you were probably in the mix in this moment was the TV show Dallas, when, on March, the 21st of 1980, a gunman opened fire on JR and the world spent the summer wondering who shot JR.

Who was it?

And in November of 1980, the show came back and guys, this blew me away.

90 million people tuned in.

Now, the Super Bowl before that, earlier that year, 76 million people tuned in For this episode, 90 million people tuned in to see the answer, the to be continued who shot JR?

And if it's been in your recordings for 40 years and you haven't watched it yet, I'm sorry, kristen did it and I'm sorry to spoil that, but Kristen was the one To be continued.

It has so much power, doesn't it?

Because we want to know what's next.

Where do we go from here?

We've been left on this cliffhanger.

Where do we go now?

And Joshua is really a to-be-continued moment from the first five books of Scripture, where we've seen God take this, people, starting with Abraham, start to form this nation, but then there's conflict.

We have our people in Egypt, but they've been delivered out and now they're on the edge of the promised land.

To be continued.

What happens now?

And so, as we open the text, I want us to see two things this morning that in this to be continued.

The truth is this really?

Three things that the mission of God will continue, the nearness of God will continue and therefore our obedience to God should continue.

But first is this the mission of God will continue.

Look at verses 1 and the first few words of verse 2.

After the death of Moses, the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua, the son of Nun, moses' assistant look at this, moses, my servant, is dead.

Now that's bad news.

It seems like really really bad news.

Where do we go from here?

Seems like really really bad news.

Where do we go from here?

Here's our to be continued.

How will this continue?

Because Moses, my servant, is dead, and whatever way we can build up the leadership, value and power of Moses, we're probably not doing it enough justice, because this was Moses.

This was God's leader, chosen by God at the burning bush.

This was the one that called the people out of Egypt.

This is the one who stood on the edge of the Red Sea as God parted the waters.

This is Moses who went up to Sinai, received the law.

This is Moses who's literally the reason the people of God are still alive.

There's a moment in Exodus 32, the people of God have bowed down to this golden calf and God talks to Moses and says you know what it may be time to be done with these people and I can start fresh with you.

And Moses intercedes for the people of God and in that moment, has this conversation with God and, in God's good faithfulness and grace, allows this people to continue.

But this is who Moses is, the one whose scripture says he talked to God face to face.

And here's the problem with that Moses is dead now.

Sorry to be blunt, but that's how blunt scripture is.

Moses, my servant is dead now.

Sorry to be blunt, but that's how blunt scripture is Moses, my servant is dead.

And so now we see what this is from the lens of Moses now, just from the lens of the people.

Where have we been?

I mentioned a second ago God called this people, but when they came out of Egypt, they were heading to the promised land.

They get to a place called Kadesh Barnea.

And they came out of Egypt, they were heading to the promised land.

They get to a place called Kadesh Barnea and they send out 12 spies into the promised land.

Two spies come back, joshua and Caleb, and they've got faith.

That's unbelievable.

They say first of all, god's with us, let's go.

God's asked us to, he's with us, we won't have a problem here.

Ten of the spies come back and say there's no chance.

I've seen the people, I've seen the land.

We cannot do it.

Spoiler alert again who do you think they go with?

They go with the 10.

And then, because of their disobedience, what should have been a journey of only a few days to the promised land turns into a 40-year journey to the promised land, turns into a 40-year journey, wandering in the wilderness, because of their disobedience.

And this generation has now passed away.

This new generation has risen and now they're supposed to be led by one of those original spies, joshua.

They're on the edge of the river, it's time to cross in the land, but once again, moses, my servant, is dead.

Where in the world do we go from here?

But I want us to look at verse 2 again, moses, my servant is dead.

Here's this to be continued moment.

How will God continue the story?

Well, good news for God.

We don't have to wait till the next, we don't have to wait till the next week, we don't have to wait till the next season.

Verse two Moses, my servant, is dead.

Now.

Therefore, arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel.

Did you catch that the great Moses has died?

Now what do we do?

Arise, go to the land I've given you.

Basically, this God says this nothing changes, you're to go forward.

And here's what I want to see.

The mission of God is not bound by God's workers.

One preacher, robert Smith Jr, says it like this God buries his workers, but he does not bury his work.

That the mission of God never ceases to go forward.

And so, even in this moment, when this great leader has passed away and we're tempted to wonder how in the world will God's mission continue, we see a God that is more than capable and able to continue his work through whoever he so chooses.

Now, this should encourage us this morning that God's mission is not bound by God's worker.

Simply because of this, there are times when I don't feel like every bit of the worker for God that I should be that I don't feel like God?

How could you possibly use someone like me?

Maybe you felt this way too.

How could God use me?

How can I be in service of the Lord?

Am I enough, am I able?

Is God willing to use me?

Where I've been, where I've come from, all these things?

Can God really use me?

Well, the good news is this God is God all by himself, and he will use and can use whoever he delights to use, will use and can use whoever he delights to use and he delights to use those who are willing to be used by him.

So it should encourage us, but it should also humble us.

I hope you know me enough by now and we'll get to know each other better, but enough to know my heart and how much I already love you all, and so I'm going'm gonna give us all a hard truth this morning, but I hope you already know it's in love and here it is.

God does not need us.

Do you know that I'm not picking on you?

God does not need me, he doesn't need you, he doesn't need me.

I'll say it and you know I love this place because I told you two weeks ago I'm learning the history, I'm loving the place.

He doesn't even need a First Baptist Church of El Dorado.

God is God without any of us.

God's mission will continue without any of us.

So this should humble us, but it should excite us and it should honor us.

Why?

Because God doesn't need me, but again, god delights to use us.

God doesn't have to use us.

His mission can be accomplished without us, but in his good grace he delights to use us.

Should it humble us Absolutely?

Should it encourage us?

Oh, all the more that you and I can be a part of the mission of God, because we have a God that desires and delights to use his servants in his mission.

Now look at this in verse 3.

Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon, I have given to you just as I promised to Moses From the wilderness in this Lebanon as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites to the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your territory.

No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life.

Let's stop right there.

We see this.

Look first at verse 3.

It's interesting language and I want us to look at this for a second Every place that the sole of your foot will tread.

That sounds like a future, tense reality, doesn't it?

So every place the sole of your feet look at this will tread, the place you are going.

And then the verse continues I have given you.

Now, this sounds like a past, tense reality.

Once again, everywhere your foot will tread, this is where you're going.

That's the land that I, what, have given you.

It's a done deal.

I have already given you the land, I have already given you the land.

And so are we treading on the land to claim the land, or has God given us the land already?

The answer to that is yes.

This is the connection we see throughout Scripture of God's sovereignty and human responsibility.

God's sovereignty and human responsibility that God is God all by himself.

We know that God plus one is a majority.

Why is that true?

Because God plus zero is a majority.

God is God all by himself.

He is sovereign, he is, above all, he is able to do it.

He has given the land.

But then, on the other side, human responsibility.

He calls us to play a part in it.

He calls the people of God to go into the land, be bold, to take the land that he has already given us.

This God's sovereignty and human responsibility.

We see it all throughout Scripture.

We see it all throughout the Christian life.

Think about our own sanctification, the process of becoming more like Christ.

Well, who is doing that?

Well, of course the Holy Spirit is doing that.

The Holy Spirit is the one that is making that sanctification happen.

Does that mean I just sit back on the couch and say the Holy Spirit's taking care of this one?

No, I dive into the Word of God, I dive into prayer, I fellowship with the Lord and with other believers.

I take an active part in my sanctification.

God uses this idea of God's sovereignty and human responsibility working together all throughout our lives, and we see it here.

But look at verse 5.

No man will stand against you all the days of your life.

Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you.

I will not leave you or forsake you.

Verse 6.

Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them.

This idea of I will be with you leads us right into our second point, that the nearness of God will continue.

So not only will the mission of God continue.

The nearness of God will continue.

We look at Moses and we say now that was someone who was near to God.

Or should we say God was near to him?

Surely the people of God and Joshua, as great as he is, surely there's going to be a step back in communion with God.

Surely there's going to be a step back in the nearness of God.

God will have none of that.

Just as I was with Moses, I will be with you.

I will not leave you.

I will not forsake you.

And Joshua must have needed this in this moment because he knew Moses.

He knew the power that was there.

He knew just how gifted of a leader he was.

He was Moses's assistant all along.

He had the closest look of anybody as to who Moses was and how he operated.

And now Moses has gone and they're asking him to take these thousands upon thousands of people across this river into the land.

You better believe that he needed this message that the Lord will be with him, be strong and courageous.

And here's what I imagine.

He didn't probably feel strong and courageous.

That's why he needed this word.

But the strength and the courage wasn't based on how Joshua felt.

It was based on the God who makes this possible.

It was based on the God who was with Joshua, and that's the God who says I won't leave you, I'll be with you, be strong and courageous.

And I wonder this morning if you've needed these words in your own life, in your own moments when you've stood on the edge of the Jordan River and you've looked out upon a task, a life situation, a moment in your own life that just felt too big, too great, too new, too unknown, and you've needed that simple promise that I will be with you.

Those Jordan River moments when suddenly you get word from the doctor and the diagnosis isn't good.

You know that things are about to change and the next months of your life will include many hospital visits, hospital stays.

Things are about to look different.

Those Jordan River moments of the first holiday without that loved one in your life, the first Thanksgiving without mom, the first Christmas without dad, when things are so different and you don't know exactly how everything's going to work and you just need to know the presence of God is with you.

Those Jordan River moments when maybe you and your spouse have prayed and prayed and prayed for a child and as you get on social media you see pregnancy announcement, gender reveal over and over and you just wonder, god, are you even hearing my prayers?

And you needed these promises, or maybe a financial hardship, a moment when the first and the 15th couldn't seem further apart, and there's always a lot more month than there is money and things just aren't adding up for you and it's just a hard time and you've had to wonder God, do you hear me?

Are you faithful?

I just want you to know this morning, in every one of these Jordan River moments when we don't even know if we're able, that we serve a promise-keeping God, a God who is so very near to us.

I wondered this week just how good God is at keeping his promise.

And you know, I looked at, maybe, how other professions are good at doing what they do best.

I look at Major League Baseball Blows me away that if you fail seven out of ten times they're going to put you in the Hall of Fame.

Okay, ted Williams, maybe the greatest hitter of all time, career batting average 344.

But that also means six and a half times he went up to the plate he didn't get a hit.

Steph Curry the greatest three-point shooter of all time his career three-point percentage up to this point is 42%.

That's unbelievable.

But six out of 10, don't go in, but that's still great.

Tom Brady maybe the best quarterback of all time.

We can have the debate.

What is his career completion percentage?

It's sitting at 64%.

Now, that's really good.

That's really really good, which is interesting because in my time in school I brought home some 64% my parents, they didn't think it was as good, but 64% on the football field is very, very good, but that's what our best athletes do.

And then I ask this question what's God batting?

What's God shooting?

When I think about the promises of God, and depending on who you ask, there's 3,000 to 4,000 promises of God in Scripture, depending on really, how you define the promise proper.

One came up with over 7,000 times God has made a promise in Scripture.

What's his average on completing his promise?

I think you know this.

I don't think you need to go to the statistic reference website online to figure this out.

I think you know God is batting a thousand on keeping his promises.

His completion percentage a hundred, 100%.

The only promises in scripture that you can find that have not been kept are just promises that have not been kept yet, simply because they're referring to the last days when Christ Jesus will return.

And let me just tell you you can take that one to the bank, because our God is a promise keeping God, and so I want you to know this morning, when you come to the text and you read a promise of God, that promise is for you and that promise will be kept.

And so when you read in this moment that I will be with you.

Yes, he was talking to Joshua, but he's talking to you as you stand beside your Jordan River wondering what's next and your life looks like a giant to be continued and, if you're honest, you do not know how it will continue.

God says I will be with you.

Maybe you've wondered can God forgive my sin?

Can God really cleanse me?

Does he know what I've done?

Does he know where I've been?

And you need to run to that promise we said earlier in 1 John 1, 9.

If I confess he's faithful and just to forgive, the promise is true.

Maybe you've even wondered is God's salvation really for me?

Could he really save someone like me?

As we said earlier, really for me?

Could he really save someone like me?

As we said earlier, romans 10, 9,.

If I confess, if I believe God raised him from the dead, I will be saved.

Maybe you've set in a place of just brokenness as life seems to be crumbling around you in a Psalm like 34, 18 that says God is near the who, the high and the holy, the impressive, the elite no, god is near the brokenhearted.

Maybe you've set in a funeral of someone you love so deeply and you wonder how life goes on and you just need God's promise, what Jesus says in John 14, 1 through 3, that in my father's house there are many rooms.

If it were not so, would I not have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?

And this gives you the encouragement you need in that moment.

Maybe you've looked at the news and looked at the brokenness of our world and you've wondered Christ Jesus, when will you come again?

And you need the promise of Revelation 22 that Christ says surely I am coming soon.

That Christ says surely I am coming soon.

When we see a promise in Scripture, we can lean on it with everything we have, because we serve our faithful, promise-keeping God.

And, as we see with Joshua, we know with us as well that the nearness of God, just like the mission of God, the nearness of God, just like the mission of God, the nearness of God will not end and therefore that leads us to this Our obedience to God should continue.

Our obedience to God should continue.

I want to read verses 7 through 9.

Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses, my servant, commanded.

You Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go.

This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it, for then you will make your way prosperous and then you will have good success.

So, after this language of I am with you, be strong and courageous, I'm going with you.

You have this language of obedience Be strong and courageous and be obedient in the land.

Basically, this be the people that God has called you to be in the land that God has given you.

This is a lifestyle of obedience.

You have language here in the text of this is something you're thinking about.

This is something you're doing night and day.

This is not one act of obedience.

Again, this is a lifestyle of obedience, and what does God say will happen?

It will cause you to have success and be prosperous in the land.

And we see that time and time again.

We see it.

We'll see it in a few weeks at Jericho, when they are obedient to God, even when the plan seems almost silly.

Just march around the city seven times and then the walls will come down.

Well, I've never seen that strategy before.

But they're obedient.

And what does it lead to?

Their success?

But we see the other end of it with disobedience at ai.

They treat god more like a mascot than the sovereign god of the universe, and the success isn't there.

Aiken takes things for his own that he shouldn't have taken.

They don't see success there, and so god is now calling us to a worshipful obedience.

But I want to ask this question.

We talked earlier about God's sovereignty and human responsibility.

Doesn't it feel like the second half of Joshua?

Now we're just at this point of this passage at least.

Isn't that just all human responsibility?

Isn't that God just saying, hey, if you'll be obedient, I'll do what I promise and you'll have a good time there in the land and be successful.

If you'll be obedient, you know I'll do what I promise and you'll have a good time there in the land and be successful.

And if you'll be disobedient, not so much.

Well, I want us to think about something this morning.

Now, this will be hard for you to imagine in your head, because surely this doesn't happen.

But say, I got home from church today and it just so happened that James, my four-year-old maybe, left a few toys out on his way out of the house this morning.

Again, never happens.

Four-year-olds clean up after themselves all the time.

But let's say I get home and a few toys have been left out and I look at James and I say James, could you go clean your room?

Could you go clean your room, could you pick up your toys?

And for the sake of this illustration, I have now given him that command.

Now he has a choice before him.

He can go, do it, and that will lead to success.

He could certainly not do it and maybe less success.

It may be that the Paw Patrol tower has to get taken away for a period of time.

I don't know how this will unfold.

I can tell you next week.

But say, I give him that command today.

Think about this for a moment.

There's something implied in that command isn't there.

There's something implied in the command go clean your room.

There's something implied in the command go clean up your toys.

And that's this.

If I command James go clean your room, it's totally based on the fact that what there is a room to clean.

If I tell him go pick up your toys, it is 100% based on the fact that there are toys to pick up.

Because for Katie and I, our love and our care and our provision predates our commands.

Our love for James, what we've provided for him, the way we desire him to live and we want him to have a home and we want him to love it and have a space.

That predates any commands I've been given or he's been given.

I want you to know that in the Christian life, god's love and his care and his provision predates his commands for us.

Remember this is the land that God is giving them, that really God has given them, and now, within the land, he calls them to faithfulness, but it's based on the fact that God has already done the work to create relationship for the people of God.

I want you to catch this that in the Christian life, the indicative always fuels the imperative, the who we are always fuels what we do, that we are those in relationship with God, saved and forgiven by Christ Jesus.

We have been justified and now that is our relational standing and that indicative of who we are now fuels what we do.

And here's what we want to do.

So often we want to flip the equation, don't we?

We want to say what I do fuels who I am, so that if before God, I can be really, really good and I can do what he asked me to do and I can say what he asked me to say and I can not do the things he doesn't ask me to do, and I can do what he asked me to do and I can say what he asked me to say and I can not do the things he doesn't ask me to do, and I can kind of build this credit and I can be good enough and I can earn my way, then I will have favor and relational standing with God.

But that's not how the gospel works.

Instead, we realize who we are in Christ and we let that reality fuel our obedience.

This is the gospel.

Think about when you were saved.

Were you saved.

When you had it all figured out?

Were you saved when you totally had cleaned yourself up, or were you saved like romans?

5 8 says that while we were yet sinners, christ died for us while we had nothing to bring to the table.

Carl bart the theologian was once asked when he was saved, and I think the individual was probably looking for a date in time in his own life and his answer was this 33 AD, that Christ has already done the work.

Christ has already done everything to bring me in relationship with him.

And now I get to live my life fueled by that gospel, in worshipful obedience, in response to what he has already done.

As we return to the text, we see a people that have been given all things by God.

They were in slavery in Egypt and God has graciously freed them and is leading them to this new land.

And now, in response, god says follow me in worshipful obedience.

And verse nine have I not commanded you be strong and courageous, do not be frightened, do not be dismayed.

Look at this, for the Lord, your God, is with you wherever you go.

Moses, my servant, is dead, but even in that moment, the mission of God continues.

The nearness of God continues.

The nearness of God continues, and based on that church.

I pray that our obedience to God will continue.

And so this whole series really is each week kind of a to be continued what happens next, and we'll see.

Throughout Joshua, we'll answer some of these questions of how will they respond?

Will they be obedient to God in the land?

There's going to be some days we're really proud of them.

There's going to be some days where we're not so proud of them, but each week we're going to see.

But really this book leads us to a to be continued that goes all through scripture, because as we see the story of Joshua, we see the people of God being set up in the land and that will lead to God providing them a king, one king in particular, named David.

That will lead to David having a great, great, great on down, grandson, and his name is Jesus, jesus, and that will lead us to the cross, to the resurrection, to life.

So this dramatic, beautiful to be continued, it does continue and it continues all the way to an empty grave.

And so I look forward to this and I pray today that you would rejoice in the simple fact, once again, god's mission continues, god's nearness continues, church, would our obedience continue?

In just a moment.

I'm going to pray for us and we'll worship a little more, but maybe this morning you'd like to respond.

Maybe this morning you want to know Jesus personally.

I'd love to introduce you to him.

Maybe this morning you want to join this faith family and be a part of what is going on here at this church.

Maybe your response this morning is just to sit right where you're at and pray and thank God again for his promises, thank God again for his nearness and his goodness.

However, you need to respond.

I ask that you would.

This morning, let me pray for us.

Lord Jesus, I do thank you that you are faithful to us, that your goodness to us does not end.

Your nearness to us does not end.

Your faithfulness to us does not end.

Your faithfulness to us does not end.

And would we be a people that are found faithful, faithful to serve and obey you, based on what you have already done for us?

Lord Jesus, I thank you that, though we are unworthy, you're willing to use us.

You delight to use us.

What a gift that is.

And so, lord, let us be people ready and willing to be used by you.

I pray for the person in the room this morning that just has a decision to make this morning.

Maybe it's trusting you for the first time.

Maybe it's coming to be a part of this church.

Maybe it's just a decision to make this morning.

Maybe it's trusting you for the first time.

Maybe it's coming to be a part of this church.

Maybe it's just a decision in their own heart.

I just pray that you give them the boldness to make that decision.

I ask this in Christ's name, amen.