When It Is Time To Say Goodbye

Introduction

There are many events in the Book of Joshua that are worthy of studying. We have only just hit on a few. I hope you will take the time to read all of this book and ask God to reveal to you to same wisdom that He revealed to Joshua. As with most men and women of God portrayed in the Bible, we see that life is coming to an end. If we pay close attention, we can see many lessons we can learn and apply to our lives right now. Let’s look at Joshua 23:14-16

Joshua 23:14–16 NIV84

14 “Now I am about to go the way of all the earth. You know with all your heart and soul that not one of all the good promises the Lord your God gave you has failed. Every promise has been fulfilled; not one has failed. 15 But just as every good promise of the Lord your God has come true, so the Lord will bring on you all the evil he has threatened, until he has destroyed you from this good land he has given you. 16 If you violate the covenant of the Lord your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, the Lord’s anger will burn against you, and you will quickly perish from the good land he has given you.”

As Joshua came to the end of his life, he shows us four things that we can do to prepare ourselves for the end of life as well.

Realize (vs. 14)

First, we must realize that life will come to an end. Joshua says “I am about to go the way all of the earth.” This is the cold truth.

The Cold Truth

We all will die. Many people think they are invincible. They think they do live anyway they want, do anything they want, and have no worries in the world. By the way, do you know what the last words of a redneck are? There’s two versions: One, “Hold my beer.” The second one is, “Hey, y’all watch this!”

The Bible tells us that there are three people that did not die. The first mentioned is Enoch. Genesis 5:24

Genesis 5:24 NIV84

24 Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.

The second is Melchizedek. This is also mentioned in Genesis but Hebrews 7:1-3

Hebrews 7:1–3 NIV84

1 This Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High. He met Abraham returning from the defeat of the kings and blessed him, 2 and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, his name means “king of righteousness”; then also, “king of Salem” means “king of peace.” 3 Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, like the Son of God he remains a priest forever.

The third is Elijah. 2 Kings 2:11-12

2 Kings 2:11–12 NIV84

11 As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. 12 Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Then he took hold of his own clothes and tore them apart.

Unless God does something different for us than what has happened to everyone except these three, we will come to an end of our life at some point. The death rate is 100%. Matthew Henry wrote, “To die is to go on a journey, a journey to our long home; it is a way of all the earth, the way that all mankind must go sooner or later.”

Joshua is right to realize this cold truth. He also realizes a clear testimony.

The Clear Testimony

The clear testimony is that not one of the promises of the Lord your God gave you has failed. He reiterates this by declaring that every promise of God has been fulfilled. This is a simple reminder of the credible trust we can have in our God.

The Credible Trust

God is true to His word. The Bible shows this throughout each of the 66 books that it contains. Joshua 21:45

Joshua 21:45 NIV84

45 Not one of all the Lord’s good promises to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.

What a track record our God has! Every promise is fulfilled. When we realize the cold truth, the clear testimony, and the credible trust, we can assured that death is inevitable, but we can also be prepared for it.

Remember (vs. 15)

Verse 15 helps us realize the importance of remembering.

The Promises of God

The promises of God are found throughout the Bible. For example,

Jeremiah 33:14 NIV84

14 “ ‘The days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will fulfill the gracious promise I made to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.

We see that the promises of God are called good, but we also see that God will bring the opposite of good to those who oppose Him. His promises to punish are just as true as His promises for good.

1 Kings 14:10 NIV84

10 “ ‘Because of this, I am going to bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam. I will cut off from Jeroboam every last male in Israel—slave or free. I will burn up the house of Jeroboam as one burns dung, until it is all gone.

Isaiah 24:6 NIV84

6 Therefore a curse consumes the earth; its people must bear their guilt. Therefore earth’s inhabitants are burned up, and very few are left.

What we forget about these promises of destruction due to disobedience, is that they also show us the passion of our God.

The Passion of God

What is the passion of our God? He desires holiness. 1 Peter 1:15-16

1 Peter 1:15–16 NIV84

15 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”

God’s desire for us to be holy helps us remember the persistence of God.

The Persistence of God

What is the persistence of God? He gave us His all so we could experience Him fully.

Romans 5:8 NIV84

8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

The promises of God, the passion of God, and the persistence of God should compel us to remove some things from our lives to be the holy people He desires.

Remove (vs. 16)

Joshua 23:16 NIV84

16 If you violate the covenant of the Lord your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, the Lord’s anger will burn against you, and you will quickly perish from the good land he has given you.”

The Idols of Destruction

We are to remove the idols of destruction. What are these idols? Anything that comes in between our Holy God and His people are idols of destruction. For some it may be money. For some it may be drugs and alcohol. For some it may be unholy relationships. For some it may a career. But for all, it is putting self first. James 3:16

James 3:16 NIV84

16 For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.

We are to remove the idols of destruction.

The Instruments of Delusion

We are to also remove the instruments of delusion. Since the Garden of Eden, the devil has tried to fake us out. He tells us we can do things for ourselves and we do not have worry about any consequence.

Genesis 3:1 NIV84

1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

Joshua warned the people here that you cannot be deceived that all will be well for those that are unfaithful to Him and His ways!

The Indicators of Denial

We even today, need to beware of the indicators of denial. We say that God is love and He would never do harm to His people. The truth is that God is love and God is holy. There is no room to serve others gods and for us to yield to them. Remember the first of the Ten Commandments? Exodus 20:3

Exodus 20:3 NIV84

3 “You shall have no other gods before me.

We see this again in Joshua 24:19

Joshua 24:19 NIV84

19 Joshua said to the people, “You are not able to serve the Lord. He is a holy God; he is a jealous God. He will not forgive your rebellion and your sins.

Yet, God desires for us to realign with Him.

Realign (Joshua 24:1-29)

We are not going to take the time to read these verses from Joshua 24 but I want to give you the example of Joshua he lays out here for us.

Affirm with a Covenant

First, Joshua calls the leaders together in Shechem. Remember what Shechem was a word for? It is shoulder or back. It symbolizes bearing the burden. Joshua knows his time is short so he calls upon his leaders to make a covenant to carry the load. Many of you need to pass the torch so to speak on to your loved ones. Let them do the work you have trained them to do. Let them carry on. Hebrews 13:1

Hebrews 13:1 NIV84

1 Keep on loving each other as brothers.

That is God’s desire. Every dying mother and father wants their children to keep on loving each other. Years after Hebrews 13 :1 was written, Jackie DeShannon released a song that summed it up. It was 1965 when she released it. The first words were, “What the world needs now, is love sweet love. It’s the only thing there’s too little of...” Four years later in 1969, she released another song. It’s first few lines were “Think of your fellow man, lend him a helping hand, put a little love in your heart.” Interestingly, that is something we still need today is it not? God wants us to be in a covenant relationship with Him, just like he did when Joshua’s time on earth was about to be done. Joshua desired it too! We should desire it all the time, especially as we prepare for the end of life.

Accept the Chastening

Another thing Joshua declares is that the people should expect and respect as well as accept the chastening that comes from the Father. When my father disciplined me, I did not like it. However, Ray Marlowe instilled in me right from wrong. When the chastening happened, most of the time I deserved much more than what I got. I am reminded of this in my Heavenly Father.

Hebrews 4:12 NIV84

12 For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

The double edge sword penetrates, divides and judges. I must accept the chastening and I should expect it when I am disobedient. The end of life lesson here is to teach and testify about the Sovereignty of God. Just as He is faithful to love, He is faithful to punish when I need punishment, yet He continues to redeem me because of the blood of Christ! Therefore, I must move away from any compromise that takes me away from His Holiness.

Away from the Compromise

Romans 12:1–2 NLT

1 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

As we come to the end of our lives, we must be examples continuously of a living and holy sacrifice. We do not compromise the word of God. We stand for it! We live by it! And we die by it!

I want to share with you three ways to apply these principles that Joshua gives us.

Application

Isaiah 38:1 NIV84

1 In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.”

Refuse to leave your house out of order. What do you need to do to get your house in order?

Secondly, leave a legacy that your children know you are a child of God.

Romans 8:16–17 NIV84

16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

Refuse to leave your family without a legacy. What do you need to do to point your family to Christ?

Lastly, none of this can happen unless you know Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior.

Romans 10:9–10 NIV84

9 That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.

Refuse to leave this earth not ready to meet your Maker. What do you need to do to make sure you have a relationship with Christ?