Faith

Joshua 1:1–8 (KJV 1900)

1 Now after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord it came to pass, that the Lord spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, saying,

2 Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel.

3 Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses.

4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast.

5 There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.

6 Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.

7 Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest.

8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

Quote: “Courage is not the absence of fear, but ignoring one’s fear to do

what is needed and what is right.”

Quote: “Godly courage is ignoring the fear of failure when attempting

great things for God.”

“And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people are yet too many; bring them

down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there: and it shall be, that

of whom I say unto thee, This shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee;

and of whomsoever I say unto thee, This shall not go with thee, the same

shall not go.” (Judges 7:4)

“Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and

with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD

of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. 46 This day

will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand...” (1 Samuel 17:45–46)

“If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it

us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. 9 Only rebel not ye against

the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us:

their defense is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them

not.” (Numbers 14:8–9)

Joshua the deliverer typifies Jesus

“For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the

south, but God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another.”

(Psalm 75:6)

How could Joshua, at 80 years old, have the courage to defeat established nations

1. Faith In GOD’S Promises (Joshua 1:2–4

Joshua 1:2–4 KJV 1900

2 Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. 3 Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses. 4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast.

Quote: “With God’s calling comes God’s enabling—and He enables

through Spirit and His Word.”

We are Told the Hebrews

What would God allow you to do

A. God Had Promised to

A LAND IS GIVEN

“For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy

seed for ever. 16 And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth:

so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy

seed also be numbered. 17 Arise, walk through the land in the

length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee.”

(Genesis 13:15–17)

A CLAIM MUST BE MADE

God Has Personal responsibility must be

“Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have

I given unto you, as I said unto Moses.” (Joshua 1:3)“Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.” (James 2:18)

New missionaries

Quote: “God is looking for people through whom He can do the

impossible. What a shame that we plan only those things we can

do on our own efforts…”

By faith claim

cross a river

Goals for greater things for God’s glory

B. God Has Promised to us His power

HIS POWER

“And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given

unto me in heaven and in earth. 19 Go ye therefore, and teach

all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the

Son, and of the Holy Ghost:” (Matthew 28:18–19)

“I am with you” His promises are enough to act on

“And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock

I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail

against it.” (Matthew 16:18)

What if there is another pandemic

What if the government tries to restrict the church

HIS PROVISION

“But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in

glory by Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19)

Some my look at the church and scoff at how little physically we have

Our work is just getting started

“But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our

Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:57)

How can i with my schedule

With my health problems

Through our Lord Jesus Christ

2. Security in God’s Presence

Joshua 1:5 KJV 1900

5 There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.

“And Moses went and spake these words unto all Israel. 2 And he said

unto them, I am an hundred and twenty years old this day; I can no

more go out and come in: also the LORD hath said unto me, Thou

shalt not go over this Jordan. 3 The LORD thy God, he will go over

before thee, and he will destroy these nations from before thee, and

thou shalt possess them: and Joshua, he shall go over before thee, as

the LORD hath said.” (Deuteronomy 31:1–3)

A fresh word of promise

A fresh word of encouragement

A. God’s Presence Protects

Hurting

Addicted

Lonely

How do we help them?

In the power of God’s presence!

Our country is going further and further

Stress levels are increasing

People are overwhelmed

Divorce rates increase

people are stressed

The Gospel is the answer, Jesus will

Moses said:

“And he said unto him, If thy presence go not with me, carry us

not up hence.” (Exodus 33:15)

It is not logical to try to help

7 nations of the canaanites needed to be defeated

“These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have

peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good

cheer; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

“For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is

the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. 5 Who is

he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is

the Son of God?” (1 John 5:4–5)

B. God’s Presence Gives Courage

Illustration of my young son feeling strong with dad after being picked on

Quote: “Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the

assessment that something else is more important than fear.”

—Franklin D. Roosevelt

Speak truth instead of being fearful

Take the step of faith

“What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can

be against us? 32 He that spared not his own Son, but delivered

him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us

all things?” (Romans 8:31–32)

“And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted

up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over

against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua

went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our

adversaries? 14 And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host

of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the

earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord

unto his servant?” (Joshua 5:13–14)

“Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content

with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave

thee, nor forsake thee. 6 So that we may boldly say, The Lord

is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.”

(Hebrews 13:5–6)

Quote: “The will of God will never lead you where the grace of

God cannot keep you.”—Unknown

3. Stability In God’s Precepts

Joshua 1:7–8 KJV 1900

7 Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest. 8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

A. Must Not Be

Quote: “Jesus established the model for Christian leaders. It

is not found in his “methodology.” Rather, it is his absolute

obedience to the Father’s will.”

“15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that

needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

16 But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase

unto more ungodliness.” (2 Timothy 2:15–16)

B. Must Be

Quote: “Leadership begins with who we are, not what we do.”

THE PURPOSE OF MEDITATION

Quote: “While we are zealously performing the duties of good

citizens and soldiers, we certainly ought not to be inattentive

to the higher duties of religion. To the distinguished character

of Patriot, it should be our highest glory to add the more

distinguished character of Christian.”—George Washington

THE PROCESS OF MEDITATION

Quote: “Spiritual leadership flows out of a person’s vibrant,

intimate relationship with God.”

Quote: “The most important thing I had to do was to read the

Word of God and to meditate on it. Thus, my heart might be

comforted, encouraged, warned, reproved, and instructed.”

—George Muller

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom;

teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns

and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the

Lord.” (Colossians 3:16)

Quote: “The Bible is the best of all books, for it is the word of

God and teaches us the way to be happy in this world and in the

next.”—John Jay

CONCLUSION

“The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? 2 The LORD

is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? 3 When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, They stumbled and fell.” (Psalm 27:1–3)